2024/1/31 Yuria Tojo Birthday Festival Memories

0. Preface

Unlike solo concerts, there are hardly any articles that look back on birthday festivals.
So, as a fan, I want to leave a record of it.

I've been a MyDear fan for half a year, and since I happened to have the day off, I went to my first MyDear birthday festival, which was Yuria Tojo's.

Although I've been to birthday festivals at other venues, they really do change depending on the management and the background of the event.

Before the main event in April, this is a learning experience...! (Also, I just love the number of songs at solo concerts)

Since the day before, I heard Koreeda-san was feeling unwell, and I'm sure she felt very frustrated about missing the birthday festival herself, but the event began with the 5 members plus guest Miyahana-san, with a slightly tense atmosphere as they started calling out the entry numbers.

When entering, I wondered if it was a drink ticket, but then I realized I hadn't paid for it yet, and it turned out to be a business card-sized card from the official staff.

This is my first time seeing this pattern. It really raised my spirits even more.

And then, the UO (Ultra Orange glow stick) distributed by the committee members. I made sure to use it carefully later on.

As mentioned in Tojo-san's MC later, it was the end of the month, in some cases the end of the first month of the fiscal year, one week after the solo concert, and a weekday.

Even in that situation, the front area of O-WEST was already beyond capacity, and the back was packed tight...

Starting with Tojo-san's shadow announcement, the live show began...

With my familiar orange glow stick in my right hand... I'm a Sakuma-san fan, but from my perspective, I was very conscious of Tojo-san on this day...

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1. Live Performance Main Part

o Kaleid0scopE

The opening song, with a formation centered on Tojo-san,
I realized with conviction, my soul was surging...

This is not the kind of song you would perform
two days in a row at the previous two-man lives.

Reacting immediately to the start of the sound,
with a sharpened sense of tension at the start of the singing,
Tojo-san's rhythm matching was perfect again today...!!

Tojo-san, the star of today,
came over to the stage left side during the final chorus.

She is always amazing, but she went far beyond that
by making eye contact with a smile...
(At that time, I had no idea
that there were so many thoughts
behind that smile)

(It's a song I love too much, and it ended at the speed of sound)

o Ice Cream

A high-energy setlist.
I was fully focused on copying the choreography and getting hyped,
when the sound suddenly changed after the first chorus...

(No, the reaction speed
to this sound is insane...)

I joined the 'gachi-koi' chant three beats late.

Yuria is definitely cute after all!!!
(I'm sorry, but
I had some very strange feelings after what happened yesterday)

Finishing the 'gachi-koi'
without even catching my breath...

A brutal transition intro???

Nano LOVE

Sakuma-san's cover of
Koreeda-san's part in 'Kare wa Hidarikiki♡'

'Oreda!'

is what it is (no, that's wrong no, it's true)

Chape-aniki is in top form today too.
Even the members were
humming along to Chape today... lol

Love Letter

Whether it's after the MC at a one-man live or
the 'Love Letter is great' lady,
this song leaves such a strong impression of Hayama-san.

That's exactly why Hayama-san's power
inevitably jumps into your field of vision.

However, the intensity of Tojo-san's emotional
expression on this day was incredible...

As seen in some of the official videos (posted later),
even when it wasn't her singing part, she had incredible spirit,
facial expressions, and body movements.

Tojo-san probably gives it her all usually,
but on this day, it was a forcefulness
that just caught your eye.

That power was also properly balanced with pitch
and the way she poured emotion into her voice,
and this song in particular made me feel
how significant Tojo-san's performance is
to the core of MyDear's emotionally stirring live shows.

MDD

The setlist is too brutal... lol
is what you think when this intro starts.

Today, during the intro (due to the limited space),
I didn't do the Masai jump but instead spun around doing the choreography
and got hyped, and then guest Miyahana-san
slipped right in.

I was surprised that it worked perfectly as a 6-person version...
(It was mentioned during the MC that you did it last year too...!)

Everyone together, let's go...?

The switch to "Momo-chan! Momo-chan!"
was clearly audible from the fans' side as well.

Miyahana-san mentioned it during the MC, but the intensity of the calls at this moment was definitely strong...!

While thinking that, my heart was pounding like crazy from the eye contact with Sakuma-san's sorrowful expression...

At the end of the last chorus, a fan who doesn't jump when told "Jump!!!" is just a pig.

With a setlist that was already polished and intense, I just did vertical movements.

Finally, the MC.

No self-introductions, just an incredibly fast pace.
As Tojo-san said, it was a birthday festival packed with live performances because she loves them so much.

I really love that, haha.

The collaboration between Tojo-san and Miyahana-san right away.

"We will be covering this AKB48 song."

Oh... I heard an AKB48 cover at a birthday festival 11 days ago too, but which song is it going to be...???

