YUMA dances his heart out in the mud for &TEAM’s special “filmed by you” version of “FIREWORK.” He jumps up, lands hard in the mud, and still finds his balance on the slippery ground, moving into the next dance move seamlessly. It’s a perfect reflection of how YUMA continuously holds himself up and keeps moving forward.

​How are things going in Korea?

YUMA: We have a home all the members stay in in Korea too and we honestly spend all our time together. &TEAM’s really into eating galbi-jjim lately. (laughs) There’s not much time left until we start promoting in Korea so I’m really excited. [Note: This interview took place on June 3.] It’s our chance to finally meet all the LUNÉ who have been cheering us on from Korea. We’ll be filming close-up “fancams” on the Korean music TV shows, and since some people watch them because they want to see me specifically, I want to make sure to put on a good show. That’s why I’ve been practicing so hard and studying my Korean.

In the behind-the-scenes video for “Under the skin” with STUDIO CHOOM last year, you introduced yourself with, “I’m YUMA, my Korean is improving.” (laughs)

YUMA: It feels like I better change that though. “I’m YUMA, my Korean is good now!” (laughs)

That would be an appropriate self-introduction, see as you’re the joke master of &TEAM. But you only gave yourself a fun score of three in &PROFILE, so maybe it’s time for you to reevaluate that. (laughs) I can’t forget the time LUNÉ asked you for Osaka food recommendations on Weverse and you just said “carbs.”

YUMA: Hopefully I can do a good job speaking Korean on variety shows now, so maybe I should up it to four points? (laughs) The reason I said that on Weverse is because carbs are key in Osaka. Osaka’s the only place where people eat okonomiyaki with rice—they don’t put them together in other parts of Japan. So that’s why I said carbs. (laughs)

But you prefer salad and protein options to carbs, don’t you? (laughs) I heard you have an in-depth self-care routine that extends to drinking boiled water that’s been cooled to a lukewarm temperature every morning.

YUMA: Even I can’t help but eat carbs if I go to Osaka. (laughs) I went to an oriental medicine clinic recently though and they said vegetables aren’t quite right for me. So I decided that, from now on, I’m just going to eat whatever I want. (laughs) And honestly, that lukewarm water … It’s gotten warmer out lately, and I feel warm enough in my body, so I don’t really drink it now. (laughs) But I still have my routine of waking up in the morning and doing some light stretching. Ever since I joined &TEAM I became interested in healthy living and started taking care of my body. It’s also good because I find having a routine makes me feel more relaxed during the day.

​I heard your morning routine includes listening to a medley of anime music.

YUMA: I’ve been listening to a medley from Bocchi the Rock!, which I watched recently. There’s so many good songs to choose from (laughs) but “hitoribocchi tokyo” is my favorite. Bocchi the Rock!’s about a girl with social anxiety who makes friends and starts a band. The way they portray her social anxiety in the show is really interesting. I’m shy, too, so it can be a challenge to meet new people and talk to them sometimes, so I completely related with that character.

You became close with the other group members really quickly despite being an introvert.

YUMA: Of course you grow close when you spend 24 hours a day together! (laughs) There’s nine of us, so even if one person’s not feeling great, everyone else can help out, so we always keep things upbeat. Now I actually feel like something’s missing when I’m alone and I feel secure when I’m with the others.

The younger members really follow your lead. HARUA said he usually has you check out his food before eating and said he was a fan of yours when he was a trainee in an interview with MAQUIA magazine.

YUMA: I felt really good when I heard that. That was the first time I ever heard him compliment me like that. So all day that day I was like, (pretending to pat head) “Oh, HARUA, you’re adorable.” He honestly doesn’t have eyes for anything other than junk food so I help look after his eating habits. (laughs) All the younger members are cute, really. They’re just so cute. I’m right in the middle of the nine members age-wise, but for some reason I spend a lot of time with the younger ones. I’m not sure why, since I’m not one of the Maknaez … (laughs)

Can’t you call yourself a part of the Maknaez since you’re right in the middle? (laughs)

YUMA: Haha. I’m part of the older half!

​Fair enough. (laughs) It seems like you already have a clear sense of the role you play in the group.

YUMA: I felt nervous about the future up until &AUDITION - The Howling and sometimes I was bad at speaking in a friendly manner. But K showed me what I could be doing differently and taught me how I could communicate better. FUMA also shows me a lot of things while out promoting about the kind of attitude we have to possess and how to treat other people. So I want to listen to the older and younger members and bridge the gap. &TEAM has a really close relationship and I think we should retain that if we want our fans to keep supporting and loving us.

There was also the time in “&TOUR with EJ” where you noticed NICHOLAS looking for sausages and had the good wisdom to say you wanted to eat the “sausages that NICHOLAS grills for us,” and whenever EJ speaks Japanese you nod your head and listen attentively.

YUMA: It’s not like I went out of my way to do that—it’s something I really wanted to do. EJ and I often talk about languages when we go shopping or go out to eat, and there’s a lot we can understand about each other where learning a new language is concerned. He teaches me some Korean and I teach him some Japanese. But I’m from Kansai, so I’ve got a thick accent, so it’s possible he might pick up some pronunciation issues from me. (laughs)

​There seems to be some overlap between getting to know more deeply about each other and working on your group performances.

