[Live Report]Wednesday Campanella completes Zepp tour! In response to the audience's cheers of "cute," Utaha responds, "I know (lol)."

■ “It’s important to say as much as you can about the things you like and your dreams. Even if it’s just writing it down on a piece of paper and sticking it up, take action.” (Shiha)

On July 31st, Wednesday Campanella held the final performance of their Zepp tour “Wednesday Campanella ZEPP TOUR 2024 ~POP DELIVERY~”, promoting their third EP “POP DELIVERY”, at Zepp Haneda.

[Live Report]
It was a scorching hot day in Tokyo. ZEPP Haneda, located near Haneda Airport, was filled with the enthusiasm of the audience, which was comparable to the summer heat.

On March 16th, Wednesday Campanella held their first solo concert under Utaha at the Nippon Budokan, “METEO SHOWER,” where they delivered an overwhelming performance. At the start of this tour, Utaha announced that she would be starting a solo career, and Wednesday Campanella is on a roll. What kind of growth has the group undergone since returning to Tokyo? As this was the final concert, the audience’s expectations were clearly high.

When music producer Kenmochi Hidefumi appeared on stage, the audience erupted in cheers and applause. As the stage prepared for the DJ set, the lights went out. The opening video of the tour was played on the large monitor on stage. It was a video of Utaha touring around the country by bicycle. Linked to that, Utaha appeared on the side of the stage on a customized pink bicycle.

With the title “Delivery from Wednesday” written on the screen, they marched around the stage, carefully parked their bicycles on the stage, and rapped “Archimedes”. The song has a tribal beat and the memorable phrase “I got on a bike”. When Utaha asked, “Can you all shout out?”, the audience raised their hands and jumped up and down, chanting “Hey hey hey”, and the crowd got really excited right from the start.

“Finally, we’re in Tokyo for the final tour. Everyone’s doing great! I was worried at first because there are a lot of shy people in Tokyo, but I was relieved when Kenmochi came out and everyone was excited,” said Shiwa, and she practiced the choreography to the unique song “Diablo,” which is about bathing, with the audience. They created a sense of unity with the call and response to the lyrics “It’s a nice bath♪.”

In the next song, “Little Red Riding Hood,” a wolf wearing pajamas appeared hiding under the futon. Before the chorus, the futon was turned over to reveal the word “Final.” They then performed “Carolina,” from “POP DELIVERY,” and four dancers dressed in blue rain appeared, moving on to “Prince Shotoku.” During the chorus, the audience waved their hands back and forth, creating a sense of unity.

During the MC again, the audience cheered Utaha with the loudest “cuteness”. “I know (laughs)”, Utaha said with a smile, spreading out her costume and walking left and right. She said that she changes her costume for every tour, and that she used to wear a sun visor and a delivery-style outfit, but with each tour, it gradually became pinker, and this time she wore the pinkest costume ever, a mix of pink and light blue, she said with a laugh.

She then told the audience, “It’s important to say out loud what you like and your dreams as much as you can,” and talked about how she wrote her wishes on a strip of paper on Tanabata. “I think even if it’s a small goal, saying it out loud or writing it down can be a trigger. It’s important to take the first step. I think adults should also participate in events, ride the wave and take a step forward. There’s still time! Even if you just write it down on a piece of paper and post it up today, take action,” she said, conveying her thoughts and moving on to “Orihime.” The entire venue was lit up by the lights of the audience’s smartphones.

Next, in “Tinkerbell,” they performed the song while marching through the illuminated audience. After the song ended, they returned to the stage and four dancers appeared again, moving on to “Four Heavenly Kings” from “POP DELIVERY.” Utaha went next to Kenmochi, raised her hands together and swayed to the song. “Do you know what the Four Heavenly Kings are?” “I’ll be waiting for you in the skyscraper” is a pun-like phrase that is typical of Wednesday Campanella. As the intro to “Momotaro” played, a water ball appeared on the stage. Utaha entered it and sang while rolling over the audience.

