KAIRYU (MAZZEL) – Rolling Stone interview (2025.05.28)

[shizuna]

Rolling Stone has been releasing 1-on-1 interviews with MAZZEL since October last year, the series ended with KAIRYU on May 28, 2025.

I translated Kairyu's one in the series.

You can read the original interview here: https://rollingstonejapan.com/articles/detail/42947


Got into music because of Tokunaga Hideaki
- but then he said he watched a guy called Eimei imitate him and that's how he started

“I never talked about being able to sing at school because there was already someone who sings well and everyone recommends them for competitions (and they compete too). My mum says, "But your singing is good too~" and I thought I was good as well, but I was embarrassed about it and hid it. If I ever showed it off, I want to win.” His confidence in singing was only when he was in elementary

he only ever sang in front of his family (since he mentioned his mum saying his singing is good in his answer to the previous question), and his talent was imitating CM songs (and tokunaga hideaki www))

his biggest influence in him getting into RnB was Stevie Wonder 🙂‍↕️

his sister is a big SM fan so he was influenced from that! He listened to TVXQ and Super junior but he liked EXO the best

“If I joke around and clown I'm totally fine with that, but if I have to act cool I feel a little embarrassed about it. My school was in a rural town, so I thought it's impossible for me to suddenly make myself look cool and sing. Even now, it makes me embarrassed when my friends come to our live concerts, lol. My friends usually see me fooling around and joking with them, so I'm not used to being cool and singing in front of them. So in the beginning it was embarrassing.”

For Kairyu, it was either debut as an SM artist or nothing, he went to SM Town after graduating junior high (middle school) and was enamored by artists like Jonghyun from SHINee and Amber from f(x), and started audition for SM the month after that. Although he never made it into SM while he was a student, he finally passed the audition after his high school graduation.

So he kept postponing his goal:
- “Be a part of a company by the time i graduate middle school…”
- “Be a part of a company while I'm 1st year hs…”
- “Be a part of a company while I'm 2nd year hs…”
on his high school career pathyway questionnaire
“I'd hate myself if I did anything else so i clung to it”

as for the unnamed agency he was in for a while, this was a rough time for him. He wasn't getting the feedback he wanted, a lot of other things happened so he decided to leave the agency. He applied again to the same agency, but their KR branch? and was accepted, but that's when COVID happened (so 2020?). Although he thought the agency would be familiar, since he was in it, left, and returned, it felt more distant, and he only had his confidence and nothing else, so it was tough for him

The interviewer praised him for his tenacity.
Kairyu: Really? On the contrary, I find it scary that boy groups have no time limit (in terms of a debut or achieving their dreams)

Kairyu auditioned for THE FIRST knowing Chaki Zulu was one of the producers. He also auditioned because it helped him think, "Maybe there's a way for me to be in a group the way I want in Japan [emphasis my own]." Although he was aiming for "idol" and nothing but being a SM artist, as he got older he couldn't make his dream come true ( 😢 ) and his taste in music changed - he got into Korean RnB right when EXO had more solo activities. He saw his oshis D.O. and Baekhyun do those kind of music and thought it would be nice if he could do that in a boy group but still do what he wants to do. So when he found BMSG, he thought, "This is the place."

When he returned to Japan from Korea and it was COVID, there was no auditions. He started his YT channel and uploading covers. He was approached by an agency (also unnamed) that said, "We can produce you as a solo artist." He'd only thought of himself as part of a member of a boy group all this time, but he listened to what the agency had to offer and what they can do for him. It was the first time he thought, "Oh hey, maybe someone finds value in my singing" and "maybe I can make it as a solo artist", and it helped him be a little more positive.
- So he went to Tokyo to listen to what the agency has to say, but when he returned to his home in Hyogo, he was like "imma check if there's auditions, one last time" and came across THE FIRST audition on the avex website. So he went through with it thinking it's his last shot.

The interviewer mentioned that Kairyu looked angry when he was eliminated from THE FIRST in the audition footage.
- Kairyu admits he looked terrible, lol. He wasn't sure what he was angry about. He had a feeling he wouldn't pass, so he was in despair. He couldn't get into SM, he couldn't get into BMSG. Even if he got to debut in another agency elsewhere, it might not be where he really wants to be [emphasis my own], so he was distraught.

