miyavi attended the Japan Expo convention where he took some time to answer a few questions.
The day before his first concert in France, as part of his world tour, miyavi made an appearance at Japan Expo in Paris. At the event, he participated in the Laforet HARAJUKU fashion show and later took some time to answer a few questions. Surprisingly, fewer fans were present in the audience than had been at the fashion show. Not many people knew about the conference, which probably accounted for its low attendance.
The Japan Expo Awards were presented just a while ago and you ranked number two in the top five most anticipated artists in France. What's your reaction to this?
miyavi: I'm really thankful to you for that. I'm very pleased to have been nominated and I'll do my best to be number one next year!
Do you have anything to say about the number one male, Gackt?
miyavi: "Oh, shit." (laughs) No, he's like my big brother; I have a lot of respect for him. I'll talk to him about it on the phone, but I'm your number one.
Tomorrow evening will be your concert at the Olympia. Have you prepared some kind of surprise?
miyavi: The surprises are secret. I'm very happy to perform this first concert in France. I'm having a good time and I hope you will too.
Considering your success in the west, will this prompt you start an international fan club?
miyavi: Of course I would like to open an official fan club and now that would be easier as I have gained some contacts. Would you join the fan club? I'll ask my manager.
You mix various musical genres in your songs. Isn't that really hard to cope with?
miyavi: I mix different musical styles so yes, it's a bit hard, but I want to show what traditional music is, though it's true that it can get complicated.
In your latest album we were able to hear about the pride you take in being Japanese.
miyavi: That's true. I've decided to show my Japanese side because I've realized that I'm a Japanese artist, so it's not only a matter of honor, but above all, a matter of identity.
What are the values from Japan that you'd like to share with your fans?
miyavi: I just want to meet different cultures and I want to discover western civilizations. At the same time, I'd like those of you in the west to learn about my country's culture and about me. I'd like to explain my culture to you through my songs. If there is something that I'm proud of and that I'm sensitive about, it's kabuki, the geta (traditional slippers, which he's wearing during the conference) and the kimono.
You've collaborated with SUGIZO. What did he contribute to the song on the CD?
miyavi: SUGIZO is a great guy and an artist that I respect a lot. He's like a mother to me. In S.K.I.N., with Gackt, they are like my brother, my father, my mother, my sister...
About the musicians who play with you on stage, how did you come up this concept?
miyavi: I don't know...I don't really know. It's a kind of feeling. When I first thought of that concept, I looked for a traditional Japanese word like kabuki, hanabi, tempura or geisha. And kabuki seemed to me like a visual kei kind of word. As with visual kei, the actors wear make-up, get on stage and show themselves, and it's a kind of theater for all social classes, not just for the elite. Kabuki is for the common people and I also want my music to be for everyone.
When listening to what you did in the past, do you sometimes tell yourself "I was really bad back then," or "There, it was really good"?
miyavi: Actually, I have mixed feelings. Sometimes I'm surprised and I love it, but sometimes I don’t. To be able to recognize that you've made mistakes means that you've improved, I think.
Could you say a few words in French?
miyavi: In all the countries that I go to, like Spain, Finland, Sweden or France, I try to say a word in that country's language. In French, I only know three phrases: Bonjour... Bon Appétit and Je t'aime.
The moderator says that they will now move on to the audience's questions and, while the staff gets in place, miyavi repeats, "Je vous aime." When they ran out of audience questions, the moderator continued asking his own.
Do you have any plans for the future?
miyavi: Hmm... For now I don't have any. After this tour... Ah, yes! I want to go home, rest, take a shower and sleep. Yes, I want to sleep in my bed.
Do you have any hidden talents?
miyavi: I don't know... I think that... I don't know. No. I can eat more than eight bowls of rice in a row...
You work with Yorke, a painter who wants to devote himself to his work. Does this mean that his collaboration with the KAVKI BOIZ is over?
miyavi: No, no. He made my cap, by the way. There have been problems, which gave birth to this rumor, but we have plans for the future together and I think that I'll still work with him very soon. For now, the KAVKI BOIZ aren't a fixed team; there are several different artists.
How do you recruit them?
miyavi: Sometimes I meet these artists in clubs or bars in Tokyo or Los Angeles or even, quite simply, in the streets of these towns.
Maya from LM.C was your guitarist for a time. What do you think of his work now?
miyavi: Sometimes I'm very pleased with what he does, and I go to see him play in Tokyo. We're friends without any problems. I feel very close to him.
Do you have a message for your fans?
miyavi: I'd like to thank you all. Tomorrow, will you come to my concert? I'd like to go to all the countries in Europe, like Italy and Russia, and to all the countries of America, from north to south, to Africa and Asia... And I hope to go to all these countries next year. And if I don't go, you'll know that it was my manager's fault. To let me know how you feel, leave me a message on my MySpace. It takes me a while to answer all your mail, but I will. I really want to know what you think about it. I'll come back very soon and I hope you'll have fun tomorrow.
The pictures in the gallery are from the showcase for the Laforet HARAJUKU fashion show, which took place a few hours prior in front of 15,000 spectators as well as from the press conference.
