Interview with Mimyu Tomita on "Broken Sky," the OP theme song for the fall anime "Nana the Incompetent.

Miu Tomita is a voice actress, and since the end of last year, she has also been active as an artist. You can tell from the interviews and other information posted on her official website that she is thinking about a variety of things as she engages in her activities.

In this interview, we asked her about her 3rd single "Broken Sky", the OP theme of the TV anime "Nana the Incompetent", and also what she is thinking about in her daily activities as an artist. We also asked her what she usually thinks about when she is working as an artist.

The challenge is how to express and transmit her own personality - and how to get people to find it.

You performed at the "EJ ANIME MUSIC FESTIVAL 2020" (hereinafter referred to as "EJAM festival") on October 18, 2020.

Tomita: I'm not the type of person who usually gets that nervous, but I was nervous the whole time because it was an online live performance, I was performing "Broken Sky" for the first time, and it had been a while since I sang under my own name as a solo artist. But when I actually took the stage, there was no audience in front of me, but I could feel the excitement of the fans, and I realized that the power of ani-songs is amazing.

Aina Suzuki is close to me in age and we are good friends, but I was surprised to see such an amazing person (at the live performance), and I thought that Mare Uchida's live performance was also impressive, even from the monitor. I was also inspired by the fact that I was not alone in the live performance.

I felt that she was very conscious of the way she looked at the audience and the way she looked at them, and I thought that it was a performance that only she could give. Do you think about how to express yourself for each song?

Tomita: I think about it. While keeping Mimyu Tomita's character at the core, the atmosphere of each song is different, so it would be fun for me to show a different expression for each song, and I am sure it would be fun for the audience as well, as I sing the songs.

Q: The stage was very attractive, with a great variety of ways to express oneself. The entertainment industry seems to be gradually coming back to life, as the second EJAM Fest has been decided to be held.

Tomita I used to think that a live concert would not be possible without an audience in front of you. I thought that a live concert is not something that we alone can create, but rather, it is something that is possible only with an audience. But at the "EJAM Festival," I actually experienced the sensation of the excitement being felt even if the audience was not in front of me, and considering that there are many people who cannot come to Tokyo, I thought that online live performances might be a new form of live performance.

Moreover, with online live performances, anyone can feel like they are right in the middle of the action. Considering these advantages, I thought that even if Corona becomes more relaxed and live performances are possible in the future, it would be good to have online live contents as another form of live performance in addition to those that actually bring in customers.

Q: A hybrid of live performance with audience participation and live streaming is a good idea, isn't it?

Tomita I think that would be good too!

As we move into the 5G era, the picture and sound quality will improve even more, and since the bottleneck is the interactive aspect, it would be even better if the time lag could be reduced.

Tomita Yes, that's right!　I feel that a new form of live performance is being created during this period.

The song would be good if the chorus had a sense of danger that makes you think, "Oh, I want to help them.

Broken Sky" is the OP theme song for the TV anime "Nana the Incompetent," and it is a tie-up song following the first single.

Tomita: This tie-up was decided before our 2nd single "Tsubasa to Kokuhaku", so we were happy to get the next tie-up so soon after our debut single "Present Moment" was the OP theme of an anime (*TV anime "After School Saikoro Club"). I was very happy to get the next tie-up so soon.

The OP theme is played at the beginning of the work, so I think there is a serious question of whether or not it will attract people's interest. Even if they don't know the work, there are more than a few people who decide to watch it because of the cool OP theme that just happened to be playing when they turned on the TV.

So I first read the original work, and it was just so interesting!　As a reader, I became a fan. I became a fan as a reader. Since I was able to record the song while I had already created my own worldview, I think I was able to take my time and put the music into my mind.

Q: What was your first impression of the song when you received it?

Tomita: The lyrics were tentative, but the song had a different color from the previous songs, and I thought, "What a perfect song for the world view of "Nana the Incompetent! I thought, "What a perfect song for the world of "Nana the Incompetent"! I was very excited when I thought about how I could add flavor to this wonderful orchestra with my voice.

Q: The lyrics were very close to the work, weren't they?

Tomita: The work "Nana the Incompetent" itself is an isolated existence because Nana is an incompetent person. When I looked at the lyrics, I felt a sense of isolation and loneliness, so I think they fit Nana's feelings very well.

