[Live Report]”a-nation 2024″ will be held for the first time in four years, and 50,000 people will be thrilled by the performances of Ayumi Hamasaki, TVXQ, and 19 other artists, as well as a variety of surprises, bringing the summer of 2024 to a spectacular close.

■aRB SEED■

The first opening act was aRB SEED. 20 talented dancers aged between 13 and 22, who had won through rigorous auditions, performed a spectacular backflip to “8bit,” shaking their bodies with great precision. They then performed “Essential,” written and composed by Da-iCE’s Sota Hanamura, with a dynamic formation dance, bringing a-nation to a close.

■A group of elementary and junior high school students who want to make their summer vacation independent research a buzz.

The second opening act was a surprise appearance by a masked group that is popular for their dance videos on TikTok, a group of elementary and junior high school students who want to make their summer vacation independent research a buzz. They performed smooth moves in “Around the World” and created a dense atmosphere. In “WA・BI・SA・BI”, all 14 members performed a bow dance. The gap between their adorable actions and technical dance caught the audience’s attention.

■SHOW-WA/MATSURI■

The last opening act was SHOW-WA and MATSURI, produced by Yasushi Akimoto with the concept of “Showa Kayo and Showa Pop in the Modern Era”. First, MATSURI sang “Ima Sara Kakotemo Ran Nee”, followed by SHOW-WA powerfully singing their new song “Kimi no Oujisama”. Then, all 12 members of SHOW-WA and MATSURI appeared on stage to perform “Koiru Chitta Namida”, a passionate performance with dynamic dance moves that enlivened the pre-opening of a-nation.

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■NCT WISH■

NCT WISH, who debuted in February this year, appeared at the top of “a-nation” for the first time in four years. They performed a highly synchronized dance to their pre-debut song “Hands Up”, followed by a refreshing “Sail Away (Japanese Ver.)” that perfectly matched their marine-style costumes. “Are you all having fun?” “Isn’t it hot?” they asked the audience, and performed a refreshing vocal in “We Go!”, and captivated the audience with the speedy rap of their debut song “WISH (Japanese Ver.)”. They ended with their latest song “Songbird (Japanese Ver.)”, saying, “Thanks to you all, I think I’m going to have the best summer memories!”, and opened the 2024 “a-nation” with a fresh charm.

■MAZZEL■

“a-nation” The next act was the new generation dance and vocal group MAZZEL. From the first song “Parade” with its retro sound, they fully opened their unique world view that is not easy to understand with their sharp dance with acrobatic stunts and vocal work with rich intonation. In the glossy hip hop tune “Counterattack”, NAOYA even pulled up his costume and excited the crowd. In “CAME TO DANCE”, where they waved towels with the audience, they jumped out onto the runway saying “This isn’t enough!” and created a sense of unity with the audience. In “K&K”, they overwhelmed the audience with their heavy rap saying “Let us hear your voice, ‘a-nation’!” The last song was MAZZEL’s first refreshing summer song “Seaside Story”, with its catchy dance and comfortable melody, giving a sense of euphoria.

■SHOOTING ACT：@onefive■

The shooting act was the up-and-coming girl group @onefive, whose concept is “Japanese Classy Crush”. The four members have been working together for about 10 years since “FAFO”, and they performed a well-coordinated dance performance that featured cuteness. In the following new song “KAGUYA”, they added a cool Japanese taste to the OZGi remix, and their bowing movements attracted attention, filling the venue with a festival mood.

■NiziU■

NiziU, who will be making their first appearance at a-nation, will be backed by a four-member live band and will bring a lovely breeze to a-nation with their jump rope dance for the first song “Make you happy”, followed by “HEARTRIS” featuring the exquisite unison and harmony of the nine members, and “SWEET NONFICTION” featuring highly synchronized dancing, capturing the hearts of the audience with their cute singing and dancing. In the following new song “RISE UP”, they will show off a serious “cool and stylish NiziU”. They will then liven up the audience with a medley of “All right” and “PRISM”, and overwhelm them with Nina’s long high tone in “JUMP”. During the song, they will call out to the audience to drink water, saying “a-nation! Cheers!” and “Drink, drink!” During “Take a picture”, they will run from one end of the stage to the other, waving their hands, and dye the entire venue pop and colorful, creating a strong sense of unity.

