There is something magical about watching a group that you love and adore hit their tenth anniversary milestone. It’s something that I was able to experience this May at WEST.’s anniversary arena tour, AWARD. I had absolutely loved and adored the show, but I had ultimately felt as if something was missing. After attending the tour in Yokohama, I had hoped a dome portion would be announced and waited patiently to see if my wishes came true.
When the AWARD Dome Tour announcement happened, to say I was ecstatic would be an understatement. I had every bit of hope that the dome concerts would scratch that proverbial itch I had to be hit over the head with the WEST. nostalgia I was craving. I wanted to hear all of my old favorite songs as well as experience the brilliance of WEST.’s current discography. I had an imaginary list of everything I wanted this concert to feel like and my expectations were quite high. At that time, I had no idea how much of a masterpiece this concert would be.
To say I was a crying mess from the opening video would be a gross understatement. Usually, with STARTO ENTERTAINMENT concerts, the opening video is meant to drum up excitement. The energy builds and builds until the energy is at its peak and then the show begins. WEST. took a step back and started on a slower note.
They pulled at the heartstrings by talking openly and honestly about their time as a group in individual interviews before the video transitioned to WEST. on a runway. On the ground was a line with the year 2014 and they started walking forward to the present day. As they continued to speak, dancers were dancing across the foreground of the shots in their music video costumes as the backing music matched the song. Eventually they reached the current year as the camera panned back to reveal the lines and years continued to the future. WEST. then walked to their future as a group before appearing on stage to start the show with Shoko (証拠).
It was such a powerful and profound way to start a tenth anniversary show. It was a way for the members, who debuted as a loud and silly group from the Kansai region of Japan, to give a bit of introspection into their careers while also getting a moment to talk about their future. It was a beautiful moment of honesty that showed that there is so much more to WEST. than their wild and chaotic personalities.
By the end of the first block of songs, consisting of the aforementioned Shoko as well as AWARD, Toxic Love, Summer Dreamer, Zundoko Paradise (ズンドコパラダイス), and We are WEST!!!!!!!, I had already felt as if WEST. had fulfilled that nostalgia itch I had been craving from them. We, as the audience, had witnessed an emotional opening to the show on top of so many songs that showcased their growth over their careers.
What really increased the nostalgia factor was WEST. choosing to bring back old unit songs from their previous albums. Members Junta Nakama and Ryusei Fujii performed their duet ONI-CHAN followed by Daiki Shigeoka and Akito Kiriyama singing Norikoshi Love Story (乗り越しラブストーリ) while playing the piano and shamisen. Shigeoka showed off his own acrobatics, a simple bridge, while announcing the next acrobatic filled performance, GOD DAMN, by Tomohiro Kamiyama and Takahiro Hamada. Ryusei returned to the stage to dance Terrible with Nozomu Kotaki with Shigeoka and Kamiyama rounding out the unit song corner with their song Lovely Xmas.
This was such a brilliant way to show love to previous unit songs. I had dreamed of being able to see songs like Terrible and GOD DAMN performed in person but had given up on that dream long ago. WEST. making the choice to recreate beloved performances in their dome tour heightened the nostalgia for fans who have supported them since the beginning while allowing newer fans to experience why these songs are so adored.
Another moment that hit hard was another video inserted into the concert a little over halfway through. It found WEST. going into a gallery and seeing photos of themselves over their careers as well as one member choosing a photo to share. Next, they showed a photo of them in the starting pose for their debut song, Eejanaika! The group talked about that moment before the photo switched to a video. It started with the Eejanaika! pose at WEST.’s first concert before showing them settling into the position at every subsequent concert since. It was when the images reached the present day then WEST. appeared on the main stage to sing their debut song.
I will be the first to say that I am not the biggest fan of Eejanaika! It’s not to say that it’s a bad song! I personally like other songs in WEST.’s discography more and prefer hearing those. But, watching WEST. slowly age in that rapid video before performing it live, I felt the weight of ten years on my shoulders the second the song started. WEST. had changed and grown so much and having a visual representation of that reminded me how long it had been since they had debuted. I couldn’t stop myself from crying from pure joy that they reached this milestone. This concert was truly a celebration of their time together, and I felt so proud to call myself a WEST. fans watching them sing Eejanaika!
The AWARD dome concert tour was more than a nostalgia fest where I cried the entire time. It was a time of celebration and coming together as idols and fans. Prior to the concert beginning, this dome concert was given the red carpet treatment. Cameramen scoured the audience for fans that fit pre-selected categories, such as “cutest” or “best pair.” Based on audience reactions, fans were selected as the “winner” of the imaginary award. Perhaps the most fun awards were the dance awards where popular WEST. songs were played and fans were filmed dancing the choreography. It was wonderful getting to see fans come together to show off their love for the group. Lastly, right before the concert began, everyone participated in a dome-wide sing-a-long to Eejanaika! where the lines of the song you sang depended on where your seat in the dome was.
