Aimyon: I want to express the music that only I can make now.

Singer-songwriter　Aimyon　

■ Profile
A singer-songwriter from Nishinomiya City, Hyogo Prefecture. In 2018, she made her first appearance at the 69th NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen.
In 2022, she will release her fourth album, "Hitomi e Ochiru yo Record," and hold the "AIMYON Acoustic Live 2022 - Searchlight - in Hanshin Koshien Stadium" at her hometown Hanshin Koshien Stadium. In 2023, she will release her 14th single, "Ai no Hana," which will be the theme song for the NHK morning drama "Ranman" in the first half of 2023, on Wednesday, June 7th.

Since making her major debut in 2016, Aimyon has produced numerous hit songs and even held the first-ever solo acoustic concert. We spoke to her about what she values ​​in her music career and her thoughts on songwriting and composing.

■ The 14-year-old who aspired to become a singer-songwriter

My maternal grandmother once dreamed of becoming a singer. "With a big family and so many grandchildren, I wonder if someone will make that dream come true." When I heard her mutter this, I was awakened with the desire to make that dream come true. Inspired by watching my father play the guitar, I picked up my first acoustic guitar at the age of 14. From there, my passion for music grew, and I immediately began writing songs. Interestingly enough, I ended up joining my current agency because someone contacted me via Twitter. After much deliberation, I finally decided to join the agency, and the quota they imposed on me was to write 50 songs.
I was happy to think that I was being tested, and it also gave me the opportunity to start trusting the agency, which I had been skeptical of at first.

■The most important thing is that you enjoy it!

I'm currently working under the theme of "not overdoing it," but I don't really think of this activity as work; I've always taken the stance that I'm doing this because I love music. The basis is to create and sing what I want to create, and the most important thing is that it's "fun."
That's why if I feel like I can't write a song today, I won't do it. Because I don't want to end up hating it.
Still, producing a CD is the most fun thing, and I really enjoy the process of seeing the music I made at home by myself with just an acoustic guitar and vocals, then adding the sound of a band and making a music video, and I love the moment when I release a CD. I'm also happy when I receive my CD, and just recently I bought my own CD!
It's been seven years since my major debut, and I'm having a lot of fun every day, but I've also realized that the songs I write change as I get older. For example, I'm too embarrassed to listen to the songs I wrote as a teenager.
However, I always want to continue writing songs that only I can write at this point in my life.

■NHK TV drama series theme song "Flower of Love"about

I was surprised and happy because I never thought I'd be able to write a song for a morning drama. It's a drama that people of all ages and genders watch, so I made it with the hope that it would be widely listened to!
However, although it's a song for a morning drama, it's also my single, so I hope people will listen to it beyond the drama. I was asked to write a theme song for the drama, so I read the script and tried to get close to the work while also being conscious of it being my own song. By the way, the title "Flower of Love" wasn't meant to refer to a specific "love" or "flower," but rather to give the broader image of the flowers that the main character in the song blooms.

■Message to students

I believe that many students today have been forced to limit their high school life due to COVID-19, so I hope that they will enjoy their university life to the fullest.

Student Newspaper April 1, 2023 Issue, Nihon University Third Year Student, Koji Ishida