Translation & Subtitles: thoseguiltyeyes | scandal-heaven.com Hello, RINA here! Today, I will be doing my first Q&A on this channel. I will be answering a few questions that were submitted in response to my Instagram Story. Thanks so much for submitting so many questions! Let's get to the first question. How has your YouTube experience been so far? Good question! Thanks to you guys, it's been fun to do this at my own pace. Before I started my channel, I was a little nervous as to how you guys would react to it, but you guys have had even happier responses to it than I thought you would, and I've gotten many warm comments. I think I'll be able to have fun with this. I have a lot of social media accounts, but... How should I put this... But it's like YouTube is a get-together of only my favorite people. It's only been a few weeks, but it's thanks to your responses that this has been a lot of fun. Let's go to the next one. Q. If you weren't in SCANDAL, what kind of job would you have? This was asked a lot, surprisingly! Hm... This might be a non-answer, but I can't even imagine that! If I hadn't been in a band, then maybe I would have tried to be an entertainer, or someone who performs in front of an audience. But I'm so glad that I have SCANDAL. I think that every day. On to the next one. Q. How many years did you attend Caless, and why did you decide to attend? This question makes me think that this person really knows our history. The impetus for starting the band was us meeting at Caless, a dance & vocal school in Osaka, and then forming a band. The reason why I decided to attend was not because I found out about Caless myself, went there for an audition, and was accepted into the school. I had gone to a completely different audition, and someone who I met there, they were someone who worked at a record label. They said that there's a dance & vocal school in Osaka, and asked if I'd like to try studying there and growing my repetoire. He recommended me and introduced me to teachers there. That's how I learned about Caless and started taking lessons there. Even now, we both make sure to exchange messages once a year during New Year's. The other day too we talked on [the messaging app] LINE. They discovered me and paved a way for me to the music industry, so I'm still grateful to them to this day. I forgot what I was supposed to be talking about... I took lessons for about three months! (So short) The band formed right after that, And I also attended during our indie days. I think about two years? Q. Was there anything you were nervous about when you first started living on your own? Let's see... I moved to Tokyo in my second year of high school. I moved from Nara Prefecture to Tokyo. At that time our vocalist HARUNA and I were the only ones who moved to Tokyo, and the two of us were going around here doing promo gigs. HARUNA and I were living together at first. TOMOMI and MAMI then moved to Tokyo after graduating from high school in their hometowns, and the four of us were living together. I later graduated high school and then began living on my own. I think I was more nervous about moving to Tokyo. I had already gotten used to living in Tokyo by then, and I had the support of the other members and our staff members, which is why I didn't have many worries. I was a second-year high-school transfer student when I moved to Tokyo, so I had no idea at all how the trains worked. That was the thing I was most worried about. HARUNA and I lived in the Sancha (short for Sangenjaya) area of Tokyo when we first moved here. I would go from Sancha to Shimokitazawa by bus, and then go from there to the Tsurukawa Station via an Odakyu line, and then go from there to my school by bus. I had no idea where to switch trains or which platform to go to, so I was late on my first day of school! And I was a transfer student too! That's what I was nervous about. I was like, "Will I be able to get home?" I thought that the next day too, but starting from the next day I made a friend at school that said they would walk with me until we had to split up. I was helped by everyone. I was so nervous back then about taking the train. Also, the difference between my hometown and Tokyo was extreme. The stations in Nara Prefecture are unmanned, like the one by my home, and there would be boxes to put in your ticket. They've since been updated and are now like normal [electronic] ticket gates. It was difficult for me to grasp back then, how the number of people, the number of trains, the number of Lawson [convenience stores] were way different from what I was used to. It made me want to cry! But those were good memories! Q. How do you psych yourself back up when your motivation's low? Good question... I too have times when I feel down, get hurt, and can't get motivated no matter what. Hmm... I think what helps me the most is watching a favorite movie or drama series for a change of pace, or do my nails. There are also times when you still can't find a solution. Try talking to someone who understands you, which could help you get back on track and get you motivated. It'll help you turn things around. Q. I'm a shy person. What are you careful with when interacting with people? I see. I'm not really a shy person, at least when it comes to work (haha). Like when people come to greet us in the dressing room, or when we go to meet someone, I'll often take the lead and start talking first. It's like I'm fully flipping my switch to "on." When I meet someone new while we're working, I'm aware of trying to start or connect the conversation. The members of the band are quite shy by nature and aren't super outgoing at all, but when working they try and take the initiative as much as possible and set a good ambiance as best they can. They try their best. This person said they're a shy person, but I think it's better if you don't tell others you're a shy person. Like, I think saying that in itself builds walls. I think it could be good if you tried speaking about a small topic and give the listener cues that you're listening. Communicate gently