"Kuchizushi no Chocolate"

"Ah"

As the slightly cheap intro melody played,
I was laughing so hard, or rather,
I was so happy that I couldn't stop smiling...

This is the legendary song that dragged me into being an idol fan
during my ronin years...

Even though I was shaken by such an unexpected song choice,
I calmly realized that Yuria-san must have been
7 years old when this song came out... ()

The fan next to me also had such an exquisite song choice,
and just when I thought, 'Surely they don't know it...', the fan
two seats over started the standard mix, so I couldn't help but
happily join in.

"Motto daitan ni nareru" (Yuria!)

This song is subtly difficult to call.

B-melody, Miyahana-san's part.
Miyahana-san comes toward the stage left.

I learned of her existence for the first time yesterday, and just like when I was locked onto then,
I was firmly locked onto at stage left again,
making me feel like I was losing consciousness ()

No, that's not allowed... that lock-on
where we stared at each other for over 5 seconds...

And on this song, too...

In the midst of this excitement, I almost
shouted out for real, but
since the person next to me was a woman, I kept it quite restrained
right before the chorus.

"Rather than getting naked"

IT FEELS SOOOOO GOOOOOD!!!!

The call. I'm glad I barely managed to stay calm
and only hummed along...

If I had actually shouted that call, I would have completely
looked like a lunatic... ()

The dance for two was an arrangement of the original,
which leaned fully into "sensuality."

When the chair appeared halfway through,
even though it was a full-on arrangement, I thought,
if it's these two, it's great...!! and got even more excited.

At the end, Miyahana-san stuffs her cheeks with chocolate.
It ended with what was essentially a mouth-to-mouth
or rather a "deep kiss"...

They matched the world-building perfectly,
climaxmy heart wouldn't stop pounding from this perfect interpretation.

(This is too much... lol)

○ Hello, Brand New Me

For some reason, I knew this cover.

It had that typical Tebasen-style, somewhat large
and dramatic choreography.

Sakuma-san, using the length of her arms,
the way she spun grandly during the chorus
was beautiful...

The smiling peace sign at the end of the chorus
was also very cute...!!

A brief MC time.

Suddenly a keyboard appeared, and it was an MC without Hayama-san.

Thinking, 'Is it obviously Hayama-san playing...!!!' I looked forward to the solo song.

〇 I don't want to lose to the me of yesterday

Hayama-san can play the keyboard...!!!

With that thought, and in the hushed venue, Tojo-san sang carefully to the accompaniment of the keyboard.

Even with a desperate look on her face, Hayama-san tried to make eye contact with Tojo-san at key moments, and Tojo-san matched that eye contact while giving her all with care.

During the first chorus, when Hayama-san went 'wawawawa!' and the sound cut out, Tojo-san didn't waver at all and didn't stop singing.

After a solid recovery, Hayama-san's playing continued without interruption.

Searching for notes and playing chords without sheet music, doing this on such a big stage right after her own one-man show, Hayama-san is incredible...!!!

While feeling that intensity, there was the powerful singing voice of the star of the show, Tojo-san.

Not just the feeling of 'I don't want to lose,' but also clearly 'I want to make you (the fans) even happier.'

Those emotions were overflowing, and I wonder how the Tojo-san fans must have felt...

I almost teared up, but it finished with a good feeling.

Birthday celebration BGM and gifts from the MC.

The champagne bottles had the members'
pictures printed on them, and there was a canned beer tower,
plus a tower featuring Tojo-san's favorite zero-carb beer; it was such a wonderful idea...!!

Sakuma-san asking Tojo-san for her thoughts.

The story of how Mizuki-san quickly went out to buy makeup tools when Tojo-san completely forgot hers.

The sadness of not being able to change the fact
that Koreeda-san couldn't come due to feeling unwell.

Her struggle with her own birthday events, plus the fact that it was held right after a one-man live,
on a weekday, and at the end of the month—tough conditions—leading to her anxiety about attendance,
and the effort she put into posting on social media to attract fans, which she rarely does.

Despite the nervousness and various mishaps,
and crying a lot, she stood on stage thanks to
Miyahana-san's usual thoughtfulness and the support of the other members.

I had no idea that behind the
extraordinarily bright smile Tojo-san had from the start, there was all of this going on...

Even so, feeling very relieved by her MC where she said she was happy today,
Tojo-san asked, 'Even with all this, can you keep up with the relentless setlist from here on?'

Of course!!!!!!

...It was heavier than I imagined... lol

〇pa!!!!!!
A 'WAO!' that sounded even louder than at the one-man live.

This song blew away the somber mood.
I felt a sense of relief seeing Tojo-san immediately back to her full-smile self.

The usual 'Yadda!!!' during the intro.

〇Symphony #5

Today, I conveyed my feelings to Sakuma-san with my gaze, and
she returned a look that accepted that joy during this song.

