Suzuko Mimori's Natalie Interview (2014): Part One

--- First of all, when I seen the track list for “Suki,” I was really surprised. “Glory!” “Yume Miru! Shinjiru! Mirai Kanaete!” “Minna de Hey- Oh!!”… There’s so many exclamation marks! (Lol)

Mimo: Hahaha

--- Practically all the songs are cheerful and positive, and there’s no ballad (lol). So, I was really curious what kind of person can sing such bright and positive songs as these. I ended up checking out some of your older interviews you had done.

Mimo: Thank you (lol)

--- Unfortunately, I was unable to firmly grasp or confirm exactly what makes you so positive. So first of all, I would like for you to give us a brief biography of how you became the person you are today. From your time in high school to your dance and voice lessons.

Mimo: I started practicing even younger than that. I was in elementary school. I studied ballet.

--- Why ballet?

Mimo: I went to a friend’s ballet recital and thought I wanted to wear cute clothes and dance, too. My dad is in love with classical music, so we already had a lot of ballet music records. Because of that it was already such a strong presence in my life.

--- Were you an active child?

Mimo: I was definitely one of those kids that was really active at home but shy and reserved in public (lol). Whenever I would go out, I would be a really quiet and well-behaved little girl. Since my sister is a year younger than me, I would act like the mature older sister so that I could fit in more with the adults. But whenever we went home, my mischievousness would set in. Everyone would be sitting there relaxing after supper, and I would slide open a screen door like it was a curtain and begin putting on a show for everyone (lol). I was such an attention hog, but felt like I couldn’t really show that part of myself in public.

--- Didn’t it take a lot of courage to do a ballet recital?

Mimo: Well, I did like doing things in front of other people. When I was just practicing regularly, I didn’t show off much. But whenever it came time to go on stage, I became super excited. Like, “I’m so happy! Everyone, look at me!” (Lol)

--- You didn’t become a ballerina, but now you’re a voice actress and a vocalist.

Mimo: Of course, when I was in elementary school my dream was to become a ballerina. But when I was in middle school, I became obsessed with Takarazuka and wanted to become a Takarazuka performer. I even studied under a vocal teacher and took the exam to go to the Takarazuka Music School.

--- So, you made it until the final exam, right?

Mimo: Yes. I was pretty confident since I lasted up until that point, but I ultimately failed the final exam. It was definitely frustrating. “Well, musical theater isn’t just Takarazuka,” I pouted. (Lol)

--- “I didn’t necessarily want to be admitted anyway.” (Lol)

Mimo: “Well, I’ll just go a different route,” I thought (lol). I was a kid that REALLY hated to lose! I thought it would be nice to be able to perform in Toho musicals and such. I wanted to become a musical actress in a broader sense. I started going to jazz and tap-dancing schools and took some vocal lessons. I gradually became a less-classical type of person.

--- You also had high school clubs to think about…

Mimo: Ah, I went to a girl’s school that was middle and high school combined. They had a musical club that I was in for 6 years. We borrowed works from the Takarazuka, Shiki, and Toho theater companies and danced to them. That club was very athletic, and the relationships were built so strongly, even now I can feel the effects of my time there. Even if it’s just by a year, I treat everyone as my senior. Even now, I can’t make myself break honorifics for them. I’ve noticed this only recently, but when they realize that I’m only a year younger, we quickly become good friends.

--- So even while you were in high school doing activities for your musical club, you were personally going to dance and vocal lessons, too?

Mimo: Because of that, I never got a chance to have time for myself. I was so certain that my future was going to be in musical theater that going down that path was all I could focus on. I also loved English, so I studied it for a while at university, but I also thought it would be nice to debut around the time I graduated. By the time I graduated high school I had mostly debuted already, so that idea faded out eventually.

--- It’s the sort of employment system that’s in the baseball world. If you produce good results in high school, you eventually get drafted to be a professional.

Mimo: Exactly.

--- So, with being so fixed on your future like that and working vigorously in your club activities, you could say that you were the same as a high school baseball player…

Mimo: Actually, completely different. (Lol)

--- Huh. Because in the musical world there’s no employment systems. Even so, you still spent countless hours with your lessons. Why?

