There is little doubt in my love for 4U. (ふぉ~ゆ~) in this world. I’ve attended many of their stage plays, concerts, and the absolute variety hour that is ENTA, but there’s been one thing missing in my journey as their fan that was finally fulfilled this month that many may scratch their heads and be utterly confused by.
I’ve never actually hit for one of their concerts initially.
And I know what you’re thinking. “But Kat, you just said that you’ve attended their concerts? Do you mean that your friends have hit for tickets for you?” Well…the answer is a bit more complicated than a simple yes or no.
The first time that I went to a 4U. concert, it was their tenth anniversary show, NO 4U. NO LIVE ~Tensai~ (NO 4U. NO LIVE ~Ten祭〜), and my friend hadn’t hit for tickets in the initial lottery but the second chance lottery. The next year I had hit for a ticket for 4U Good Job Live 2022 ~U. to You de Daijoubu sa~ (4U Good Job Live 2022 ~U. to Youで大丈夫さ~) in the same second chance lottery. I only received tickets thanks to the second chance lottery.
For Happy 4U. Hour, I had this absolute silly dream that I wouldn’t need to rely on a second chance lottery to go and see them perform live. I would hit in that first lottery and not have to worry about if I would get tickets or not. Between my friends and I, we came up with a game plan for balloting and put the game plan into action. I was skeptical about our chances, especially since I was balloting for the very first show, but we waited patiently for results to come out. Finally, after trying for so many years, I hit. All that was left to do was wait for the tour to come around, buy goods, and enjoy the show with my friend.
Happy 4U. Hour didn’t start with a big bang. It didn’t start with a loud in your face moment that made you feel as if you were at an idol show. The start was much more subtle, but there was something about it that I really liked. A cheer was broadcasted throughout the hall, chanting the name 4U. over and over that the audience quickly grasped onto, loudly chanting their name to the pre-determined rhythm. The atmosphere in LINE CUBE SHIBUYA felt more like we were attending a rock concert in the U.S. than an idol concert in Japan.
Backlit and their shadows being shown on the curtain blocking the stage from view, 4U. walked out, their shadows showing them holding guitars or sitting behind a piano or drum set. Cheers were broadcasted over the speakers, fully immersing the audience in 4U.’s rock god fantasy, until the curtains dropped, revealing the instruments in 4U.’s hands to be made of plain brown cardboard as they launched into a performance of Soba ni Buddy (そばにBuddy).
It was hard not to laugh watching 4U. pretend to play instruments, members Tatsumi “Tatsu” Yudai and Fukuda “Fuku-chan” Yuta used their guitars as microphones at one point for Koshioka “Kosshi” Yuki and Matsuzaki “Matsu” Yusuke to sing into. It wasn’t long before the cardboard instruments were abandoned, and 4U. launched into their choreography and fans thrust their penlights into the air in time with the beat.
The stage lights lit up in rainbow colors for their performance of Daijoubu sa (大丈夫さ) which exhibited all of the wacky and crazy energy as the music video. It’s a song that fans could get into and dance along with 4U. as they performed it. This particular performance also had 4U. hitting symbols during one part of the performance, and it was hard not to laugh at the absurdity of that moment.
Before rolling into the next performance, 4U. announced that it was their newest song, CALL & RESPONSE 4U., made by Hyadain. This song was, in all honesty, perhaps the most 4U. song to exist and was a song that I laughed the whole way through. The performance, as the name suggests, was a lot of back and forth between 4U. and the audience. 4U. shouted the “4” part of their name while the audience shouted “U” back at them as small moments of song and dance broke up the various call and response moments.
What made CALL & RESPONSE 4U. absolutely fun was each member took over a part of the song, choosing what dance or gesture the audience should copy. It was easy to get caught up in the ridiculous things they asked the audience to do. Laughter was heard throughout the audience as each member took their turn before returning back to a call and response atmosphere.
Somehow, the roles became reversed. 4U. began to shout “U” and the audience shouted “4” until they slowly realized the chant had become U4 (or UFO). To which 4U. became captured by a UFO, and the only way to free them was to shout their name at our alien guests. After shouting at a loud volume, 4U. were freed and the song continued. Eventually two members disappeared backstage and returned with cardboard cutouts of all four of them. The cutouts were in the poses of their original keychain goods which they handed over to each member. The cutouts were lifted high above the stage and were flown around to wrap up the song.