Although my memory is a bit hazy from being so hyped up,
when she was on the stage-left side, which is usually a blind spot,
she suddenly popped out slightly from her usual position
and gave me intense eye contact,
Sakuma-san...

I'm pretty sure she came over during Symphony on this day too...

An otaku expressing gratitude while looking down,
smiling with happiness...

This eye contact from popping out of the blind spot—
normally I would be looking away in that blind spot,
but it's precisely because Sakuma-san is confident
that I am surely still following her
that this unexpected meeting of gazes occurs.

That is completely my own privilege.

〇Lifetime

A non-stop sequence, continuing the high-energy setlist.

The birthday version of the C-melody.
The scene where Yumi-san kisses Tojo-san,
a scene that has the members buzzing as well,
I'm grateful that it was properly captured in the official footage...

Regarding Yumi-san, there were some concerns
at the end of the previous day, but...

When we made eye contact on the stage-left side,
she gave me a smile so big her eyes disappeared,
and I was able to communicate back with a full-facedcreepy otakusmile!

〇Caramel Milk

From this point on, I'm sorry,
but my 'I love Sakuma-san' syndrome
kicked in and Sakuma-san was the center of everything ←

This song has many opportunities to make gentle eye contact on the stage-left side.
This is the song I cried through the whole time
when I first experienced it at the one-man live.

'I want to stay by your side longer'

The bittersweetness of her expression at that moment, and
the voice that conveyed that expression perfectly
were truly wonderful...

I, who made eye contact at that moment,
could only open and close my mouth
and whisper, 'I love you...'

At the final 'I love you'

I was already shaking, I love you Sakuma-san... (brain malfunction)

○ Our Poem

It was full of emotion, or rather,
this song, which serves as the finale,
showcased all the best things MyDear can convey.

The members were all on an elevated stage.

What was very impressive was that
right before the second verse after the first chorus and interlude,
to ensure she didn't miss the Koreeda-san part,
Sakuma-san made sure to point at Tojo-san
or make contact, saying 'It's your turn, Yuria!',
and thanks to that contact, just in time?
or right at the last second, Tojo-san started singing perfectly
in that scene.

Even in the midst of that final barrage of the setlist,
Sakuma-san was perfect, even providing support.

Including how you think about fan service, what is the view
you see from the stage, and what is going on in your mind...???

○ Planetarium

The high notes in Our Poem were also sung firmly,
and there was no longer any worry for Sakuma-san's final solo.

A point I actually like is the sharpness of Mizuki-san's chorus
that you can see from the stage left for this song.

There must be countless Tanutanu Club members
who want to be struck by that speed...

〇SAYONARA

What I think of is the scenery of the Fukuoka homecoming solo concert.

During the scene where you dance facing Tojo-san for about the second verse, Sakuma-san was already tearing up, or rather, sniffling, wasn't she...?

The final chorus, Tojo-san. The two glow sticks I decided to hold only for this moment, spinning the UO.

Unlike the solo concert, Tojo-san sang it through firmly and mellowly.

Sakuma-san was clearly acting strange...

That scene where she couldn't get her voice out, likely overwhelmed with emotion rather than just tears.

Seeing Sakuma-san, who gets overwhelmed with emotion as a fellow member during other members' moving scenes, and who has shown her love for Tojo-san throughout the day with constant smiles and exaggerated eye contact, it suddenly welled up in me that she really is wonderful.

Yeah, I ended up crying along with you...

At the very end, even the fans' emotions couldn't hold back, yet it was a grand finale with such wonderful smiles.

It was a lovely birthday festival...

With no encore, and although it ran a bit long with the MC, etc., it was a packed 1 hour and 25 minutes with 16 songs including short versions; it was a masterpiece...

Tojo-san's birthday festival, where she shows her emotions to the point where I get a little worried, but conversely, that is also her charm.

The birthday festival ended with her looking truly happy in the end,
and all the members also had wonderful smiles.
It was a birthday festival that ended on a high note.

It was so moving, on the level of a solo concert,
and it was a highly satisfying birthday festival...

2. In conclusion

In truth, I wanted to talk about things like how wonderful the support was during 'Bokura no Uta',
or how it was a great birthday festival!
or how todaythank you for all the responses,
or how I love you so much!

I had so many thoughts and wanted to talk about them, but...

Due to a somewhat personal incident or circumstance,
I had to head home the same day instead of staying until the next morning,
so the moment it ended, I had to make a mad dash to Shibuya Station
with a heavy heart as I headed home...

Although the details aren't that serious,
I'll talk to you about it again, Sakuma-san...

Even so, the live performance had a setlist I personally
love too much, and I really liked the order of the songs,
and thanks to the high tension from the previous day's live show,
it softened the sadness...

For the birthday festival of my absolute favorite member in April,
what kind of expression will I have while watching the stage...
I'm already curious about
how puffy my face will be the next day!