She wants her anime convention performances to grow into a full-fledged concert tour. While Iijima waits for the cablecast of the Pacific Blue episode in which she will appear, she continues to look for roles. Mari auditioned for a part on the City Guys show, and while "I didn't get the part, the casting director liked me. If if didn't get this part, maybe I'll get another part."

For the first time in her anime convention tour, Iijima performed alone at CN Anime. Most of her songs were performed to prerecorded tracks, but she played the piano and sang two songs to her own accompaniment, including the famed song that closes the Macross Movie. That song, with its many intriguing changes of key signatures, was written by Iijima. That aspect of Iijima's performance may have surprised fans who didn't know that she studied for years as a classical pianist.

There's one track on No Limit (Irony of Fate) that sounds like a country music song: Iijima tried to get her band to play it straight but it came out country. Iijima will stay pop and not go country, however. She wants to make music her way and not create a gimmick. "They have talent but they're not corny enough to be popular," Iijima said about many of the musicians she admires. "That's where I am."

Iijima, who brought her twin nine-year-old sons to Canada, remains optimistic about the changes in her life (her Japanese recording contract has ended and she is in the midst of a divorce) after living for ten years in the U.S. "I believe in faith and destiny. Maybe I needed that time to mature and learn English. I think this is my time."

Now, the pictures: