Interview] Collaboration between JUNNA and Yuki Kajiura! New song "Umi to Shinju" (Sea and Pearl) is a song that challenges expression that has never been done before!

JUNNA is releasing a new single "Umi to Shinju" (Sea and Pearl), the opening theme for the TV anime "The Pirate Princess" and produced by Yuki Kajiura, who is in charge of music for the anime. This is the first collaboration between the two, and we, the fans, cannot stop being excited about this song.
The single couples three songs, including "the sea and a pearl," an English version of "the sea and a pearl. The Blu-ray on the limited first edition includes the music video for "the sea and a pearl," as well as a live performance of the song that was streamed live to an uninitiated audience in February of this year. JUNNA will also be touring early next year. We interviewed JUNNA, who is always moving forward!

I was excited to see what would happen if I sang one of Mr. Kasoura's songs.

─ "Sea and Pearl" was produced by Yuki Kajiura. What did you think when it was decided that you would sing Ms. Kasoura's song?

JUNNA I was honestly happy. The song "Umi to Shinju" has a unique world that makes you feel it is Mr. Kajiura's song the moment you hear it. It is so diverse that you can see several different landscapes in one song, and the chorus gives you a very liberating feeling. I felt that this was the world that Mr. Kajiura had created, and I was also very excited to see what would happen if I sang in this world.

───This song has various developments, but overall it is full of brightness, isn't it?

JUNNA Mr. Kajiura said, "I haven't written such a bright song in a long time." I myself rarely have a chance to sing a song filled with bright hope (laughs). (Laughs.) I felt that this song evokes the image of Fena, the heroine of "The Pirate Princess," who is extremely cheerful and energetic.

─ The character introduction on the official website says that Fena is called "White Marginal" because of her snowy skin and silvery white hair, and she is even more energetic than she looks.

JUNNA She has boundless energy and is more mischievous than cute. But she has hidden feelings inside, and I felt that "Sea and Pearl" expresses them as well. The lyrics convey a sense of the world just by reading them, and each word is deep. I was looking forward to singing the song because it shows so many scenes and emotions.

─ ─ Is there any part of the lyrics that you particularly like?

JUNNA I like the part in the B melody that says, "Kind your song connects my thoughts to the future. I have a special attachment to the word "song," and the honest expression of connecting our thoughts to the future is especially beautiful. It was the part that overlapped most with my own feelings.

─ ─ How do you feel about the title "Sea and Pearl"?

JUNNA Mr. Kajiura asked me, "How do you like the title 'Sea and Pearls'? What do you think? I thought it fit both the content of the anime and the lyrics, so I said, "I think it's great. The word "pearl" does not appear in the lyrics, but I think it fits the atmosphere of the song and the world of "The Pirate Princess.

─ ─ What did "pearl" remind you of, JUNNA?

JUNNA First of all, Fena's hair color. Also, I thought that having a beautiful girl mixed in with the rough battle was somewhat like "Pearl".

───How was the recording process?

JUNNA: Mr. Kajiura taught me a lot of things while I was recording the song, keeping in mind the world view and the characters. He explained the images of each lyric in many words. It was very easy to understand, and the recording went very smoothly. I think Mr. Kajiura's direction made it easy for me to sing in a way I had never tried before.

─ ─ What exactly do you mean by singing in a way you had never tried before?

JUNNA When I wanted to sing an up-tempo song with rhythm, I had the feeling of singing each word clearly and cutting off the rhythm at each note. In "Umi to Shinju", I sang with an awareness of phrasing, trying to convey the meaning of the words in large phrases. That kind of singing is the way I sing ballads.

─ In other words, you sang an up-tempo song in a ballad style.

JUNNA That's right. It is not actually a ballad song, but I have a strong image of singing a ballad song in my mind, so much so that during the rehearsal of "JUNNA ROCK YOU TOUR 2021 ~Summer of 20 years old~", I said "This song is a ballad" when I introduced "Sea and Pearls".

─ Perhaps that is the reason why the song has an image of moving through the ocean in a calm and peaceful manner, even though it is an up-tempo song.

JUNNA Mr. Kajiura was very complimentary of my vocals during the recording sessions. Every time he said, "It's good" or "I like it," I got more and more excited (laugh). (Laughs) Whenever I asked him to try a certain way of singing, he would first respect my style of singing and then suggest something like, "How about this way of singing? He would then make suggestions like, "How about this way of singing?

─ ─ He was very kind in his direction, wasn't he?

JUNNA Yes. With Mr. Kajiura's guidance, my vocals naturally changed, and the song became a fusion of the past JUNNA and the new JUNNA. I am sure that in the future, as I watch the broadcast of "The Pirate Princess," my interpretation of the song will change again, and it will evolve further as I perform it live.

─ ─ The music video for "Sea and Pearls" is included on the Blu-ray of the initial release. A short version of the video is now available on YouTube, so I'm sure many fans have already seen it, but it was an exotic video.

JUNNA It was a very nice location. And I think the use of a drone made the video dynamic and suited to the music.

─ ─ The sunset was also beautiful, and it was perfect for the world view of "Pirate Princess".

JUNNA When we shot the sunset, we were standing on top of a very high fortress and the ocean was right below us, so it was very scary. Moreover, the entire fortress was filmed by a drone, so the staff was far away so that they wouldn't be seen, and I was all alone (laughs). I was very nervous, and I was worried about how the footage would turn out, but when I saw the finished product, it looked great, and I thought it was worth the effort (laughs).


(laughs) ─ Was the jacket photo for "Sea and Pearls" taken on the same day as the music video?

JUNNA No, the jacket was taken on a completely different day and at a completely different location. It turned out to be a hazy, atmospheric photo.