CALL & RESPONSE 4U. was an absolutely massive performance full of comedy, drama, and laughter, and, at around eight minutes long, it was fully worth the length. It was hands down a highlight of the entire show.
The cardboard cutouts were taken down as members Tatsu and Matsu slipped backstage. Fuku-chan and Kosshi had conversations with their “fellow members,” pausing to give the cutouts time to “talk,” and Fuku-chan and Kosshi laughed at whatever the cardboard pair said. It was a cute moment, especially when Kosshi and Fuku-chan forced Matsu and Tatsu’s cutouts to “talk” as they addressed the audience before leaving the stage for the next performance to talk.
LOVESICK by KinKi Kids was a performance that utilized the full stage setup. Whether beginning each verse at a typewriter or traveling to the upper part of the stage to perform, there wasn’t an inch of stage that wasn’t used. This performance also had 4U. performing in pairs. Matsu and Tatsu covered the first verse and chorus while Kosshi and Fuku-chan took the second verse and chorus. Even for the remainder of the song, 4U. remain glued to their pairs, never singing together as a foursome.
4U. continued their slower corner of the concert, performing their original songs Velvet Touch and Midnight Dancer (ミッドナイトダンサー) , with the latter song being a little higher energy than the two songs before it.
The next song, Doshaburi Hero…Always 4U. (どしゃぶりヒーロー…Alwaysふぉ〜ゆ〜), brought 4U. into the audience and standing on rolling platforms that they quickly hung up images of carts and pretended as if they were going around an arena in them. As they performed and waved at the fans who came to see them, the carts were rolled to the center of the hall and they scooted around each other before the carts rolled back to their starting positions.
The last song before the MC time was Niharoha・Parupa (二ハロハ・パルパ), another original song with penlight choreography that gave the fans a chance to dance along with 4U. This song was a fully upbeat number that was an absolute joy to dance along to. It was the perfect way to close out the first half of the concert.
Finally! It was sauna time! Two large benches with yellow seats are brought out as well as wooden walls giving the atmosphere that we were at a sauna. The last thing that was brought out was a tall metal structure with coals. This contraption would give off “steam” and “heat” each time 4U. poured “water” over it.
What I absolutely love about 4U. during their MC time, sorry, sauna time, is how they completely immerse themselves in the environment they create and act as if they are truly there. For example, when one of the coals dropped before they settled in to talk, Matsu picked it up and acted as if it was hot and burning his hand. The other members chastised him for doing something so foolish because he could have been hurt. The group would also talk about how they needed more heat and steam, and they truly lived in the moment.
Not only this, but 4U. felt like honest and real people when they’re sitting on stage talking with each other. It felt as if I’m with my best friends, listening to them talk about whatever is on their mind. Even with another two thousand people around, it still felt personal and intimate. The wall between idol and fan dropped just a little bit in those moments, and it was an absolute joy to listen to them laugh and joke with each other. No matter what they talked about, I was always entertained during sauna time.
With their sauna time coming to a close, 4U. broke out into a rendition of Sexy Zone’s Gyutto that was an entertaining rendition. Instead of sitting and singing the song to the audience, 4U. performed the song as if they were having a conversation with each other along with predetermined acting moments and moments of affection, such as a hug between Fuku-chan and Kosshi, as they sang. The performance ended with Tatsu running off to jump in the pool while the other three remained in the sauna for a bit longer until they realized they overstayed their time. They quickly followed after Tatsu.
The next song was a beautiful rendition of 4U.’s song Kokoro Tsunaide (心つないで) which began as a Tatsu solo before the other members joined in with the second verse. By the time the song finished, 4U. were standing on the highest part of their stage. As the music finished, they turned their backs on the audience and were handed bunny heads to put on as they performed Ninomiya Kazunari’s solo song Himitsu (秘密). This song was an absolute rollercoaster of fun moments, from the choreography to 4U. pasting cutouts of their heads on their hands and making their fingers dance on a small stage. My absolute favorite was when a painted scene was rolled onto the stage with holes for their heads and stuffed rabbit puppets hanging underneath. Though this little bit of staging magic, 4U. became entirely adorable rabbits as they sang. It’s little moments like these that really highlight the humor and brilliance of 4U.
