The Enka Prince Strikes in Tokyo Again: 1 Dead, Many Injured

This post relates yet another crazy episode in the life of a nutcase.

Dude, what are you looking at...?! Okay, I admit it... it's me. XD

Oh, it would have been so EASY not to go...

No matter how you look at it, not going seemed like the most obvious thing to do, not to mention mature, responsible and ideal. But I couldn't help myself!

Love called and I answered.

XDDD

Tsukasa, Tsukasa, Tsukasa... How did this happen? How did I go from not knowing you to developing a slightly unhealthy obsession for you...? All of this in such a short amount of time? Like マジで? まじかよ？？？How could you do this to me... Do you know how many husbands I have? Do you really think I needed another one? Barging into my life like you own the place... (>_>) Oh, I'm not done with you yet! Why is it so damn complicated with you? Bank transfers, venues in the middle of nowhere, confirmation e-mails in lieu of tickets... Look at what you're making me do...

This isn't how a person should live their life!

This time... I wasn't even sure it was going to work out, but I hope you know I love you, my enka prince.

I loved you, and yet... you killed me.

╯°Д°）╯︵/(.□ . )

Okay, enough drama. Let's move on with the fanaccount if you will ~

Oh my goodness, Tsukasa is such an amusing man. He's always joking around. You can see that he truly loves his fans (I'm one of them now!) dearly. It's so blatantly obvious and it shows in the way he interacts with the audience with sincere affection and thankfulness. Tonight, a considerable part of the show was used to that end, and yet, none of us would have wanted it any other way. Despite the jokes, he takes himself very seriously, but always remains modest. Whenever he's singing (always flawlessly and with evident passion), he's always so solemn and he puts his all into it. And yet, there are times when he overdoes this with slightly dramatic gestures to make us laugh. (Wide, sweeping movements reminiscent of a samurai drawing his blade, for instance, or karate chops, always executed with a boyish little grin to the side.) Anyone can tell just how much fun he's having up there.

There is absolutely no way you can listen to him without being moved the slightest bit. What else can we do but let ourselves be taken in by his overflowing energy? Please don't think I'm biased when I say this (I totally am, but that's besides the point): I haven't often seen someone look this thoroughly thrilled to simply sing. Nothing else seems to matter to him. The very picture of bliss. Did you know that he started singing enka when he was only three years old? I'm so glad that he chose to do what makes him happy.

"Matsupoi" was definitely the song that generated the most excitement, as many of us knew it from the previous show and single teaser. (It might be a cover, like a good number of the songs performed, but I think it's an original track, just like "Hitohira no Sakura", which are both on his single.) Again, it was so much fun to scream out "Poi! Poi! Poi!" during the chorus. Somehow, I feel like this song is going to become a huge classic (if it isn't already). My only regret was not to have brought a light stick. After making this mistake over and over again in the past, I hope my experience will serve as a lesson for the future concerts I will be going to. It's just too important to have one. Gigs are not the same without!

Though Tsukasa was the "main attraction" (can I say this or does it sound like he's a circus animal), his musicians contributed to the show considerably, and not just by, well...

Doing their job and playing music.

I thought they were quite lovable and soon took a liking to them!

His guitarist (I think his name was Reeno?) was unbelievably pretty and had somewhat girly mannerisms. He reminded me of a younger version of GacktJOB's Chachamaru. Even his facial features were similar! (Then again I might be terribly wrong, but that's the impression I had. It was striking.) He had very long, silky hair that was pulled up in a high pony tail, with two strands of hair framing his thin face, very large eyes and an extremely expressive face. Out of all the members, he was the most energetic. His jerky movements reminded me of a bassist, to the point where I mistook him for one at first. He kept swinging his petite head left and right, flipping his hair in all directions, smiling brightly and making crazy faces. Yes, you figured me out: he stole my heart as well. (Though the itch to steal his hair and run away was real. Life is unfair. T-T)

GacktJOB guitarist Chachamaru (I used to be so in love with this man!)

The third member was kind of like a DJ (though he also played the guitar in later songs), and he was in charge of the sound effects and background music. Don't remember what his name was T-T (looking at Tsukasa's blog, it seems like it might have been SHUN from TMH4N's), but let's call him Barbie Blondie. His speech was playfully snarky and he took care of a big part of the MC talks. What a funny guy! He was slightly buffer (though not chubby in the least) and had a pleasant, handsome face. His hair was a nice blonde and, parted to the side, about chin-length. During the more energetic songs, he whipped it around with a lot of enthusiasm.

