Travis Japan – Road to A

By starrymag | February 13, 2024

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

 

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

 

NOEL: We don’t really let ourselves be influenced by a particular person or group, but rather by entire genres and eras of music.

 

CHAKA: Right. We don’t want to be “The Next: INSERT NAME HERE.” We want to be “Travis Japan: The First.” We also want to make sure fans all over the world can enjoy our music!

 

Q) Talk about the story behind creating your new song “Level Up.” What do you think it is about the song that fans connect to? I love the inclusion of iconic Japanese video games like Super Mario are incorporated into your dancing. Are there any other cool elements like these you can share with fans? (We call them “Easter Eggs” in the states.)

 

UMI: I think a lot of our fans connect with the song because we’re the generation who grew up with video games. There’s a lot of word play I think they’ll find fun and funny.

 

SHIZU: There is the “friendly” competition to it, too.

 

UMI: [nods] Right

 

SHIZU: Friendships have been built and broken over video games! [laughs] So, I think that’s why so many fans have connected with it.

 

Q) How does the video for the track play into the message behind it?

 

G: I think the director of the video takes into account the relatability of the song and came up with an idea to showcase something that really plays off the images the song already conjures up.

 

SHIME: I think the video really plays off the imaginative nature and fun of the video games we played when we were younger.

 

Q) It must be harder singing in English, certainly. Did you do any vocal training to help with your pronunciation or maybe some fun English-speaking activities to help you along the way?

 

MACHU: I think I speak for all of Travis Japan when I say we are very committed to learning English. We’ve all taken classes, both for speaking and vocal while singing.

 

Q) How much of a hand do you have in the production of your music?

 

G: We very much have a hand in the songs we record, and we know how we want to sound. We have been lucky to work with producers who share our vision of how we want our fans to know Travis Japan.

 

Q) Fans are so excited for your upcoming debut album Road to A. What are some themes you will be exploring on it?

 

Chaka: A lot of the songs on the album are related to strength and perseverance, and the knowledge that everything is going to be okay.

 

Q) Are you able to tease some of your favorite songs off the album – ones you are looking forward the most to fans getting to hear?

 

MACHU: “Okie Dokie” is one, I think just because of the message behind it. And also “Till The Dawn” because it’s a really sensual song.

 

Q) I enjoyed seeing you in the YouTube video visiting the CD factory to see the packaging of your album. What did it mean to you to watch the final product being made?

 

SHIZU: It was a very great experience, like watching our dream come true right in front of our eyes!

 

Q) What do you hope lingers with fans when they listen to your music – whether a message or emotion?

 

SHIME: To continue off what Chaka said earlier, the only constant in life is change, and as long as you have faith in yourself, you can do anything. When you believe in yourself anything is possible.

 

Q) Where are some of your favorite places to perform and what makes those locations so significant to you?

 

UMI: Of course, any performance that we get to do in Japan is going to be significant to us. It’s home and there’s something very special about getting to perform for the fans who have supported us since the very beginning. But all of the performances we’ve been able to do overseas have been so exciting as well. We’ve been to the United States – both east and west coasts – as well as Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore, but we’d love to go even more places.

 

Q) Who would you most like to collaborate with on a song in the future?

 

NOEL: That’s a difficult question to answer because we, Travis Japan, respect the work of all artists. Each of us has our own favorite musicians and dream collaborations, but our tastes are so vast and different, and at any rate we don’t want to limit ourselves just to what we know and like.

 

Q) What artist/musician are you currently listening to and why do you dig them?

 

SHIME: To continue off of what Noel said, there so many. Between the seven of us, we listen to everything from country music to rap, so it’s such a wide net to cast. Our playlists are pretty eclectic.

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

 

CHAKA: Thank you. We love all of our “TraJa-TAN” (fans) and we could have never gotten this far without you. We’re “Still on a Journey,” and we’re glad you’re with us.