BRATS is the Japanese girls band formed in August 2011 by sisters Rei Kuromiya and Aya Kuromiya. Their music expresses the bold, loud, phenomenal sound of today’s Tokyo youth! We talked about them before, read it here, but we had the chance to interview them!
Q: You started with BRATS at only 10 and 12 years old. What inspired you to get started
in music?
Rei: At that time, we were in the same talent agency, and I wasn’t really feeling challenged, and
sometimes I was just bored. Being in a band seemed like fun, so we talked about it.
Aya: We started it with friends from the same agency, too, so it was comfortable to just try it out
and see if we liked it.
Q: Could you tell us the story behind the band name BRATS?
Aya: We sort of asked everyone, and that was the name we all liked best.
Q: What are your favourite songs to perform live?
Rei: Lately it’s been “Ms. Downer”. It’s really fun watching the audience’s faces when they get
into it.
Aya: “Ms. Downer” and “Kimarigoto”.
Hinako: When we’re playing live shows, I really enjoy the feeling of “Kaihou Seyo”. The chorus
gets so heavy!
Q: What inspires your lyrics?
Rei: I often get inspired to write lyrics from something I’ve experienced in the past, or something
in life that’s going on right in front of me. Maybe popular hit songs have lots of beautiful words
and the style is easy to listen to, but that’s not what I see in my daily life, so I can’t write about
that. There’s a darker, more intense side to life that I’m looking at, so that’s what I focus on.
Q: Hinako is the newest member of BRATS. Could you tell us something about yourself,
what inspired you to start playing guitar and how did you join BRATS?
Hinako: My brother had a guitar, and watching him play got me interested in music. After that, I
just worked on learning the guitar at home, and when I met Aya at a music event, she
mentioned that they didn’t have a guitarist at that time, so it was the right moment for us to
meet.
Q: A few years ago, you went on hiatus and came back with a whole new sound. Could
you tell us why rock matches BRATS so well?
Rei: Everyone likes rock, right?
Aya: We’re not “kira kira” in any way.
Hinako: Rock is rough and intense… rock and BRATS are similar that way.
Q: Could you tell us something about the upcoming singles?
Rei: We have 7 singles coming out in 7 months. They’re all cool, and they’ve all got something
different for fans who have been following BRATS until now.
Aya: They’re all challenging to us in different ways, but we’ve been recording our parts together
in the studio. That’s a first for us, and we’re sharing power with each other that way.
Hinako: I think you’re going to hear things from BRATS that you’ve never heard before, and
that’s exciting.
Q: What are BRATS’ plans for the future?
Rei: We have special live shows in February and March, and our fan club activities are growing,
too.
Aya: Lots of playing and recording.
Hinako: Our schedule is focused on the live shows and the 7 single releases. There might be
some festivals in the future too.
Q: You had the chance to play in South Korea, Taiwan, and the USA, can we expect a
European tour in the future?
Rei: Europe is the number one place I want to go now! Of course we want to go if we have the
opportunity.
Aya: No plans for Europe at the moment, but it would be great to tour there.
Hinako: Europe would be awesome. Let’s do it!
Q: Please give us a special message for our readers.
Rei: Thanks for supporting BRATS. We hope to meet all of you in Europe someday soon. We’re
in a world connected by music!
Aya: We hope to see you at our live shows. We want to see everyone make noise, jump around,
and get crazy all together and have fun!
Hinako: We’ll be really happy to see you from the stage In Japan or Europe or any place. We’re
always looking forward to your comments on our SNS and YouTube, but a band is a living thing
— we want you to see the best version of us, and that’s on stage!
BRATS Official Website: http://brats-official.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brats__official
Twitter: https://twitter.com/brats_official
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BratsJP
Stream/Download: https://avex.lnk.to/BRATS_PLAYLISTID
Official Fan Club: https://fanicon.net/fancommunities/1696
