To cover a song by Yutaka Ozaki was something I’ve always wanted to do. He is an artist I look up to and “Graduation (卒業)” in particular was one I connected with. Having just “graduated” high school myself, his lyrics delineate my thoughts and queries about adulthood ahead of me. Although this song was released over 30 years ago, I personally think a lot of our generation could relate to it in some sense; struggling and rebelling through youth to find what’s worth fighting for. I also made this in hope that it becomes a gateway for young people in Japan, as well as overseas who may not be familiar with Ozaki to discover his music. I’ve put my heart and soul into this solo cover video and am really happy with the outcome, so please go check it out!

和訳：
尾崎豊さんの曲をカバーすることは、自分がずっとやりたかったことのひとつです。 彼は自分が尊敬するアーティストのひとりであり、特に「卒業」は思い入れの強い曲でした。高校を「卒業」したばかりの自分が抱く考えや疑問がこの曲に鋭く描写されていて、30年以上も前にリリースされた曲ですが、今の世代の若者も共感できる曲だと思います。戦うに値するものを見つけるために、若者をは苦しみ、反抗します。このカバーが、尾崎豊さんに馴染みのない海外の人たちにも彼の音楽を知ってもらう良いきっかけになれればと思います。