■SHOOTING ACT: The blue sky I wanted to see

“The Blue Sky I Wanted to See,” an official rival of Nogizaka46, appeared as a shooting act. Dressed in sophisticated blue uniforms, they sang and danced to their latest song, “Love Without a Spare,” and a refreshing atmosphere spread throughout the venue. “I’m really nervous, but I’m going to enjoy it to the fullest!” they said in their debut single, “Sky ni ni wo Kangaeru,” and captivated the audience with their pure presence and performance that expressed the confusion of adolescence with their clear singing voices and dancing.

■WEST.■

When the weather cleared up after the unstable weather caused by the typhoon, WEST., who celebrated their 10th anniversary this year, appeared on stage, saying, “Nice to meet you, ‘a-nation’!” and “Thanks to everyone’s power, the weather is clearing up!”. Shigeoka Daiki shouted, “Let’s go to ‘a-nation’!” and performed “Shoko”, and the seven members roared with a hot rock vocal. The audience was further excited with “Heart”, which was filled with the desire to fight for their dreams, and during “Hormone ~ Kansai ni Tsudawari Shi Diamond ~”, they surprised the audience by saying, “Festivals are for everyone to enjoy!” They called Ninety-Nine onto the stage! The crowd roared and went wild, and after the nine members took the pose at the beginning of the song, they performed “Eejanaika”, which was a luxurious collaboration in which Okamura Takashi performed breaking during the song. In the second half, they performed their new song “Maa Ikka!”, which will be released on September 10th, with a light-hearted performance, and then they sent the “Ei Ei Oh!” call to “You!” in “Cho Kitto Daijobu”, which caused a wave of clapping and dashed to the runway! They began “Moonlight” with the words “Why don’t you try jumping during the chorus?” and with their passionate, powerful singing, the seven members interacted with the audience, creating a wonderful sense of unity on an overwhelmingly captivating stage, leaving a strong aftertaste.

■Secret Artist: BOC■

BOC, a J-RAP unit consisting of SAM from TRF and DJ KOO, made a secret appearance. They performed their debut song “NARIYAMANIGHT”, which was just released digitally and was composed by Tetsuya Komuro, with lyrics written by DJ CHARI and Ry-lax, and featuring Lu Bu Karma, for the first time at “a-nation”. The unit’s name comes from the question “Beef or Chicken” that is asked on airplanes, and DJ CHARI and Ry-lax rapped to a tight beat with dancers dressed as flight attendants in the background, and Lu Bu Karma also appeared on stage in the second half of the song! The two showed a new challenge full of hungry spirit.

■Red Velvet■

Red Velvet, who celebrated their 10th anniversary since their debut, started with “WILDSIDE”, attracting the audience with their high-tone vocals, snappy rap, sexy movements and allure. In contrast, in “Feel My Rhythm”, which featured “Aria on the G String”, the thick harmony resonated, and the smiles and pure aura of the five members spread throughout the venue. After saying, “I hope you receive a lot of good energy today,” they performed the Japanese original song “Aitai-tai,” which they said was “a song that expresses the feelings we had in our hearts.” Then, they advanced to the runway in the heavy rain and performed “Swimming Pool” while soaking wet, which was also dramatic with the natural production. Following “Red Flavor (JP ver)”, which was delivered with lots of smiles, they performed their latest song “Cosmic” for the first time in Japan. They ended the concert coolly with flowing vocals and dance.

