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The Japanese Hannah Montana... Kylee!She is known as the Japanese Hannah Montana. She’s just a normal high school student living in Arizona but in Japan, Kylee Saunders is a Japanese pop star. And now, she’s destined to make things happen in the U.S. as well!

By Dennis A. Amith

apan has had a few talent who grew up in America and made it big in Japan. Olivia, Beni Arashiro and even record-breaking Japanese pop star Hikaru Utada lived in the U.S. while embarking in their musical career. But for most of these talents, they go out and move to Ja-pan to resume their education and music career. But for Kylee Saunders, this Japanese-Ameri-can high school student is living a normal life, or was living a normal life, until news came out that Kylee Saunders was not exactly a normal teenager.

In fact, this teenager is living a double life. In America, she may be a normal student but in Japan, Kylee Saunders is known as Kylee, the pop star.

At the age of eleven, Kylee passed an audition to perform the national anthem at the opening of a Portland Trailblazers NBA game, which earned her a standing ovation. Not long after, Kylee caught the attention of music producers and her indie music career began. Kylee released the single “Vacancy” in 2008 under the in-die label RX-Records which was used for the Japanese anime TV series “Xam’d: Lost Memories”. Two years later, Kylee was signed by Sony Music Japan and her first major CD single “Kimi ga Iru Kara” (Because You Are Here”) was released. Kylee has since released five singles, she has several music videos which attracted her fans all over the world and also has an Adidas and Nissen 2011 ad campaign. Helping her popularity, Kylee theme songs for the Japa-

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EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

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nese anime TV series (Xam’d: Lost Memories), “Heroman” and “Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn”. has earned her worldwide recognition. Kylee, also sung the theme song and appeared in the movie “Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac”. In May 2011, Kylee was interviewed on NBC’s “The Today Show” and also featured in several news reports because of her real-life Hannah Montana status. Hannah Montana is the character of Miley Cyrus’ Disney TV show in which she plays the character of Miley Stew-art and in order to live a normal teen-age life, she assumes a normal teen life but when she dons her wig and goes on stage, she becomes Hannah Montana. With the international recognition of Kylee’s personal and professional life in the news, in August 2011, Kylee put on a concert not in Japan but in the United States at Otakon 2011, the larg-est anime convention in the East Coast.

The appearance was her first major performance outside of Japan. A dream come true to perform in the US in front of a live audience but for Kylee, this young pop star also wants to make it big in the U.S. Recently, J!-ENT had the opportu-nity to interview Kylee.

Before we get into discussions about your music, let’s get to know a little about you. Was there a cer-tain moment in your life when you were younger that you felt you wanted to be a singer?KYLEE: Ever since I was three, I have been singing Disney movie theme songs and such, but when I turned eleven I finally decided to try singing in front of an audience. I ended up auditioning for the Portland trailblaz-ers NBA national anthem. I passed an audition of 1,000 people of all ages. It was at that moment that I knew I wanted to become a professional

singer.

You will be performing at one of the largest anime conventions in America, but for fans that are curi-ous, are you into anime or manga? KYLEE: Since I was little I have been traveling back and forth to japan and so I have been able to be apart of and learn to love the Japanese culture which includes anime. When I was about 12 or 13 I picked up a manga called “NANA” and instantly fell in love with it. Besides manga I also loved anime growing up. As a little girl I watched basically every anime in the “Jiburi” series. This includes my favorite: “My Neighbor Totoro”!

Did you know there were many people in the US who listen and are fans of Japanese music? And are you pretty surprised to see the support that you are receiving from fans all over the world?KYLEE: I never knew so many people

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loved the anime and recognized my songs that were the theme songs for several different anime. When I per-formed at Otakon, I really got to see that in person which was an amaz-ing experience and hopefully I can continue to do more in the US and receive the opportunity to meet up with these new American fans again!

Who did you listen to a lot when growing up?KYLEE: Growing up I listened to both American and Japanese music. My favorite Japanese artists were Hikaru Utada, Yui and Ayaka. My fa-vorite American artists range from Avril Lavigne, Christina Aguilera to even Fall Out Boy, Green Day and My Chemical Romance.

