A fifth layer with a wide-sleeved Zhiju robe can be added for added warmth (I will be posting about that tomorrow).
If you're wearing a Zhiju robe today and historical accuracy isn't crucial to you, feel free to pick and choose which layers to wear based on the weather. At the very least an inner cross-collared shirt is ideal as the collar DOES peak through at the top. If you're wanting to wear Hanfu in winter, you can purchase inner robes which are lined for added warmth.
Liella! Magazine - CAST LONG INTERVIEW with Suzuhara Nozomi as Sakurakouji Kinako, and her message to Kinako.
[This was part of Liella Magazine - Sakurakouji Kinako Edition]
A Book Packed Full of the Kinako that I Love
So Excited to Be Part of This Project!
―Suzuhara-san, this time you did a photo shoot with a picnic theme. Why did you choose that kind of setting?
Suzuhara: Kinako-chan is a gentle, easygoing girl who grew up surrounded by the rich nature of Hokkaido, so I suggested it because I thought it would let us show her cuteness and that charm she has that warms up the atmosphere around her. I was torn between doing cherry-blossom viewing or a picnic, but this time we went with a picnic instead! It looked like it might rain a bit, but we were able to shoot outside without any problems.
Kinako-chan also likes making bread, so this time I even got to make the sandwiches myself. I do not cook very often in my everyday life, but I think they turned out pretty well this time! Maybe it is because I almost felt like Kinako-chan was right beside me going, “Not that way, ssu!” and teaching me as I went. Still, I would be happy if you do not look too closely for any little mistakes… (laughs).
Also, Kinako-chan often wears hats as part of her costumes, and this time I wore a straw hat and had the shoot in a place full of greenery. We do not usually get to do shoots where we add little accessories to her uniform, so it felt really fresh. I would be glad if everyone enjoys that difference from how she usually looks.
And there is a photo of me posing toward the window from inside the room, and I feel like that one especially shows Kinako-chan’s energy and her soft, natural smile spilling out. Please make sure to take a look.
―So the handmade sandwiches and the natural smiles are things to watch out for. The magazine will also include a comic with Kinako as the main character. Please tell us why you choose that kind of story.
Suzuhara: I really wanted to see Kinako-chan wearing ski wear and doing winter sports. I definitely wanted to make it a scene where her cute look in ski wear has that kind of “slope magic” going on. I also wanted to see scenes where all the 2nd-years are messing around and having fun together, and I think that part has been packed in really nicely too.
I personally love comics, so when they told me I could share ideas, my imagination would not stop! It was my first time getting to come up with an original story outline, so I was just so, so happy! There are about a thousand volumes of manga at my parents’ house, and even now I read around ten volumes a day before going to sleep. For someone who loves comics that much, being allowed to think up a comic story with Kinako-chan, whom I love so much, as the subject makes me way too happy. It is something to keep forever (like those rare, collector’s edition)! (this edition of) Liella! Magazine is a whole volume crammed full of Kinako-chan, so you will need one copy to keep, one to enjoy, one to display… in any case, you just have to buy a lot of them.
When My Feelings Run High, I Just Draw!
A Very Suzuhara-Style Way of Facing Things
―For this interview, I would like to go back to when you first met Kinako. How did you feel when you first saw Kinako’s design?
Suzuhara: My first impression was that there was a gap between how she looks and the way she talks with that “...ssu” ending. She has this neat, gentle look, but the way she talks is so casual, and I thought that was really cute. From that first impression I got this jolt of, “I would be so happy if I could stay together with this girl forever.”
From then until the role was decided, I drew illustrations of the 2nd-generation girls in my sketchbook. Just thinking that from here on I might get to work together with everyone made me really happy. While imagining things like “What kind of face would she make when she smiles?” or “Maybe she would look like this when she gets angry,” I drew all kinds of expressions and poured my rising feelings into those drawings. It was actually meant to be a way to calm myself down, but instead it only made me more excited (laughs). Even so, I think that time deepened my love for them. Even though my assigned member had not been decided yet, I just kept growing to love everyone more and more.
―And from there, you were chosen to play Kinako.
Suzuhara: All of the 2nd-generation members gathered for the final audition, but I could not say a single word to anyone. I was too nervous. Back then I was extremely shy and had basically no social skills. When I think about it now, I almost feel like I should apologise to everyone.
