{"id":79240,"date":"2025-10-15T04:25:08","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T04:25:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/79240\/"},"modified":"2025-10-15T04:25:08","modified_gmt":"2025-10-15T04:25:08","slug":"on-new-landmark-album-global-festival-dreams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/79240\/","title":{"rendered":"On New Landmark Album, Global Festival Dreams"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tBillboard Japan<\/a> sat down with BABYMETAL for its Monthly Feature series spotlighting artists and releases of note today. The trio\u2019s fourth studio album called METAL FORTH made a historic debut at No. 9 on the U.S. Billboard 200 \u2014 the first time ever that a group made up entirely of Japanese members has broken into the chart\u2019s top 10.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tExplore\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

See latest videos, charts and news<\/p>\n

\n\tThe record kicks off with \u201cfrom me to u (feat. Poppy),\u201d composed by former Bring Me The Horizon member Jordan Fish, setting the tone for a collection of ten collaborations with artists the band has encountered throughout their global<\/a> journey. The title, METAL FORTH, reflects the idea of going \u201cbeyond metal,\u201d and as SU-METAL explains, it\u2019s \u201can album packed with BABYMETAL seen from many different angles.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tMore than just a bold new chapter for the band\u2019s reborn lineup, the release also comes at a milestone moment: BABYMETAL\u2019s 15th anniversary. METAL FORTH marks a brilliant update to the group\u2019s career, and the three members \u2014 SU-METAL, MOAMETAL, and MOMOMETAL \u2014 chatted about what it means to them.<\/p>\n

\n\tFirst, tell us your honest impressions of the album.<\/p>\n

\n\tSU-METAL: This time we worked with many different artists, so the album shows BABYMETAL from all kinds of angles. Each track gave us the chance to try something new and push ourselves in a different direction. Every BABYMETAL album is like a toy box\u2014 you hear it and think, \u201cWhat is this?!\u201d \u2014 and I feel like we managed to top that expectation again. The range of songs has expanded a lot, and while it was tough being asked to sing in a more grown-up style, once I went for it, those songs ended up being the key moments of the album. Overall, it was a lot of fun.<\/p>\n

\n\tMOAMETAL: Hitting No. 9 on the Billboard 200 also gave us a real sense of accomplishment. We\u2019ve been doing this for 15 years, so breaking our own record feels great. And knowing that people still haven\u2019t gotten tired of us and continue to want more is what really keeps us going.<\/p>\n

\n\tOn the same chart, METAL RESISTANCE peaked at No. 39 in 2016 and METAL GALAXY hit No. 13 in 2019. This time you reached a new peak. How did you feel when you got the news?<\/p>\n

\n\tMOAMETAL: We\u2019d just finished our set at SUMMER SONIC in Osaka, so the three of us came together, went \u201cYeahhh!\u201d and gave each other big hugs.<\/p>\n

\n\tMOMOMETAL, this is your first album since officially joining the group.<\/p>\n

\n\tMOMOMETAL: Being involved in the creative process as a member taught me how an album actually comes together. And since this is my first one, I\u2019m just so glad it turned out to be so rich and wonderful, and that we were able to achieve such results. It really feels like all my hard work has paid off.<\/p>\n

\n\tDoes the commercial side of music, like charts and sales, serve as positive inspiration and motivation for you, or do you prefer to keep some distance from it?<\/p>\n

\n\tMOAMETAL: It feels like the people around us help us keep some distance so we don\u2019t think about it too much ourselves. Like, these days, short songs tend to be popular, right? But if you listen to our album, it\u2019s clear we weren\u2019t thinking about that at all. That\u2019s what makes it feel so true to us, and because the chart positions we\u2019ve earned weren\u2019t influenced by trends, it actually gives us confidence. I really love the environment we\u2019re in right now.<\/p>\n

\n\tDuring the production process, were there any tasks that left a particularly strong impression on you, or any unexpected surprises?<\/p>\n

\n\tMOMOMETAL: I was in charge of the death growls a lot, so that task definitely left a strong impression on me.<\/p>\n

\n\tSU-METAL: MOMOMETAL started doing the death growls originally as a joke within the group. But as we worked on the album, her death growl parts kept increasing. I watched her gradually become more professional \u2014 practicing her technique, figuring out, \u201cIs this the right way?\u201d on her own \u2014 and seeing that growth has me excited for what\u2019s next.<\/p>\n

