Matsumura Hokuto 10,000 characters interview (Myojo 2020 May Edition)
When we formed a circle that day, it was the moment we promised, “Let’s go on with the 6 of us, forever.”
If it's these 6 members, we'll be even greater.
Once again, congratulations on your debut.
Thank you very much. But we'll go further from now on. I'm super passionate right now. I want to keep working and do something every day. Many thoughts are running through my head; what more I can do and what is coming from now on, about the group and about the members. From there, I realised that if it's these 6 members, we'll be even greater. That's why it's only the beginning.
You're not satisfied with the current situation?
Satisfied!? Honestly, right now I'm not. Not at all. I’m glad when people go, “Amazing!” at the current SixTONES, but I also want to tell them it's nothing yet. I want to tell them to keep watching the six of us. Because it's from now on. I say that but it's not like we have a fundamental vision of anything (laughs). It was like that from our Jr. era. We would go all out for one concert, but when the next one comes around, we’d have zero ideas. We can't conjure up a vision for the next thing. We might have zero ideas, but the passion of the six of us is driving this whirlwind. We don't know what's coming or what we'll do next, but if I think about our potential, it's isn’t only this.
I think being the main character is cool.
We’d like to backtrack on your path to debut. Do you have a memory from childhood?
Is it okay if this one isn't an experience? I vaguely like french toast. If I look for a deeper reason, it seems like I often ate french toast when I was a baby. After becoming an adult, I’d often eat it on the streets as it became popular, and it really is delicious. But what I like the most is buying plain bread at the supermarket, cutting the edge, and making a simple french toast by adding egg, milk and sugar, then pouring maple syrup on it. It feels like something my mom made.
You also like cooking, right?
I have liked it for a long time. I always watched my mom cook, so maybe it's the effect of that. When I was a kid, I used to dream of having a curry shop or a ramen shop. Apparently, I couldn't pronounce it properly, so at kindergarten I said, "I want to be Karen-san and Ramen-san!" (laughs) After that, I wanted to be a hero. I wanted to help people in trouble.
When you started learning karate in first grade, was it because you wanted to be a hero?
I don't remember the reason, but it wasn’t because of someone else’s suggestion. "I want to learn karate!" was something I said myself.
Wasn't the training strict?
It was strict, but I was completely absorbed in it soon after starting. However, around 3rd grade, I plateaued and couldn't advance. I didn't win matches, and I considered quitting a couple of times. My worried parents told me, "After going on this far, we think you should continue. But the final decision is yours." In the end, I didn't quit. It isn’t a cool story where I went on because I hated to lose. It was because if I quit, I felt like I would have lost something inside me. Also, the fear of betraying my parents' expectations was really strong.
Did you have any interest in the entertainment world?
None at all. In 5th grade, by chance I watched the drama 'Kurosagi'. I don't normally watch drama, but I think the protagonist is really cool. I wanted to imitate him, I wanted to be someone like that. But I didn't even know his name. When I talked about it in class, someone said "That's Yamapi (Yamashita Tomohisa)." Everyone knew him. I suddenly felt enthusiastic and asked my parents to register me in the fanclub. I also went to NEWS’s concert. He was also really cool during concerts.
Then you send an application to Johnny's.
The first time I sent it was in grade 5. I sent the second one a year later. There was no reply to both applications.
But you didn't give up?
I didn’t. That's why I sent my third application in the first year of middle school. At that time, I consulted my parents. Maybe they saw how impatient I was and thought, if I didn't have a deadline, how long would I suffer for? Just like back then with karate, instead of pushing their opinion on me, they told me to think about the possibility of it not working out. So I came to a decision. If they did not reply by April 1st, the beginning of my second year, then I will give up. It was because in the second year, I would have to focus on high school preparation. That's why even if an answer came after April 1st, I wouldn't go to the audition.
When did the response come?
February. Just barely before the time limit. We have a video of that. I came home after the end of term exam, and somehow my mom is recording with a handycam. Then she gave me a sheet of fax. But instead of Johnny's Audition, written there was The Shounen Club back dancer auditions. It is a program in which only Johnny's could perform, so it was actually a Johnny's audition. For a moment I couldn't wrap my head around it. I felt sorry for my mom because she couldn't get the reaction she expected. (laughs)
Shimekake and I were made into a pair.