He made me want to grow mine for that sole purpose.

Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that an enka concert would feature head-banging.

Tsukasa sang a few songs (perhaps around four of five), and then he said as a joke that he was going somewhere to take a break, have some fun, eat something. We were asked to wait for a moment as the lights came back on and, more than a little confused, we waited patiently as the staff went about closing the curtains and rearranging the stage. When we were returned to pitch-black darkness and the spotlights illuminated the stage, our eyes were met with a setting much like that of a bar ("Snack Tsukasa"). Taking on the role of barman was the blonde dude, looking quite classy. In soliloquy, he complained that business was slow and there were no customers.

Not long after, Tsukasa made his appearance, clad in a sharp black suit. (Massive ovaries explosion.) The former referred to the latter as "shachou", and the latter referred to the former as "masutaa (master)". They enacted a scene where the boss, Tsukasa, had left his visual enka concert at Shibuya Crawl to drop by the bar and have a drink while we waited for him to come back (although Tsukasa settled for water after contemplating stronger alcohol XD). After taking a sip from the glass, the barman was about to hand Tsukasa his drink when he changed his mind, claiming that an indirect kiss wouldn't be good, and put the drink away to pour him a new one.

This was obviously part of the script and caused many of us to squeal in delight. XD

Oh, j-rockers always were masters of fanservice.

There was a promotion segment where Tsukasa advertised his new single which was being released on that very day, and gave a copy of the album to the barman, who threw it aside carelessly as a joke.

We had the chance to hear a recording from Tsukasa's childhood (taken by his landlord?), when he went on a TV program, age three, to sing some enka songs. It appeared to be some kind of contest. It was really cute, but he was so young, so he didn't actually sing that well, and his fellow member made fun of him because of a random adlib he did at the end that was slightly off-key. Tsukasa then proceeded to perform the song again as an experienced and talented singer, and of course, he absolutely nailed it. There was also a song dedicated to "the taste of Mom's homemade miso soup" (ofukuro no aji) with pretty hilarious narration, which Tsukasa admitted made him feel a little nostalgic after the initial laugh. He ended his performance with a heartfelt (but humorous) "kaaaaa-chaaaan!".

Eventually, Tsukasa confessed to his "master" that he had a concert to go back to and excused himself (something for which he was scolded). He said "gochisosama deshita" for the water (WTF XD) and politely declined upon being asked to pay.

Blondie was really scary when he pretended to be angry.

He sounded and looked like a yakuza gang member, or at the very least, a mean yankee boy.

It was really entertaining to watch Tsukasa and him interact.

After a short break, Tsukasa "returned" to the show and sang a duet with a high-pitched computerized voice (which I guess was supposed to be a woman) that reminded one of the chipmunks. It was funny, though Tsukasa's performance was impressive as usual.

It was finally time for the much-awaited "Hitohira no Sakura".

For this song, Tsukasa played the flute, once again clad in his beautiful red and black kimono (I have to say, Tsukasa-dear, half-open is not how you're supposed to wear this thing...! though I would never complain XD *drools*). He agilely twirled the flute around as if it were a drumstick, making the crowd "ohhh" and "ahhh" at his skill and dexterity. There was also a time when he messed up the lyrics and admitted to it by adding "Machigaeta!" to the chorus in a sing-song voice.

The crowd was really amazing. Of course, it might have looked livelier because the club was so small and we were all so close to the stage - I myself was only a few meters away. But nevertheless, the audience was one of the wildest I've seen to this day in Japan. We were on FIRE. And yet, we couldn't have been more than about 150 people. Before entering the venue, we were called by our numbers, ten at a time. My number was 110. There were still people waiting after I came in, but surely no more than a few dozens. Truthfully, there wasn't much space left in the club after we were all jammed in.

I also heard that the concert was sold-out.

Well, it sure seemed that way.

All throughout the evening, Tsukasa yelled out random "yeah"'s which we never failed to return with fists pumped high in the air. It became something of an inside joke between us. XD

We were treated to a few encore songs. (My throat still hurts from screaming too much. Why must I always take it upon myself to lead these things.) The show was much longer than I expected. Sure, the long talk section might have helped, but still, Tsukasa sang quite a lot of songs, a nice variety of them (even that of women, which can't be an easy feat!), and even came back for more. I was expecting it to be over under an hour, but it lasted more than two, I believe. The encore songs - which might have been an apercu of new tracks to be released - were much heavier than the rest. Unexpectedly, Tsukasa's enka voice really suited these rock tunes.