\n\tTHE OTHER ONE, released in 2023, was a concept album exploring \u201canother story of BABYMETAL\u201d and really stood out in your discography. Do you think the experience of making that album influenced this one?<\/p>\n

\n\tSU-METAL: As the title suggests, THE OTHER ONE was all about showing another side of BABYMETAL, and I think we really went all in on the metal. When we released \u201cMetari!! (feat. Tom Morello),\u201d which is also on METAL FORTH, a lot of people were like, \u201cBABYMETAL is back!\u201d You could say that expanding our range with THE OTHER ONE is what brought BABYMETAL to where we are today. And listening to this new album, I just feel, \u201cYep, this is definitely BABYMETAL.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tMOAMETAL: I feel like we grew a lot in terms of dance during THE OTHER ONE, too. The choreography MIKIKOMETAL gave us was pretty hard, and that experience really carried over into the moves for METAL FORTH. For \u201cRATATATA,\u201d we came up with almost all of the choreography ourselves, and I think being able to take on that kind of challenge was made possible because of what we learned during THE OTHER ONE.<\/p>\n

\n\tBABYMETAL\u2019s music has often been described as \u201cKawaii Metal.\u201d How did you approach the song \u201cKxAxWxAxIxI\u201d?<\/p>\n

\n\tSU-METAL: I actually don\u2019t think of this song as \u201cKawaii Metal\u201d at all \u2014 it feels like it\u2019s going in a completely opposite direction. It doesn\u2019t really feel Kawaii or even Metal, and that\u2019s what makes it interesting. People who listened to \u201cfrom me to u (feat. Poppy)\u201d or \u201cSong 3 (BABYMETAL x Slaughter to Prevail)\u201d and thought, \u201cAh, this is classic BABYMETAL,\u201d will probably stop for a second here and go, \u201cWait, what\u2019s going on?\u201d We\u2019ve been flying the \u201cKawaii Metal\u201d flag for so long, but now we\u2019re singing \u201cI\u2019m KAWAII\u201d over this super aggressive track. It kind of makes you wonder, \u201cDoes what they\u2019re saying and what they\u2019re doing even match up?\u201d That sense of confusion might actually be the \u201cWhat is this?!\u201d moment of the album. I think it\u2019s one of those songs that grows on you the more you listen to it.<\/p>\n

\n\tMOMOMETAL: When I first heard the title, I imagined something bright and pop \u2014 like the kind of Kawaii you associate with Japan<\/a> \u2014 so I was like, \u201cOh, this isn\u2019t what I expected.\u201d It has a hint of allure, a mature kind of cute, you could say. I think we ended up creating a version of Kawaii that\u2019s different from what people usually imagine.<\/p>\n

\n\tYou have two shows coming up at Saitama Super Arena set for January 2026. How are you feeling as you look ahead to them?<\/p>\n

\n\tSU-METAL: Those will be the final shows of our world tour, which also includes stops at the O2 Arena in the U.K., the Intuit Dome in the U.S., and arenas in Hong Kong and Mexico. It\u2019s our first time touring the world on this scale, so I\u2019d be really happy if people could see how much we\u2019ve grown through it. What I can say now is that it\u2019s going to be the culmination of everything we\u2019ve done over the past year. I hope everyone looks forward to it.<\/p>\n

\n\tLooking further ahead, one of my dreams is for us to headline an overseas festival someday. Of course, there are things like sales and numbers that matter, but in the metal world, where you stand on a festival lineup really carries a lot of weight. So I\u2019d love for us to reach that point one day.<\/p>\n

\n\tAlso, lately when we play overseas, there are a lot of people from our own generation, and even kids, coming to see us. But in Japan, I think there are still a lot of people who see metal as something mainly for men or feel a bit of resistance to it. Through BABYMETAL, I want to show more people that metal is a kind of music anyone can enjoy.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u2014This interview by Takuto Ueda first appeared on Billboard Japan<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Billboard Japan sat down with BABYMETAL for its Monthly Feature series spotlighting artists and releases of note today.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":79241,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[61325,156,1437,1759,157,3296,111,139,69],"class_list":{"0":"post-79240","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-music","8":"tag-billboard-japan","9":"tag-entertainment","10":"tag-global","11":"tag-japan","12":"tag-music","13":"tag-music-news","14":"tag-new-zealand","15":"tag-newzealand","16":"tag-nz"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79240","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79240"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79240\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/79241"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}