How was the audition?
We went from Shizuoka to Tokyo in a car. Dad driving, mom by his side, me in the back seat. As we came closer to Tokyo, the mixed feeling of nervousness, happiness, and uneasiness intensified. It would have been decided on that day whether or not my three-year-long dream from grade 5 will come true. It's not simply three years. For I who was thirteen, it was 3 years out of my 13-year-long life. But I’ve never done anything like dancing, and I don't know how many will pass the audition. The only thing I understood was that if the insignificant me made one mistake and they told me to go home, that will be the end of my dream. Realizing that, I started crying. I tried to hide it, but mom realized it and looked back at me, then I thought she might cry, too. When I saw her face, I shouted, "Don't cry!". I tried to be intimidating, so my tears stopped just like that. Now when we look back at it, mom told me, "You were really angry at that time, huh." I laughed it off and said, "It was because everyone was so cool in the audition, there was no way I would have passed if my eyes were swollen."
What happened after you arrived?
We put on name labels. At first, we formed lines and someone taught us the choreography, and we danced intently. Then gradually we were told of our positions. "You, go forward. You, in the back.” The most vivid memory was when Shimekake (Ryuya) was by my side. I thought he was cute, but also really good at dancing. Then, Johnny-san called me over. It might be because I wrote my English proficiency level on my application, but suddenly he started speaking English. His pronunciation was really like a native speaker so I didn't understand anything. I thought 'Ah, I'm in danger'. When we were on break, I got called over by Johnny-san and the choreography teacher and they told me, "You, go and keep practicing without rest." I felt down. I wanted to practice but I didn't have any dancing experience, and I couldn't remember the choreo, either. At that time, I relied on Shimekake. "I don't remember the choreo, can you teach me?" When practice started again, Shimekake and I slowly went forward, and in the end we stood on the foremost center, in the position that's like partner.
How was the result?
The day after was the recording of The Shounen Club, so when Johnny-san asked if I could come, I answered "I will!". However, the night after the audition there came a phone call from Johnny-san. "YOU don't have to come tomorrow." When I asked why, he said "YOU are in Shizuoka, that's really far. I'll let you do something even greater." Doesn't that make you wonder what that greater thing would be? I thought it was a lie so that he could turn me down without hurting me, because I believe there's no way that kind of Cinderella Story would happen. If it was that good, everything would have gone smoothly from a long time ago. Even I know that such a convenient story would only happen to people who don't wait. That's why I keep on saying that I will definitely come, and in the end, it was like Johnny-san gave in.
You kept pushing and came to the recording.
Yes. in front of everyone, Johnny-san said in a loud voice, "YOU, why did you come!" and I was really embarrassed. But then he laughed and said, "You're really determined, huh." Suddenly he told me to appear in 'Jr. ni Q' corner. I tagged along to the waiting room, and there he told Goseki (Koichi)-kun. "Goseki, bring this kid with you." Goseki-kun agreed indifferently. When the time came, Goseki-kun pulled my hand to the stage and over there were Koyama (Keiichiro)-kun from my favorite NEWS and Nakamaru (Yuichi)-kun. I always watched 'The Shounen Club', so I can't believe I could stand there myself.
It’s because you are that; It’s because it's like that.
Right after you joined the company, you were added to B.I.Shadow, so the 'great thing' Johnny-san said really did happen.
I think it was the Shokura practice 2 weeks after I joined. Johnny-san told me "There's this kid who’s a great star, you should always be with him. Be in his group." and introduced me to Nakajima Kento. "That's B.I.Shadow, and you're in that. It was 3 members but now it’s 4 members. It's like that," he said. I'm already panicking, so I was like "What do you mean like that? I'm joining this group? There's no way I'm in B.I.Shadow, right?"
So you yourself were doubting it.
Yes. During the next week's rehearsal, when the choreographer called "B.I.!!" I tagged along. Everyone around me went "eh!?" and became a bit noisy. But Kento and (Kikuchi) Fuma really treated me well. There were times when I asked about the choreo and they told me to wait but didn't teach me, and for a while I thought they were unreliable, though (laughs). Looking back now, it was only a year after they joined but they still looked after me. When they were free, most of the time they would be checking my dance.