One was called "Sabaku no Hana" (Desert Flower).

I absolutely loved the drum improv that Tsukasa did (with his voice XD) at the end of the last song. XD It was pretty realistic.

Guess I shouldn't expect anything less from an drummer!

Blondie bumped his head on a light before retreating backstage (poor sweetie), and Girly Boy followed after him after one last bow. Although it was time to say goodbye, it didn't look like Tsukasa was going to be able to stop thanking us (in English!), blowing air kisses at us or saying "muah-muah" and waving cutely. He appeared not to want to leave the stage, so he delayed his departure. He just couldn't anymore. The fans also couldn't. The (real) barmaid wiped her glass and sighed because she couldn't.

We were all a big messy heap of can't.

When the show was truly over and done with, I hurried over to the exit, hell-bent on getting my hands on the album. But my efforts (and everyone else's) soon proved to be fruitless as we couldn't really move. Some important-looking people were escorted out - probably VIP's: young ladies and a few older men who must have been relatives or colleagues. Two girls called out a guy's name excitedly and he seemed to respond to the address... Might have been a member of TMH4N's, Tsukasa's current band, but I truly have no idea as I don't know them at all. Tsukasa did mention Kazuya during the concert, and shielded his eyes to scan the room as if looking for him. He might have really been there. But if that's the case, I wonder why it didn't cause a bigger commotion...?

Anyway! I was able to buy what I wanted, and even got freebies (a business card? and a photo). Last but not least, to top off this awesome evening, I was in for quite a surprise! It may have been reserved to people who had bought the album/goods, but we were given tickets with which we were entitled to shake Tsukasa's hand. After being handed my CD's by Tsukasa himself and mumbling awkward words of congratulations and thanks, I followed the staff members' instructions (to backtrack and return inside?).

Clueless, and more than a little confused, I waited as people continued to squeeze inside the tiny crammed bar, and it finally dawned on me what everyone was waiting for.

I had been given two, and from what I understood, I could have used both tickets, but I didn't really see the point, so I kept the other as a souvenir. XD I mean, I stood out enough already, and I was pretty nervous... Why make it worse?

After a reasonable amount of time, it was finally my turn and I was allowed to part the curtains and slip inside to meet Tsukasa (almost killed myself while climbing the stairs and clutching the curtains in vain - luckily, he was busy with someone, so he didn't see me XD).

I stretched out both of my hands like I had seen the previous girls do, and Tsukasa giggled slightly as he grabbed them. (Mine were cold, but thank god, they weren't clammy!)

And *dzzt!dzzt!* direct eye contact. ( ◡‿◡ *)

Now, in hindsight, I have to wonder if he laughed because:

1) he was nervous;

2) he was nervous because I'm a foreigner;

3) he figured I was nervous when he touched my cold hands;

4) all of the above answers;

5) I looked absolutely terrified (god i hope it's not that);

6) I'm thinking too much again.

It was more than a handshake really. There wasn't much shaking involved. Rather, we just kept hold of each other's hands while we spoke for a few seconds, after which the fan left the room and Tsukasa prepared himself for his next victim. 8D

But I guess I shouldn't be worried.

Regardless of that, I don't think he thought less of me. Besides, he looks like such a sweet man. There's no way he would look down on his fans. Of that I'm certain. In any case, I was careful to be polite, congratulate him again and thank him for the awesome concert. In return, he thanked me for my support, and when I told him that I couldn't wait until next year, since he announced another concert at the same venue in January, he looked happily surprised that I planned on attending and told me to bring a friend (there's someone I'm thinking of!).

I really hope I can make it... It's on a Friday again. D: We'll see.

In closing, I said to keep up the good work and he thanked me again.

I can't think of anything else right now, but I might update this if I get inspired or if I remember something else (not a big chance XD).

All I want to say is that I'm proud of Tsukasa for what he's managed to do. The man is seriously talented and I hope he sells out his shows and lots and lots of albums! Choosing not to pick the easy path takes a lot of courage, but he's got strong will and passion driving him, that much is obvious! I also think he might help revive enka and make the genre more accessible to younger generations, which is a totally awesome thing to achieve.

Dear Tsukasa... Please continue to work hard and do your best. I will support you however I can. It was an honor to talk to you face to face for the second time. My impression of you has soared even higher. You are a very humble, honest, hard-working person. Despite your success, I feel that you have stayed the same, and that's not something everyone can say.

Promise me you'll stay true to the real you?

Thank you for the awesome memories!