■SHOOTING ACT：Beautiful -Bi-ray-■

Bi-ray, a four-member group formed under the production of YOSHIKI, performed as a shooting act. Although all four members are in their teens and can sing in four octaves, their vocal ability is real. They sang the elegant melody of “Butterfly – short ver-” in a stunning high tone, full of YOSHIKI’s style, and shocked the audience ahead of their debut this fall.

■Kumi Koda

Kumi Koda, who appeared in a provocative costume that looked like it was wrapped in warning tape, started the show with her big hit song “Cutie Honey”, then she went up to the runway with her dancers and led the venue to even greater frenzy with “IS THIS TRAP?”. “I expect the most excitement today, everyone!” she said, and in “Megumi no Hito”, she raised the excitement with the “Me!” gesture together with the audience, and in “WIND” she overwhelmed them with her smooth vocals. In “WON’T BE LONG”, she called out “I’ll sing!” and “I’ll dance!”, and showed a raging stage that lived up to her name as the “Queen of Live” with “XXX” and “BE MY BABY” where flames shot up. There was also a moment when she poured water from a plastic bottle over herself, saying “Everyone’s wet, so I’ll get wet too.” After burning up the energy with the dancers in “Vroom”, where they performed hard dancing, they ended with “Poppin’ love cocktail” with the audience waving towels. They showed their strong love for the audience with a powerful stage performance that pushed the limits.

■Da-iCE■

Da-iCE appeared on stage with a live band sound effect. Sota Hanamura and Yudai Ohno sang the chorus of “CITRUS” a cappella, attracting the audience in an instant, then “Kartell” raised the audience’s excitement, and “Clap and Clap” made the audience clap, and “I wonder”, which has been a hot topic with over 100 million streams, wrapped them in a happy atmosphere. Next, they performed “CITRUS” again, this time with the band and dancers. After making the audience feel relaxed with their piercing high-pitched vocals and emotional dance, they suddenly changed to rock with “Story”. They delivered a hot performance on stage, soaked in rain and sweat, and in the summer song “Starmine”, which began with “Let’s all set off a big fireworks!”, GENERATIONS’ Alan Shirahama burst in and performed together, creating a luxurious collaboration. The song seemed to end, but then started again many times, making it a fun time unique to “a-nation”.

■GENERATIONS■

GENERATIONS, who appeared at “a-nation” for the first time in seven years since 2017, started off on a happy note with “Endless Journey”. The performance, which was accompanied by the vocals of Ryota Katayose and Ryuto Kazuhara, became tougher with the following “Diamonds”, and the flames that erupted created a full, ominous mood. They further increased the energy with “AGEHA”, which shook the venue, and for EXILE’s summer song “SUMMER TIME LOVE”, they jumped out onto the runway and got close to the audience, creating a sweet time with a synchronized dance of six people. Dai-CE also participated in the performance of “Hard Knock Days”, the theme song of the anime “ONE PIECE”, and they also performed Dai-CE’s “DREAMIN’ ON” together, making for a hot collaboration of the theme songs of “ONE PIECE”. At the end, he brought the venue together with the audience for “YMCA,” forming the four letters Y, M, C, A with his whole body, and expressed his emotions about the first a-nation in four years, saying, “You all were seriously amazing. After all, summer isn’t complete without a-nation!”

■SHOOTING ACT:Che’Nelle (Chenelle)■

The last of the shooting acts was Australian artist Che’Nelle. She performed her clear and emotional voice, from her big hit in Japan “Baby I Love You” to “SOS.” After stirring up the crowd with “You Guys, Happy?”, she sang “Happiness” and “Believe” in Japanese. Her expressive voice, which has been used for many theme songs for Japanese dramas and movies, was enjoyed by the audience.