After that, you were active as a part of Nakayama Yuma w/ B.I.Shadow and NYC Boys. You also accomplished a CD release and a Kouhaku performance.
All of that was in my first year. What an exciting first year.
Any conversation with Yamada-kun and Chinen-kun from that time that you still remember?
We barely talked with each other, so close to none. Because I was really shy.
But in a magazine interview back when you just joined, you said never feeling shy is your strong point.
I was probably trying to look tough. I just joined and want to be an innocent, sociable little brother who anyone can fawn over, but I was actually forcing myself. I'm basically pretty cheerful and chatty, but also annoyingly shy toward strangers.
After that, there was a period where your workload lessened.
There was. At first, it was just a faint sense of discomfort, but gradually it became stronger. For example, I thought "Huh? There's no interview for B.I.Shadow this month, but Kento and Fuma went to an interview together."
I see.
I was a junior high schooler, but still realized the intention behind the upper and lower case letters of ‘NYC boys'. The three of them wore red costumes, while we're in the back wearing different costumes. The workload was indeed decreasing, but I was just holding on desperately. Even on the song where Kento and Fuma are supposed to sing with just the two of them, I memorized the choreo so when the time came, I could say "I can dance it too!" and they would let me perform it with them. Of course, I didn't get the mic, and for a while I thought it couldn't be helped anymore. I struggled to think of a way to escape this world of leftovers. I didn't want to disappoint my parents and hometown friends, but more than anything, it was a world I really yearn after, so there was no way I'm giving up easily.
Getting into a group right after joining, you may look like one of the elites but in fact you were struggling too.
Yeah. I want to get even a bit more work, so I moved to Tokyo. When I talked to someone from the agency, they said "You can work from Shizuoka, too." I said it's not for work, but the school I want to enroll in is in Tokyo. Then after moving, I reported to the agency that I now live in Tokyo.
But then Sexy Zone's debut was decided, and B.I.Shadow's activity came to a full stop.
In a flash, any work was gone. My dancing position was pushed to the back too, and there was a month where I had no job at all. It was a really terrible time.
But you looked forward without giving up.
It sounds cool, but I became sulky inside. It clashed with my need to prove myself when I got called. In short, I strayed from the path. I didn't cut corners when it came to dancing, but be it as senior group's dancer or something else, I stood on the stage thinking "Hey! Look, look! Look at me!" I remember singing KinKi Kids' 'Family ~Hitotsu ni naru koto' with glittery makeup and jingling accessories on Junior corner of Hey!Say!JUMP's concert. It's a lovely ballad, but I sang it with a piercing glare and skull ring on my finger. I was desperate to show how good I was. Even though I know better than anyone else that I'm not a special human.
You really struggled.
If the current me can meet me back then, I will warn him for sure. Of course, I could hear, "What a bad sense," "Such a bad image," "He got carried away," from all around me. But with that thorny appearance, the producer of 'Shiritsu Bakaleya Koukou' saw me and thought, "What a sour-looking guy, how interesting." And that was how my position in the cast was decided.
So that was the story of your selection.
Yes. But just because I got chosen by it, doesn't mean the stupid things I did back then were forgiven. But the me back then did go full force. Everything in life is connected. Right and wrong is a different matter altogether, but if you do something desperately, something will definitely come from it.
Even if this group will succeed, do I have it in me...
The drama 'Shiritsu Bakaleya Koukou' that gathered all SixTONES current members was a big hit. Did you feel like you will debut with these 6 members one day?
There was no premonition (laugh). But I did think what a random bunch we are. We left an impression of a group with six mismatched members. There were moments when I thought being with them was somewhat interesting. Like homemade hamburg steak. Even if we're wrong together, it wasn't a steak nor was it a restaurant-level hamburg steak with 100% cow beef. Made with different compositions, it was a homemade hamburg steak for a barbecue we ate together. But it was really delicious.
So slowly something like a group consciousness grew within you?
