Japanese pop icon Kyary Pamyu Pamyu linked up with Billboard Japan for the Women in Music interview series featuring pioneering female artists in the country’s music industry. Billboard Japan launched its WIM initiative in 2022 in the same vein as the established example of billboardThe event, which began in 2007, honors artists, producers and executives who have made significant contributions to the music industry and empowered women through their work, with the highest recognition being Woman of the Year.
Kyary Pamyu Pamyu is currently in the midst of her world tour, which began on May 15th. Since her debut, the “Fashion Monster” singer has created a one-of-a-kind world with her unconventional style and has grown into an artist with loyal fans at home and abroad. While the Harajuku icon recalls that the little girl who eventually made her debut as Kyary Pamyu Pamyu was “shy and withdrawn,” she transformed her insecurities into her strengths as she built her career. In this interview, the founder of the label KRK LAB shares how she appreciated stepping forward without worrying about how other people see her, and encourages others to do the same.
Could you tell us about the women you looked up to growing up?
I think the first person I looked at was my kindergarten teacher. She must have been in her early twenties and from my perspective as a little girl she was a perfect woman who was cheerful and kind, could play the piano and was good at making crafts. It wasn’t until I got a little older that I realized what a great person my mother was. Especially after I started living on my own at 18, I realized that my mother, who was by my side all the time, did different things to make our family’s life easier.
What were you like as a child?
At first I was shy and withdrawn. I also gave in easily and wasn’t particularly interested in fashion until I entered high school. Even then, I would hang out with my friends at SHIBUYA 109 (a fashion mall) and if someone said, “That dress is cute, so let’s get the same one,” I would be influenced by that and end up buying one.
But after I started hanging out like that, I saw some clothes in a shop window in Harajuku one day on my way home and I thought, “That’s so cute!” It was really like a flash. That’s how I got into Harajuku fashion and became more and more flamboyant. I really enjoyed wearing the clothes I liked and going out on the town and felt like I had found my place in the world.
I guess it would take a lot of courage for a shy and reserved girl to dress loud. You didn’t feel any hesitation?
I didn’t feel comfortable showing something in front of everyone at school and drawing attention to myself, but I actually felt happy when strangers on the street looked at what I was wearing. I even wore clown makeup and even when people were giggling at me, I felt like I could stand proud and say, “This is me!” I was myself in the fashion I liked, and then I started thinking that this is how I wanted to i live my life This continued after my debut as Kyary Pamyu Pamyu.
So Harajuku fashion has helped expand your world in a major way. People tend to worry about how others see them, especially around high school age, or get caught up in stereotypes of femininity. Why do you think you were able to break free from such stereotypes?
In those days [in Japan]we had magazines that everyone read that featured role models that supposedly helped you become more popular [with the opposite sex] in an understandable way, so I think I also had a vague idea of how I should dress and do my hair to be popular. If that particular style suited me, I might have gone with it, but I didn’t think I looked good in it. I think I felt insecure about certain aspects of myself and tried to hide it or make myself look strong by wearing eccentric clothes and bright colors. Especially after I debuted, I got compliments because I didn’t fit into that frame, and that made me happy.
If you had to give advice to someone who wants to dress the way they want, like you, but is hesitant to do so, what would you say?
I’ve had people say to me, “I’m interested in your style, Kyary-chan, but I can’t do it myself, so I’m content to just watch you” and the thing that goes through my mind is “Please just try once!” My favorite quote is from [the Japanese author] Mariko Hayashi, who writes, “Regret for the things you’ve done grows smaller with each passing day, but regret for the things you haven’t done grows larger with each passing day.” [from Yashin no susume]. If there’s something you want to do, just do it once, it’s okay if it doesn’t work out.
[Hayashi’s] words actually helped me last year. When I performed at Coachella, three of the four dancers who were scheduled to perform with me on the second weekend had health issues. My team was concerned and suggested I cancel the show, but I decided to go ahead on my own. Until then I didn’t think it was possible [to do alone] but when i tried it i was able to pull like mario in superstar mode. And I thought, “Why didn’t I try it before?” I realized that I had been limiting my own options. There can be a lot of things you can do when you really try, even if you don’t think you can, so I encourage everyone to try anything.
You got married in March and started a new phase in your personal life. I would like to ask how this might affect your work as an artist, but above all, congratulations on your marriage!
Thank you so much. I think this industry is a world where there’s a gap between the glamorous side and everything else. There are times when I find myself eating fast food alone in the corner of the room after performing on a big stage. [Laughs] I think it’s important for people to support each other just because that’s the way the world is, so it’s comforting to have someone I can support who will also do the same for me.
Although I’m still not sure what will happen, I’ve been thinking about having kids. I often hear about [female] colleagues who fear the abyss [in their career] caused by childbirth, as women need a period of rest. They fear that they will not be able to return to their place in the industry after a break. Now that I’m married, I feel like I have to face these issues properly by accepting that they happen.
Career interruption due to motherhood is a major concern for many women. Did being a woman influence your choices in any other way?
When I was in high school, I think there were even fewer female politicians than there are now, and I don’t think there were many women in leadership positions in schools, like principals or year teachers. Things have changed now compared to those times and I feel the world is becoming easier to live in. Having said that, I still sometimes find myself the only female performer in the lineup at music festivals and other events where multiple artists perform, and they always wonder why.
I also faced a lot of frustrating moments when I first started. Besides being a young woman, people wanted to treat me as some kind of giddy character, maybe because of my eccentric stage name and fashion. My comments in interviews would be rewritten as overly friendly or rude in tone, or the writer would add something like, “Kyary threw candy at us the moment he walked in.” [Laughs] Then there were times when I greeted customers on the spot and they wouldn’t even look me in the eye. Because of those experiences, I will always remember the people who were kind to me back then, and I want to make sure I treat everyone equally in the workplace.
It is not unacceptable to be treated disrespectfully because of someone’s gender or fashion. What do you think it takes for women to thrive in the Japanese music and entertainment industry?
I think [Japanese] society is in the process of transitioning to an era of new values from that of the old. For example, when a politician comes under fire for making a derogatory remark about women, they say things as if it was a joke. I find it hard to believe that someone who said something derogatory as a joke would realize that “times are different so I have to change my lifestyle”. This makes me think that people’s values don’t change that easily. If more people from the younger generation with new values are given decision-making powers, it will make women’s work easier.
—This article by Ryo Hirai (SOW SWEET PUBLISHING) first appeared on Billboard Japan