I like to think about how I am going to act before recording, and I like to spend time thinking about the song before the performance. I think about the song all the time when I am on the road, so I was very happy to have a great song with great lyrics, and I felt it was a big responsibility because my singing could make it better or worse.

Q: "Broken Sky" is a tie-up song, so it must be different from your own feelings, how did you approach it?

Tomita "Present Moment" and "Tsubasa to Kokuhaku" were emotional songs, and I sang about my feelings toward my debut, my dreams and goals, and my feelings toward my fans, so I tried to find a link between the lyrics and my feelings. For this song, I thought a lot about how to express the loneliness I felt from the lyrics in every part of my voice. As a result, I thought it would be better to look at the song a little objectively, or not to be too close to the music. That is why I dared to sing inorganically.

Q: You dared to sing in a way that was not overly emotional?

Tomita Yes, I did. Also, the word "broken" is in the title, and I was impressed by the way the sound breaks through in the chorus, so I thought that if I sang the chorus with an image of a voice really breaking apart, which is different from the fresh and bouncy feeling I had in my previous songs, it would fit. I thought it would be a good fit if I sang the chorus with an image of my voice really breaking up, so I took a different approach to the extension of my voice.

I was also very impressed by the expression at the beginning of the chorus, which begins with the words, "Incompetent me, I am cruel.

Tomita: In a good sense, it was a little rough, but not to the point of being clunky. I dared to make it sound like a dialogue or a shout. It's a really cool song, but I thought it would be a good song if it had a sense of danger that made the listener think, "Oh, I want to help her.

Q: The song fits perfectly with the anime's OP video, doesn't it?

Tomita The part at the end of the first episode was great!　The production was so good that even though I was the one singing the song, I thought it was a very good OP from an objective point of view!

Q: You have already sung this song live. Is there any difference in the way you sing it live and in the recording?

Tomita It is not limited to this song, but the sound source is taken for granted that it is good, because they are using the best parts of the song. But in a live performance, you are performing live, so I think it would be a waste to have a "Huh? I think it would be a waste if the live performance is not good. So, when I thought about how to make people think that live performances are good, I realized that it is not just about singing well.

I actually saw various live performances, and while it is attractive that the singers are overwhelmingly good at singing, it is not only the singing, but also the facial expressions on their faces while singing, or how well the unit gets along with each other! And so on. I thought that it is not only the technique, but also the humanity of the singer and what comes out from inside that affects the live performance, so I may not be so conscious of trying to sing beautifully or well. Rather, I believe that by expressing my passion, my inner feelings, in my music, the audience will be moved.

I hope that when people listen to "Insomnia Mermaid," they will think, "Is that really Miu Tomita? I hope you will think, "Is it really Miu Tomita?

Q: The coupling song "Insomnia Mermaid" is a ballad.

Tomita I had always wanted to try my hand at a ballad, so I was able to fulfill my wish and give it a try. I had requested the writers, Kentaro Sonoda, who wrote the arrangement, and Saori Kodama, who wrote the lyrics, both of whom I have worked with on various character songs. I love the feminine lyrics that Mr. Kodama writes, and I had a goal of having him write them for my solo activities, so it was like a dream come true.

I think it would be fun to show a new expression of myself with each CD release, and I think this song will surprise you. I hope that the song will surprise you as well. I hope that it will show a mature femininity that is different from the freshness of my past songs, and I hope that you will think, "Is that really Miu Tomita? I had a little ambition to make the audience think, "Is it really Miu Tomita?

Tomita: Isn't it wonderful to have a solo song written by someone who has done so much for you with character songs?

Tomita: It was really emo!　Moreover, I had an image of Ms. Sonoda writing lively and cute songs for character songs, so I was surprised, but I was very happy to get a very nice song from her!

And Mr. Sonoda came to the recording session, and we were discussing and recording the song, and he suggested that it would be interesting to give the song a more mature look, since the lyrics were not about a mermaid whose first love had ended, but about a mermaid who had experienced love several times, This is how it came to be.

Q: Rather than life-size, did you have an image of someone who is a little older than you are?

Tomita: I sang the song as if I were about 27 years old. I wanted to give the song a little bit of a grown-up feel.

