Hey! Say! 7 - Seventeen January 2021 (English Translation)

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Nakajima Yuto



I was 17 when we shot the first series. When I look back on it now, I think I was very emotional at the time. I was vulnerable and sensitive and my emotions fluctuated from day to day over small things. What I remember most about my high school days is that in my first year of high school, I went to school every day, and even won an award for perfect attendance. I don't think there's anything wrong with that, but I went to a performing arts course at the time, so I couldn't help but compare myself to my classmates who were busy with work. I would often feel frustrated and inferior... I was always slow on my feet on my way to school and often felt sick to my stomach in my class, worrying about things I didn't need to worry about, seeing things I didn't need to see... I was in despair, you know (laughs). It was hard at the time, but now I see it as a good experience. I've been through that period and have a better understanding of how people feel, and learned to appreciate the people who support me and the environment I'm in. I also learnt how to confront my own mind. If there are any ST readers out there now who are in despair like I was back then, I want to tell you to, "Just talk to someone!" It's easy to keep things to yourself when you're in the middle of your troubles, thinking that no one will understand you, but if you put it into words, it's easier than you think, and sometimes the words of a parent, an older friend or someone who has lived through life can bring you a solution. I think it's good to even have a pet at home to vent your feelings to. In fact, I've complained a lot to my dog (laughs). When I look at the serialised pages from the beginning, I feel like I'm doing great and like I was doing my best.

If I were to say something to my 17-year-old self, I'd say "Don't worry, the day will come when you'll be happy" and "There's nothing wrong with thinking, but you shouldn't think too much". I would say not to worry about everything, and that about 80% of everything will be just fine (laughs).

Yamada Ryosuke



The serialisation began when we were in our second year of high school. We were just "seventeen", weren't we? Today, the staff brought us a collection of the past serialisation pages... It's surprising how little I remember of the first half of the series. Because at the time, I wasn't just involved with Hey! Say! JUMP, but also with NYC, and I was in some dramas. Anyway, it was hard for me to juggle school and work, so my memories seem to have gone completely from my head. The only thing I remember vaguely are the memories I have of school. I only really remember make-up lessons and make-up exams. I wasn't even good at it, but I had no time to study. To be honest, I didn't like school. I was taking classes and thinking "What's the point?" and I didn't really understand it. I still feel the same now that I'm an adult. I know I shouldn't say this to ST readers who are living the life of a student, but as an adult, I've never once felt that my schoolwork was useful to me (laughs). But what I learned on the job, and how I overcame those difficult times, I feel that those experiences have helped me to become a better person. That's right, when I was studying, I was really made fun of by a classmate. But that classmate now works in the same field, doing voice work and things. I meet him on site and talk to him, and he said to me recently, "I didn't know this at the time, but I had no idea you were doing this job while going to school. But I'm really proud of you." I was really happy to hear those words.

What would I like to tell my 17-year-old self now? Hmm, nothing really. I'm the kind of person who doesn't look back on their past. Even if I did look back on it, the past doesn't change. That's why I want to keep my eyes on a future that can be changed. This is my policy that's never changed. I don't have any memories of the past because I've been walking looking forward. But I think I'll remember today's shoot for a while. The final episode of the series that I've been working on for ten years is very special. Well, maybe in a year's time I might've forgotten it (laughs).

Chinen Yuri




Looking back, I think I was more jittery (T/N: Giragira) when I was 17 than I am now. I thought, "I can do anything I want", "I can do it!" "Ten years from now I'll be a big star!" Even though I didn't have any hard evidence to back that up (laughs). I guess the reason I was able to stay positive like that was because I was enjoying every day and living it fulfilled. At the time it had been 3~4 years since our debut, and that was when I was starting to get used to my activities with Hey! Say! JUMP and enjoy them. I also loved school so much. I used to love it so much that I'd arrive first thing in the morning before anyone else (laughs). I went to a performing arts course, and in the classroom there were some members and other friends who were active in the entertainment industry. That was a strange feeling, but it was also a lot of fun. I was often asked if I was too busy with work to enjoy school, but that's not true at all. Sometimes I wonder if I would've had a different life as a student if I didn't have this job, but I enjoyed my studies, I went on school trips and my work was great too. Yeah, I don't have any regrets at all~ It's been about 10 years since then and I wonder what's changed. I guess I've become an adult from the outside. But I don't really know what's [changed] on my inside. Recently, I went to Yokohama with a guy friend of mine. We walked about 10km around the city. We were looking at the beautiful scenery, and we were talking about how much fun it would be for everyone to come to Yokohama for a date. Before I knew it, I found myself fantasising mysteriously about "meeting here and having our first date there" with just us two guys. Maybe what I was doing hasn't changed much since I was 17 (laughs).

If I was in high school, if I had to say something to myself, it would be, "Do what you want to do at that moment, right now," even though I don't think I would've understood at the time, and I'm not the type of person who changes by the words of others anyway (laughs). There are a lot of things in this world you can't understand unless you have a go. As long as you can actually experience it for yourself, reflect on it and feel something, and grow from it, that's enough.

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