A Story of Hiro Shinozawa's Growth as Seen Through 'Sunfaded' and Other Songs

Long time no see. I am God of Alice, living a life that doesn't always go as planned. This time, I would like to offer my thoughts on how Hiro Shinozawa has grown through her three songs: "Koukei" (Scenery), "Contrast," and "Sunfaded." I hope you enjoy reading until the end.

1. About Hiro Shinozawa's Character
First of all, if you don't know Hiro Shinozawa, reading this article will probably make you sleepy, so I will start by talking about her character.
I would like to list her birthday, height, weight, blood type, and so on, but if I go that far, I might be treated like a fanatic, so I will do it. In fact, I am like a fanatic. Her birthday is December 21st. It's five days away from my birthday. It seems to be the day of the winter solstice and the day of long-distance relationships. Her birth flowers are the white camellia and spearmint. The camellia means ideal love, and spearmint means warmth of emotion. Her height is 159 cm, her weight is 41 kg, and her blood type is AB. She is from Akita. There is a saying 'Akita beauty,' and it seems there are many beautiful people there. That's nice.

2. Hiro Shinozawa's Background
Next is her background. I don't think you can understand this article without looking at this, so I will explain it briefly. She belongs to the high school division of Hatsuboshi Gakuen, the setting of this work. She is a prodigy who graduated from an overseas university at the age of 14, and she enrolled in Hatsuboshi Gakuen to challenge her weak areas, tired of the boring and too-easy days she had lived until now. For now, please just remember that she is smart and that she aimed to become an idol because she was bored every day.

3. The Main Topic
Finally. I can finally talk about it. I will write about Hiro Shinozawa's growth as can be read through "Koukei," "Contrast," and "Sunfaded."
First, let's start with the characteristics and analysis of each song.

4. "Koukei" (Scenery)
This song is about Hiro encountering a "world she doesn't know yet," solidifying her resolve deep in her heart, and quietly starting to move. It is that kind of song. Hiro, who had been shut inside, is called by the outside world? And heads toward the outside world. I think these contain meanings such as Hiro's awakening as an idol, the fluttering of her heart, her resolve, and premonitions.
The lyrics contain fine movements of emotions and sensations such as "trembling," "choosing," and "welcoming," and as can be understood from "beyond my eyelashes" and "heat like tears," it seems that she only has contact with the outside in a personal realm. As can be seen from expressions in the lyrics like "cannot touch and confirm," it seems that Hiro has not yet grasped what these emotions and feelings are. And as it says "choose" at the end, it ends with a feeling that her future journey and path have been decided.
Personally, this song was the reason I started playing Gakumas, so for me, it is a song that represents resolve and premonition.

5. "Contrast"
I think this song gives the impression of Hiro breaking away from her boring daily life and jumping into the world of "idols." I feel a musical style that says, 'Now is the time!' after making a choice.
Combined with the sound of a record playing at the beginning of the song, it feels like it's starting from here.
From the lyrics "crying, laughing, messing up," I feel that contrasts like failure and success make things fun and happy for Hiro.
Also, from the parts "Interesting? Boring? Monochrome hologram"
and "Surprise, excitement, and saturated information," it feels like she had become unable to feel anything due to too much stimulation. (I felt something like monochrome -> boring things.)
From there, as can be understood from lyrics like "Let's go to a colorful world" and "Cause I found that it's not so boring Not any more," there are words opposite to monochrome, and the change in her heart that Hiro's world has regained color and is no longer "boring" is clearly conveyed.
I think this song depicts the change where Hiro became an "idol" and was able to find "fun things" that make her heart flutter.

6. "Sunfaded"
This song is "Sunfaded," the third main song for Hiro Shinozawa that was released just recently. In Japanese, it has meanings like sunburned or faded by sunlight, and these can be interpreted not just as deterioration, but as proof of Hiro's existence as she accumulates time and is etched into people's memories. I think this song depicts Hiro Shinozawa's past and future. Words that were in the previous songs, such as "eyelashes," "light," and "scenery," which were in "Koukei" and "Contrast," are used here and there.
What I think is most important in this song is Hiro's position. Hiro, who was still shut inside in "Koukei," chose the path of an "idol" in "Contrast" and was trying to obtain something within it. In "Sunfaded," she is now in the scenery she was looking up at in "Koukei," and while accepting the experiences and changes from "Contrast," her will to continue working as an "idol" from now on can be seen.
It was also goosebump-inducing that this song is depicted as the next starting point of Hiro's "self-establishment" story.
In the MV, there is a depiction of transitioning from "Koukei" to "Contrast" to "Sunfaded," and you can see a performance that looks like the process of Hiro's growth. As a fan who has watched her grow, I was moved to tears. Both the MV and the song were incredibly good.

7. Summary
From "Koukei" through "Contrast" to "Sunfaded." From the budding of an inner sensation as an "idol" that she had never experienced before, to the resolve to jump into the world of "idols" from the boring, closed-off daily life she had lived until now, and coming to have emotions like wanting to be this way or wanting to enjoy herself as an "idol." The things Hiro experienced in the previous two songs have become established, and her will to continue moving forward, the emotions that sprouted in "Koukei" and the encounters she sought in "Contrast" have become proof of her living within herself in the form of memories in this song. It became a story of growth about establishing herself as an individual and living while holding onto those memories.
Not only that, but there were parts that overlap with each of our own "growth" and "memories," making it a song that was very easy to empathize with.

8. Finally
Even though it should have been released about a year ago, it already feels like we have been together for many years. That is how much Hiro Shinozawa as a person has a charm that draws others in and won't let them go. I hope to continue supporting her, listening to the music played from her lips, and enjoying Gakuen Idolmaster as a producer or as a fan who will continue to observe Hiro Shinozawa's growth.

Thank you for reading until the end.
Although it was a long and clumsy piece of writing, I feel like I have put out all the impressions and thoughts I had. This analysis is not necessarily correct. This is because there are as many analyses as there are people, and there is no single correct answer. I would be happy if you could understand that. Hiro Shinozawa has perhaps the deepest story in Gakuen Idolmaster, and there are still many things I don't know. However, I sincerely hope that I can continue to support her clumsy daily life with a smile. Even if she were to disappear halfway through, as long as this writing and these memories remain, I want to continue supporting the "idol" Hiro Shinozawa forever. Once again, thank you for reading until the end. I would like to continue talking about the things I like. It is a clumsy piece of writing, but thank you for your support.

2025/7/19 God of Alice, or rather, a producer who loves Hiro Shinozawa