Q: What do you like about Kodama's lyrics?

Tomita: I have also had you write songs for Kleissis and Study, and in Study's song "Happy weather girl," there is a lyric that says, "The pleats on my skirt are lined up in a good mood," which is very girly. I had a chance to talk with him once at Study, and I thought he was really a genius, even though it's not the right thing to say to a professional (laughs).

You are right (laughs). How did you like the lyrics of "Insomnia Mermaid"?

Tomita First of all, I asked Mr. Kodama to write the lyrics, and I received the tentative lyrics. I thought the word "mermaid" would tickle women's fancy, and I wondered what kind of worldview the lyrics would fit with the melody, It's perfect! I remember saying, "It's perfect!

Q: You can see the images from the lyrics. You can see the scene, can't you?

Tomita Yes, you can. I also thought it was a song that would look good live, so even though I was recording, I was imagining a live performance. I was imagining myself at a live performance even though I was recording the song! I was like, "I'm going to wear a fluttering costume and put a lot of smoke on my feet!

Q: It sounds fantastic, doesn't it?

Tomita: I imagined a haze or a veil hanging over the entire song. That's why I sang it in a fluffy way, whereas in the past I sang the pronunciation of the words in a very crisp and clear way. I wanted the hazy feeling to come out in the songs in a good way. I think I was able to express that.

I would like to start by finding my own personality and having people like that personality.

You mentioned earlier that you are about 27 years old, but you are only 20, right?

Tomita Yes, actually, I am .......

Q: Listening to your answers, you don't look at all like that, do you?

Tomita I am often told that ....... I have been told by many people that I have always been firm and calm. However, to be honest, I have always had a sense of optimism since my school days (laughs). (Laughs.) There was a point where I didn't match the tension with other classmates, so I feel like my age has finally caught up with my heart.

Q: That's probably because you were working surrounded by adults.

Tomita When I was working, there were very few voice actors who were high school students, so I was very conscious that I had to be firm.

Q: I hear that you now have more juniors?

Tomita I am surprised when I see kids in school uniforms on the job site (laughs). (Laughs) Then I would say to the senior voice actors, "Senpai!　You're in uniform! and they tell me that you used to do the same thing (laughs).

Q: At the age of 20, you have to act like a senior, don't you?

Tomita: There were so many good senpai around me, so I try to do for my juniors what I was happy to do for my senpai. I think that is how I can repay my seniors.

I think it is fine to be a junior for another five years or so (laughs).

Tomita Really?　But the female voice actors who appear in the show are getting younger and younger!　I always think it's amazing how young they are.

ーー (laughs). Now that you have released a new single, please tell us what you would like to do as an artist in the future.

Tomita: I have gained a lot in the past year since I started my activities as an artist, and I think I have had more time to think about my fans because of my activities as an artist. This has given me a lot of motivation and goals, such as wanting to sing this kind of song or do this kind of live performance, and I would like to leave this behind in the form of an album.

Q: It sounds like there are many more things you would like to do.

Tomita: There are many things I would like to do. I am interested in writing lyrics, so I would like to try it. I can't write stylish words like a writer, but I think I can choose straightforward words in my own way, so I would like to write songs about my feelings toward my fans in my own words.

Q: I get the impression that you are a person who thinks about many things. Do you feel that you have a vision far into the future?

Tomita: I have wanted to work in this field since I was in the early grades of elementary school, so I think I have things in my mind that I want to do for the next five years, such as performing in such places, giving such performances, and traveling to the countryside to meet customers.

I think I have things in my mind that I want to do for the next 5 years, such as wanting to live in these places, or wanting to go to regional areas and meet customers. If I say, "I want to be like this," I am just imitating. So, I would like to start by expressing my own personality to the fullest and have people fall in love with the Miu Tomita I am.

(Interview and text by Junichi Tsukagoshi)

CD Information

Broken Sky / Mimyu Tomita
Now on sale
Price: [Limited First Edition] CD + DVD 1,800 yen (tax not included), [Normal Edition] CD 1,200 yen

<CD Contents
Broken Sky
Insomnia Mermaid
Broken Sky (Instrumental) 4.
Insomnia Mermaid (Instrumental)

＜DVD Contents
Broken Sky Music Video
Making Movie