I just shut myself up in my shell, looked down, and did not talk to anyone. After the audition ended, the four of us went home together, and Aya (Emori Aya, who plays Onitsuka Natsumi) kept starting conversations, and the other two joined in as well, but I think I was the only one looking down and mumbling quietly. When we were parting ways, someone said, “At least let’s ask each other’s names,” so we all introduced ourselves, but even then I just nodded with my head down.
But the moment everyone was out of sight, I quickly grabbed my phone! I remember I was so focused on making sure I would not forget their names and wrote their names down, that I even missed one train.
Kinako-chan shows all her joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness right on her face,
while I had spent all that time unable to even smile,
so she felt like my complete opposite.
―So after everyone had gone, you were trying really hard to memorize their names (laughs).
Suzuhara: That is right. I think I was so gloomy that the other girls were probably thinking, “Can we really work with this girl?” Even so, everyone was kind to me from the very first time we met. Honestly, I feel like if it had not been this group of members, I would not have been able to keep going. I am really grateful to all of them.
―How did you feel when you were chosen to play Kinako?
Suzuhara: I was just too happy about it, I felt like I was in high spirits the whole time, as if I was skipping through the streets. Every girl is wonderful, but if the casts are allowed to pick the members that they want to be, in my heart I really wanted it to be Kinako-chan….! So when I heard that I would be able to walk forward together with this girl, I was so happy that after I got home, I drew her again. Whenever my feelings get strong, I always end up drawing right away.
The TV anime recording had not started at all yet, but in my head, Kinako-chan was already moving. By imagining her expressions like that and drawing them myself, I think it sharpened my picture of Kinako-chan and became the source for expanding my image of how to act her.
The only thing is, in my imagination she was a little more quiet in how she showed her feelings, but once I actually played her, she turned out to be more forward than I expected. Her expression changes all the time, she shouts, she is full of energy, and her movements are big. The way she kept going beyond what I imagined made me think, “That is so like Kinako-chan” (laughs).
I also tend to use big gestures when I talk, so I felt we were a little similar in that way. But fundamentally, our personalities were completely different. I am more the type who, like Shiki-chan (Wakana Shiki), keeps the things I like hidden inside for a long time. On the other hand, Kinako-chan brightens up the people around her. She is cheerful and honest, she is always smiling, and she is a girl who heals you just by being there.
While every emotion shows on Kinako-chan’s face, I had spent all that time unable to even make a smile, so she felt like my complete opposite. Figuring out how to move my expressions and how to make a smile was the biggest challenge for me after I was chosen to play Kinako-chan. If your face does not move, your voice cannot carry the feelings, so it was really hard.
Because of that, my voice training actually started with practicing how to smile. Each lesson was about two hours long and focused on things like, “Let us let out the feelings you have been holding in here.” I think for about a month I was practicing how to smile and how to let my emotions out. I really wanted to change. With the feeling that I had to change for Kinako-chan’s sake, I kept practicing at home as well.
―Maybe thanks to that practice too, you seem very different even from when we first spoke with you in your role as Kinako. How do you feel about the way you have changed, Suzuhara-san?
Suzuhara: I have changed a lot…..! It feels strange to say it about myself, but it honestly feels like I have become a completely different person. If I met my friends from my school days now, I think they would not even know who I am. Even my close friends say things like, “You get brighter every time we see you,” and “You have become easier to talk to,” so I guess that shows just how much I have changed.
Especially when I am talking with people or speaking on the radio, I can really feel that the way I use my voice and my expressions is completely different from before. If I had not been given the role of Kinako-chan, I think I might have gone my whole life without changing like this. For example, if I had played Shiki-chan instead, I am sure the person I am now would be someone different again. I really feel it was fate.
To begin with, I was even scared to speak out loud at all, so the fact that I have come to enjoy talking with people and have been able to grow closer with the members….! (T/N: She thinks this is too amazing; like something impossible to her before). In so many ways, Kinako-chan has opened up my world, and who I am now is completely thanks to her. I hope that my wish to change myself for Kinako-chan’s sake is also helping shape the Kinako-chan you see today.
―Next, I would like to ask about the TV anime. Do you remember how you felt during your very first recording session?
