Kishibe Seven's Noa Kishiyanagi Announces First Solo Photo Book: 'I Wanted to Be Photographed Not Hiding My Tail'
Noa Kishiyanagi, 20, the center performer of idol group Kishibe Seven, announced on the 7th that she will release her first solo photo book in December. Built around her policy, previously touched on in her column 'Tail Care,' of never hiding her tail on stage, the book was unveiled at a press event where she said, 'I wanted to be photographed just as I am — someone with drifter traits, neither given special treatment nor something to hide.'
As previously reported, Noa Kishiyanagi, 20, a third-generation Drifter and the center performer of idol group Kishibe Seven, has kept to a policy of never hiding her tail on stage, and has cheerfully documented its upkeep in her column "Tail Care." At a press event on the 7th, she announced her first solo photo book, built entirely around that same policy. The book's editor said, "There isn't a single shot that hides the tail through costume or pose. If anything, we made a point of shooting it head-on — the moment it moves, the moment the ears catch the light."
"When I was little, people were often careful about how my ears and tail would come out in photos," Kishiyanagi said at the event. "Being given special consideration felt a little off, but so did being treated as if they weren't there at all. This time, I just wanted to be photographed as I am." In keeping with the previously reported realism rules, her drifter traits are limited to natural ears, eyes, and tail throughout the shoot, but she was careful to frame this as her own choice: "Even within those rules, you can choose to hide it or not. I just chose not to."
Toward the end of the event, which also touched on the previously reported joint clan autumn festival in Fukagawa, Kishiyanagi said, "If a fox-clan person like me showing her tail with confidence gives some push to children from other clans, that would make me happy." A representative of her label, Shiosai Records, present at the event, said, "Every clan has its own way of relating to its traits. We'd like this book to be received not as declaring one right answer, but as one way of choosing."
Fans flooded community sites with anticipation immediately after the announcement. A teenage fan said, "I read the Tail Care column every week, so I'm glad to see more of that same version of her in the book." A longtime figure in the previously reported Drifter-rights movement called the announcement itself meaningful: "There's something symbolic in a public figure openly declaring she won't hide her traits."
The book is due out in mid-December, and Shiosai Records says it is considering a talk event to mark the release. "The Torek Prize nominations also come out in December this year, so it's going to be a busy stretch," Kishiyanagi said with a smile, "but I want to make sure every single copy reaches someone properly."