YUMA: You’re right. When we practice performing we check each and every move in the mirror and slowly, very slowly, get everybody on the same timing. We take video and watch it back right after, and if anything isn’t right we get right back to practicing it. At any rate, we practice a ton. We have a big group and getting everyone lined up despite the big height difference is probably the hardest part. I honestly think it’s harder for the taller ones to do. (laughs)

You, FUMA and K helped make the choreography for “FIREWORK,” right?

YUMA: Yes, but only K’s part made it in. Actually, I absolutely love what K’s doing with choreography these days. He knows all about what’s trendy and has a charming way of expressing it. When I see K, I just think of how cool he is. And when we practice group dances together, he teaches us how we can express the emotions better.

I could feel the way you adjust your tempo when you dance so that you can extract as much emotion as possible out of every moment. You make big motions with your hands and feet when you take center in the “Road Not Taken” verses, while in “FIREWORK” you’re fantastic at keeping to details like isolation even when you’re swept up in the movements in the chorus.

YUMA: Thank you. (laughs) I learned as a trainee how important it is to use your energy in moderation so that you have some from beginning to end. There’s a lot of moves in our choreography where we turn our heads but it’s really hard to sing while doing that. That took a lot of practice. I learned how best to move your head around and show your expression from BTS’s “RUN” video. There’s a lot I can learn from their videos when practicing so I watch them quite a bit.

What kind of things do you learn?

YUMA: I always watch videos of j-hope performing live with the other &TEAM members and say, “Wow, I wish we could be like that.” I watch a lot of SEVENTEEN’s videos too. I watched the formations in their performance of “Super” especially close. There’s so many of them but the dance is so organized and … Whoa, it’s amazing! I also really liked the “Fighting” making-of video, “Comeback Time,” that BSS made. (laughs)I hope our group can be like that too—good at everything, being talented, looking cool and keeping things fun. I hope every member’s unique personality comes together to form one amazing group.

​That reminds me of a line from that anime you like: “Abandoning your uniqueness is equivalent to dying. Bringing a wide variety of individuals together into one sound … That’s the color that Kessoku Band will have.” What do you think you personally bring to the group?

YUMA: Umm. (laughs) I guess I’ve got … my voice! It’s a little nasally but I like it because no one else on &TEAM sounds like that.

Yours is the voice we first hear in two songs off the new album, “Blind Love” and “The moon is beautiful.” What did you do to practice for them?

YUMA: I had a lot of thoughts on that even while recording, but I got progressively better with it by talking with the producer, Soma, about how I should make my voice sound. I try taking my vocals in all different directions when practicing, and when there’s something I can’t do, I concentrate on it until I can. I never used to be good at singing up high but I think my voice became stronger and more robust from practicing that.

Even during &AUDITION you weren’t confident about your vocals. What helped you to end up liking your voice?

YUMA: I actually disliked my voice before but once I heard fans say they liked it, that started to change. LUNÉ’s the one who gives me strength—strength! So even if I have a hard time practicing, once I’m on stage I can see LUNÉ and get strength from them, and then my energy is bottomless. (laughs) I think the “&” in &TEAM means we’re meant to be closely connected with LUNÉ, always.

And you got to see LUNÉ last month, during your first fan tour.

YUMA: It was a special time just for the two of us! (laughs) It was even better because everyone who was there specifically came to see us. And I could really hear LUNÉ’s voices. The view from the stage was amazing. I still think about when we first came out at the debut showcase and the fans were all there looking at us. It felt amazing. Obviously there’s more people in the world who don’t know who I am than I can count, but it made me think about wanting to become an artist who’s recognized all across the globe—even if it’s just a few more people. (laughs)

​It’s been an incredibly important dream of yours ever since you were young to become a world-renowned artist. If you could say something to your younger self, what would it be?

YUMA: Oh …! Just keep doing what you’re doing. (laughs) There’s a great view waiting for you if you just keep it up.

You said so much in so few words after the final performance on &AUDITION: “It was a long time. A really long time.” How do you feel now that you’re well on your way to achieving your dream?

YUMA: It’s been about half a year since we made our debut. Every day seems to just fly by. Honestly, all I’m thinking about now is how I want to show everyone everything that &TEAM can be. I have no idea what the limits of my psychical abilities are. (laughs) So I’ll just keep pushing until I’m truly exhausted. There’s no such thing as stopping at “a little exhausted” for me.

Isn’t it always extremely exhausting? (laughs)

YUMA: That’s still only a little exhausting for me. (laughs)

There will still be times when things won’t work out as you hoped, no matter how much effort you put in.

YUMA: I’m sure there’ll be times when I can’t do something at first but I’ll still be able to do it eventually. If I make a mistake on stage, for example, I can always do better on the next one. I don’t really have time to mope around just because something doesn’t go the way I wanted it to. I think it’s better to use that time to practice instead, until the next time comes.

You keep your eyes on the future rather than settling for what you already have right in front of you—because you have a long time to go with the others.

YUMA: Whenever I see the final product, I think back on the whole process that led up to it. There’s a lot of memories. In that way, I think the process of getting somewhere is more important than the end result. After all, you can’t have the result without the process behind it. All the time I spent as a trainee keeping my nose down and working hard was a part of that process too, but I think more about the times I spent having fun with my friends and the other members. It used to feel like the whole process took so long, but looking back now, it was only a short time. And &TEAM is just getting started.