Takahisa Masuda, a member of NEWS, held his second solo concert on April 28, titled Takahisa Masuda 2nd LIVE: Kidoairaku (Joy, Anger, Sorrow, and Happiness) at the Tokyo Garden Theatre. The tour, consisting of 14 shows across five cities, is expected to draw an audience of 50,000. This report covers the afternoon performance on April 28.
Following his first solo live, this concert was once again entirely self-produced. From the styling of the costumes to stage effects synchronized with the lighting, Masuda’s artistic perspective could be felt throughout every detail of the production. In addition to Osaka and Tokyo from the previous tour, this year’s concerts expanded to six cities: Sapporo, Fukuoka, Kobe, and Osaka, fulfilling fans’ long-awaited hopes for a wider tour.
As the clock struck exactly 5:00 p.m., the audience began clapping along to the music for around five minutes. As blue laser beams shot across the stage, the concert opened with countless standing microphones surrounding Masuda, and he started singing “Kidoairaku (喜怒哀楽)“, the song that gave the tour its title.
Starting with a gentle a cappella section before transitioning into an emotionally charged rap with a key change, the performance conveyed his passion with striking intensity. The audience listened in complete fascination, captivated by his honest and powerful vocals. During “Master’s bomb“, his name, TAKAHISA MASUDA, lit up across the stage.
Then, in “Bonnie Butterfly“, a cover of DOMOTO, lasers flooded the arena as the six dancers appeared onstage for the first time, alongside the instruments that would accompany the rest of the concert. In the final section, performed with playback, Masuda captivated the audience with an intense dance performance alongside his six dancers.
The first video segment focused on the theme of “happiness”. Masuda is seen driving a Lamborghini at full speed while wearing sunglasses before arriving at a restaurant, where he drinks beer and eats countless plates of gyoza. Without a doubt, that represents happiness for him.
The following section focused heavily on cover songs. Featuring live band arrangements and strings, the block allowed the audience to luxuriate in songs Masuda had cherished since childhood and throughout his youth. The first song was a cover of Utada Hikaru’s “First Love“. Masuda performed alongside the orchestra with no screens or visual effects, allowing the audience to fully appreciate the live instruments and his voice alone.
The fifth song, a cover of Miyuki Nakajima‘s “Gin no Ryuu no Seni Notte” (銀の龍の背に乗って)1 , featured only a simple standing microphone. His voice suited the song perfectly. In “Massugu no Uta” (by Kaientai), the theme song of the TV drama 3-nen B-gumi Kinpachi-sensei (Season 6), in which Masuda appeared in 2001, he enveloped the audience with his warm voice under orange lighting; the song’s lyrics were written by singer Tetsuya Takeda, with whom he shares a close personal and professional relationship. As the song’s lyrics appeared on the screen and warm orange lights illuminated the venue, the performance gently encouraged and comforted listeners. At the end, Masuda smiled softly before giving a respectful bow.
Just like the previous tour, the concert followed a no-MC format. However, during hydration breaks, there were moments when keeping the silence alone proved difficult. While wiping away sweat with a towel, Masuda jokingly called out, “Koyama, talk for a bit!” and “Shige, say something!”, humorously summoning imaginary versions of Keiichiro Koyama and Shigeaki Kato. Of course, no one actually appeared to fill the silence, but simply hearing the names of his NEWS bandmates sent the fans into excitement and perfectly bridged the gaps between segments.
After taking a short breather, the next song was “Yasashisa De Afureru Youni (やさしさで溢れるように)” (by JUJU). He performed in an acoustic arrangement, sitting on a chair and delivering the track with an emotional voice that created an intimate, moody atmosphere, with only three people: guitar, piano, and his vocals.
Next song was a Tegomass track called “Kiss ~Kaerimichi no Love Song~“. At the beginning, Masuda asked the audience if they would be able to sing it with him, and the fans immediately joined in throughout the performance. The warm and gentle atmosphere filled the venue with smiles from both the audience and Masuda himself.
During the BAND interlude, Masuda introduced each member of the band, giving everyone their own spotlight moment to showcase their instrument. Once again, Masuda demonstrated how much he values everyone involved in the concert.
He then appeared wearing a yellow hat, a hooded parka, and half pants, as a tribute to Sailor Moon, before performing the anime’s iconic opening song, DALI’s “Moonlight Densetsu“. His vocals carried a surprising sensuality, perfectly expressing the unique atmosphere and world of each song he performed.
