Pushing Boundaries & Exploring New Frontiers: An Interview with Taku Takahashi

We recently had the pleasure of interviewing Taku Takahashi of m-flo in anticipation of their upcoming performances at OTAQUEST KICKOFF and OTAQUEST LIVE! These events look to be very exciting and it was a lot of fun talking to him about not only OTAQUEST but also m-flo's long career and what we can expect from them in the future! Be sure to check it out!

A-to-J: Thank you for the interview! Can you please give us an introduction and tell us a little something about yourselves?
Taku Takahashi: Thanks for having us! Honestly, our bio says everything you could want to know about us:

In 1998, Taku, VERBAL and LISA formed m-flo and independently released “The Way We Were” to stunning success. In 1999, they made their major debut with “the tripod e.p.” which debuted 9th on the ORICON Chart. They released 12 singles and 2 albums resulting in consecutive hits. Their 2nd album “EXPO EXPO” sold 800k copies and impacted the Japan music scene. Following a departure to focus on solo activities in December 2017, LISA returned to m-flo after 15 years. m-flo celebrated their 20th debut anniversary in 2018 and once again brings fresh air into Japanese mainstream music.

A-to-J: For those who are unfamiliar, can you give a brief overview of m-flo. How would you describe your sound and style?
Taku Takahashi: We’re a hip-hop-influenced electronic music group stemming from Japan with roots in the US. If I had to describe it, I’d aim for something like “eclectic”, though our sound is so constantly evolving that it’s hard to answer in a single question.

A-to-J: m-flo recently marked its 20th anniversary. Can you tell us a little about what some of your favorite or memorable accomplishments or achievements over the years?
Taku Takahashi: Honestly, there’s so many at this point that it’s difficult to just pinpoint a few on the spot. Our biggest accomplishment is obviously commercial success, but more than that, being able to bring something new to the commercial space.

A-to-J: Speaking of anniversaries, you released a compilation album containing all your released music last year, what are some of your favorite tracks from your discography and why?
Taku Takahashi: Again, that’s a pretty tough one to answer. All of the music we put out is like our own children. Honestly, I think it’s best for the fans to decide what they like most!

A-to-J: What has it been like consistently creating new music as the music scene, in particular hip hop, itself changes around you?
Taku Takahashi: We’re constantly trying to push boundaries and explore new frontiers. The core of why we still make music is for the fun, but it’s also to push something new into Japan’s music space. We’re one of the few groups that’s able to be recognized despite being so different.

A-to-J: In 2017 Lisa returned to m-flo, can you tell us a bit about what brought about this change to the group’s lineup?
Taku Takahashi: It was awesome when she decided to come back to the group and make music with us again. She featured on a handful of songs during the “loves era”, but in a way, her return was like going back to our roots. But while looking back at that time, we’re constantly trying to create something new for ourselves.

​A-to-J: All the members of m-flo have projects outside of the group, how do you manage to balance all the different aspects of the individual members within m-flo?
Taku Takahashi: It’s all totally different to me. Creating songs for Shinichiro Watanabe’s “Space Dandy” and “Carol & Tuesday”, or even for GAINAX’ “Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt”, my goal is to create something that makes the directors feel confident in their own works. I try to give them what I have to offer and share my suggestions, but it’s always a fun challenge trying to match that up with just what they want. Whether it’s m-flo or my own solo works, we’re always trying to come up with the next big thing.

A-to-J: There have been several collaborations both with m-flo and with each of the individual members, are there any artists that you particularly enjoy working with and are there any that you hope to work with in the future?
Taku Takahashi: There were so many incredible artists that we had the chance to collaborate with. Whether it was Yoshika, Minmi, Namie Amuro, Ayumi Hamasaki, BoA, 2NE1, Taeyang from Big Bang, Minami from CREAM, and so on, it was an honor to work with all of them. Also, I’d like to note that there’s also a whole new generation of talent that we hope to work with too, especially in the Shibuya area.

A-to-J: m-flo has had several overseas performances, are there any difficulties you have performing outside of Japan?
Taku Takahashi: We love performing overseas. We’re super grateful there are people who know our songs, and even people who’ll sing along, even though it’s in Japanese.

A-to-J: Events like OTAQUEST KICK OFF, which is more of a club event, are a bit more rare when it comes to Japanese concerts, would you like to see these more in the overseas Japanese music scene?
Taku Takahashi: Honestly speaking, club-oriented parties are becoming the norm for anime conventions in North America; I was really surprised there was surprised there were so many fans of Japanese electronic music. Anime Central’s annual “SYNERGY” party is always crazy for me, same with Anime Expo’s “Neon District” event. I wish they could have done it this year too, honestly. With OTAQUEST KICKOFF, I hope to give a true experience of what’s going on in Tokyo’s own Shibuya and the underground culture that thrives there.

A-to-J: For those that have yet to see an m-flo performance, can you let us know what kind of show the group ideally likes to put on and what fans can expect?
Taku Takahashi: Last time we performed we played a lot of classic tracks. I think this time we’ll be able to perform a number of new songs from our upcoming album too. I can’t wait to meet our fans as well as showcase what we’ve got to people who don’t know us yet. We want everyone to have a great time together.

A-to-J: What are some of your hobbies that you like to indulge in in your free time?
Taku Takahashi: I’m a huge fan of Western media, especially Game of Thrones, Orville, AOS, and a whole bunch of other sci-fi. Of course, I also check out my fair share of anime.

A-to-J: Do you have any funny stories that you can share with us that occurred while performing?
Taku Takahashi: I can’t really say there’s been anything “funny” that’s happened, but we definitely try to have the most fun we can when we get on stage.

A-to-J: Do any of the members of m-flo have any funny or notable secret talents or abilities or hobbies?
Taku Takahashi: I can talk for hours on end about sci-fi and anime -- though I don’t know if that’s really a secret.

A-to-J: It’s been a while since the last full m-flo album, can we look forward to one in the future?
Taku Takahashi: We’re working on it at the moment and are hoping for a release by the end of the year! It’s going to be on all major streaming services. Be sure to keep checking OTAQUEST as well as our Instagram and Twitter to keep updated on that!

For More on Taku Takahashi:
Official Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/takudj/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/takudj
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/takudj
Block.fm: http://www.block.fm/

For More on m-flo:
Official Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/astromantic,
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mflo_official,
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mflo_official/
Official YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/mflo10yrs.