Angora Muracho Opens Up About Comedy and Gravure in Candid Photo Book

Since last year’s shoot, she has naturally gained 3 kilograms

“The photo book has a natural theme, so it shows me just as I am,”

Says Angora Muracho (31), the funny woman who plays the boke in the comedy duo “Nyanko Star,” with a slight blush. In 2017, their rope-jumping comedy act won them second place in the “King of Conte” competition and brought them much attention.

While continuing her work as a comedian, last year she released a digital photo book titled 151 cm, 48 kg, which remarkably surpassed 16,000 downloads. Now, she is releasing a new full-fledged gravure photo book called Standard Body Type. When asked about her commitment to this new work, she gave a straightforward answer typical of her style:

“The response to my last work was amazing, and hearing people say, ‘Standard body type is great,’ made me really happy. So, this time, with that feedback in mind, I went into the shoot naturally—and realized I’d gained 3 kg. But thanks to that, I hit the very center of the standard body type, so I decided not to hide anything and show reality as it is. When I lie down, my stomach sags in the direction of gravity, but I didn’t hide those parts either—I captured my real self-better than last time.”

When asked why she emphasizes the standard body type, she opened up about her feelings:

“Of course, being skinny has its own beauty, but I realized that my desire to eat delicious food or drink good alcohol ranks higher in my life than the desire to be beautiful. My previous photo book, which embraced a natural look, was well-received, so this time, I wanted to honestly express myself and take it a step further.”

It’s been eight years since their breakthrough in the 2017 “King of Conte” competition. Over time, her relationship with comedy has also changed.

I was worried that I would get in the way of the “King of Conte”

The photoshoot proceeded with a vibe similar to that of a trip. From the very first day, she drank too much, resulting in shots that went beyond just showing her natural face.

“On the first night, I went out for dinner with the staff and drank a lot of beer. Honestly, I got carried away and drank too much—I even threw up a little. There’s a photo we took the next morning where I have that telltale hungover look, like I’m not seeing anything at all. But I didn’t cut it—I left it in. I don’t think I’ve ever released a photo book that reflects my true self this much.”

She also had some inner conflict about taking on gravure work as a comedian.

“To be honest, at first I was worried that doing gravure might interfere with ‘King of Conte.’ But after doing it for a year, I realized that the audiences are completely different. Comedy fans follow everything—they love the skits, the live shows, all of it—but people who got to know me through gravure didn’t really come to the live shows, I don’t think.

According to my own analysis, gravure fans expect Super Sansuke, my partner in Nyanko Star, to show up with me when we perform. So when he doesn’t, they just don’t come. Because the audiences don’t really overlap, I realized I could continue doing comedy in the same environment without feeling restricted.”

Her passion for her main profession—comedy—hasn’t changed. She’s entering “King of Conte” again this year.

“Of course I want to win, but more than that, I want to make people laugh. I’m not trying to force anything—I’m just aiming to get laughs in the quarterfinals.”

Though this has been described as her first and last photobook, she remains open-minded.

“If I feel like there’s meaning in doing it, I might release another photobook. It would be when I feel like I have something worth sharing with the world. If I do another one, I’ll try to show an even more unfiltered version of myself than just being hungover.”

Purchase Angora Muracho’s photobook “Standard Body Type” here.