“Samurai Guitarist”
MIYAVI finally returned to his home country for the grand finale of his fourth world tour
SLAP THE WORLD TOUR 2014, which has seen him perform in 14 different countries since February. Although considered by some to be a visual kei artist, especially from his time with
Dué le quartz, he has surprised fans by crossing over into different music genres, and participating in the band project
S.K.I.N. alongside V-rock legends
Gackt,
SUGIZO and
YOSHIKI. He has also been expanding his activities into fields beyond music. In fact,
MIYAVI is starring in the upcoming film “Unbroken”, directed by
Angelina Jolie, based upon the true story of World War II veteran
Louis Zamperini who overcame his painful days as a prisoner of war in Japan. So, this is a major moment for the “Samurai Guitarist”, as he was about to step out onstage at Zepp DiverCity Tokyo, where a crowd of over 2000 people eagerly awaited his homecoming.
June 15th had been a difficult day for many Japanese as their national soccer team, known by the nickname "Samurai Blue", had let them down, suffering a disappointing defeat in their first game at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Some were still discussing the defeat of "Samurai Blue” before the show, but
MIYAVI soon quite literally slapped their misery away. As the lights went down, drummer
BOBO was first on stage. Then, a huge ovation rose as
MIYAVI, dressed in just a white jacket with his muscular and heavily-tattooed body visible, raised his acoustic guitar to the audience. Dynamo-like drumming and
MIYAVI’s signature slap guitar technique immediately overloaded the fans with energy, and they clapped their hands and sang along to the tribal beats of the music. Jumping around, shaking his head and choking guitar strings,
MIYAVI rocked the livehouse from the first song
Horizon. Playing his guitar as if it were a chopper bass, he segued into the second song
STRONG. The song’s hip hop style turned the venue into a dancefloor. The “Samurai Guitarist” then wowed his fans even more with a moonwalk.
“Welcome to the tour finale! We have been rocking around the world in our own style. We received so much energy during the tour and we will unleash it all tonight!” A bluesy guitar riff introduced the third song
Chase it. Without using a guitar pick, he produced every sound it was possible for a guitar to make: slapping the guitar’s body, and scratching frets with his left hand while slapping strings with his right.
MIYAVI and his powerful percussionist
BOBO proved themselves to be two exceptionally skilled musicians and a simple stage set was all it took to rock the house. His dirty and ecstatic guitar solo and banging drums fit the sensual
Secret well. The “Samurai Guitarist” gave his fans the electrifying excitement “Samurai Blue” had failed to deliver earlier on.
MIYAVI had something to say about the World Cup too. “Oh well, we lost the first game. But we can rise up again so long as our hearts are unbroken. I toured around the world representing the nation of Japan, even though I am half-Korean. Let’s take sweet vengeance on the World Cup here tonight”. Although such a remark could sadly cause him controversy, due to the difficult political situation between Japan and South Korea,
MIYAVI was bold enough to disregard such risks. “It does not matter what national and racial backgrounds we have ‘cause we are one through music.” Fans from all over the world were actually in attendance at the show. “We are one through music.” He shouted “Be one!” several times during the show, as if sending out his statement to the world, filled as it is with divisions and conflict.
Later,
MIYAVI’s guitar embraced fans with the sweet mellow sound of
Guard You, the song he wrote during his 2011 world tour when Japan was devastated by the March 11th earthquake and tsunami. Away from his family and friends, he put his message into the lyrics that he was nevertheless standing with them under the same sky, and the color of the sky would eventually become clear again for all of them. Fans waved their hands together with
MIYAVI during
Cry Like This, a song with a reggae rhythm. “Let’s smile no matter how life treats us”, he smiled at his fans. This big-hearted man continued to thrill as the show moved on. Jaws dropped as the “Samurai Guitarist” played a slap guitar solo whilst holding the guitar behind his head. This and other amazing techniques helped create a mosh pit in front of stage. “Although this tour ends tonight, tomorrow is our Day 1. Let’s chase the dream together no matter how hard and long it takes”. He performed a final super-fast slap solo for the closing song
DAY 1. Then, holding his guitar aloft as the song faded, he received a massive ovation from the crowd before heading backstage.
Shortly after,
MIYAVI and
BOBO returned to the stage for the encore.
MIYAVI received a Japanese flag from fans and lifted the Hinomaru up high. He then photographed his fans with his camera. “So you guys having fun, yeah?” A native of Osaka, he spoke to his fans in English and in Japanese mixed with standard and Osaka accents. He then took a moment to speak about the movie “Unbroken”. “It was a difficult decision for me to participate in this project. But
Angelina Jolie herself convinced me that the film is about forgiveness and human strength. War isn’t just about for Japan and America. I wanted to convey this message to all the nations that are currently at war. I did my best with my pride as a Japanese”.
MIYAVI closed his show with the song
WHAT’S MY NAME?. His guitar strokes made his fans shout his name out loud. “Although I am a solo artist, a lot of great staff and fans have made my dream possible like a big team. I will continue to rock the world as a Japanese artist, so let’s dream on together”. Then
MIYAVI took his last bow.
Set List
01. Horizon
02. STRONG
03. Chase It
04. Justice
05. Secret
06. A-HA
07. Selfish love-Aishitekure, Aishiterukara-
08. SILENT ANGER
09. Guard You
10. Cry Like This
11. No One Knows My Name （Slap It）
12. SURVIVE
13. FUTURISTIC LOVE
14. DAY 1
Encore
15. GANRYU
16. Ahead Of The Light
17. Free World
18. WHAT'S MY NAME?
During the show,
MIYAVI announced a live release and a photo book of
SLAP THE WORLD TOUR 2014 will be released. Dates are yet to be decided. Also, he will be returning to the stage of Zepp DiverCity Tokyo sometime this fall.
You can watch trailers for the live release and film "Unbroken" below.
