The nationwide tour "BMSG TRAINEE SHOWCASE TOUR 2024" by BMSG TRAINEE, a group of BMSG trainees organized by SKY-HI, which started on October 23rd, reached its final show on November 11th at Zepp Haneda in Tokyo. The Tokyo performance featured 13 trainees, including RUI and TAIKI, who participated in the audition "THE FIRST" that produced BE:FIRST, and KANON, who participated in the audition "MISSIONx2" that produced MAZZEL, as well as SKY-HI, edhiii boi, and REIKO. RUI, TAIKI, and KANON also performed "Forked Road," a song tied to the Pokémon anime "POKÉTOON."

Below is the official report of the Zepp Haneda performance.

When the show started, the familiar intro for BMSG fans started playing. It was "Brave Generation -BMSG United Remix-". When the lights came on at the stage, RUI, KANON, and TAIKI were standing there. Each of them took their turn to sing a verse, and when they finished singing the hook, REIKO, edhiii boi, and even SKY-HI joined in while singing. The surprise appearance of the three was met with thunderous cheers.

After such a gorgeous opening, TAIKI shouted "Let's get started" and moved on to "14th Syndrome". In the second half, the six of them formed a circle and ran around at full speed, doing high jumps. The music immediately expressed the fact that the president, active solo artists, and trainees are all "comrades" in BMSG without any discrimination. REIKO, who announced her debut at "BMSG TRAINEE Showcase 2023" a year ago, commented, "The three of them (RUI, TAIKI, and KANON) are so cool that I feel like crying when I make eye contact with them."

After sending off SKY-HI, edhiii boi, and REIKO, RUI, TAIKI, and KANON performed covers of "Betrayal Game" and "SOS," two songs by BE:FIRST that are especially known for their delicate expression and sexiness. Many people couldn't help but gasp at the seductiveness of the chorus of "Betrayal Game." It convinced everyone in the room that their vocals and dancing have grown rapidly.

After the MC, RUI remained on stage. When the fans called out "RUI", he said, "I feel like crying", but the volume of the calls only increased. "Please don't make me cry yet!" he said with a shy smile. "I'll sing with all my heart, so please listen with all my heart", the "RUI language" that he would use many times that day, was also born in this scene. He sang SEKAI NO OWARI's "Sleeping Beauty", which he introduced as "a song that says, 'This is my life'". When RUI sang, his kindness and the way he shines light on his listeners were exuded in the song.

After singing "Sleeping Beauty", KANON came back on stage and performed "Voice", released under the name RUI・KANON. When the two falsettos overlapped, the power of the song was born, enveloping the entire venue and making it float. Then, with the words "It's a little early, but shall we celebrate Christmas?" (KANON) and "Merry Christmas! I'm Santa!" (RUI), they covered Yamashita Tatsuro's "Christmas Eve".

As the applause continued, the spotlight shone on TAIKI. It was a solo dance performance by TAIKI, who has participated in freestyle battles since elementary school and has an outstanding groove. From there, RUI, TAIKI, and KANON performed MAZZEL feat. REIKO's "ICE", and at the end, REIKO also appeared. The four of them performed BE:FIRST's "Softly", which they performed at last year's "BMSG TRAINEE Showcase 2023", using a stand microphone. They also presented a special version of REIKO's "So Good" with KANON. The music played by the two, whose melody, rhythm, singing, and body shaking are all on the same line as their lives, was so comfortable.

In the middle of the show, it was REN, KAIRI, YUTA, KEITO, KEI, RAIKI, COTA, TAICHI, RYOMA and GOICHI's turn. They performed "SUPER IDOL", "Salvia" and "Milli-Billi" which are available on YouTube. Right from the start of "SUPER IDOL" by REN and GOICHI, you could feel the passion they put into the performance and the evolution of their expressiveness. Due to a broken ankle, KEITO was performing while sitting on a chair, but everyone was able to catch the full emotion he put into his singing part in "Salvia".

In the MC corner where all the trainees gathered, a lot of laughs and great quotes were born. When KANON asked "What song comes to mind when you think of BMSG?" KEITO answered "Brave Generation", RAIKI answered "KANON's new song ("Make you...")", and KAIRI answered "New Chapter". The answer KANON was thinking of was "SOBER ROCK". After everyone sang the chorus together, KANON said, "BMSG started with a solo concert at his parents' house" ("My Home Solo Concert" was a live stream that SKY-HI held from his parents' house in September 2020, where the formation of BMSG was announced).

