A wistful pop tune with lyrics sprinkled with famous scenes from the film! Interview with Renka, the singer of "Hakusetsu", the theme song of "Nobunaga no Shinobi: Ise/Kanegasaki Arc".

The anime "Nobunaga no Shinobi: Ise/Kanegasaki Arc" is a comical historical gag anime at first glance, but it has a strong story and characters based on historical facts. Following the first season, the theme song for the second season has been attracting a great deal of attention, as well as the work itself. The theme song "Shirayuki," with its Japanese-inspired sound and sad yet passionate melody and lyrics, is sung by Renka, who also sang "Tsuchizakura," the theme song of the first season, which drew a great deal of attention.

To commemorate the release of her third single "Shirayuki," we asked her about the story behind the creation of the song and about her work.

───Please begin by introducing yourself.

Renka: In 2015, I sang the main theme song for "Fire Emblem if", "if ~Hitori Kangaeru~", and that was my debut song.

───What made you decide to pursue music?

Hasuka: First of all, when I was in elementary school, my father bought me a book of poems by Misuko Kaneko, and I imitated it and started writing poems myself. After that, I had more and more opportunities to be taken to stages and musicals, and when I saw people expressing their words in song on stage, I felt that I wanted to be the one to express myself on stage as well.

─ So you started not with singing, but with poetry?

Hasuka: Yes. I originally wanted to be a poet. Later, when I started going to see stage performances and musicals, I began to think about what to wear to get to the venue, my heart fluttered when I got dressed up, and I felt excited when I opened the door and walked into the theater. As I grew older, I became more and more strongly convinced that I wanted to be able to make many people feel those sensations by being on stage, and that I wanted to live out that dream. Even now, I want to be a singer who makes people dream about what is about to happen even before the live performance starts.

Shirayuki" was born from the trust cultivated by "Tsuchizakura

─ Your new song "Shirayuki" is the second "Nobunaga no Shinobi" theme song, isn't it?

Renka: I am very grateful that this is the second time I have used "Hakusetsu," following "Tsuchizakura.

───"Tsuchizakura" received a great response, so did you feel any pressure to release a second song after that?

Hasuka: I felt a lot of pressure, like nervousness and a sense of responsibility, but the unity of the team, with Kazuya writing the music and me writing the lyrics, had already been solidified with "Tsuchizakura," so we had a bond that we could definitely do something good again this time. So, to be honest, I felt secure and trusted him, so I was not crushed by the pressure. Rather, I felt a sense of excitement that we would be able to create something good again.

───"Nobunaga no Ninja" itself is a fast-paced short gag anime, but "Shirayuki" is a passionate and serious song. What kind of image did you have in mind when creating the song?

Renka: I wanted to write a song that would be in line with the work, so I wrote the lyrics while imagining how the main character, Chidori-chan, would feel if she fell in love and interweaving that with how I would feel if I fell in love myself.

─ What did you think when you first heard the song?

Hasuka: As soon as I heard the melody of the song that Kazuya gave me, the word "snow white" came to mind. I thought the power of sound is amazing, and I had the feeling that the words came out of my body when I was guided by Kazuya's music. The music usually evokes, or rather draws out, the words that are inside of me. The music is so important to me that without the sound, I don't think I would be able to delve so deeply into the lyrics and write them.