The very first No Make Girl page was created on February 4th. It was a single page - no graphics, just a short description of why I liked Hekiru and a journal in which I kept Hekiru-related entries. By the end of February my journal had grown to unmanageable size, and fueled by my ever-stronger feelings towards Hekiru, I decided to make a "real" page that I could actually show people. (Not that I did. Show people that is.) That process took well over a month to get even the basics down, but I learned a lot about HTML, and about Hekiru. No Make Girl went through a 3rd incarnation around the end of 1998 and the beginning of 1999, not so much a brand-new version as it is a rehaul of the second design with useless parts trimmed and new sections added. By that time though, I was no longer using my ancient 150Mhz laptop for HTML and image editing. I was doing it all at work, and that was a problem because my computer did not have a real DNS entry and as such was bared from accessing my ISP's account. I was searching for a solution when I heard that the present owner of the domain hekiru.com wanted to give it up. After a lot of trouble I managed to get in touch with him and switched the registered DNS of the domain over to me, and so begins the hekiru.com chapter of No Make Girl. This page will never be a repository of exhaustive data, nor will it offer all the latest information. I simply don't have the evergy or desire to put the necessary effort into that. Instead, like the way I first intended, it will serve as a very personal introduction to Shiina Hekiru. This person has changed my life considerably, and I want everyone to see that special something that she has, that power that could sway the lives of tens of thousands of devoted fans. It's not meant for Japanese people; there are more than enough sites out there for that. But for the English-speaking audience who might never have a chance to come to Japan and see a concert, much less read magazine interviews or listen to her radio shows, I present, with a bit of personal tinge, the wonderful person that is Shiina Hekiru. I would be happy if someone who visits this page leaves with greater interest. With that in mind, I have sprinkled images throughout to make it more visually attractive. I wrestled with the ethics of that, and in the end I reluctantly decided that this was the best way show someone with little knowledge of Hekiru as entertaining a profile of her as possible. My apologies to Hekiru, Arts Vision, and Sony. As for the title of the page, it is of course named after her third album, No Make Girl. No, it's not my favourite album. :P    But, it embodies what I first found most fascinating about Hekiru - her dislike of makeup and accessories like earrings. Hekiru is not one to go with the herd. She doesn't bow to fashion, she knows what she likes. She's no highschool girl caked in powder wearing boots and a miniskirt. Hekiru is Hekiru, and I like that.

Glossary of Phrases Each section of this homepage has a phrase dedicated to it. Explanations and origins are given below. Profile - Pure, Straight and Tough, with all her might... The catch copy for Baby blue eyes. Signified Hekiru's new start marked by the release of that album. It made a very strong impression me, and even now continues to stand for what I idealize and hope for in Hekiru. Discography - Let me sing with soul The title of a song from Face to Face that Hekiru co-authored the lyrics to. It's a good song, and I like the sound of the title a lot. Concerts - Now, through the clouds, We wanna fly higher on our own wings. The officially translated lyrics to "Graduater". The rest of the chorus goes "Then we can fight by ourselves. Coz everyone surely can be a Graduater". If there is a song that most captures the spirit of a concert, it's "Graduater". With its beginnings as an unreleased drama image song first sung at Starting Legend '96 Summer Special, and it's growth and evolution through the years until its eventual CD release in January of 1998, it is truly a song born of the live. Goods - 417 shi-i-na 417 can be read as shi-i-na in Japanese. Many Japanese people write playful messages in this system. "417" has become a sort of holy number for Hekiru fans. Reports - And our dream goes on... First used in the Starting Legend '97 ~with a will~ concert pamphlet as "And our dreams goes on... " The picture of Hekiru cupping a four-leaf clover in her hands accompanied it. During the outdoors photo shoot, Hekiru had taken a break to wander around, and found countless four-leaf clovers. The phrase resurfaced, grammatically corrected, in the Starting Legend 1999 ~Face to Face~ pamphlet. It was, to concerned fans, a ray of hope in a dark and difficult phase of Hekiru's career. Translations - A blue flame in one of my eyes, a red flame in the other... I want you to take in these two "eyes". My translation of a phrase in the Starting Legend '98 Baby blue eyes pamphlet. They are Hekiru's own words, from an interview in which she talked about her new album and her many aspirations. Information - I want to keep on walking, To find a road different from everyone else. From the song "Akai Hana", translated. The lyrics are, of course, written by Hekiru. It's a fast pop tune, but I find it bitter. Is Hekiru really fulfilling her dream, or has she resigned herself to the path Sony has laid out? When will she find her "different road"? But, as long as she keeps on walking forward, I will stay with her. Personal - Want you!! Something that Hekiru came up with at the beginning of 1996, it means "I want to see you again". Since then, no concert has been without these two words, shouted out by everyone at the very end. These are my feelings. Updates - A never fading moment... This picture was taken during the shooting of the "Iro Asenai Shunkan" music clip. At first I was going to use the quote "This dissatisfaction is proof that my flower has not withered", translated from an interview with Hekiru about "Akai Hana". But it didn't seem appropriate, and suddenly that image of Hekiru running off playfully came into my head. So I decided to go with "A never fading moment", the translation of "Iro Asenai Shunkan".

A Word of Thanks - To Motoslave, for his support and patience right from the very start. - To my boss and coworkers, for putting up with my one-track mind and for turning a blind eye when I abused the facilities during the making of this page. - To Matora, for lending me his scrapbooks (and boy he's got a ton of stuff!) to scan, as well as letting me copy all of Holy Shine in Naked. - To all my friends, for the memories. You know who you are. - And last, but never least, to a certain person, a person who brought this all together, a person to whom I give my heart and my gratitude. She sings a song of love...