ガスワン presents 田中みな実 あったかタイム · Education
「田中みな実、ドパガキを知る」2026年10月17日放送：安斉かれんさんゲスト回
Anzai Karen (安斉かれん) returned as a guest for the first time in five years on the October 17 broadcast of Gas One presents Tanaka Minami Attaka Time (ガスワン presents 田中みな実 あったかタイム), sharing how she obtained her driver's license and spent nearly two months shooting alone in Aomori for her upcoming drift film Alive Hoon — made entirely without CG. She also introduced host Tanaka Minami (田中みな実) to Gen Z slang like 'dopagaki' and talked candidly about why she barely speaks at her own concerts and struggles with social media.
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What this episode answers
What preparations and shooting experiences did Anzai Karen go through for her starring role in Alive Hoon?
She obtained her driver's license in under two months by attending lessons every day, then started drift practice within the same month filming began in February 2025. Professional drivers handle the competition scenes, but she personally performed some of the drifts, and after production wrapped she bought a vintage Roadster — only to let it go after repeatedly stalling on roads like Meguro-dori.
What was Anzai Karen's two-month solo filming life in Aomori actually like?
She stayed nearly alone in Aomori and Fukushima for roughly two months, with her manager able to visit only about once a week. Because the fishing-port town's bars close around 10 p.m., she was in bed by 10 every night; a local grandmother who came to set and made senbei-jiru (rice-cracker soup) for the crew was a highlight, and she made friends with locals and fellow cast members.
What does 'dopagaki' mean, and why is it connected to squishes?
'Dopagaki' (ドパガキ) is short for 'dopamine-addicted kid' — it describes the state of constantly needing multiple stimuli at once, such as watching TikTok or YouTube Shorts while a second screen runs in the background. Squishes (スクイーズ), slow-rising soft toys that return to their original shape when squeezed, have become the calming tool this generation reaches for to settle that restlessness.
Why does Anzai Karen almost never MC at her live shows?
She says her brain works differently when she is singing versus when she is talking, and speaking during an MC break pulls her back to her off-stage self, making her feel embarrassed to keep singing. In a 30-minute set she sings nine songs and says virtually nothing beyond 'I'll have some water' or 'Was it raining today?'
Why is Anzai Karen unable to post actively on social media?
She overthinks what comments might come in after she posts, and on X even a single negative post can ruin her mood for the entire day, so she avoids checking it. Although she wants to share things, she said she finds it hard to handle the way both good and bad comments 'come flooding in all at once.'
The Road to Starring in Alive Hoon — A No-CG Drift Film
Anzai Karen revealed she is starring in the drift film Alive Hoon (Beyond the Limit Alive Hoon), currently in production and scheduled for release in 2027. She plays a lonely female driver who works at a fish market in Hachinohe, Aomori, and fights her way toward becoming a professional racer. The production's defining feature is its complete rejection of CG: scenes include drifting on a snow-covered mountain and rigs that strap cameras to individual tires, with the intensity level high enough that stunts and cameras have gone flying. Editing, she noted, is taking a considerable amount of time as a result.
To prepare for the role, she first had to get her driver's license. She had originally enrolled in a driving school at 18 but dropped out when vocal lessons started; this time she went every day and finished in under two months. When shooting began in February 2025, she started drift training within that same month. Professional drivers handle the full competition sequences, but she also performed some drifts herself — 'I got to floor the accelerator,' she said. After filming wrapped, she discovered a love of manual transmission, bought a vintage Roadster, and drove it around Tokyo — until frequent stalls on roads like Meguro-dori made it too dangerous and she eventually sold it.
Two Months in Aomori, Mostly Alone
Filming took place across Aomori, Fukushima, and other parts of the Tohoku region, and Anzai spent roughly two months on location with almost no company. Her manager could only make it out about once a week, and the other cast members were similarly left to fend for themselves. Because Aomori is a fishing community where people wake early, the bars close around 10 p.m., leaving her nothing to do but be in bed by 10 every night — a surprisingly regimented life.
Food-wise, a local grandmother who came directly to the set to cook senbei-jiru for the crew made a lasting impression. Despite the solitary conditions, she was able to befriend locals she met at a neighborhood izakaya and cast members who were from Aomori. The shoot ran through October and November, ending with snowfall and scenes filmed in the mountains.
'Dopagaki,' Squishes, and Sticker Books — Gen Z's Real Trends
Anzai introduced the word 'dopagaki' as one of the terms circulating among her generation. A contraction of 'dopamine-addicted kid' (ドーパミン中毒のガキ), it describes people who can't stop scrolling TikTok or YouTube Shorts and feel compelled to run a second screen — say, Shorts on one side and X on the other — at the same time. 'I'm such a dopagaki' or 'that's so dopagaki' are typical uses. Tanaka Minami was visibly surprised, saying she wasn't sure she'd heard it before.
The calming counterpart to dopagaki culture is the squish (スクイーズ) — a slow-rising foam toy that springs back to its original shape, distinct from slime in that the form fully returns. Anzai said she buys them in bulk through TikTok Shop and can spot fakes by their rubbery feel. She is currently on her sixth sticker book, surpassing Tanaka Minami's four.
On the fashion front, she arrived in a Hello Kitty outfit because she had just visited a Sanrio pop-up event. A committed Sanrio fan since childhood — her school backpack was also a Kitty bag — she votes every year in the Sanrio Character Grand Prix using the ballots that come with merchandise purchases.
Why She Barely MCs at Live Shows, and Her Complicated Relationship with Social Media
Anzai plays active sets at live houses such as those in Shimokitazawa with her band, but in a 30-minute slot she sings nine songs and says almost nothing in between. Her explanation: the way her brain works shifts completely between singing and speaking, and the moment she starts talking she returns to her everyday self, which makes it suddenly embarrassing to sing. Her on-stage words amount to little more than 'I'll have some water,' 'Was it raining today?' and 'Here's the next song' — all delivered with a constant smile. Tanaka Minami told her it was a waste given how funny she is in conversation.
She also confessed that Instagram, X, and YouTube are all platforms she struggles to use actively. Posting triggers a spiral of worry about what comments will follow, and on X a single negative post in her feed is enough to darken her entire day, so she has learned not to look. She once launched a YouTube channel around a 'drinking alone' concept, but after outsourcing production it stopped feeling like her and the updates dried up. Last month her six-year radio show came to an end, leaving her wanting a space to just talk; she is now planning to do live game-streaming through her existing YouTube account, reasoning that 'if it's live, I don't have time to overthink things.'
Takeaways
- Anzai Karen obtained her driver's license from scratch and spent nearly two months filming almost entirely alone in Aomori for the no-CG drift film Alive Hoon, due out in 2027.
- She introduced the Gen Z slang 'dopagaki' — shorthand for 'dopamine-addicted kid' — and explained how squishes have become the go-to calming tool for people caught in constant multi-screen stimulation loops.
- She almost never MCs at her live shows because switching to speech mode makes singing feel embarrassing, and she is similarly reluctant on social media — though she is now planning live game-streaming as a more spontaneous outlet.
This article is edited from a machine transcript of the first 30 minutes of the episode. It is not an official summary — please listen to the episode itself.