Commemorating the airing of the new theme song for "ONE PIECE! YU (I Don't Like Mondays.) and Sota Hanamura (Da-iCE) in conversation

YU of I Don't Like Mondays., who will sing the new theme song for the TV anime "ONE PIECE" (Fuji TV), and Sota Hanamura of Da-iCE, who sang the previous theme song, held a conversation.

PAINT" by I Don't Like Mondays. ("idola") has been chosen as the new theme song for the TV anime "ONE PIECE". This is the first anime tie-up song for idola and has attracted a lot of attention since its announcement last November, and it finally started airing from the January 9 broadcast episode.

The song has been the focus of much attention since its announcement in November last year, and it will finally begin airing on the air on January 9. We hope you can feel their overflowing love for "ONE PIECE," their enthusiasm as theme song artists, and the bond that has been passed down from Da-iCE to I Don't Like Mondays.
(Reporting and composition by Tomohisa Toyota)

I Don't Like Mondays." meets "Da-iCE
--Do you have any contact with each other?

YU Actually, this is the first time we are talking to each other.
Hanamura That's right.
YU Daiki (Kudo) and Yudai (Ohno) once came to my radio show.
Hanamura We didn't have a good schedule at that time.

--Are you aware of each other as artists?

Hanamura Of course.
YU I was always interested in Da-ice. First of all, they are very good singers!
Hanamura No, no, not at all (laughs).
YU They have very beautiful high tones with a mixed feeling. I always want to do something like that.
Hanamura I also listen to a lot of music. I always think that his voice is a little new, with a husky and clear quality.
YU Among Da-ice's songs, "CITRUS" is a bit shocking. every time I hear it.
Hanamura Thank you very much!　I listened to "PAINT" this time, and I thought, "This kind of warm song is also nice.
YU You listened to it right away. Thank you!
HANAMURA You have a cool and cool image of idols, but the gap between the two comes through in a good way.
YU No, I'm glad to hear you say so.

I Don't Like Mondays. YU

Da-iCE Mr. Sota Hanamura

Their respective feelings toward "ONE PIECE
--You both have been fans of "ONE PIECE" for a long time. Please tell us about your encounters with the series and what you think makes it so appealing.

Hanamura I love "ONE PIECE" so much that it is the only manga I have continued to read since its serialization!
YU I have been reading it for a long time, too. We are of the same generation, aren't we?
Hanamura Of course I watched the anime as well. When I was in the fourth grade of elementary school, I had an opportunity to dance "We Are! I had a chance to dance to "We Are!" at a gymnastics competition when I was in the fourth grade of elementary school, and I fell in love with the song even more deeply at that time. It is because I was involved in the theme song of "ONE PIECE" that I was given the opportunity to officially cover the song, and I feel very honored to be able to do so.
YU In my case, my brother read it first, and I read it in book form. I was only on the first few volumes, but I was immediately hooked and thought, "Wow, this is interesting! I was hooked right away. Especially in the early days, there were some scary parts. That was also shocking to me as an elementary school student.
Hanamura In terms of characters, I like Luffy.
YU The royal road!
Hanamura It's so obvious that not many people dare to mention it.
YU Ah, you're right.
Hanamura I like the "Dress Rosa Arc.
YU It's very munerative, isn't it?
HANAMURA You can feel the love between father and son, and also the portrayal of his manhood when he defeats Doflamingo, who was said to be impossible to defeat. I am still impressed no matter how many times I read it.
YU My favorite character is ...... Trafalgar Law, if we take the high road.
Hanamura Oh, I like him.
YU He has that cool feeling. He's not too hot, but he has a hidden passion that I can't resist. On the other hand, if I were to mention a less royal character, I would say Crocodile. I can't say it well (laugh), but I have always liked him.
Hanamura What is your favorite part?
YU This is also a royal road, but the "Summit War Arc. It makes me cry no matter how many times I read it.
Hanamura The scene a little while ago about the "Merry" ship also makes me cry.
YU Oh, it makes me cry!　There is no end to the number of times I can cry.
Hanamura I can't stop talking about it! (laughs).
YU I've been reading it for a long time, but when I read it again as an adult, I see it in a different light.
Hanamura Oh, I know, I know!
YU I am moved in totally different ways, and there are discoveries that I didn't realize at the time. I think this is one of the charms of "ONE PIECE". Nowadays, there are many people who are discussing about it on the Internet. When I read such things, I want to read it again myself. To be honest, I'm getting more deeply into it now (laughs). I can enjoy it forever and ever.

