KEMIO Interview / Fashion Story is now available!

Check inside for the Full Page Editorial.

>>FULL PAGE EDITORIAL<<

Hi, Kemio. So great to be chatting with you! How are you today? How's NY life?

Hello! I’m so happy to be here with you today! I’m doing great. I just moved into a new apartment here in New York, so I’m very excited to get to know this new area of manhattan. 

How do you feel being in NYC during COVID? 

It has been very rough for everyone, especially for me not being able to travel and see my family for almost a year. I miss them so much! But since I couldn't travel I got a chance to explore the city more and made some new friends and new hobbies.  

What has been your favorite thing to do during the pandemic?

I became a Kpop stan during the pandemic. I mean, I always listen to Kpop but ever since the pandemic, I even started practicing some of kpop group’s choreography and made a dance video for my youtube channel Haha. I can’t dance well, but it's very fun to express your feelings through dance. 

What is your current favorite trend?

Rollin’ / Brave girls.

Let's talk Fashion. Your fans love your style, and so do we! Have you ever fantasized over the idea of becoming a super-model outside of Instagram? Where do you get your inspiration from?

Definitely! I wanna do more modeling jobs. That's something that I wanna focus on this year. I get inspired when I'm walking down the streets of New York cITY actually. There are so many cool people dressed up with sick outfits! Sometimes I even run up to strangers and ask them where they get clothes from haha.   

Do you have a favorite designer at the moment? And if so, who and why?

My favorite designer at this moment would be Eli Russell Linnetz. He has a brand called  ERL. He is known by an art director or photographer etc. He launched his clothing brand, and it's very cool. I love how he uses a lot of colors, and it's very my style. 

Do you think culture influences fashion? And if so, how would you compare the way people dress in Japan compared to the way people dress in America? 

Definitely! In my opinion, I feel like a lot of people are enjoying and expressing their feelings through fashion in both countries, which are so dope. In Japanese fashion, we have so many types of fashion styles like Decola style or Gyaru.  There're so many that I can’t even name it all. In America, I think the fashion trend is more unique and includes a lot more colors. I think American fashion takes more risks. 

We noticed you have tattoos; do they hold any meaning? If so, what are the meanings behind your tattoos? Are you planning to get more tattoos this year? 

I currently have six tattoos, and yes, my tattoos hold meaning. My favorite tattoo is the one on the back of my neck. It’s the coordinates of where I was born. This tattoo is dedicated to my mom, who lives in the sky. 

Coming out to the LGBTQ community, what would you say was the most challenging aspect of coming out? 

As a public figure, I was worried a little about how I was going to come out to my fans. The internet can be such a challenging place, so I decided to come out in my book. The response was really great, and the support I received was amazing. 

If you could give somebody a piece of advice right now to help them cope with the fear of coming out, what would it be?

I think coming out is not an obligation. Please don’t feel like you have to or you are forced to, although, in my experience, I felt more connected with myself and other amazing people in the LGBTQ community. I personally do not regret it.

Are you currently dating anyone?

No.

Is there any other place in the world you would like to live in outside of America?

Seoul, Korea

Did you set any intentions for this new year 2021? And if so, what are the top 5 achievements you would like to reach this year?

I don’t know actually, I typically don’t make any plans for New Year, but I hope I could book more gigs in New York. 

Have you ever thought about becoming a movie star?

No, but I want to try. 

Tell us about your brand. What is the message behind it? Could you please tell us a bit about the upcoming item?

Thanks for asking about Kemio store. It’s actually not a brand. It's my official merchandise store which I opened on my 25th birthday.  I’m currently working on my second drop, and it’s coming in the web store around May. The theme is summer, so I made a bunch of t-shirts. I hope my fans will like it:) 

Do you have any messages for your fans?

Yes! Hi guys, I miss you all so much:(

I hope you’re healthy and take care of yourself mentally and physically. I can’t wait to meet you all in person! 

TALENT/MODEL: KEMIO 

INTERVIEWED: CELINE AZMY

PHOTOGRAPHY: CHAMA

STYLING: JUNGLE LIN

HAIR: TAKUYA YAMAGUCHI

MAKEUP: KENTO UTSUBO

PHOTOGRAPHER ASSISTANT: MOEKA ONOSE

MAKEUP ASSISTANT: SEIJI SUZUKI

EDITOR ASSISTANT: LISA IHAKU

EDITED BY KAREN YABUTA