Takanori Iwata visits Soka City, Saitama Prefecture for “Meshidora”! He talks about his future dreams and the struggles of being a superstar

■ “Whether it’s solo or as an actor, I’d like to expand my activities to Asia” (Iwata Takanori)

Takanori Iwata (EXILE/Sandaime J SOUL BROTHERS) will be a guest on Nippon Television’s “Meshidora Kanechika & Shinnosuke’s Gourmet Drive” (every Saturday from 11:55 am) broadcast on August 31. He will visit Soka City, Saitama Prefecture.

Iwata was waiting on the promenade near the beautiful pine-lined Momoyo Bridge. It was nice to meet Iwata, Mitsushima, and Kanechika, who felt like they were his direct juniors. The three of them started the Meshidora with an LDH-style title call.

First, we order a morning set and six other dishes at the 12-year-old cafe “Kyouwa Cafe” to fill our stomachs. We chat a little while eating a delicious breakfast, and begin to get closer to each other.

On the way to the next bar, Iwata and the other performers talked about their roles. “I’ve always had this complex about being in the music industry but not really doing music,” Iwata said. Even so, he said that “live performances are the best time to feel the significance of a performer’s existence.” He proudly stated that “creating the set list and thinking up the performance” is also one of the roles of performers, including Iwata.

Narintaro loves LDH so much that he named his duo EXIT because he thought it would be the best if they were mistaken for EXILE. Kanechika, who is in a comedy duo with Narintaro, talks about his memories with Iwata. When EXIT first appeared on a comedy show on TV, Iwata was a guest in the studio, and he said, “I got really excited when he told me I was funny.” While they were talking, they ended up at Shimeya, a long-established shop that was founded 123 years ago. They got along well and tried senbei-yaki for the first time in their lives.

The topic of conversation during the journey was what Iwata wants to do in the future. “I don’t care if I go solo or become an actor, but I want to expand my activities to Asia,” he said, and “I want to hold a solo exhibition of my paintings, which I draw as a hobby.” He brushed off Mitsushima’s words that “the Meshidra car is a car that makes dreams come true,” and arrived at the next destination. They arrived at the visually impressive game center “Warehouse.” Kanechika found a dance game and lightly suggested, “Let’s get Iwa-chan to try this,” something that would normally be too timid to say. They then decided to play a game with a punching machine they found to decide who would pay for today’s trip. This game has an unexpected ending, but who will end up paying for today?

Next, while traveling in the car, the topic turned to the future of J SOUL BROTHERS III, who have been active as a group for nearly 15 years and are still drawing 900,000 people to their live shows in 2023. “We know that we won’t be able to perform on such a big stage forever,” said Iwata. That’s why, he said, “The members have been talking a lot about what to do with the brand that has grown into J SOUL BROTHERS III,” revealing the struggles that only a superstar can face.

The last restaurant was Umeda Shoten, a renovated traditional house that was built over 100 years ago. The three were very satisfied after enjoying the seafood bowls and ochazuke that were so plentiful that they felt like “the sea off Soka is running thin.”

Who will end up paying for the trip where we drove around freely, ate delicious food, listened to stories of the past, and talked about dreams for the future?

Program Information

Nippon Television“Meshidora: Kanechika & Shinnosuke’s Gourmet Drive”
08/31 (Sat) 11:55-13:30
*Kanto local
*The latest episode is available for free on TVer
Cast: Daiki Kanechika (EXIT) Shinnosuke Mitsushima
Guest: Takanori Iwata

“Meshidora Kanechika & Shinnosuke’s Gourmet Drive” program site
https://www.ntv.co.jp/meshidora/