Interview with callme

Ahead of the release of idol trio callme's fourth single Bring you happiness on March 22nd, JaME interviews the girls about producing their own works, their new single and more.

callme really stands out in the idol scene because your works are self-produced. What made you decide to begin producing your own songs and choreography?

RUUNA: We were graduating high school at that time, so we wanted to create something to showcase ourselves. As we were always interested in music composition and choreography, we went for the challenge and decided to self-produce ourselves.

It has been a few years since your debut now. How has callme changed since you first began? Or have things stayed mostly the same?

MIMORI: Regarding composition and song writing, we look to improve our sound every time we release something new. With our choreography, we are gradually making it harder and more complicated than when we made our debut, so when we perform our old songs now, we’re surprised how easy the choreography was back then.

Your first album was titled Who is callme?, and your second was This is callme, which makes it sound like you have a clear image of the identity of the group now. If you had to explain callme’s music and performances to someone in five words or less, what would you say?

KOUMI: We keep a natural attitude.

What is your favorite song that callme has released, and why?

MIMORI: Real Love. This song displays callme’s expertise. With this song, we could establish the foundation and core of callme’s music that we started on our first album.

You will be releasing your fourth single, Bring you happiness, on March 22nd. What can you tell us about this release?

MIMORI: We made this song as the PR song for the Japan Pallet Association. Distribution pallets go around the world and bring color to our life. So, we wrote this song to bring everyone happiness just as pallets do.

We wrote about our past and future in the B-side track It’s own way. We filled this song with everything we want to do and tell, so it became such a long song. The lyrics go, “I never know tomorrow.” It gently speaks to and encourages everyone that “Tomorrow will be a better day” when everyday life gets you down.

Since the title is Bring you happiness, what makes you happy in your day-to-day life? Is there something that can instantly lift your mood when you are feeling down?

RUUNA: The three of us love eating, so we go out to eat after work every time. We eat at two, three different restaurants too. It’s the time when we can relax and have fun the most.

MIMORI, you have mentioned in the past that you draw a lot of your inspiration from anime, games and manga when composing music. What are some of your favorite series? Are there any that you or the rest of the members would recommend to callme fans from overseas?

MIMORI: Recently, my favorite is “Zatch Bell!” I’m moved by various characters that get through their troubles and keep moving forward with partners. I love the "you-are-there" feeling that the battle scenes between the characters give. I was especially moved by the bond between Brago and Shery during the last scene. That inspired me to come up with love song phrases.

KOUMI, what is your process like when you are choreographing the group’s dances? Do you start with a concept?

KOUMI: First, each of us share concepts and ideas on the type of dance routine we want to create from the dance techniques we have learned in our lessons. After that, we choreograph with the dance team members who have been working with us since our debut. I think self-producing is great because we can adjust the moves if we need to change something after performing on stage.

RUUNA, what are your responsibilities as the group’s leader? Have you run into any difficulties?

RUUNA: No, I never run into any difficulties! The three of us are the same age, so we exchange our opinions frankly. I’m in charge of putting all the ideas together.

Are there any artists from overseas that you look up to?

KOUMI: I respect Beyonce’s overwhelmingly powerful presence on stage and her emotional, soulful vocals.

If you could perform in any country overseas, where would you like to go?

KOUMI: Los Angeles. I want to hold live shows under the sun surrounded by the cool streets of LA.

To wrap up our interview, please leave a message for JaME readers.

MIMORI: We want people all around the world to listen to our songs, so callme’s song titles are all in English. We are not only particular about the song titles but lyrics and music as well so everyone in the world can share them. We are planning to hold live shows overseas this year, so please check out callme’s songs. Please come to our shows too! Thank you for your support!

JaME would like to thank Avex Group Holdings Inc. and callme for this interview opportunity.

Watch the music video for Bring you happiness below:



Bring you happiness will be available for purchase or streaming on iTunes, Apple Music and Spotify worldwide on March 22nd.

For fans who prefer the physical CD, it is available for purchase and international shipping at the mumo shop: http://shop.mu-mo.net/avx/sv/list1?jsiteid=MSW&categ_id=662017.