■Secret Artist: TRF

The secret artist TRF created a frenzy at Ajinomoto Stadium. YU-KI sang the hit song “BOY MEETS GIRL” and then moved on to “EZ DO DANCE”, and DJ KOO shouted, “‘a-nation’! I missed you!”, drawing huge cheers. SAM, ETSU, and CHIHARU showed the same tough steps and dance, and DJ KOO, who further excited the crowd with his rap, shouted, “We’re going to keep going!” The blue-shining fans shook wildly, and the venue became a big rave. When they started “survival dAnce~no no cry more~”, YU-KI and the dancers walked to the runway with smiles and waving their hands, and DJ KOO said, “TRF has reached its 30th anniversary thanks to everyone! We’re still going strong!” (DJ KOO) and celebrated his 30th debut anniversary with the audience of “a-nation”.

■Ayumi Hamasaki

A countdown was played from past live performances, and red flags entered one after another after a grand overture, and Ayumi Hamasaki’s stage began. On a lifted stage, with her entourage by her side, she held up a flag with a gold logo, and sang “Boys & Girls” with a live band and a majestic orchestral arrangement, in a truly Queen-like style. For the next song, “Fly high,” she marched around the stage with cheerleaders waving pom-poms, further livening up the atmosphere. After captivating the audience with her graceful performance of “fairyland,” she sat alone on the lifter and sang “HANABI,” her emotional voice and expression full of emotion touching the heart. Next, guest Naoya Urata appeared, and they sang “ANother song,” featuring Urata, back to back, and overwhelmed the audience with their outstanding expressiveness in the ballad. Furthermore, he excited the audience with a medley that started with “Greatful days”, sang a duet with Urata on “WOW WAR TONIGHT”, and rowed out to the arena on an illuminated float. He then went around the venue with “glitter” and “You & Me”, and finished the medley with a powerful voice after returning to the stage with “evolution”. Furthermore, while surrounded by dancers who performed acrobatics one after another in “BLUE BIRD”, he sang with a core voice, creating an exhilarating feeling of elation. He ended with the gentle “July 1st”, expressing his gratitude to the band members, staff, viewers of the stream, and the audience who came to see him, and as a pillar of sparks rose, he ran from one end of the stage to the other and high-fived the dancers and Urata. He ran to the runway and said, “Thank you for ‘a-nation’!”, and captivated the audience with a spectacular performance in which he poured all his energy into the stage.

■Tohoshinki■

For the first a-nation in four years, Tohoshinki prepared a special setlist, appearing on stage with the sound of explosions of sparks, starting with “Rising Sun”. As flames rose, they rapped while creating a dangerous mood, shaking the venue groovy, and Yunho knelt on the floor and screamed. In the following song “BUT (BE-AU-TY)”, the dancers performed a highly synchronized dance and the audience called out. As Changmin said, “Today, we will work even harder for you all and deliver a fun stage”, they exchanged powerful vocals in “Share The World”, sharing the rising tension with the whole venue. The refreshing summer song “Lime & Lemon” is addictive, and Yunho sang “a nostalgic song from the first album” (Yunho) and “Heart Mind and Soul” as Yunho’s first appearance at “a-nation” in six years. They sang the ballads with a quiet but high energy. “Why did I fall in love with you?” depicted a spectacular scene of the two singing at the end of the runway, with red and blue swaying all over the venue. “We want to keep going even more,” they continued in “Why? (Keep Your Head Down),” demonstrating the aggression that seems to be the true essence of TVXQ. Wrapped in a shooting fireball, they enveloped the stadium with their powerful and dangerous dance and vocals. For “OCEAN,” they each boarded a float and set sail to the arena. The two met at the very back of the arena and sang “Somebody To Love” facing each other, throwing frisbees into the audience from the float. As the excitement grew, they ended with the summer tune “Hot Hot Hot,” singing “Summer love is Fireworks/Please join me in playing with fire for a bit,” and the 2024 “a-nation” came to a dramatic finale with real fireworks going off one after another from the stage. In the midst of the climax, the 8-hour “a-nation” came to a close with a call between the audience and the band, who will be celebrating their 20th anniversary next year, “We are T!”