Another video segment followed, this time centered around the theme of “anger.” In the clip, Masuda is taken to Ryujin Suspension Bridge in Ibaraki Prefecture (one of Japan’s largest suspension bridges, stretching 375 meters in length and standing 100 meters high) to try bungee jumping, becoming visibly upset as the staff attempts to force him to jump from an extreme height. While the segment successfully brought out Masuda’s “angry” expressions, the video ultimately ended without him ever actually doing the bungee jump, prompting laughter throughout the venue.
The next block opened with “Thunder“, a song that had not been performed in quite some time (since NEWS ARENA TOUR 2018 EPCOTIA in 2018). A massive curtain effect was used during the performance, making the entire stage appear even larger. The giant curtain remained in place as Masuda performed “TM.”
The atmosphere then shifted dramatically. In “Girls That Dance“, Masuda appeared wearing a pink cape and sunglasses, striking poses like a model walking a fashion runway as he sang. Each dancer received an individual solo moment to showcase their skills.
Masuda also surprised fans by performing the brand-new song “Ja, Odoru ka (じゃ、踊るか)”, written especially for this concert. The track is a dance-heavy number driven by powerful, hard-hitting beats. The song has yet to be officially released.
The following video focused on the theme of “sabishii” (loneliness). In the segment, Masuda visits a zoo and is asked to say idol-like romantic phrases as though he were on a date with his girlfriend, including doing a kabedon, holding hands, and getting soaked together. The scenes were not only incredibly kyun and heartwarming, but also hilarious enough to make the audience burst into laughter.
The next block began with Masuda bringing a DJ table onto the stage. He recorded phrases such as “Ariake, thank you for coming” and “chu,” before mixing them together with various sound effects. Masuda clearly enjoys playing the role of DJ as his expression was intense as he blended the sounds.
He then continued with “XXX” while remaining at the DJ booth, and in “Echoes“, the dancers returned dressed entirely in black.
The following video used the kanji for “practical,” showing a variety of practical everyday situations. The final block began with “Niji“, where Masuda appeared wearing the official tour T-shirt along with a skirt.
During “Believe Your Smile,” a cover of his seniors V6, the dancers returned wearing T-shirts while the audience sang along with him. The following TOKIO cover, called “Uwasa no Kiss,” was performed without dancers. Next came a famous SMAP song, “Sekai ni Hitotsu Dake no Hana,” during which the fans once again sang together with Masuda.
He then performed his own song, “Monogatari“, which also included a chorus section where the audience joined in singing. This song was provided by GRe4N BOYZ, who are also Masuda’s close friends. He delivered this song, which expresses his gratitude for the people who have shared their strength with him, allowing him to stand on stage and see this view today, with all his heart and soul, pouring every ounce of his emotion into it.
The ending credits followed, displaying the names of everyone involved in the concert production. When “Produced by Takahisa Masuda” appeared on the screen, the audience erupted into applause, and the video concluded with the English phrase: “Very thanks to ALL FANS.”
The concert closed with the very same song that opened the show: “Kidoairaku“. Masuda began the performance completely a cappella, without a microphone or any amplification, relying solely on the strength of his voice to reach the entire venue. It was yet another reminder of Masuda’s extraordinary vocal ability.
This year again, Masuda captivated the audience with his overwhelming vocal ability, no MC segments, and after performing 21 songs, he closed the show with a radiant smile, declaring: “This was Takahisa Masuda of NEWS! Thank you very much!” As the concert came to an end, the final logo remained projected on the screen.
“Having the opportunity to release my first cover album, I’ve been overwhelmed by the power of these songs. Through my own expression of Kidoairaku (joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness), I will deliver every song with my entire heart and soul. I’ll sing, I’ll dance, and I’m also producing the visuals, lighting, costumes… the whole production myself! This is my challenge: to show what Takahisa Masuda of NEWS can create on his own.” – Comment from Takahisa Masuda
Check out more of NEWS through the members’ accounts on SNS!
Takahisa Masuda Instagram | Keiichiro Koyama X Account / Instagram | Shigeaki Kato X Account / Instagram
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- Not available outside Japan on streaming due to potential licensing rights. ↩︎