Yes. We got to sing together in 'Shokura', also appeared together in 'SUMMARY' and concerts. However, I could strongly feel that at first, each of us was focusing on personal success or were clinging desperately to this group as a way to survive.
In 2013, you won no. 1 in 'Jr. You Want To Have As A Lover' category of the Jr. ranking held by Myojo, right.
I was really happy. I totally didn't expect to win it. With what happened after Sexy Zone's debut, along with the push of the Bakaleya franchise, I wondered if there were still people who wanted me to debut. There's a superstition that the Junior who won will be able to debut, right!? As I had won it, it became an encouragement in my heart that even someone like me will be able to debut.
Then, in May 2015, SixTONES became an official group.
19 years old. I thought no matter what kind of future awaits this group, this will be my last group. There's no ‘later on’ if this ends in failure. The last chance.
Right after the formation, did you think you could debut?
At first, not at once. Rather than feeling like we couldn't debut for sure, it was a worry because we were not gaining popularity at all.
I see.
It might have been because I was already worried about myself. Even if this group succeeds, do I have what it takes? What if one way or another I end up quitting?
As you brooded over it, what happened?
Slowly, a lot of things made me feel 'Huh?!' toward the group or members. I didn't try to be liked, and also didn't think anyone liked me. I thought everyone was struggling because it's our last chance and we don't have enough composure. Even though we're in this together, we hurt each other; we went against each other indiscriminately. When something went against our expectations, we looked for someone to blame.
For example?
This is just an example. Currently, in choreography, even if we match you can see our individual arrangement, and we respect each other for the way we dance. However, back then, with one arrangement, someone will go "Isn't that wrong?" and looked for a mistake. "He's doing it wrong." Each of us felt like we were right and blamed someone else, even though there was nothing wrong with it. I also did it to other members. I can't stand the situation where it was like we had an internal discord.
I see.
It's a world where no one knows what is right. That's why I built a wall so I could decide everything for myself. Be it advice or direction from other members, I isolated myself from everything. I finish everything so I don't have to talk with the others at the dressing room, I kept on reading books while putting earphones on.
Did you consider quitting?
My chatty yet shy nature kind of complicated the situation... But even with that attitude, I actually wanted to talk with them, and I didn't think about quitting, not once. I keep on thinking that even if we don't have what it takes as a group, let's go on with what we’ve got. However, I couldn't hide it and made my parents worried. Maybe I barely concealed my situation. "Just think of it as a circle or club activities. Because you got paid, you can also think of it as a part-time job. It's okay if you want to end it. If it's too hard then it's okay," they told me. "Yeah, yeah," I always answered lightly, but deep inside, I always felt sorry for making them worried. "Sorry, but I will go on. I don't have any intention to quit."
All other members said "Hokuto really changed," but was there a trigger to your change?
It’s because now in the dressing room, I'm the most talkative one (lol). But it wasn't only one happening that changed my whole world. It was more like many points that linked into a line. From my point of view, rather than being the one who changed a lot, it's the others who changed and slowly made me conscious that I can show my honest self to them. Everyone really changed. Saying we became adults sounds nice, but I think it was because we kept going on as these six members and slowly gained self-assurance.
Do you have an example of those points that linked together into a line?
Hmm. For example, I’ve always thought that acting is fun, but I'm really bad at it. It became somewhat of a preoccupation. When asked what I want to do, I will feel pressured to answer only with the things I can do. That's why I couldn't say I want to act. In interviews right after the group formation, when asked, "Hokuto-kun, what do you want to do from now on?" I couldn't answer anything. At that time, Jesse will definitely answer "He wants to act. He also looks attractive when acting, so from now on I think he will grow as an actor too," always. There was an instance when I think I can't let him keep saying it for me, I have to be able to convey what I want to do by myself. "I want to act more, but I know that I'm not good. So, I would like more opportunities to practice it." Then, I have to watch more movies, I have to do that, I have to do this. My activities, behavior, and interests changed. Not just Jesse, I also accepted small gestures from other members as the points became a line. I realized those things given to me were what made me change.
Forming a line with the 6 of us and bawling our eyes out.
