Talent Suzu Yamanouchi appeared on "ABEMA Entertainment," a news program on "ABEMA," in a segment called "Re:MAKE ~Dear You from Back Then~." She spoke for the first time about her complicated family background and her student days.
Yamanouchi's parents divorced when she was old enough to remember, and she lived with her mother, older brother, and grandmother. Later, she began living with her mother's boyfriend, and she recalled that she felt she "couldn't express her true feelings," and that "as a child, I was in a very restrictive environment."
When she was in elementary school, she was a child who was very sensitive to how others saw her, or rather, "how they wanted her to be." She suppressed herself, thinking, "I have to be a cheerful child," and before going home, she would listen to music downstairs at her apartment building, cry, and then tell herself, "Okay, I'll do my best," to change her mindset.
When she entered junior high school, she lived alone with her mother, and life became even more difficult. She would bring a rice ball from a convenience store for lunch, and "various friends would give her one side dish each," and "a friend's mother would be considerate and make extra food for me, saying, 'This is for Suzu-chan,'" showing that she was supported by those around her.
Then, at the age of 15, she had an emotional outburst, thinking, "Why do I have to go through this?" She also felt that the phrase "Good things will happen if you just keep living" was something that could only be said by people who had experienced good things themselves. She revealed her feelings at the time, saying, "At the age of 15, I had already resigned myself to the fact that there are people whose lives are destined to be hopeless."
After entering high school, she worked part-time to make ends meet. "My friends would contribute to the school cafeteria," and "I would get 50 yen each to eat udon," she said, describing how she was barely able to survive each day. Later, at the age of 17, Yamanouchi moved to Tokyo to pursue a career in entertainment. While she was called a "teen idol," she constantly struggled with the thought, "I have to work hard to be the person people expect me to be..." She talks about the real struggles she faced after moving to Tokyo, leading up to her current state, where she says, "I'm the most selfish I've ever been."
