Suzuki Ami talks about “ASAYAN”, Komuro Tetsuya and her first #1 hit single “BE TOGETHER”

Many will remember Suzuki Ami from the past, from debuting on the show “ASAYAN” (a show which led to many music groups, most popular being Morning Musume) and also her first #1 hit single “BE TOGETHER” produced by Komuro Tetsuya (TK).

As Suzuki Ami still sings but is now focused on being a mother and also hosting her own YouTube channel, as Suzuki approaches the 40th year milestone of her life, Suzuki was interviewed by Bunshun Online about looking back on her career.

On ASAYAN, Suzuki said, “I don’t remember much. ‘ASAYAN’ was a really crazy program, and I was chosen to be on the air. The moment I applied was when a friend who knew that I was longing to be a singer pushed me to do it and said ‘Let’s go together. Let’s apply because it’ps the final!”. I wrote a resume while on a swaying train with friends and attached a full body photo of me sitting in a chair in a school clasroom. Komuro-san said, ‘I thought the full body shot on Ami’s resume was really bad’ (laughing). It seems there were many people who had professional photos that were shot properly in the studio, but for me as a ordinary high school girl, it stood out”.

Suzuki said her life changed drastically when “ASAYAN” broadcasted the show and showed her home without a mosaic. Her house and the location was shown and people rushed to her house and people wouldn’t stop calling and it caused a lot of trouble. She attended a school in Kanagawa Prefecture but because it became problematic, she had to move to a high school in Tokyo. No matter how difficult things were, her father insisted that she needs to find balance with her studies and music, so she participated in all exams and school trips while in high school. She had a difficult life with only a few hours of sleep every day.

When Suzuki made her debut in February 1998 with “Love the Island”, she would quickly release four singles total in half a year due to her popularity. Suzuki said, “When I made my debut, I felt like an idol, so I thought from the beginning that ‘idol Suzuki Ami’ would end in a few years. So, I feel like I was thinking about what to do from that point onward from the moment I made my debut”.

Her thoughts on Komuro Tetsuya, Suzuki said shat when she was 20, she was able to interact with Komuro-san normally. Suzuki said she sees Komuro as one of her parents. She thinks of him as a father of this industry, a person who never felt angry or scared and was always kind and calm.

On her first hit single “BE TOGETHER” which debuted at No. 1 on the Oricon Singles Charts, Suzuki said, “Even now, it is often requested and it’s still exciting. After all Komuro-san’s song is amazing. Even at this time, when I sing it as an adult and at live concerts. The content of the lyrics can resonate even as an adult. I think I have a really great treasure”.

On turning 40, Suzuki said that when she first entered “ASAYAN”, her parents were 39-years-old and Komuro-san was 40. Now she is going to be the same age of the father of the industry (TK) and she will be older than her parents when she debuted. Suzuki said that she loves cooking and eating and has a qualification of 2nd grade food analyust. She also passed testing as a spice sommelier and her goal from the age of 40 is to develop a seasoning that exceeds “eating chili oil”.

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