If I were to look in your CD or MP3 player right now, which artist or songs would I catch you listening to right now?KYLEE: I’m not too much of a

listener for all the new stuff that has recently come out so I would prob-ably be listening to Avril Lavigne`s song “What the Hell.” Usually, I ask Japanese celebs what they like to eat or do on their free time in America. But this time, we’ll do the reverse and ask you what you like to do when in Japan and is there a food you love to eat or thing to do each time you go to Japan?KYLEE: I love to eat ramen whenever I go to japan! Specifically shoyu and tonkotsu ramen!! It’s the best!

I tend to ask Japanese celebrities about restaurants or food they rec-ommend in their city but in this case, if there is any food or any place in the state of Arizona to eat or visit, what do you recommend?KYLEE: I recommend basically any and every Mexican restaurant in Ari-zona! The Mexican food is amazing and truly authentic!

Speaking of Arizona, you recently performed the Star Spangled Ban-ner at an Arizona Diamondbacks game. What was that like?KYLEE: I hadn’t sang the national an-them since I was thirteen so it was so much fun to sing the national anthem again with a little more confidence based on the fact that I previously sang at the same stadium when I was 13.

You grew up in America and your music is well-known in Japan but this time around, you will be per-forming at Otakon. For you, does it feel a bit different to be in Amer-ica but yet singing Japanese music? And how do you feel about per-forming at Otakon?KYLEE: It isn’t weird at all to be per-forming the Japanese music in Amer-ica, or at least at otakon because it is full of so many people who celebrate and love the Japanese culture! I am tremendously excited to perform at

KYLEE performing live at Otakon in Baltimore, Maryland. Concert photos by Dave Wujcik.

KYLEE performing live at Otakon 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland. Concert photos by Dave Wujcik.

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Otakon. I have already walked around and seen the convention center and it truly was amazing to see how dedi-cated and passionate everyone was about anime from japan!

What was the difference and expe-rience like for you in performing in front of an American audience ver-sus a Japanese audience?KYLEE: The American audience was easier to communicate with during the MC portions of my live perfor-mance but other than that they had a lot of energy just like the audiences I perform in front of In Japan!

I saw the video clip when you were 11-years old and you had the op-portunity to sing at the opening of an NBA game and you received a standing ovation. That is awesome! The performance eventually caught the attention of the record labels. During the beginning of all that, you were pretty young but you

had these opportunities presented to you and your family. Were your parents open initially to the idea of you having a dual life in the US and Japan at such a young age? KYLEE: Thank you! In the beginning, no. At first we were planning to send in some videos to Music companies in America and possibly Disney channel! However at the time there weren’t any auditions being held whether it was open auditions that a person could attend or online video audi-tions. While searching on the Inter-net, the only company that actually happened to have auditions was the Sony Music corporation in Japan! We sent them the video just for kicks to see what would happen. When they contacted us I was very surprised be-cause we never expected they would! It was very unexpected but we were open and ready to take on any oppor-tunity!

The first single that I have listened

and reviewed of your music was “Vacancy” back in 2008. The song was used for the anime series “Xam’d: Lost Memories”. What was that experience like to hear your song used for an anime series?KYLEE: Vacancy was the first song I wrote lyrics to as well as the melody! It was such a great experience just to work and record with this song but hearing it and watching the anime...the combination of the two truly is moving and extremely cool! I loved seeing the two come together; it re-ally was a great step in applying my music to the Japanese culture!

And then you followed up with your first major official single “Kimi ga Iru Kara” which was featured in the film “Memoirs of a Teenage Am-nesiac”. Another milestone in your career to have a movie theme song in addition to a TV anime series theme song. What was that like?KYLEE: The movie was great! First

KYLEE performing live at Otakon 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland. Concert photos by Dave Wujcik.

KYLEE performing live at Otakon 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland. Concert photos by Dave Wujcik.

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off it was my first major single which is a big step! And having it be in a movie as the theme song was ex-tremely awesome as well! I also got to act in the movie as one of the main character’s Girlfriends which was a lot of fun! It was my first time so I was nervous...but it was such a fun, memorable experience!

