On June 30th 2017, Day 0 of the North America’s largest anime convention, Anime Expo, four popular idol groups performed thrilling concerts at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California. All of the groups were born from popular idol anime series: THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS from the same title series, Wake Up, Girls ! also from the same title anime series, JUNNA & Minori Suzuki of Walküre from “Macross Delta,” and Aqours from “Love Live! Sunshine!!.” The venue was filled with 7,000 passionate fans, and the whole concert lasted for more than two and a half hours.
Although the convention wasn’t officially opened to the public on Day 0 yet, we spotted lots of anime fans including hardcore cosplayers on site, and I would say that most of them were there to attend Anisong World Matsuri. There was already a long line at the Microsoft Theater to purchase AWM’s and artists’ official merchandise since earlier in the day.
THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS
The very first artist was THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS! With a flash of light, the anime’s OP, Star! started. Five Cinderella girls were in the red military uniform costumes from their current tour “THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS 5thLIVE TOUR Serendipity Parade!!!”. Featuring a special selection of performers: Asami Takano, Haruka Yoshimura, Hiromi Igarashi, Rei Matsuzaki, Tomoyo Kurosawa, and Yuko Iida, they hyped up the audience, and sang popular songs from the anime series and its smart phone app game, “THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS: Starlight Stage.” During the first MC, they performed special skits from the anime, “THE iDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS” and “THE iDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS Theater.” It was such a rare experience for the US fans to hear the voice actors’ live acting!
Set List:
Star!!
GOIN’!!
Yumeiro Harmony
Yes! Party Time!!
Onegai! Cinderella
Wake Up, Girls!
Even before we had a chance to take our breath, another performer, Wake Up, Girls！ already appeared on the stage, and started their show with Tachiagare! and Shoujo Koukyou Kyoku. Suddenly, the whole venue turned into the ocean of green penlights, which represent WUG. They were very impressed that there were so many WUG fans who recognized WUG’s original greeting, “Konban-WUG~”, knew the exact cheer and response, and so on. I felt like when they performed Wake Up, Girls! 2nd opening song, 7 Girls War, the audience’s voltage reached to the max! It was such a fun song to cheer for, and WUG members delivered a very energetic and exciting show as if they were trying to respond to the audience’s support.
Set List:
Tachiagare!
Shoujo Koukyou Kyoku
Koi? De Ai? De Boukun Desu!
Beyond the Bottom
7 Girls War
Gokujo Smile
JUNNA & Minori Suzuki from Walküre
After the 15 minute intermission, two of the new and young galaxy idols, JUNNA and Minori Suzuki from Walküre started their set with Koi! Halation THE WAR. Since their songs focus on more dynamic singing voices than choreography, the atmosphere was changed greatly. Although both girls are still teenagers, the whole crowd was fascinated by their great presence and perfect harmony. I was expecting that either Ikenai Borderline or Ichido dake no Koi nara would be their last song, but surprisingly it was Minori’s character, Freyja’s solo song, Run ga Pikatto Hikattara! It is a very catchy song. The audience united as one to sing along with them, and it was definitely the perfect song to end their set.
Set List:
Koi! Halation THE WAR
Ikenai Borderline
Bokura no Senjo
Ichido dake no Koi nara
Run ga Pikatto Hikattara
Aqours
Finally, it was time for the most anticipated group of the night, Aqours from “Love Live! Sunshine!!” When Aqours’ name appeared on the screen, the audience screamed from the top of their lungs to express their excitement! All 9 members showed up on the stage in their MIRAI TICKET outfits with the anime’s OP song, Aozora Jumping Heart! The actual opening animation was playing on the screen, so it was very impressive to see how these performers’ dance moves were perfectly in synch with the 2D characters. The Microsoft Theater was very beautiful with the 9 different colors of the penlights. Aqours members were definitely entertainers. Their singing, dance, and even facial expression…. Everything was so flawless, and they definitely proved that they are one of the most powerful anisong artists today.
Set List:
Aozora Jumping Heart
Kimino Kokorowa Kagayaiterukai?
Koini Naritai AQUARIUM
MIRAI TICKET
Yume Kataruyori Yume Utaou
After the whole concert, all four artists came back to the stage to thank the fans for their support. It was a very historic moment to see all these popular idol units standing together on the same stage. No one at the venue could believe that the concert was already over. We enjoyed watching their concert videos at home or in a theater, but attending the actual concert was a whole different experience. We would like to appreciate once again Anisong World Matsuri and Anime Expo for making this legendary night happen in Los Angeles, America. It was absolutely a night to remember.
Kawaii Kakkoii Sugoi would like to appreciate Anisong World Matsuri, RESONANCE Media and the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation for this opportunity.
Anisong World Matsuri:
Anisong World Matsuri Website: http://anisongworldmatsuri.com
Anisong World Matsuri Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnisongWorldMatsuri
Anisong World Matsuri Twitter: https://twitter.com/AnisongWorld
Anisong World Matsuri YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/anisongworldmatsuri
Anisong World Matsuri at Otakon 2017
Date: August 11 & 12
Venue: Washington DC Walter E. Washington Convention Center
Lineup: FLOW, JAM Project, T.M. Revolution, Yousei Teikoku
Concert Info: https://www.otakon.com/concerts/anisong
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