A video of “Delivery from Wednesday” started playing on the screen on the stage. On this tour, Utaha visited various shops and gave away the goods she purchased to the audience who answered the quiz correctly. “Tokyo is all about subculture,” so a video of her visit to Nakano Broadway was played.

While strolling through Nakano Broadway, Utaha bought a Pokemon finger puppet. One person who answered correctly to the quiz with six multiple choice questions, “Which Pokemon did Utaha choose?”, got a signed finger puppet. Also, at an ice cream shop, a member of the audience who guessed the ice cream Utaha chose from four options was presented with a matching keychain. Both of them struggled to come up with the right answer, and Utaha seemed to be having a lot of fun as she laughed and teased them.

Just when you thought the project was over, the words “Delivery from Wednesday Extra Edition” appeared. Next, Utaha appeared with a cake and the words “HAPPY BIRTHDAY Kenmochi Hidefumi!!” to celebrate Kenmochi’s birthday on August 2nd. Kenmochi said with embarrassment, “You really don’t notice surprises like this,” but as he ate the strawberries from the cake, he said, “I’ve safely reached the age of 43,” and shared his aspirations for the year, saying, “I want to make this the year I can deliver more music to everyone than ever before!”

In a complete change from the celebratory mood, Utaha, who lives with two beloved rescued cats, performed “Akaneko,” the theme song for the TBS TV anime “Ramen Akaneko.” During the chorus, she looked very stylish on stage as she sang while holding a ramen tebo (a shaking strainer) and draining the water. Continuing the same momentum, they moved on to “Tamamonomae.” The four dancers reappeared. In addition, 14 children’s dancers who were selected through public recruitment also took to the stage, and together they performed the “Konkokon Dance,” a dance that has become a hot topic on social media. It was a spectacular sight to see so many people dancing such sharp dance moves.

Then Utaha announced the big news that the video of “Nippon Budokan Solo Performance ~METEOR SHOWER~” would go on sale on September 25th. The venue was filled with thunderous applause.

“The last three songs. I say this every time, but there will be no encores, so let’s have fun until the very end!” Utaha announced, and they moved on to the reggae-style dance tune “Mermaid.” Four men appeared holding large fishing flags and waved them. Kenmochi was carried on the shoulders of a staff member and waved a large “matsuri” fan up and down, while the audience cheered and got into a frenzy with towels in their hands. A dope dance track started to play, and the mirror ball on the stage started to spin, and Utaha took over and performed her biggest hit, “Edison.” Utaha turned the microphone towards the audience and everyone sang along. After creating a greater sense of unity than ever before, Utaha responded by blowing a kiss.

“This is the last song! I hope everyone enjoys it!” Utaha announced, and the intro to “Lucky Cat,” the familiar final song of Wednesday Campanella’s live performances, began to play. A giant lucky cat appeared in the center of the stage, and it sang carefully along to the lyrics, waving and waving back its hands. “At the end, let’s all raise our hands in a banzai!” Utaha said, and everyone sang while raising their hands in a banzai, and then Utaha left the stage on her bicycle, saying, “I love you all! See you later!”

The concert that day was filled with love and freedom. The audience also had a strong sense of self-affirmation, something that Utaha has been talking about since the beginning of her activities, and they were trying to enjoy this place to the fullest. This was the happiest and hottest tour finale ever, with the venue overflowing with such images.

TEXT BY Hiroo Nishizawa
PHOTO BY Kotaro Yamada

01. Archimedes
02. Buckingham
03. Diablo
04. Little Red Riding Hood
05. Carolina
06. Prince Shotoku
07. Orihime
08. Tinkerbell
09. The Four Heavenly Kings
10. Momotaro
11. Red Cat
12. Before the Tamamonomae
13. Mermaid
14. Edison
15. Lucky cat