Your third single “Everlasting” was used on the second episode of the OVA series “Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn”. Have you performed at any Gundam-related events in Ja-pan yet? KYLEE: No, I haven’t been able to just yet but would like the opportu-nity to! I really am grateful and happy when people tell me they became my fan through the anime because it shows that they had some sort of connection on a musical level with the song as well as the anime which is my goal when it comes to having songs be theme songs!

Your latest single “NEVER GIVE UP!”, I noticed that you have two music videos and both are very dif-ferent from each other. One was upbeat and the other was cheer-leading-driven. What was the rea-son for two different music videos? KYLEE: The first music video’s whole purpose was so I could give off some positive energy and send out that message to “NEVER GIVE UP!”. How-ever, the second music video is a col-laboration with these cheer dancers. These girls are still in high school yet they have such a great passion for what they do and give off SO much energy and power that anyone who watches will seriously want to get up and start Dancing with them! I want-ed to collaborate so the people in Japan could receive this message of never giving up from both the danc-ers and myself as well as some posi-tive energy!

Having made several music videos,

which music video that you took part in surprised you when you saw the final cut?KYLEE: The music video for “IT’S YOU” was the most surprising be-cause we did it in front of a green screen! So when you’re actually shooting the music video you cant see what will actually be going on be-hind you!

In 2010, you performed at SUM-MER SONIC. That is pretty awe-some! How was that experience?KYLEE: Summer Sonic was great because it was one of those unique special performances/ music festivals where bands from the US and Japan performed! The stage was huge and the audience was really fun to per-form in front of!

Recently, you have appeared on the NBC’s Today Show and I also watched the news clip of coverage from your local area and you are

KYLEE and her band during their live performance at Otakon 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland. Concert photos by Dave Wujcik.

called the real-life Hannah Montana as you are living dual roles as a nor-mal student in America and a pop star in Japan. I have interviewed Miley Cyrus before and also cov-ered the “Hannah Montana” series. In the show, Hannah struggled with living the dual pop star life. Has it been a struggle for you? KYLEE: The dual life is a struggle! I cant even begin to explain! It’s like having two jobs that you want to excel in but there’s always still that constant difficulty in managing time! Whether it’s with my singing family school or friends, it’s always a strug-gle.

Aside from your closest friends who knew of your pop star life, when did people start to know you had a pop star life in Japan and can you give us an example of that?KYLEE: My friends have always sup-ported me in everything I do. My best friends are the ones who don’t think of me as the singer, Kylee but as the normal yet still crazy Kylee! My bff’s have always known the things I do; the music videos, concerts, re-cordings, they always get informed whenever I have to leave to japan and what not. However, people definitely started to recognize me at school recently as: the girl on “Go Gilbert” magazine or the girl who was on FOX news in Arizona or even the girl who was on CNBC and the Today Show!

One thing that was pretty cool to see in various interviews is your father Brad talk about the impor-tance of family and also education. You’re an A student and pretty ac-tive in school life but I have seen Japanese star Hikaru Utada split time between music career and education when she attended Co-lumbia University. We have seen British actress Emma Watson at-tending Brown University while still working and promoting the final Harry Potter films. And even for the Hannah Montana storyline, the final episodes focused on her col-lege education and music career. Because education and your music

career are both important in your life, is college in your life plan?KYLEE: College is definitely in my life plan! I have also thought about Emma Watson and Utada Hikaru and admired their ability to attend school and continue their career as well! It is difficult but education is important and can benefit any individual in so many ways! It’s definitely worth work-ing for.

On the “Today Show” clip, I saw you playing the guitar. Do you play any other instruments and have you written a lot of songs?KYLEE: I am a beginner when it

comes to guitar! But I do love it and want to become good enough to the point where I can play on stage! I did play piano as a little girl but ended up stopping due to horrible experiences with my strict teacher...(laughing). I do try to write a lot of my own music! I’m into writing a lot of my own lyr-ics and I’m in the process of writing melodies not just in my head but with my beginner guitar skills! It is one of my goals in life that I want to excel at!

I have had the opportunity to in-terview a number of music talent in Japan who are “hapa”, in your case, half American and half Japa-

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KYLEE performing live at Otakon 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland. Concert photos by Dave Wujcik.