In 2018, your activity broadened with the 'Johnny's Jr. Channel', you were on magazine covers here and there, managed to get a rare reprint, and the group rapidly gained exposure. Were there any moments that you think changed the wind's direction?
We did 'Amazing!!!!!!' in 2017. With that song, the direction the group is going for became clear. I think that was the culmination of everything. It was at that point that everyone evolved. In a way, 'Amazing!!!!!!' might have been the starting line for SixTONES.
But you repeatedly said you were not focused on debuting, right?
Honestly, rather than not focused on it, it was more like we gave up on debuting. I think there are only a few differences between debuting and not debuting. The biggest difference for me is if we couldn't debut, this group will disappear one day. There's also the possibility of the members changing, because debuting means we are recognised as a group. However, debut or not, SixTONES won't disappear. We will go on forever. Somewhere along the line, I began to think like that. No one said it to us nor did we promise anything between us. But that's the biggest reason why I wasn't worried about debuting.
Then on 28th June 2019, you were informed of the debut in Johnny-san's hospital room, and also the fact that you will announce it on 'Johnny's Jr. 8.8 Festival' on August 8th, wherein a total of 300 Johnny's Jr. will perform.
That place on August 8th felt solemn. That day, on top of our joy, we had to properly tell everyone who attended about our debut. The friends who fought alongside us as Jr, fans who supported them. Of course, our fans are there too, also those whom we regarded as rivals. That announcement was supposed to bring joy for some of us, but also cruelty for the others.
What kind of existence is Snow Man who debuts at the same time as you?
They are our rival, of course, but also completely our comrade. It feels like our only difference is the group.
How did you convey it to the family that had always worried about you?
That day, I called them right away. They casually told me "That's great," I will never forget those words. I can't put it into words, but all my life, thank you for entrusting everything to me. Thank you for letting me live this life with my own choices. I want to tell them thank you for believing in me.
Do you have something you want to say to the members who went through joy and sorrow together with you? First, Kouchi Yugo-kun.
Johnny-san told me "There's a guy who's really compatible with you," and that was Kouchi. Even after the B.I.Shadow's cessation of activities, we keep on being a pair. So from now on, let's be together all along our life.
To Jesse-kun.
From now on too, I'll keep on relying on you. Of course we will work hard too, but you are the face of our group, our center.
To Tanaka Juri-kun.
Juri, our engine starter, you are the strongest. Juri, you are amazing. Have some confidence, okay.
To Morimoto Shintaro-kun.
As the youngest member of this group, you still have things holding you back. But let's go through the years with everyone else and become an adult. Then that gap will feel like nothing.
To Kyomoto Taiga-kun.
… Keep showing me your figure from the back, maybe. More than anyone else, Kyomoto has always been a stimulus for me to have an awareness that we are professionals. Because you're the person who made me think that artists are great. If we are in different businesses, maybe I will be able to tell you honestly that I respect you.
The last question. When did you feel the happiest that SixTONES are these 6 members?
Probably this year's January 7th. During 'TrackONE IMPACT' Yokohama Arena, the last part of double encore, our last stage as Jr., the last moment on that stage. From when our debut was decided, I keep on thinking 'SixTONES is a group that started on May 1st 2015, debuting on January 22nd 2020. But we're not a group that ends one thing and starts something else on our debut.' However, at that double encore, we formed a circle on the stage, met each other's eyes and shouted 'Thank you!' as we cried. We bawled our eyes out to an embarrassing extent. I looked at the members' eyes and thought, "I've been saved by these guys. I'm glad it's the six of us," while my tears keep on flowing. I really love them, that's how I feel from the bottom of my heart.
Doesn't matter if we debuted or not, I believe we will always be together. I’ve been stuck at certain points. Will we be able to stay together forever? When we formed a circle that time, it's not like we confirmed it with words to each other. But I think that was the moment where we promised "let's go on forever with these six members." At that time, I accidentally thought, "Ah, it ended...", even though I had said that a debut is not the end of one thing and the start of something else. It was really fun, and also manyfolds so very difficult. We hurt and helped each other. But no matter when, we will always go full throttle. That day, at that moment, the Jr days ended, and these 6 members will walk on with a new promise in our heart.