The next performance was a cover of King & Prince’s Naughty Girl that was really well done before 4U. left the stage only for a video to begin playing. This year, instead of producing their own solos, each member produced the solo of another.
The first was a video Kosshi talking about the solo he produced, which was for Matsu, and done in an interview style. Matsu danced and sang SMAP’s Aoi Inazuma (青いイナヅマ) with Kosshi joining Matsu on stage during one part to assist with the dance choreography. Matsu’s shock and surprise during this small duet moment added a bit of humor to a really strong performance
Next was Tatsu producing the solo of Fuku-chan. Tatsu’s video was more of a comedy style with Matsu holding a notebook with written points that Tatsu wanted highlighted and comedic moments between the two. Because he performed too many solos of ARASHI’s Ninomiya, Tatsu chose a different song for Fuku-chan as well as choregraphed the number. The entire audience gasped as Rain, the solo song of ARASHI’s Ohno Satoshi, began. The performance was full of crisp dancing and vocals that were highlighted by the spotlights on stage.
Fuku-chan produced Kosshi’s solo, and, instead of explaining the concept himself, there was a video of a fantasy castle scene with scrolling text. Suddenly, TOKIO’s Minna de Waahhahha! (みんなでワーッハッハ！) began with Kosshi climbing the stairs near the back of the stage to reveal himself shirtless and with a large stuffed horse body trailing behind him. The performance found Kosshi slowly turning from horse to human and thanking the audience for helping him transform.
The final solo in this corner was produced by DJ ZAKI (Matsu’s alter ego) for Tatsu. His video introduction was used to help teach the fans the choreography they would do during Tatsu’s song. Tatsu’s performance was a cover of V6’s Ai no Melody (愛のMelody) that was very adorable and had the other members coming out towards the end to join in the dancing in their various solo outfits.
The stage went dark for a moment, spotlights shooting out into the hall before 4U. took to the stage once more to begin a mashup of some of their well-loved original songs. Fans danced along to songs like Scandalous and Jellyfish with them and for haunted house there were even fire effects that shot into the sky. It was truly a high energy selection that got the crowd excited as they slid into a performance of S.O.D.A.
S.O.D.A. was truly a highlight of the concert. With an upbeat backing track that just makes you want to dance and clever choreography that includes moments of 4U. pouring drinks to highlight those moments in the back track, it’s hard not to stay still during this song. It’s no wonder that this song was selected to give fans a full performance of before the last song of the show began.
Rock the Show was the perfect high energy song to end on. It’s the kind of rock song that leaves you wanting more and wishing there were another two or three or twenty songs left in the setlist. It even included these gun-shaped contraptions that shot off pressurized smoke and gave moments of interaction between 4U. and. the audience. Though these objects are very loud, and made it a little hard to hear 4U. perform, it wa still an absolute wild performance that got your heart racing.
Once 4U. left the stage, the fans called out to them and for the encore to begin. It wasn’t long the audience had to wait before their idols returned, performing their original song Everything 4 You as they walked up and down the aisles, giving fan service and high fives to their adoring fans that came to see them that day. By the time the song ended, 4U. returned to the main stage to perform Wagamama (わがまま) as the concert came to a close.
Happy 4U. Hour was a huge departure from 4U.’s previous concerts. In the past, there was always a DJ ZAKI corner where Matsu would rapidly play songs from other groups and the members would sing along to them while asking the audience to change their penlight color for each number. 4U. would also claim they had another new song before launching into a song that most definitely was not their own.
Despite not performing these beloved moments, Happy 4U. Hour was still a concert that felt like 4U. There were still moments of comedy and humor that we have come to expect from a 4U. show. Their dancing was an absolute highlight, and they still found ways to honor senpai and kouhai songs while injecting their original ones into the setlist. Happy 4U. Hour was 4U. just done in a different way.
In all honesty, this concert made me feel excited for what we’re going to see from 4U. in the future. Whether the insanity of CALL & RESPONSE 4U. will only become more insane over time or what songs they’ll choose to perform next, there is one thing I know for sure after attending this concert. 4U. will continue to be a shining star among the talent around them and will only continue to evolve from here.
Happy 4U. Hour was performed in Tokyo on October 13th and 14th. The show will be performed in Osaka on October 30th and 31st before coming to an end in Nagoya on November 4th.