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nese. For you, was it a challenge to experience the differences in how things are done in Japan versus how things are done in the US due to the culture and business practices?KYLEE: Wow I have never heard that term before! I’ll definitely tell my friends about that one! Hapa! Any-way, yes! I have experienced many changes and have needed to adjust during my time with my music com-pany in Japan. Being half and living in America my whole life, Japanese didn’t come all too naturally! It was quite difficult to learn how to speak fluently to the many people I met in japan through singing as well as speaking in front of an audience dur-ing my MC when I performed live. Even interviews were difficult! When it came to describing my inner feelings or even what my songs meant to me during interviews I al-ways struggled! But working on this for nearly 4 years, the hard stuff is a much lighter load now! Now I can fo-

cus more on my music than on how to be better at answering simple ques-tions!

Outside of music, what kind of hob-bies do you enjoy?KYLEE: Besides singing I’m obsessed with taking pictures! Wherever I am, I always have my camera on me! My friends know how crazy I can get and sometimes are annoyed by how many pictures I take (laughing). I love tak-ing pictures of friends and family as well as microscopic things where I can focus in and reveal all the detail! Just the idea that with a camera, an indi-vidual can capture one moment, any moment in time, is fascinating to me!

Besides the picture taking, I love spending time with my little cousins! I don’t like playing with all younger children but I always want to spend time my cousins! They are always carefree and happy; being with them always drains the stress from school

and singing. They always find a way to make me smile...It’s contagious!

If there was one word to describe yourself, what word would that be and why?KYLEE: One word to describe myself is whimsical! I am quite an interest-ingly surprising and strange person when it comes to socially interacting! I am extremely shy in the beginning but after time or I get to know some-one I can be myself much more easily and trust me, when I’m myself...I’m pretty much a goof and a dork (laugh-ing).

In every interview we have a sec-tion called, word play. We give you one word and you give us your defi-nition of that word:

a. LOVEKYLEE: Love is what you are passion-ate about. It’s something that doesn’t appear and then disappear; it lingers,

KYLEE and the band after their live performance at Otakon in Baltimore, Maryland. Concert photos by Dave Wujcik.

it grows, it fades, it is one of the most powerful emotions one can feel...and it even has the power to influence one’s actions. To me, it’s not some-thing that is easily given or gained. Those three words lose meaning and the meaning behind them is degraded when overused. Love is what you want it to be. b. SUCCESSKYLEE: Success is pushing myself as far as possible; taking risks, taking chances, taking the hard paths in life, taking the college level classes, taking the time to practice, taking the time to study just because I know inside that I can do it. Success for me, will be achieved when I’ve passed away; goals and dreams don’t ever end.

c. PAINKYLEE: Pain is not uncommon. We all have pain...we are all in it together...just in different ways. Pain for me is disappointment: disappointment to-wards myself and disappointment from others.

d. FAMILYKYLEE: Family is my everything. They’re the ones who love me for me; accepting all my flaws and mistakes. They’re the ones I can lean on and go to for anything whenever and wher-ever!

e. ARIZONAKYLEE: Arizona is dry and hot but it’s home. Arizona is my breather; it’s the one place I feel safe and relaxed.

What final words would you like to say to your fans?KYLEE: To all my fans, I seriously love ya guys! I don’t know how I would be able to get through each step and each process in this crazy, messy, yet wonderful dual life I have with singing and school in two different countries!! I am so excited to release more and more music for you to listen to and I hope you like them! Thank you for all your support and I am always here to support all of you in your dreams and goals! When life pushes you down you should always get back up!

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KYLEE performing live at Otakon 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland. Concert photos by Dave Wujcik.

For more on Kylee, please visit her website at: http://www.kylee.jp/Kylee’s “EVERLASTING”, theme song for Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn episode 2 is now

avaialble on U.S. iTunes. Click here to listen or download.

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J!-ENTDENNIS A. AMITH is the Editor-in-Chief and founder of entertainment and pop culture website J!-ENT. He is also the owner of the multi-disciplinary communications and design business, nt2099 media and entertainment. Graduating from California State University, Fresno with an educational background in mass communications and journalism, Dennis A. Amith has interviewed and featured many talents and industry professionals in the United States, Europe and Asia and is recognized for promoting

the entertainment and pop culture of different countries to an International audience. Currently residing in California.