©Tatsuro Kimura
people
#WeAreCondeNast - Managing Editor
28 August 2020
Keita Takada takes us behind the scenes of GQ Japan’s BTS cover.
Fashion has been a part of Keita Takada’s whole life. His career began in public relations, working for brands such as Helmut Lang and Coach. After meeting with Jun Kitada, Managing Director at Condé Nast Japan, Keita was offered a job as Junior Lifestyle Editor at GQ.
Now, a decade later, Keita has worked his way up to Managing Editor. He spends his days either at photoshoots, interviewing celebrities or at his desk writing, editing and researching.
We spoke to Keita about the proudest moment in his career so far and GQ’s latest cover with one of the biggest boy bands in the world.
What is the most rewarding thing about your job and what do you find challenging? I feel such an accomplishment when the magazine is published and I get to pick up the tangible product. Everyone has worked so hard for it.
When I first started working at Condé Nast 10 years ago, I wrote for the print magazine and that was it. But now, you have to create a lot of things for digital, video and social media. The skills and expertise that are expected from an editor are quite varied and that's challenging, but it's also very interesting.
What is your career highlight (so far)? In our September 2019 issue, we created a feature called “What is a family today?”. We featured non traditional families, like single parents, same sex couples, a three-parents family... We wanted to deliver the message that being a family is not only in blood - you get to choose your family. In Japan, we can still have prejudice and discrimination against something that is not “normal”. But by introducing those happy families that are not traditional, we thought we could deliver something more diverse and start discussions. That's something that I feel very honored to have been a part of.
What is the best piece of advice you've been given? I have learned many things from our Editor-in-Chief, Mr. Masafumi Suzuki. He has given me a lot of advice on how to write, how to pursue photoshoots, how to come up with ideas and how to create winning headlines. But most importantly, I’ve learned from him what makes a good editor, you know, the principle of it. He doesn't really say much about it, but he shows it. He is a true believer that magazines should be a place for people without voices and we create platforms for them to be heard.
How has the pandemic affected your job? It was quite unnerving because people didn’t know what was going on. Right now we have the production guidelines on how to do shoots so that everyone is protected, but back in April and May we didn't have that. Although we were feeling scared, we were trying to overcome it together and there was a sense of unity. Our team has never been stronger. Also we used to go to the office five days a week, but now we only go to the office once or twice a week.
GQ Japan October 2020 issue.
GQ Japan October 2020 issue.
Your October issue features BTS on the cover. How did the editorial come about? We shot BTS in April when our country was under the state of emergency. We were not allowed to travel, so the photoshoot took place in Seoul, Korea. We had to hire production people in Seoul, find journalists there to interview the band members, as well as find a photographer. That was the only option that we had. We had Zoom opened the whole time so that we could see what was going on in the studio. Even though everything was remote, it worked well.
We asked the Editor-in-Chief of GQ Korea, Ms. Jee Young Kang, to help us find writers and production companies. Because of the relationship we have with GQ Korea, and the shoot being co-produced with Vogue Japan, the editorial was materialized. It was a chance for us to get connected and come up with the solutions together.
GQ has just launched the Change Is Good project. What was that experience like for you? We have been featuring topics such as gender fluidity in fashion, men's makeup and interviews with LGBTQ people and trying to disrupt what men should be like today. I’m happy to see that we're on the same page globally. I'm very much looking forward to a better, more collaborative future.
Finally, what does change mean for you? Change gives me a chance to better myself. If you are open to changes, you have infinite chances to grow, learn and educate yourself, so I embrace changes.
Main image:
©Tatsuro Kimura