How did you decide on the theme song artist?
--How did you feel when you were chosen as the theme song artist?

YU: There was quite a gap between when we submitted the music and when it was chosen.
Hanamura After submitting the music for "DREAMIN' ON," there was a period of agonizing over what would happen. I was in a period of agony, and even after the decision was made, I still had a feeling of disbelief.
YU: Just as I was about to give up, my manager came to me and said, "We've decided! I was about to give up when the manager came to me and reported, "We have decided! At that moment, all the members were in a state of "What? We couldn't hide our confusion.
Hanamura Even though the decision was made, it was still somewhat hard to believe (laughs).
YU: Yes, after a short pause, we finally started to feel happy. We rarely say "Yeah! but at that time we couldn't hide our feelings (laughs).
Hanamura: The day before the airing, we were allowed to see the video that was combined with the song, but before the actual airing, I was worried that it might not be played (laughs). (laughs). (laughs). It was such a big event for us.
YU In that sense, we don't really feel it yet. I see. I'm really looking forward to seeing it with the video.

--How was the response to "DREAMIN' ON" when it was actually played in the case of Da-iCE?

Hanamura I was surprised by the overwhelming increase in comments from overseas viewers on YouTube as well. One Piece" is popular in France and other European countries. Until then, Da-ice had mainly received responses from within Japan, so it was an unexpected surprise.
YU Oh, wow.
Hanamura I was also happy that people heard "DREAMIN' ON" as the theme song for "ONE PIECE" and got to know Da-iCE. And yes, the response from my friends was even more amazing than before (laughs).
YU: I'm already getting calls from all over the place (laughs).
Hanamura: Once again, I realize how popular "ONE PIECE" is. Also, Luffy talked about us in the "DREAMIN' ON" commercial.
YU Oh, in that voice?
Hanamura Yes. In Luffy's voice, he said "Da-iCE, DREAMIN' ON! in Luffy's voice.
YU That's really bad! (laughs).
Hanamura That's right. I was really moved.
YU When "PAINT" was announced, the official twitter account of "ONE PIECE" said, "I received a comment from YU. I was so excited to see that. "Luffy's icon is tweeting about me! (laughs).
Hanamura: I'm sure he'll be talking about idols soon. I was also happy to see the "ONE PIECE × Da-ice" collaboration illustration on the CD cover of "DREAMIN' ON. I still keep this one on display. If I could, I would even stretch it out and make it into a poster.
YU Well, listening to your story, I still have a bigger feeling of disbelief. That is the next stage!

The world of "ONE PIECE" is depicted in the lyrics.
--We both write lyrics for "ONE PIECE", which is another common point. I imagine you had a hard time expressing the world of "ONE PIECE" in words.

YU: I was really worried about it. It was totally different from the usual level of writing. This time, I wanted to create a song that could stand on its own as an idol song as well as a theme song. One thing I thought about was how to incorporate the "fiction" of "ONE PIECE" into the "non-fiction" that is us, idola. I wrote the lyrics while paying attention to the balance between the idolatry and the excitement I get from watching "One Piece" every time I watch it, and I wanted to keep that feeling in mind.
Hanamura I remember having a hard time writing the lyrics to "'DREAMIN' ON". The first draft was a little negative and then positive, but I was told to "eliminate the negativity and make it all positive. That was a very difficult part. For example, instead of "I'm scared," I should say "I'm not scared," and that kind of phrase selection is very special. Also, when I thought about who's point of view I was singing from, Luffy came to mind, so I thought that eliminating negativity would be connected to Luffy's strength.
YU In my case, there was never a retake. On the contrary, even when I was asked to "fix it," there was no way to fix it. Usually, there are cases where the members give me bad advice before submitting the work, but in this case, there was no such thing.
Hanamura That's amazing!
YU "DREAMIN' ON" is very catchy from the first verse of the chorus. This phrase immediately comes to mind.
Hanamura Speaking of "ONE PIECE," "map" is one of the most important words. There is a final destination, "Raftel," but in "DREAMIN' ON," I don't know if it is actually there, and I am not sure where it is, so I tried to make it easy to understand the part about going there.
YU I also included the word "map".
Hanamura I thought the use of the word "map" in "PAINT" was very good because it can be taken in a deep and broad sense.
YU Thank you very much!
Hanamura There is a nuance of knowing one's own inner self as one pushes forward, and I feel that especially nowadays, it is difficult to know oneself. I hope that people who are not sure of their dreams will listen to "PAINT" and discover a new dream or a part of themselves that they were not aware of before.

