NHK WORLD presents SONGS OF TOKYO at NHK Hall - Day 2 + Video Message from MIYAVI

Internationally-known Japanese artists Perfume, Linked Horizon, LiSA, AKB48 world selection, KANJANI∞, MIYAVI, X JAPAN and Joe Hisaishi performed live on the second day of NHK WORLD presents SONGS OF TOKYO.


_{© NHK}

As soon as the VTR introduced the first group of the line-up, the entire audience filling NHK hall stood up and cheered loudly. The three Perfume members A-chan, Kashiyuka and Nocchi appeared with light beams and began to sing and dance. Perfume are well known for their synchronized dancing in high heels, and FLASH’s choreography, which employed martial arts elements, was just as impressive as expected. Fans in the audience shook their towels to the party song Spending all my time, the group’s first English-language single. During a short MC, the members introduced themselves in Japanese and in English with their signature moves. Then, the audience danced along to the futuristic bass sounds of Perfume’s latest single If you wanna.


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Next, Linked Horizon came back to NHK hall four years after its last appearance on TV. Revo was standing on stage with four dancers, a German narrator and several musicians. Behind them, a large choir was at the top of the stairs, adding even more impact to the scene. Linked Horizon performed Guren no Yumiya and Shinzo wo Sasage yo, which were both used as opening songs of the popular anime series “Attack on Titan”. At the beginning of the second song, the choir struck a soldier-like pose from the anime. Revo’s voice, combined with dancers holding fire red sticks as well as the German narration and powerful singing of the choir, delivered an impactful performance.


_{© NHK}

The next artist LiSA is also best known abroad for her anime songs. The singer first performed crossing field from the internationally popular anime "Sword Art Online". Fans in the audience jumped and danced to the hit song. This was followed by Rising hope from another anime, "The Irregular at Magic High School". Singing and dancing at the same time, LiSA was as dynamic as her music. The last song was Catch the moment, another song from "Sword Art Online". Video sequences from the anime were displayed on the background. During her whole performance, LiSA was energetic on stage and knew exactly how to liven things up with her powerful voice.

Then came AKB48 world selection, a special unit that gathers members from AKB48, domestic sister groups and international sister groups from Indonesia, Thailand and Taiwan. The group’s performance began with AKB48’s major debut song Aitakatta. About 60 members were onstage, singing and interacting with the audience. Heavy rotation was more dynamic, with choreography involving microphone stands. During 365 nichi no kamihikoki, the atmosphere suddenly became calm. The starry sky background matched the peaceful music while the main members of AKB48 world selection took turns singing. The last song Koi suru Fortune Cookie concluded the medley on a colorful and joyful note.

AKB48 world selection then handed the baton over to another idol unit: the male group KANJANI∞ from Johnny & Associates. When the first song NOROSHI began, it was clear that they were different from a typical idol group. The seven members of KANJANI∞ all sing and play instruments. The vocals, guitars, bass, trumpet, percussion, drums and keyboard combined to create an original mix of pop, rock and blues. The members left their instruments for the last song DO NA I, where they sang and danced energetically in front of the audience.


_{© NHK}

The next artist was MIYAVI, a Japanese guitarist and singer-songwriter that was recently appointed a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador. The “Samurai Guitarist” was accompanied onstage by drums and singers. His song selection showed off his unique way of playing the guitar. Singing, moving around the stage and always smiling, MIYAVI gave a performance filled with energy that clearly conveyed his passion for music. After giving all he had, he fell onto his back to conclude his show in an impactful way.


_{© NHK}

When X JAPAN’s turn came, enthusiastic cheers arose from the audience. Slowly recovering from his operation in May 2017, drummer and pianist YOSHIKI could not play the drums yet, so he played the piano instead. YOSHIKI began with a solo on his crystal piano before ToshI joined him on vocals for La Venus, accompanied by string instruments. The audience sang along with ToshI during the second song Endless Rain. The emblematic rock band certainly gave one of the most touching performances of the night.

The final artist of NHK WORLD presents SONGS OF TOKYO was Joe Hisaishi, who is well known for composing many soundtracks for Hayao Miyazaki’s movies. The Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra’s musicians were onstage when Joe Hisaishi appeared. The music began with the composer conducting the orchestra for his original composition Links. Hisaishi then started playing the piano to begin One Summer’s Day from the animated movie “Spirited Away”. After the introduction, he conducted the orchestra from the piano. After the last notes of the third track Oriental Wind, a standing ovation greeted the composer, thanking him for the magical moment.

NHK WORLD presents SONGS OF TOKYO gathered 16 artists who represent the current state of Japanese music. The diversity of genres, ages and group formations made it a unique and special event. NHK WORLD presents SONGS OF TOKYO will be broadcast on NHK WORLD TV on January 1st and January 2nd, 2018. Details on the artist line-up for each day's broadcast are available on https://www.nhk.or.jp/songsoftokyo/.

Set List

Perfume
01. FLASH
02. Spending all my time
03. If you wanna

Linked Horizon
04. Guren no Yumiya
05. Shinzo wo Sasage yo

LiSA
06. crossing field
07. Rising hope
08. Catch the moment

AKB48 world selection
09. Aitakatta
10. Heavy Rotation
11. 365 Nichi no Kamihikoki
12. Koi suru Fortune Cookie

KANJANI∞
13. NOROSHI
14. High Spirits
15. Katte ni Shiagare
16. DO NA I

MIYAVI
17. Raise Me Up
18. What’s My Name? Day 2 Mix
19. In Crowd
20. Fire Bird

X JAPAN
21. La Venus
22. Endless Rain

Joe Hisaishi
23. Links
24. One Summer’s Day
25. Oriental Wind

Check out the short video message MIYAVI recorded for JaME!



Read our report on NHK WORLD presents SONGS OF TOKYO at NHK Hall - Day 1 at http://www.jame-world.com/us/articles-128130-nhk-world-presents-songs-of-tokyo-at-nhk-hall-day-1.html.