And the divine powers that be, Baekhyun releases Bambi 🤣 ✨
- It was a very cool solo song while Baekhyun was a part of a group, so it sparked the idea in him that he can be a part of a boy group and still release solo songs. Realistically speaking, Kairyu thinks people pay more attention to groups than soloists. He likes to talk, so he wants to appear in variety programs and have his own radio show. It helped him carve out what he'd like to do "while he's in a group" and that he can't give up just yet. So he applied for a dance school to start learning dance from scratch.

Kairyu said he had a lot of confidence in his singing, as for dance it wasn't that he wasn't confident, if he had to do it he'll do it. He thought if he just kept relying on his talents, he'd get in trouble, so he started going to the dance school.

Kairyu did see the "BMSG is always recruiting" post right after he was rejected. He was greedy and had a lot of pride so he hoped that he could succeed somewhere else and make them (BMSG) think they should've taken him back then 😠
- On the one hand, this motivated him to work hard in the dance school he was at, but on the other there was a lot about the school he thought didn't fit his style. He auditioned for the agency the school was a part of too, but he thought "I don't want to debut if it's not with BMSG after all".
- He still had boss's contacts from THE FIRST and called him (while zast was still going) saying he wants to talk to him. Kairyu said if he continued on (and was picked) he would've of course be at BMSG, but he told boss he really wanted this so he hopes boss gives him a quick response. Boss told him he'd like him here so he moved to Tokyo. Kairyu was honest with boss, knowing that he is an artist and how difficult it is to make a name for yourself in the industry.

When Kairyu's name was called first in MISSIONx2, there was a lot of anxiety and fear. His reason for "fear" is that, as long as you are aiming / chasing for your dreams you can keep talking about it forever. Once you get to debut though, what you've always imagined will become reality. So for him, it never was "Yes! I got to debut! I fulfilled my dream!" but more a "Now that I've debut I'm one step closer to my ideal self. My dream is finally starting properly"

Kairyu's motto: "Be the cool person you think you are" (he says it's embarrassing to say it out loud though)

Kairyu thought of pushing the vocals for the group with his singing during MISSIONx2 so he wanted to excel in singing. Although he was supporting members in the recording booth during Parade, now that MAZZEL works on songs with various producers and members communicate their lines / parts with them on their own, he doesn't do that so much anymore. He'll hop in to the recording booth if he thinks his singing is needed.

Kairyu thinks Candle is a really good song! Shota and him have similar tastes, so they used a lot of references to create the song on the spot. It was his first time to be involved in a song's production so he was able to sing comfortably. He says Shochan has a habit of going into the groove later, which Kairyu isn't so good at. He struggled with it in Memoria but did his best in Candle. Shochan taught him a lot of things so he had a really good time. (T/N: Kairyu referred to Aile The Shota as "Shocan" in the interview so I kept it as is)

The interviewer asked him if there's a turning point for him in MAZZEL. Kairyu said his goal has never changed. Of course, he feels happy when he stands on the arena and he meets MUZEs for the first time, but he hasn't wavered since debut so there probably is no turning point for him, sorry lol.

Kairyu thinks he is able to challenge and surpass his own level in singing because he does a lot of songs by Alysa (LOL, thoughts guys?) and the result of challenging difficult lines that are harder every time. He had a hard time with the high notes in Parade, but he can do them comfortably in live performances now 😤

In Kairyu's case, whenever they receive a demo for a new song, Kairyu always feels it's "That person vs. me" so he always feel like they / he needs to do it better and make sure people think "Wow this song is great" when MAZZEL do it. (He gets especially competitive when the demo is done by someone overseas lol) Kairyu thinks you can't grow unless you look up to others, so he makes it a point to make people who are superior than him his opponents.

Interviewer: So it wasn't that you didn't run away from your regrets, it was you couldn't.
Kairyu: Yeah. I think the word "lesson learned" is somehow like you're justifying a past without that. People often say that, "I'm here now because of the pain I endured", but I've gone through a lot of painful experiences that I think, "Nah, it would have been better if I didn't have them," and I want to dilute and diminish them as much as possible. I don't want those days to have been meaningless, so I want to get as many successful experiences as possible and be closer to becoming a cooler version of myself. I still have a long way to go, but I feel like that's what I'm doing.

How does Kairyu see MAZZEL's year?
Kairyu: There were times in the year where we fell really hard, but I feel like RSF (EP) was the best we produced for the time being and a culmination of what we wanted to do. I think we were able to produce [RSF] because we had a lot of experiences of "This didn't really produce results", and "It wasn't as cool as we thought" 🥲

Rather than the past year, I think in these few months of 2025, the songs we've done has directly led to it in numbers. This sounds cruel, but results give us confidence, and we lose confidence from those results too. I have a feeling that the number of people listening to us now is increasing and not at a speed that's too slow too. In a time where audition is all the buzz, I think it's meaningful for BMSG and the industry to see how far we go, since we didn't have this kind of thing. We had our period of time where we were frustrated (moya moya), but there's no point thinking like that still, so now I'm prioritizing, "If MAZZEL does this, it will be super cool".

Which song on RSF does Kairyu think is the strongest (both in terms of the song itself and numbers)?
Kairyu thinks it's J.O.K.E.R. It's a song that's packed with their strengths, and he feels like a lot of people that told him they like the song has increased a lot. He thinks J.O.K.E.R will be their icon.

Interviewer: Through MAZZEL's success, I think it's significant to show the industry a group that can shine, even without the audition buzz
KAIRYU: I would like that to happen, and when it does, I think we will be able to prove that BMSG has evolved one more time. If we can do that, I think it will be huge not only for us but also for BMSG

Interviewer: I think KAIRYU-san is hope in a sense, you're teaching the next generation of kids who dream of RnB to shine in boy groups.
KAIRYU: That is also a big dream of mine. When I was eliminated from THE FIRST some people told me, to cheer me up, that I would be better off as a solo artist. But I want to be in a group because I am good enough to be a solo artist. I thought it was because Korea and Japan had a different image [of solo artists]. So I hope kids who are seeing me that are aiming to be solo artists, think "I can sing, so I want to be in a group," that would make me happy.

Q: What kind of place is MAZZEL to KAIRYU?
KAIRYU: I think "nakama" is the obvious answer, but if it wasn't for MAZZEL I wouldn't be able to prove my worth, so MAZZEL is a place where I can unleash my talents.

Q: What does KAIRYU envision for MAZZEL's future?
Kairyu is extremely proud that they could have four arena shows last year, less than a year after their debut. The hall tour they're on now is longer than last year's and they will end at Ariake arena which is bigger than the arena they were at last year. If they finish that with time to spare, he envisions them getting an arena tour. He feels like MAZZEL's value has increased since the arena shows last year, getting an arena tour will raise the bar higher for what MAZZEL can become and how MAZZEL will be viewed by others. They're making this hall tour one where they can say, "Next one is an arena tour 😤 "

What about KAIRYU's own dreams?
Kairyu wants to use everything he has to do everything he can. His dream to have his own radio has come true, but he wants to be active in multiple fields - like variety (entertainment) since he loves it. He believes that the more the group is active, the more it can lead to solo activities, which in turn feeds back to the group. Kairyu wants to raise the popularity of MAZZEL so that the members can show off their individual talents more.

KAIRYU: I think our staff and MUZEs have experienced moments of "More and more" and frustration, so we'll do our best to bounce back from all of that. I hope you continue to support us as always. In order for our fans to grow, it's a must for MUZEs who have been supporting us to continue to do so in the future

Kairyu thinks there are always elements of impatience and comparing no matter what you do, but when you're basing it on facts, they have produced results they can be proud of.

He doesn't just want to be someone who can fill up an arena or dome, but someone you see and go, "Of course they / he can stand there, duh"

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Hope you enjoyed!

Please note I translate these for free and I'm not a professional, so they may not be super perfect.

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