Up-and-coming singer-actress Meimi Tamura has fascinated The Yomiuri Shimbun's readers with her writing skills in her monthly column in the newspaper. Reading her blatantly honest account of what she thinks has encouraged people to send in their opinions, such as "She's got keen sensitivity" and "I've become curious what kind of person she is." As she makes it a rule not to write about her singing and stories from her stage performances in her column, The Yomiuri Shimbun has gave her the opportunity to talk about herself as much as she likes in an interview, in which she openly discussed her career and hobbies.
"This is cute! Oh, that one's nice, too," Tamura said in a boutique before its opening time, where there was no one besides us. She walked around inside the shop, drawn by one outfit after another, before we could start the photo session for her interview.
The shop, LEBECCA boutique, in the Laforet Harajuku fashion outlet building in Tokyo, is her favorite place to buy clothes for her private life.
"About 70% of the outfits I have come from here," she said. "I love their dresses."
The brand's general director, Eru Akazawa, is the creative director of Tamura's full-length album, "Ichijiku," which means figs, and helped design the visual aspect of the album so that it thoroughly conveys Tamura's favorite things. The album was released on April 8.
The lyrics and the music of the songs on the album reflect Tamura's innocent cheerfulness on one side and contrasting shadow on the other.
"If I, a singer, am going to sing songs on the same level as singer-songwriters, I think it's essential that I get across charms of the songs that only I can deliver," she said, adding that when she works with a lyricist for the first time, she sits down with the person for a solid two hours to have a discussion so that the lyricist understands her well.
Sometimes Tamura's own remarks make their way into the lyrics. A good example is "Butai" (Stage), her third single and one of the tracks on the latest album. Apparently, Tamura told singer-songwriter Kayoko Yoshizawa, who wrote the song, "I want to pierce the hearts of the audience deeply with my acting and singing," which was turned into the phrase "Fukaku tsukisasuwa" (I'll pierce deeply) in the song.
"Ichijiku," the album's title song, likens Tamura's joy and hesitation in becoming an adult to the fig fruit gradually maturing and changing its color to a deeper shade. "[It's] the theme of my life," she said of the lyrics that were written by Soichiro Kawata, whose works include "Cinderella Girl" by boy band King & Prince.
Born in 1998, Tamura comes from Gunma Prefecture and made her show-biz debut in October 2011 as a member of the girl band S/mileage, which changed its name to Angerme in 2014. After leaving the group in 2016, Tamura has built a career in both acting and singing. Her theatrical credits of late include the musicals "marigold" and "Love's Labour's Lost" as well as a theatrical adaptation of the manga "Ruroni Kenshin." From June, she is scheduled to appear in the musical "Hairspray," playing the role of Amber.
She has inspired not only songs but also theatrical productions. Playwright-director Kenichi Suemitsu created a character with Tamura in mind for the play "grand guignol." The character, a female vampire who demonstrates innocent cruelty, surprised Tamura, who thought, "Was this character really modeled on me?!" Suemitsu also cast Tamura as the protagonist in "marigold." The story of the musical is linked to works Tamura performed during her pop idol days.
While Tamura has portrayed many unique characters, displaying a variety of expressions, she has also played classic female leads as well. In February this year, she played Maria in the musical "West Side Story."
"Since the story becomes a tragedy in Act II, I made sure that I showed as much happiness as possible in Act I." Tamura said. "It was really tough to be focused enough to express love, because it's such an epic work, performing in it is intimidating."
Unfortunately, the production was suspended with more than 10 days to go because of the new coronavirus pandemic.
Tamura accepted the situation readily and somewhat philosophically.
"We were on stage to deliver a work that tells of love and the preciousness of life," she said. "By canceling this production to protect the lives of the audience, we could achieve our goal in a way, I thought."
Tamura is always working hard on how to deliver songs to the audience.
"People say I have many different voices, but it's just that music shows me the way," she said. Adding: "The moment you try to deliberately change your voice, you become an imitator. Singing is a delicate art where all the fine details change the way it reaches the audience, such as whether you use kobushi tremolos or from which note you start singing in falsetto."
Tamura sings the songs that have come out of her because she wants to convey them to people.
"There are times when I feel lonely, thinking my own thoughts may be strange," she said. "Perhaps my songs are not what everyone can empathize with, but I think it'd be nice if they reach people who feel the same kind of loneliness as myself."
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