WEST. also showed off their iconic humor and chaotic nature during their MC corner, especially when they did a few acoustic covers of their songs. At the show I attended in Tokyo, prior to their performance of Shirankedo (知らんけど), Kotaki stood up and asked the audience what was happening the next day. The audience were hesitant to answer if the next day would be Akito’s birthday because the question seemed quite random. Due to the uncertainty of Typhoon Shanshan’s path, the group weren’t sure if the last day of concerts would be performed or not as well as if they could celebrate Akito’s birthday. For that reason, Kotaki wanted to do a rehearsal of how the birthday celebration would be the next day.
Inherently this was a heartwarming moment, because the audience as well as WEST. were able to celebrate and sing happy birthday to Akito, but it also highlighted the chaos that can happen during their concerts. Their chaotic ideas take on new life when they are on stage allowing them to improv and have fun with each other. During Shirankedo, instead of singing the lyrics, the member would adlib lines, wondering if they could perform the next day’s concert or not. It also played into the nature of the song. If there is a joke to make, the members encourage the evolution of it, and that is what makes WEST. such a fun group to see live.
Another incredible touch to the show was the inclusion of the Kansai Junior group, AmBitious, as back up dancers throughout the show. Whether it was through energetic dancing in numbers such as Summer Dreamer and YSSB or as adorable Santas and reindeer for Lovely Xmas, the addition of AmBitious highlighted the vast array of up-and-coming talent within STARTO ENTERTAINMENT. Their performances of their original song Reach for the sky and Kansai Island (関西アイランド) were dancing masterpieces for this up and coming group.
Even more than that, having AmBitious included in the concert tour showed the love and adoration the Kansai talent have for each other. Though there weren’t many opportunities for the two groups to talk with each other on stage, it’s through the two units’ interactions on stage that highlight this family bond seen within Kansai STARTO idols. Moments where WEST. stop and dance with their juniors or they exchange silly faces while passing each other are so heartwarming to see. It’s easy to understand why the Kansai branch of STARTO has so many dedicated fans.
More than the chaos, more than the hilarity and fun and jokes, WEST. know how to put on a good show and have the vocal talent to back up their silly side. Songs like Beautiful and Anata e (あなたへ) tug at the heartstrings as the members sing their hearts out. Other songs like Zettai Zetsumei (絶体絶命), YSSB, and FATE show off their dance abilities as well as the careful thought needed to put on a visually stunning performance.
WEST. think about their concerts in a perspective in order to showcase each tool in their tool belt to the absolute best of their abilities. It’s what makes their shows feel so vibrant and colorful from the second they appear on stage. They still retain their Kansai energy and humor from their earlier work, but at the heart of the group they are idols that know how to entertain the masses. Whether it’s singing, dancing, or talking, WEST. know how to entertain!
They put particular consideration into audience participation for their concerts. For the AWARD Dome Tour, many of the songs WEST. selected include call and response portions to get the crowd engaged. Perhaps one of the sweetest moments was for Machigacchainai (間違っちゃいない). Originally a unit song for Shigeoka, Kamiyama and Hamada, this song has evolved to include all of the members over the years. The members led the dome in a sing-a-long of the later part of the song before resetting and starting from the beginning. It was a performance where the entire dome felt as if it was in perfect harmony and you could feel the love radiating from every corner.
WEST. also led the audience in the choreography for their latest single, Maa Ikka! (まぁいっか！) . This fun and upbeat song is reminiscent of their early career discography. WEST. danced the song on stage while the two characters on the singles’ artwork helped the audience with the fast hand movements during the chorus. These moments where fans danced along to the choreography or sang with WEST. made it feel as if those in the audience were close to their beloved idols on stage.
This feeling only intensified when WEST. traversed the dome to get even closer to their fans. The decorated trucks taking them around the perimeter of the dome were decorated as if it was a Japanese festival with plenty of hanging lanterns, and the group also used carts to weave their way in between the blocks of the arena. While they sang a medley of their singles, they would wave and give small moments of fan service to those waving at them. It was heartwarming to watch them interact with the people who adore them the most.
There are many things to love about WEST. They are a group that encompasses the definition of the word “idol” while injecting their own personalities into everything that they do. The AWARD Dome Tour was an amalgamation of everything that I love and adore about the group while also looking to the future. It was a look back at where they came from while also being a celebration of everything wonderful about WEST. It’s difficult to put into words what this dome concert meant to me. All I can say is that I am proud to call myself a fan, and I cannot wait to see what WEST. do next as well as how they will celebrate for future anniversaries.
Check out more WEST. here!
Official YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WEareWEST7/videos
STARTO ENTERTAINMENT Official Page: starto.jp/west
Official X Account: twitter.com/WEareWEST7
Official TikTok: tiktok.com/@wearewest7
Official Label Site: elov-label.jp
Concert photography © STARTO ENTERTAINMENT.