【Artist Telephone Vol.1】 annie the clumsy

Today we talk with Miss iD2016 finalist, the storytelling, ukulele-playing, singer-songwriter, Annie the Clumsy. Based in Tokyo, Annie presently releases her music through platforms like Youtube and Soundcloud, as well as writing, producing, and singing songs for commercials. Her second album “Inside her Fancy Brain” was released from Rallye Label in July, 2015. Whether it’s recording her own music or making music videos at home, I talked with D.I.Y queen Annie the Clumsy on everything from her first encounters with music, to her vision for the future!

-I heard that you got your start when someone gave you a ukulele, but did you play music before then?

I had no interest in music what-so-ever. I was really only interested in movies. Even though I didn’t pay attention to music, once I got my ukulele my interest really peaked. Before that I listened to music, but I didn’t think about it much though.

-You can play the banjo too, can’t you?

Ah, the banjo… mine is covered in dust. (haha) It’s really hard to play, so I only used it on my first EP. But then I bought a banjo-ukulele, so I’m using that. It’s actually a ukulele, but it sounds like a banjo.

-So, do you have any plans to make a song using the banjo-ukulele?

Yes, but I haven’t made one yet, so I’ve been thinking about it!

– The Flight of the Conchords are a big inspiration for you, how did you learn about their music?

A teacher at my language school in England used a Flight of the Conchords song for a fill-in-the-blank question in his teaching materials. When I heard it I thought, “That’s interesting.” Afterwards I looked them up and learned about them that way, I guess. I discovered them through my language studies teacher, but at the time I simply thought that [the guys from Flight of the Concords] were interesting people.

-I looked up Flight of the Conchords on youtube, and I thought they were really funny, quite comedic.

Yeah, their comedy skills are really something!

-Do you make all of your music videos by yourself?

The first one I made in earnest was the Let’s Dance Whoo video. For the most part, I make them at home with my iPhone or something. I made the The Let’s Dance Whoo video properly though. I am the kind of person that wants to handmake everything that can possibly be handmade, so I directed the whole thing. I want to have a hand in everything I make.

-Do you do all of the filming for the music videos by yourself then?

No, I do have some people who lend a hand. Everyone who helps me are my friends, so I really rely on them. All of the music videos I’ve made with my friends.

-This world of yours, or more precisely your sense of determination, is really strong, isn’t it?

Yeah, it’s determination, isn’t it.

-So, you do all of your recording at home as well?

Yes, home recording! It’s all home recorded. But after I gather all of the recording devices together, it does get a bit noisey.

-Even your released albums?

Yes, it’s all recorded at home.

-I thought that because it was released from a label, it must be recorded at a studio. (haha)

They collected all my home recordings to make the record. There are some outside recordings as well, but I love DIY so I thought it would be good if that showed – that home-recorded-chic. I don’t have a voice that suits the studio. (haha)

-How did you go about gathering all of the equipment for recording?

At first it was all just cheap equipment, so I planned on upgrading once I started making some earnings. After that, it was just doing as much sound-proofing as I could!

-Now you want to try your hand at making a comedy-drama and things like that. Is there anything else that you are working on?

Actually I’ve already finished the script, although it’s a really rough version. I’m polishing it up so that it’s okay for someone to look at.

-Do you want to do the script, direction, and performance all by yourself as well?

Ah, yeah I want to do it all! I think it’s going to be really difficult though.

-Recently you have been studying mockumentaries. Can you briefly explain what a mockumentary is?

It’s filmed to make it look like it’s a documentary. Documentaries are really realistic, aren’t they? Mockumentaries parody that a bit. So they look real, but actually they are poking fun at the genre (haha). I mean, aren’t today’s love dramas kind of ridiculous? Everyone is dreaming too much. If they were more realistic, that would be even more interesting, wouldn’t it? Also, I want to make it global. I work at very international place. There I look at the way the customers act, and maybe it’s a stereotype, but these uncool foreigners come to Japan, and suddenly they seem cool. Wouldn’t it be interesting to poke fun at that? I think it would be funny to make fun of the Japanese women who fall for it too. I really want to elaborate on that idea.

-Wow, that’s really interesting!

It’s because there aren’t many Global-chic dramas yet. Just standing there and using the word Global, that’s really lame. One may already think that the TV broadcasters are lame, but if you can infiltrate them, I think that’s good. I mean, I think that if you just keep making the same thing no one is going to be interested, so it would be cool to try and make something a little different.

-So, you are quite foreign-oriented aren’t you?

I don’t want to be limited to Japan, but also I don’t want to forget my Japanese identity. It’s lame if you just copy what’s going on abroad as well. I was born in Japan, and so without overlapping them too much, I want to take away elements from both cultures. In whatever I do. Well, I guess there are many elements of Western music in my music though. But when I make things, I really want to add those elements in.

-Your activities aren’t just limited to music, are they>

Yeah, I started playing music in order to better express myself in movies. It was like a side project I guess. (haha) Actually, I’ve wanted to make movies for a long time. I feel that music is just one of the steps on the way to that. If I do that, I can express myself better, and even if I go to an audition I can show my music schtick. Movies and music are really similar things, so I think it’s a good fit.

– That way of thinking explains the reasoning behind your music videos.

That’s right. I want to direct, and I make music so it was like, “bingo!” I could utilize my love for music, my love for directing, and my love for acting. It would also be good for making normal short films, and using my own music in the background. It’s like killing two birds with one stone.

-You are trying out a lot of different things through your music, aren’t you?

Yeah, it feels like music is a weapon. There are a lot of actors using music as a weapon in other countries. The actress from 500 days of summer is also a musician. From that experience you can make a character. Afterall, having a character is really important I think. The ukulele is also a character, and there aren’t many people using it in Japan, so I think it’s easy. (haha)

-For the last question, I want to return to music. In August you released your second album, do you have any more releases planned?

I don’t have anything planned at the moment. I don’t have any music in stock either. For the moment, I want to make videos for the music that I have already. After that I think I want to release another album in about two years.

-Thank you!