Mimo: I’ve just always loved it. Giving it all I got and practicing. And of course, because I wanted to perform in front of people in musicals.

--- Were you ever anxious?

Mimo: Very anxious. I was very worried about it in high school, and couldn’t get a part as a main cast member even after my debut. I was also a member of an ensemble that sings together behind the stage. The ensemble seniors always said “When you make your first ensemble debut, you’re in the ensemble forever.” Because of that, I was scared I’d just be singing behind someone my whole life. But I still loved musicals, so I did my very best.

--- “I do my best” is something that’s often said when you do interviews. For example, when you were in middle school and started voice lessons, you had a really small voice and weren’t very good at singing. But thanks to practice and you doing your very best, you’ve been able to sing in various media…

Mimo: I say the same thing every time. (Lol)

--- But I don’t think you repeat it just to keep up your appearance. It’s not just a passing thought or a lie.

Mimo: Right, because it’s fun to do my best!

--- I see!

Mimo: When I was in middle school the only voice that would come out of me was something that sounded like a buzzing mosquito. On top of that, when I would have voice recitals my friends would come to watch me and I’d be very nervous and shaky. My mom would tell me, “Wow, you’re really not that good at singing, huh,” and it made me want to give up. But I kept at it with the singing lessons, and when I was in high school I participated in my clubs activities and lessons every day. After that I started gaining more experience through singing in musicals. “Oh, I think I might have finally learned how to sing? Ahh, of course practice never betrays.” It was the same with my dancing, though I was still pretty reckless with that. But in the long run I was really growing into it, and I absolutely love that feeling.

--- So that was the fruits of your labor. As a result of your hard work, you were able to sing and dance. But in the midst of it all you weren’t sure if you would even produce the results. Why was it you still ended up dancing so recklessly back then?

Mimo: I probably just didn’t give much thought to it at the time.

--- Hahaha

Mimo: I think I was just a really honest to the point I was naïve (lol). I’m the type of person that hates losing, and if there’s something I can’t do, I get really frustrated. “Why can’t the sound that I want come out!! My voice sounds so dry!!” I have to do things myself. I feel like this was why I was so devoted to practicing.

--- So, while you were doing musicals, you were asked to join the Hibiki production you are now a part of. It was a huge chance for you, but at the same time, it was somewhat of a setback for you as musical actress, right?

Mimo: Ahh, when I was approached about the voice acting job I was doing really well as a musical actress. It was around the time I was starting to see good results, like getting the parts I wanted in the musicals I was in two times in a row. Just as I was starting to gain confidence, the director that came to see the musical I was in asked if I’d like to give voice acting a try. At first, I accepted purely out of curiosity.

--- There are many actors who do stage plays and voice act at the same time.

Mimo: I thought it would help me develop skills as an actress both in voice and on the stage. I promptly said yes, but I had no idea that I would be doing it as much as I am now (lol).

--- Your acting debut was “Tantei Opera Milky Holmes.” In short, when he approached you for the part, Kidani (Takaaki), the president of the company, was excited to start a project that included all kinds of media exposure, such as television, magazines, games, and music.

Mimo: That’s right. But I had never really watched anime before becoming a voice actress…

--- When I listen to you talk about the club activities, lessons, and exams you had to take as a student, I wondered when you had time to actually watch TV.

Mimo: I didn’t really have time to play video games either. So when I went to work for the first time, I was pretty nervous (lol). Even now there is still so many posters up of anime that the company was involved in. I was like, “Whoa… There’s so many pictures of girls with big eyes!”

--- You’re like a grandma (lol).

Mimo: When the president was telling me about Milky Holmes and was explaining my character, Sherlock Shellingford, to me I said, “What!? She has pink hair!!” Lol. It was a huge culture shock. It was like I had come to a foreign country.

--- It was far from being in a foreign country. You were even in the same city (lol).

Mimo: Learning that there was such a deep and spacious world in a place I didn’t really know surprised me, but it was very interesting.

Original interview found here.

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