Suzuhara: It was like, “I feel sick,” “This is bad,” “I cannot stop shaking” (laughs). I read the script over and over, kept going to the bathroom even when I did not need to, and was in a total panic thinking, “What should I do, what should I do.” The other 2nd-years were there at the recording too, but because episode 1 of the second season of the TV anime has a lot of Kinako-chan, the main recording was me together with the 1st-years. I am shy, so I just stayed in the corner, and Sayu (Date Sayuri, who plays Shibuya Kanon) kept coming over to talk to me…. I remember her being so kind.
It was my first time ever doing voice work, so I also had this big worry of, “Is this really okay?” but I tried to cheer myself on, telling myself, “I am the only one who can play Kinako-chan. I am Kinako-chan.” I filled the script with lots of little drawings like, “In this scene she has this kind of expression!” I even drew an illustration on the cover of Kinako-chan cheering me on, saying, “Nonchan, I know you can do it-ssu!” Even though I was shaking, I somehow made it through, getting courage from Kinako-chan. I kept holding on to at least that one feeling: I must not bend my wish to play Kinako-chan, I must not let other people sway me.
―I am sure everything was new to you. What was the hardest part?
Suzuhara: The hardest thing was that even though I had a lot of shouting lines, I could not get a loud voice out. I kept practicing going, “Waa!” “Louder!” “Waa!” “Louder!” (laughs). At the time I was in total confusion, like, “How am I supposed to get any louder than this?” But if I was going to play Kinako-chan, that was a path I could not avoid. I practiced shouting a lot at home too. I felt like I was being pretty noisy, but since we did not get any complaints from the neighbors, I guess that means my volume still was not really there yet back then… (laughs).
I often felt how lacking my own ability was, so on the way home after every recording I would walk while crying and typing notes into my phone like, “Next time I will do this, I will try that.” I did not want to worry the others by going home with them, so I would leave after some time had passed, but in the end I probably just made them worry anyway. When Li-chan (Liyuu, who plays Tang Keke) went home with me, she encouraged me, saying, “It is okay, it is okay, it will definitely get better.” There is a line from Keke-chan's in episode 3 of the second season: “Failure is warm-up exercise for success! Next time it will definitely go well!” and at that moment Li-chan really was just like Keke-chan. She really pushed me forward.
What Needs to Happen
For “Kinako-chan’s Song”
To Become Something Wonderful…?
―How was your very first recording for singing?
Suzuhara: Singing was really, really hard. There was not a single thing that went smoothly. The recordings were probably the part where I was the most a mess. As practice, I once got to record my singing in the studio, but because my voice was way too quiet, the waveform of the recording looked so different from the other members’ that I was like, “Huh!?” At that moment I felt both a sense of crisis, like, “This is bad,” and frustration. So I honestly have a pretty bitter memory of that first recording session (laughs).
After that, for the real recording I was going to be singing the second season ending theme, “Oikakeru Yume no Saki de.” Since it is a song that would be played many times from then on, I thought, “Because this song will be heard again and again, I am going to sing it with a loud voice next time no matter what! I definitely want to sing it well!” and I practiced very hard beforehand. Still, I am glad they showed me the waveform back then, because it made clear what I should be aiming for.
I drew on the cover an illustration
of Kinako-chan cheering me on, saying,
“Nonchan, I know you can do it-ssu!”
She gave me courage,
and somehow I made it through.
―How did all that intense practice turn out?
Suzuhara: At the real recording, my waveform had gotten bigger! Being able to see that change with my own eyes made me really happy. And I also came to feel that singing is fun. During the recording, they let me listen to the takes joined together, and at that moment I realized, “My singing voice is Kinako-chan’s singing voice.” The instant I listened to it while recognizing it as Kinako-chan’s voice, I was really moved by how it could make me feel this positive. It is a kind of pressure to know that whether Kinako-chan’s song becomes something wonderful depends on me, but at the same time I was wrapped up in this happy feeling that I am the only one who can do that. When the recording finished safely, I remember that along with feeling relieved, a strong wish to become even better welled up inside me.
―So that was the moment your mindset switched. Next, I would like to ask about your memories from the lives where you performed the songs that came out of all that hard work. The first time you met the fans face to face was “Love Live! Superstar!! Liella! Live & Fan Meeting Tour ~Welcome to Yuigaoka!!~,” right?
