Seiyuu Animedia May 2017: Interview with Ai Furihata
Blood type B. Her previous major roles include Saku in âorangeâ, Lisbeth in the game âDare ga Tame no Alchemistâ, and Kaede in âQuiz RPG: Mahoutsukai to Kuroneko no Wizâ. Affiliated with Office-tb.
Member Profile: Ruby Kurosawa
A first-year student at Uranohoshi Girlsâ High School. Her older sister is Dia Kurosawa. Though sheâs shy and reserved, liking idols is in her nature, so sheâs strongly attached to school idols. Sheâs a kind girl who cares deeply for her friends.
What progress has there been since completing the 1st Live?
Rather than making progress per se, I felt that everyoneâs resolve had solidified. It feels like our feet have touched the ground, completing our huge first step forward. Since  my understanding of what it takes to be a member of Aqours and stand on a stage had strengthened, I gained the confidence that I can grow even more in the future.
A message for everyone after finishing the 1st Live.
We laughed and cried through those two enjoyable days, without anyone getting injuredâthank you so much! I was happy to stand on that stage with everyone~ We could only do it precisely because it was all nine of us, and it made me realize that it couldnât have happened if it werenât for these nine people. Iâll continue to be in your care!
Expectations and excitement for the release of the Duo/Trio Collection CD.
Itâs the long-awaited sister duo! When the release was decided, I was happy, and before anything else, I contacted Arisa (Komiya) (laughs). Iâve thought about several possibilities for what kind of song it could be, but for us two, a cute style or an energetic style would fit well, so Iâm looking forward to completing it.
To the fans looking forward to the Aqours Next Step! Project.
Aqours is a group that can do a variety of things, so I want to aim to be a school idol that can make people go âSo they can do something like this too!â with fresh surprises. Also, I hope to repay, in spades, the people who have always been pushing us forward!
What about yourself do you think has grown since completing the 1st Live?
Iâve gotten closer to Ruby. When Iâm on stage, I can feel Ruby having fun too. Thereâs the sense that I can hear her voice saying âI want to sing more and more!â, so from now on, I want to go to a variety of places, and share that enjoyment with her.
I began to feel that we were tracing the footsteps of our past selves.
âHow were those two days in Yokohama Arena?
Those two days went by in the blink of an eye. I still have the feeling of being within that scenery, and I still feel a bit like Iâm floating [like in those two days]. But since they announced our next steps, I guess I feel that I should keep working so that I can move forward with everyone.
âIt was your first time on a big stage, so were you nervous or anything like that?
Now that I look back, I feel like I wasnât especially nervous. We had done a lot of preparation, and more than anything, I felt that Ruby was standing there with me. Of course, right before the performance, my heart was pounding when we were on standby backstage. But when we made our entranceâfacing backwards at first for âAozora Jumping Heart"âin the moment I turned towards the audience, a strange calmness overtook me, relieving  my tension. As I high-fived King (Takatsuki) and Rikyako (Aida), I felt like I had managed to arrive at an amazing place.
âSo the audienceâs passionate cheering was connected to your sense of security.
It really was a warm welcome. I felt closer to everyone than I thought we would be, and that too was reassuring. I was worried about whether we could see everyoneâs faces. We could see those in the main stage section, of course, but as for the people in the wings and near the carts, we were so close that we could practically touch them with our hands. So when I performed an action, the people nearby would respond, and it felt like the audience and I were directly harmonizing with each other through this cycle of action and reaction. Weâd ganbaruby together, for example (laughs).
âItâs impressive that this live was organized to follow the flow of the TV anime.
"MIRAI TICKETâ might have motivated such an approach, I think. We knew that Anchan (Inami) had been entrusted with conveying the passion of the acting part, and soon I found myself getting into it as well. Rather than having the sense that we were delivering a performance, perhaps it was more like we were faithfully tracing the footsteps that our past selves had left [when working on the anime/songs]. While we were reenacting the flow of the TV anime, I also got a strange feeling that we were presenting ourselves as we were.
âThe roll call went perfectly.
After we said â1, 2, 3, âŠâ, it was truly moving when everyone responded with â10â! Aqours may just be 9 people, but the joy of having everyone in the venue participate in the live was incredible.
âWere there any songs that really left an impression on you?
Yes, the second dayâs performance of âOmoi yo Hitotsu ni Nareâ. In the moment that Rikyako stopped playing the piano, we knew that she had practiced so much for that, so imagining how much effort and pressure had been exerted brought forth the tears⊠But, while we were in that condition, the whole arena, wielding their penlights to support Rikyako, was completely covered with sakura pink. We were so moved at that time that we tightened up as well. The solidarity in that moment strongly deepened the bonds between the nine of us. I donât think Iâll ever forget that sense of unity.
âAnd last month, the 3rd single was finally released.
Itâs a spring-like song, perfect for the current season, and I think it might be a fresh approach for Aqours. At first, I imagined a landscape with cherry blossom petals fluttering down, but the animation PV is quite impressive, presenting scenery evocative of Kanan-chan (Matsuura). I definitely want people to watch this wonderful PV. We worked our hardest while recording the song, and I sang with the image of Ruby singing for Kanan in my mind. While the song does incorporate some melancholy, itâs also as soft as Ruby sometimes, and Iâd be happy if listeners felt the cuteness of those parts.
Happy birthday, Furirin! ă”ăăăăèȘçæ„ăăă§ăšăăăăăŸăïŒ
Translation: @ganbaramen
QC: Mega, xIceArcher