The 13 members waved towels while performing MAZZEL's "CAME TO DANCE," followed by "Boom Boom Back" by RAIKI, COTA, TAICHI, RYOMA, and GOICHI, and "Message" by YUTA, KEITO, KEI, RAIKI, TAICHI, and RYOMA. Then, edhiii boi, RUI, and TAIKI performed "Nightmare" live for the first time in about two years. Watching edhiii boi, who has been attending a dance studio since elementary school, dancing to the choreography by shoji (s**t kingz) in the best possible way, he was reminded of his infinite potential. Before leaving the stage, edhiii boi cheered on RUI and TAIKI, saying, "We're each aiming for slightly different things, but let's work hard together." By the way, the day before, edhiii boi, RUI, TAIKI, and KANON went to eat motsunabe (hot pot) as a "pre-party."

After covering Daichi Miura's "Hikousen" and Dawin's "Pepper Spray" by RUI, TAIKI, and KANON, the concert ended with their solo performances. Starting with TAIKI's "KARATE KID," the concert continued with solo songs that each member wrote the lyrics for, which are included in the EP released on November 11th. In "24/7," TAIKI sang a beautiful melody that he created with KENYA (Bleecker Chrome), as if to expand on his impression as a "rapper." RUI started by saying, "I'll sing with all my heart, so please listen with all my heart," and while sitting on the stairs, carefully spun the melody and every word of "Until the Stars Meet." KANON sang the difficult melody of "Make you...," which REIKO also participated in composing, with outstanding expressiveness. Then, the three members covered ShowMinorSavage's "Thinkin' bout you," proving each member's further potential. Despite drawing the audience in with their cool and mellow performance, at the end RUI and TAIKI were messing around and KANON had to take control. The fact that they were able to freely play with music on stage is already a strength of these three.

 

In the future, RUI, TAIKI, and KANON will participate in the audition "THE LAST PIECE" with the other 10 trainees to form a group following BE:FIRST and MAZZEL. KANON said, "I want to step up my game and take on "THE LAST PIECE"," and RUI said, "We will move forward as ourselves. I'm a joker, so I hope I can make everyone smile." They expressed their thoughts for the future with words of gratitude. Then, TAIKI looked back on the past and said, "(Aile The) Shota supported me. Next, I want to be the one to support him." Then, TAIKI spoke an important word on behalf of the three. "Let me declare it here. We are no longer trainees, but pre-debut artists." And so they went on to "Forked Road." The song continued with the phrase "We will do it until the end..." that RUI resounded, and then "THE LAST PIECE" began.

At the end, everyone appeared and performed "DUNK". Aile The Shota and Novel Core, who had come to watch the live performance, also joined in. During the cipher, the trainees performed skillful dances, and Aile The Shota did a backflip. Before starting to sing, SKY-HI hugged the 13 trainees and shouted loudly, "This is Japan's, the world's, BMSG's, your, and my treasure!" TAIKI and RUI burst into tears on the spot, and KANON held back his tears, saying, "I think our future is bright." The "BMSG TRAINEE SHOWCASE TOUR 2024", which embodied SKY-HI's desire to "make the journey of chasing dreams a fun and rich experience", ended on a high note.

Text: Yukako Yajima

Photo by Takahiro Tsuboi

<Set List>
1.Brave Generation -BMSG United Remix- / RUI,TAIKI,KANON,SKY-HI,REIKO,edhiii boi
2.14th Syndrome / RUI,TAIKI,KANON,SKY-HI,REIKO,edhiii boi
3.Betrayal Game / RUI,TAIKI,KANON
4. SOS / RUI, TAIKI, KANON
5. Sleeping Beauty / RUI
6. Voice / RUI, KANON
7. Christmas Eve / RUI, KANON
8. ICE / RUI, TAIKI, KANON, REIKO
9.Softly / RUI,TAIKI,KANON,REIKO
10.So Good / KANON,REIKO
11. SUPER IDOL / REN, KAIRI, GOICHI, RYOMA
12. Salvia / REN, KAIRI, RAIKI, YUTA, KEI, KEITO
13. Milli-Billi / REN, KAIRI, COTA, KEI, TAICHI
14.CAME TO DANCE / RUI,TAIKI,KANON,BMSG TRAINEE(ALL)
15.Boom Boom Back / RAIKI, COTA, RYOMA, TAICHI, GOICHI
16.Message / RAIKI, YUTA, KEITO, KEI, TAICHI, RYOMA, GOICHI
17.Nightmare / RUI,TAIKI,edhiii boi
18. Airship / RUI, TAIKI, KANON
19.Pepper Spray / RUI,TAIKI,KANON
20. KARATE KID / TAIKI
21.24/7 / TAIKI
22. Until the day the stars meet / RUI
23.Make you... / KANON
24.Thinkin' bout you / RUI,TAIKI,KANON
25.Forked Road / RUI,TAIKI,KANON
26.DUNK / RUI,TAIKI,KANON,BMSG TRAINEE(ALL),SKY-HI,REIKO,edhiii boi