Generations from Exile Tribe finally came to New York, something which fans in the Big Apple had been waiting a long time for.  May 28 saw the new blood of the Exile Tribe make a tribute to NYC on the stage of Irving Plaza (part of their 2017 world tour) and have a blast with songs from their album, Speedster.

This time, KKS was honored to interview the guys from Generations at EXPG NY (Exile Professional Gym New York), the dance studio belonging to the group’s management company. The EXPG NY studio regularly hosts young local dancers and occasionally members of visiting Japanese idol groups, so most hardcore fans should be no stranger to this location.

After entering the studio, we were taken to a large training room. All Generations members were present. Despite being the future stars of entertainment in Japan, they didn’t seem at all anxious; the guys laughed, joked and horse-played throughout the interview.

Welcome to New York City! What is your first impression of New York and America?

[All members burst into laughter]

Ryuto: This is our first time visiting here! We are very excited to see the city! We think the cities in America are very different and big…Yes, very different compared to Japan. We went to Times Square.

Who’s your favorite American musician?

All members: So many! Hard to pick one.

Ryota: I like Justin Timberlake.

What do you think is the biggest difference between American pop/hip-hop music and Japanese pop/hip-hop music?

Ryota: I feel like in America the music scene is much bigger. The culture itself fits well with the music.

Mandy: As for hip-hop music, American kids are exposed to hip-hop. They all listen to it as they grow up. In Japan however, it's not like that. Some of us started listening to it only by our own preferences, without an (accompanying) environment.

Mandy, you are from New Jersey right? When did you go to Japan?

Mandy: When I was 0 years old! Speaking of musicians, I really like Drake recently.

We have some questions for Ryota-san regarding his latest TV drama, ”兄に愛されすぎて困ってます(Ani Ni Aisaresugite Komattemasu)”.  What do you think of the character that you played?

[All members laughed and clapped because the interviewer managed to spell out the long name of the show in Japanese despite not being a Japanese speaker]

Ryota (in English): Yes! This guy is very pure … too pure … but he loves his sister too much.

This is basically the title of the TV show.

Ryota: Yes, very pure and straightforward.

Can you tell us what was the best part of shooting this TV show?

Ryota: Everyone was so hardworking during the rehearsal!

If you have to choose a member from this group to be your sister just like in the show, who would you choose? You can even choose yourself.

Ryota: Sister? Ahhhh, it sure has to be Mandy.

Reo: He is not cute at all, ok?!

Ryota: No, he is the cutest.

Mandy (in English): I’m cute! I’m cute!

Reo: Please shut up.

How about if you were the sister, who would you choose to be your brother?

Ryota: Maybe it would be Alan, because he is the leader of the group. Or maybe Ryuto, because he was there with me throughout the audition.

Meaning Alan is the big brother of Generations?

Alan: No, Mandy is the big brother. He is the oldest!

But I thought he was the sister?

Yuta: He is the imoto-ojisan (sister-uncle) in the group. [Everyone bursts into laughter again]

Ryuto: Kawaii imoto-ojisan (cute sister-uncle).

Mandy: Yes. I’m kawaii, kakkoii, sugoi.

So you probably don’t know but our production company shot your music video “太陽も月も(Sun and Moon)” in LA. I was not there so could you tell me if there were any funny moments during the shoot?

Mandy: It was my birthday at the time, and they bought me a birthday cake and put it in the fridge. I was happy but the candles they got were like dynamite that can explode! And it was supposed to be a surprise but I knew it before I saw it.

Reo: I told him it was supposed to be a surprise so act like it.

Can each of you tell me a bad habit of the member sitting on your left?

Hayato: [Took a long time and a fire engine drove past the window so Alan and Ryuto started to imitate the sound of the siren] Alan is very hairy. [lying]

Alan: Ryuto’s mom sends me a lot of hearts (when texting).

All members: I think Ryuto’s mom sends everyone a lot of hearts, not just you!

Ryuto: Yuta’s nipples are super sensitive!

How did you know he’s sensitive there? What did you do?

Ryuto: Everyone knows it! Everyone! It’s famous!

Yuta: No one can get Ryota to wake up in the morning. No way. He just stays in his hotel room when there’s a tour and sleeps forever!

Ryota: What kind of interview is this anyway?! Reo likes sleeping too!

Reo: About Mandy?  Sake (Japanese wine). No doubt.

Mandy: Hayato loves telling lies! But all of them are cute lies. With that being said, he is 99% made of funny lies.

As singers/dancers, do you have an ultimate dream? Is there anyone you’d like to be?

Alan: We want to be as cool as the EXILE members and would like to gain a lot of popularity so we can tour more for more people. We want people to listen to our music and see our performance!

What is your ultimate dream?

Alan: We really want to win Grammy Awards! I’ll just say, next year maybe. [laughter]

Please recommend a song from your new album.

Ryota: Of course it will be “Sora”. It’s such a touching love song.

Wow that’s my favorite song too! I was really moved by this song when I went to your concert!

Ryota (in English): Right? I recommend!

For information about Generations from Exile Tribe's upcomming "Mad Cyclone" tour in Japan see their official website.