Suzuhara: I danced “Tu Tu Tu!” behind the 1st-years. Back then, we 2nd-years were talking with each other like, “One day we want to sing this together with everyone.” So even now, whenever I hear that song, it gives me this deep, hard-to-put-into-words feeling.
After that, the first time we properly sang and danced in front of everyone at a live show was the tie-in release event for the TV anime Love Live! Superstar!! season 2 OP and ED theme songs. At that time I was just desperate, giving it everything I had. Since Akane (Yabushima Akane, who plays Yoneme Mei) and I had no dance experience, we stayed behind after rehearsal and kept practicing, matching the angle of our hands and the direction of our bodies for “WE WILL!!” over and over. But the more we practiced, the more my worry grew, like, “What if I still mess up after all this,” and in the real performance I ended up completely stiff.
After that, with “Love Live! Superstar!! Liella! 3rd LoveLive! Tour ~WE WILL!!~,” we got to go around to many different venues. Since there were a lot of shows, if you compare the very first one with the last one after I had gained all that experience, I think I might almost look like a different person (laughs). The song that left the strongest impression on me was “Go!! Restart,” which I performed with the 1st-years and Kinako-chan only. It was my first time standing on a stage that big, and I was also the one who sang the opening line, so I was incredibly nervous.
On top of that, the performance was on the center stage, so because the speakers are further away, the rhythm reaches you a little delayed, which makes it pretty hard. Even so, I really wanted people to think, “The senpai are wonderful, but Kinako-chan is wonderful too.”
Maybe because they sensed how flustered I was, during rehearsal the 2nd-years were filming me while cheering me on. I could faintly hear them shouting, “Ganbare!” from the far edge of the main stage, so I tackled the rehearsal while being encouraged by those voices, and I think thanks to that support I was able to see the main show through to the end too. Then, at the final Saitama show of the 3rd live tour, audience calls were allowed for the first time at a solo live after the COVID period! Being able to hear everyone’s cheering voices in person made me so happy~. It was such a rich, packed period of time, but the truth is, the 3rd live tour only lasted about three months. From the start to the finish, it felt like about two years had passed. I still cannot believe it was only three months!
Go Higher Together with Kinako!
Becoming Someone Who Can Work Hard With Her and Lead The Way
―Compared to the very beginning, has the relationship between you and Kinako changed at all, Suzuhara-san?
Suzuhara: When I first joined Liella!, I felt like this “bright, full-of-energy, wonderful Kinako-chan” was one step ahead of me. I was chasing after her with the feeling that I wanted us to someday become like one in body and heart, but looking back, I feel like there were actually so many times when she was the one pushing me forward and telling me, “Let us do our best together.”
All the time, I was getting through things like the season 2 TV anime and the 3rd live tour while thinking, “Because Kinako-chan is here, because she is doing her best, because she is shining, I will do my best too.” From there it leads into the season 3 TV anime, and the fact that Kinako-chan became student council president was also a big change for me personally.
When I first joined Liella!,
this “bright, full-of-energy,
wonderful Kinako-chan”
felt like she was one step ahead of me.
―How did you feel when you heard she would become student council president?
Suzuhara: When I got the script I was really surprised. I had no idea at all. But when I thought about it more, Kinako-chan has had an amazing drive right from the beginning. She had the courage to jump into a Liella! made up only of 1st-years with nothing but that feeling of “I want to try.” From the moment she took that first step in episode 1 of the season 2 TV anime, she was so positive and straightforward, and such a girl you just want to help, that it almost feels like her future of becoming student council president had already been decided. So I really do think she is suited to being student council president.
Watching Kinako-chan like that made me think, “It is not enough to just chase after her. I want to work hard together with her, push each other, and become someone who can someday pull Kinako-chan along.” But even though I felt that way, Kinako-chan herself had grown so much that I ended up thinking a lot about, “So what should I do from here?”
At “Love Live! Superstar!! Liella! 6th LoveLive! Tour ~Let’s be ONE~,” I got to perform “Afureru Kotoba” and “Egao no promise,” so I especially wanted to polish those two songs until they were perfect, so that I would not lose to Kinako-chan. I felt like that is exactly where I can show what I am able to do. For “Egao no promise,” I watched the live scene from the TV anime over and over in slow motion, studying Kinako-chan’s expressions. And “Afureru Kotoba” is a song used in an important scene where Kinako-chan’s resolve comes through, so I matched everything, like the timing of when she picks up the chalk and when she writes.