without shutting yourself down. You don't have to push yourself too hard. Onto the next one. Q. Do you want to get married? I got a lot of questions like that! A LOT of them. I also got a lot of them from people overseas too. Well... I'm currently 28, and on August 21st of this year I'll be turning 29. A lot of people get married around this age, but as for myself... I don't have an age by which I want to get married, and I don't feel rushed at all. Like, I haven't... I haven't really considered it realistically... That's where I'm at right now. If you ask me if I really want to get married right now, I don't. But I do think that that's one form of happiness. If a time ever comes when I want to get married, then that's good too. At that time, I hope you guys can congratulate me and support me. I'm just going to let it happen naturally. But if you call marriage the peak of happiness, that's not what I feel it is. Q. What perfume do you use? I also got a lot of questions about this from girls. Hold on a sec. I'll go get it. Still, I don't often wear perfume. When I do use it, I always use this one. How should I show it? It's hard to see it. Maybe like this? Did it work? It's this one. CHANEL N°5 L'EAU Eau de Toilette (Spray) It's a Chanel perfume. I've been using this for a long time. I don't use it that often, though. It smells really nice. It's my favorite. I'll put the name of it in the on-screen text. I also surprisingly got a lot of questions about this. Q. What laundry detergent do you use? It's super ordinary! It's a pink laundry detergent pac. What's its official name? I'll put that in the subs too. Bold Gel Ball 3D, Relaxing Premium Blossom Fragrance Laundry detergent pacs are convenient and smell great. Yep. Q. Is there something you've been hooked on during this stay-at-home period? There is! Well... I've talked about this in various places so I'm sure a lot of people know this, but I watched the anime "Atashin'chi" every day. I was so hooked on it! It was so cute! What supported me during this time was definitely "Atashin'chi." Watching it as an adult, it was something good amid these days where nothing was happening. A lot of things resonated with me. There are a few gaps between how we think now from when it was made [in the early 2000s] in the lines and scenes. I can't name all of them, though. I want everyone to be kind-hearted. I don't know if that summing it up like that makes sense, though. First, I watched the entirety of "Atashin'chi"--it goes up to season four. And then I watched [the sequel series called] "Shin Atashin'chi," and then I watched the "Atashin'chi" movie. All of them were great. I really love the character called Mother. She's adorable♡ Onto the next one. Q. Is there a drama series you're currently watching? Yes, there is. What I'm watching right now is "American Horror Story" on Netflix. It's a series aimed towards adults so there are a lot of dark scenes. I'm having fun watching it every day while learning about a lot different things. I'm currently on season three. It's scary, but it's fun to watch. Onto the next one. Q. Do you wear colored contacts? I also got a lot of questions about this. I don't wear them. I don't have anything in my eyes right now. Could you tell? My eyes are bare. Onto the next one. Q. Do you diet? If you know anything that's effective, please tell us. I'm not dieting at all right now. It's been several years. When we had our major label debut, or actually when we were on an indie label, we were quite a bit. We were working towards our major debut and people at our managing office said that we should be toning ourselves up a little more, and we were doing that. But thinking about that now, we were really influenced by others back then. From middle to high school, girls' bodies store fat to an extent as they mature into women, and I really don't think you should go against that. That [time frame for us] was around 14 years ago, and I think we, our staff, and the world as a whole feel completely different about that now. I thought that being thinner was more beautiful or cute, but I really do think that everyone's bodies are different and are perfect the way they are, so I don't want people to do unreasonable diets. I want you guys to be healthy. As for effective diets, I think both eating well and exercising are important. (I suddenly ran out of breath) It takes a lot of stamina to not waver when drumming, so I have no plans at all to [do any dieting] right now. I want to eat good food! Onto the next one. Q. Is it not good to prioritize work over friends or a boyfriend? I see. Hmm... I thought that was fine to do. I'm also someone who prioritizes work over everything else. But when you have a boyfriend or want to have fun with friends, I think it's normal to prioritize work. I think everything's connected, though. By working hard, you can do more things and have more fun when you see your partner. When I talk with my friends, we often talk about work. I think everything's connected in a circle, so I think that prioritizing work and doing your best are good things. Onto the next one. Q. What name is best to call you by? I don't really have any nicknames. I'm called "RINA-chan" or just "RINA," And I'm happy to be called either. I think "RINA-chan" or "RINA" is simpler than saying a nickname. These were the questions I picked out and answered! It feels weird to be talking all by myself at home. I'll be editing this myself and posting it. It was interesting. There were a lot of things I don't talk about in music magazine interviews and the like. When I first started my YouTube channel, I thought that it would be okay if I didn't speak in my videos-- That it would be okay not to speak. I thought I'd just use on-screen text along with a video, but... I ended up speaking! Well, I'll try out all sorts of things. Things that I'd like to try out will take shape. Leave a comment with any thoughts you have. Please click the like button and subscribe to my channel too! I'll be thinking of what to post next, So please look forward to it! Thanks so much!