WHITE SCORPION Serialization [Part 9] NAVI “I want to show more of my true self

WHITE SCORPION is an idol group produced by Akimoto Yasushi and formed through the “IDOL 3.0 PROJECT,” an audition that ran for about six months from April 2011.

The group debuted on December 7, 2011 with the single “Gaze Sniper. They released a new song every month, and released their 4th single, “Zozoku no solitude” on March 7, 2011.
On April 7, their 5th single ” Satisfact ion graffiti ” is scheduled for release.

A special series of articles on the girls’ personal lives has started.

In the ninth installment of this series, we present a long interview with NAVI!

Her love of K-POP led her to study abroad in Korea, which changed her life. ……

─ ─ What kind of girl were you as a child?

When I was in kindergarten, I was always running for the lead role in the school play. I was such a show-off that I would run for the lead role in the playground when I was in kindergarten. When I was in elementary school, we had a long recess of about 20 minutes, during which I would put on plays in the classroom with my classmates. I would come up with my own story and make costumes out of newspaper with paint. Of course, I was the star of the show (laughs). Anyway, I loved doing things in front of people.

─ ─ Were you involved in original plays with your classmates?

Yes (laughs). (Laughs.) When I was in the third grade, I also did a one-man musical. I made a space by lowering all the desks in the classroom behind me, and I used the podium as a stage to sing and dance. My classmates clapped and cheered for me, so I made fan membership cards and handed them out, saying, ‘Please take one if you like’ (laughs). (Laughs.) It was a handmade membership card with the membership number written on it, and everyone put it in their toolboxes and kept it with them.

─ So you were doing a one-man show in the classroom?

I also ran for the head of the cheerleading squad for the elementary school gymnastic festival, saying, ‘I want to do it! and I ran for the position. We had an audition to see who could shout the loudest, and I said, ‘Hurrah!　Hurray! and I won over a rival boy and became the head of the cheerleading squad.

─ ─ You must have been quite prominent, weren’t you?

I don’t think there was anyone in the school who didn’t know who I was (laughs). (Laughs) “My teachers at school seemed to think that I would eventually go on to sing and dance, but they were surprised when they found out that I had actually passed the WHITE SCORPION audition and made my debut.

─ Did you have a desire to become an idol and get attention from many people?

I never thought about becoming an idol. When I was in the fifth grade, a friend took me to see a Takarazuka Revue performance, and I was shocked and thought, ‘This is what I want to do! I was shocked and decided that I wanted to work in a job where I could express myself on stage. However, my height did not grow much, so I gave up on that dream in the second year of junior high school.

After that, I spent my school life as a normal student, “After that, I led a normal school life and became the manager of the tennis club in high school. Being a manager of an athletic team is like “coming of age,” and you always long to be a manager, don’t you? In the tennis club I kept score and picked up the balls, I quit after one year because I thought it was too much work to take care of others and that I wasn’t suited for it. I wanted to stand out!　I guess I wanted to stand out!

What made you start dancing?

What made you start dancing? “I took ballet and jazz dance lessons for a little while when I was in elementary school, but it was just a hobby while listening to K-pop music. But when I saw my high school dance club give a dance performance at a cultural festival, I wanted to be on the same stage. I am a show-off, after all (laughs). So, in my second year of high school, I joined the dance club. My dream of performing in front of people in the future had never changed.

─ ─ Do you like K-POP?

I got hooked on TWICE and started listening to a variety of K-POP artists. Now I like IVE, NewJeans, and LE SSERAFIM. From there, I became interested in fashion and makeup, and I decided to study abroad in Korea because I wanted to learn the language.

─ Did you move to Korea when you graduated from high school?

I hadn’t told my father about studying in Korea when I graduated. I was working at ZARA in my hometown, and when I first told my father around June that I wanted to go to Korea, he was against it at first. But after many discussions, he finally agreed with me, saying, ‘If you regret not going, then go for it.