I thought it would be best if I could take a step up together with Kinako-chan, so I tried to put an even stronger sense of resolve into my eyes than the expressions she shows and use that to send out her feelings. I also gradually raised my vocal volume so the feelings in the lyrics would reach people. I kept thinking about where I could show even more of Kinako-chan than what is already expressed. In that sense, before I was only chasing after Kinako-chan, but now I feel like we are able to take on the challenge of joining hands and trying to jump up one level higher together.
Before, I was only chasing after Kinako-chan,
but now I feel like we can take each other’s hand
and take on the challenge of trying to jump up one level together.
―Going forward, do you have any goals for the path you will walk together with Kinako?
Suzuhara: I think everyone is curious about what kind of days Kinako-chan will be living from here on, and lately I also think a lot about how I can grow together with her. I am sure that as student council president, Kinako-chan will move forward in a way that is different from the cool Ren-chan, while also getting a lot of help from the people around her. I believe her story will go on with her being herself, and that the everyday lives of all the members will keep going from now on, just like our own.
Even if we do not see Kinako-chan and the others on screen, I can picture them in my mind, so I want to keep growing too, so that I will not lose to that hardworking girl and so that I can hold my head high in front of the wonderful Kinako-chan. When the time comes to perform her solo song “Teku Teku Biyori,” which is on the 3rd album Aspire, I hope I will be able to show you a Kinako-chan who has grown one step further.
―From here on, is there anything you would like to try doing with Kinako, or anything you would like to try doing with Liella!?
Suzuhara: Kinako-chan loves animals and can talk with them, but I am not very good with animals myself, so I hope there will be a chance someday for me to get over that. Also, if it were with everyone in Liella!, I would love to try skiing and other winter sports together. I could ski when I was in elementary school, so I believe I can still do it now. And more than anything, I would be happy if we could do live (concerts/events/etc) in lots of different places.
―Lastly, please give a message to everyone who is supporting Kinako.
Suzuhara: Thank you so much for always giving so much love to Kinako-chan. Because she joined as a 2nd-generation member, at first I was worried about whether everyone would accept her, but thanks to so many people welcoming her so warmly, now she is able to freely show many different expressions and how she has grown.
But I am sure there are still many more cute and cool sides to Kinako-chan. Rather than thinking, “We got to see lots of different sides of her in season 3 of the TV anime, so we are satisfied now~!” I hope that, as fellow people who love Kinako-chan, let’s keep exploring Kinako-chan’s potential together! I would be very happy if you continue to give lots of support to Kinako-chan from here on as well.
A Letter From Suzuhara Nozomi
To
Sakurakouji Kinako
To Kinako-chan💖
Thank you so much for meeting me.
For the hopeless, no-good me, the one who gave me the will to live and a reason to do my best was all you, Kinako-chan!
If people can think, “Kinako-chan is so wonderful!” “I am curious about Kinako-chan! She is so cute!!” then I feel like I can do anything.
I mean, you’re just THIIIS cute!!!
Of course I am going to love you sooo sooo sooo much!!
Let us stay together for life!
Let us keep chasing our dreams together forever.✨
QJJ (Ballad of Sword and Wine ) fanart illustration.
Finished these danmei novels. Loved them a lot. Especially the complexity of politics. Shen Zechuan is my favourite for sure.
✨ @legendlarkpod LOGO REVEAL TIME LADS!!!! ✨
SHE'S HERE, SHE'S IN THREE FORMATS, SHE'S GOT A BINDLE, SHE'S SERVING!!!
I call them 'Larko', they use any and all pronouns and they are here to make you laugh and cause problems ON PURPOSE.
I hope you will find a home for him in your heart. 😔 🙏
Anyway listen to our PODCAST! LegendLark: The ONLY podcast on the INTERNET!!! 👍 ✨ 💨
Also please follow us on BLUESKY and our newly launched INSTAGRAM! WE ARE OLD BUT WE ARE TRYING!!!
I attended a Dungeon Meshi themed dinner last weekend and wanted to share what was brought/devoured! Enjoy the comparison of what the dishes looked like irl vs the show