--Please continue to tell us about the recording episode.

YU This time, I felt like it was fate that the pre-production of the 1st demo was on May 5.
Hanamura Luffy's birthday!
YU Yes. I didn't realize it at all until that day, when I happened to look at my phone during a break and thought, "Yes! I was still in the pre-production stage. I was still in the pre-production stage, so I thought that maybe we would be able to make it.
Hanamura That's a great episode.
YU: However, we went through quite a lot of trial and error in the recording. We usually sing mellow songs with a falsetto, but I wanted to express the world of "ONE PIECE" with a penetrating voice. I wanted to step up my own singing style, which I had not tried before, so I decided to give it a shot.
Hanamura It sounds easy to sing, doesn't it? I can learn the song very quickly.
YU It feels good to sing by myself. That was another new discovery.
Hanamura Compared to that, "Dreamin' On" is difficult (laughs).
YU It is difficult, isn't it? If you have ever sung it at karaoke, you would know that it requires a lot of skill. I am also in a very high key, but it is even higher than that (laughs).
Hanamura: At that time, I recorded the pre-production at home, but at home, I tend to lower my voice in the deepest part of my mind.
YU: Consideration for the neighborhood! (laughs).
Hanamura Like YU, I wanted to go as far as possible, but I couldn't fully express myself at home. I had to express myself properly in the studio. During the recording session, I was able to enjoy singing with a sense of ease. I was especially conscious of the first voice. I knew it was going to be the beginning of the chorus, so I wanted to make sure I could capture everyone's hearts and not make them skip or change the channel. I was conscious of that.
YU: I am the same way. The members and I worked on the song with the images of "ONE PIECE" in mind, so the finished song has a different feel to it than in the past.

From "DREAMIN' ON" to "PAINT"!
--How do you feel about the music?


YU Compared to the huge content of "ONE PIECE," we at idola are still in the early stages of our career, and to be honest, there was a part of me that was a bit hesitant, thinking that we were not good enough to decorate "ONE PIECE. However, "ONE PIECE" dispelled my weak feeling, and I read it over and over again during the process of music production, and I realized that "rather, it is a tremendous existence, and that is why we have to face it! I reminded myself that I had to take on the challenge with a feeling of "I'm going to stand up to it!" and I threw myself into the task of completing the music.
Hanamura That's wonderful. We are exactly the same way, and Da-ice was chosen even though there are still fewer people who know about us compared to now. DREAMIN' ON" was playing right around the time of the "Waronokuni Arc," and I remember how excited I was to be able to add a little something extra to the work through the song.
YU: I am genuinely happy, but I am also feeling a lot of pressure right now. The thought of being sent out to the world is an order of magnitude greater than anything we have done in the past.
Hanamura It may be difficult under the current circumstances, but I think our music will be a weapon when we are invited to overseas anime festivals.
YU Well, I and the other members are still in a state of disbelief. Oh yes, I just remembered that I had a little connection with "ONE PIECE". This is actually the second time we have worked together.
Hanamura What?　What do you mean?
YU It was when I was a college student, and I was involved in a collaboration project between "ONE PIECE" and Baccarat glasses, which was a completely different job from the one I have now. That was about 10 years ago. After that, I formed a band and went on to pursue a career in music, and now, 10 years later, I am involved in the theme song.
Hanamura It is amazing that you were able to collaborate with "ONE PIECE" as a university student!
YU I know it's just a chance encounter, but I am really deeply moved by it.

--I'd like to ask you about your feelings toward the end.


Hanamura: First of all, I feel sad. My voice used to be played every Sunday morning. However, "ONE PIECE" has given me a lot of happiness in the past year and a half. I think Luffy will continue his journey again with the best music called "PAINT," and we ourselves must continue our journey again with the courage and energy that Luffy gave us. I am sure that idolaters will also receive various kinds of power and happiness from Luffy, so please look forward to it.

YU We are proud to have produced "PAINT" as a band, and we hope that you will listen to it along with the "ONE PIECE" pictures. On a serious note, in this day and age, we may be forced to face inconveniences in various situations, but I myself have been greatly encouraged by this song. From now on, as a theme song artist, I would like to push the backs of all fans along with the world view of "ONE PIECE". I hope you will support me!

All text in Japanese is original.