Naruchika: The Definitive Hello! Project Experience

Having had the pleasure of travelling to see various idols perform, I had never gone to the popular ‘Naruchika’ events that Hello! Project started back in 2013. I finally had the opportunity to go during my most recent trip to Japan (specifically to a Morning Musume。‘16 Naruchika concert in Shunan), and I can speak from personal experience on why they are as amazing as fans make them out to be. First thing’s first though: what does ‘Naruchika’ even mean?
 
Naruchika is a shortening of the phrase ‘Narudake Chikakude’, which essentially means ‘being as close as possible’, which is what the concert revolves around. While it is completely normal and expected to be able to go to small venues in small towns and see indie idols perform, it’s not exactly the case when it comes to major idols such as AKB48 or Morning Musume。‘16. More than anything it ends up being a logistical issue. There’s much more money to be had in big venues, which is important considering the heightened costs that come with more popular idol groups. It’s an unfortunate but understandable situation.

The general idea behind Naruchika is to kind of re-capture that feeling that we get when we go to small indie lives. The closeness you feel by being in a live house or small venue, where it’s easier to interact, be noticed and overall experience everything that is happening. Not only that, but this movement was designed to cater to some of the smaller towns where fans may not necessarily be close enough to larger areas like Tokyo or Kyoto where they may not be able to afford the trip to the bigger cities or may merely not have the time to make that kind of a trek. As a result, these places which have fans who would like to support their groups in the same way as fans in the big cities end up being left out. Thus they get to deliver to the small-town where people don’t have as easy access to the idols they love.
 
This all turns into a multi-faceted situation where more people get to experience the idols they love and everybody is happy. The concept kicked off with a °C-ute and S/mileage crossover concert tour in 2013 that hit smaller locations within areas like Hokkaido, Gifu and Kochi. Unsurprisingly, these were very successful and as a result have continued every year with various groups, the most recent of which being Morning Musume。‘16.

So now that I got to experience one, was it all it was cracked up to be? You bet! Having only been to Tokyo in my trips to Japan, I decided to give this a go. I made the long trek south to Yamaguchi Prefecture via the Shinkansen. It was about 6 hours when I finally arrived in the town of Shunan, which is almost at the southern tip of the main island of Japan. With my minimal communication skills, I was able to manage my way around. I got up early the next day and went to the venue to discover a lot of local fans who I tried to chat with, along with fans from all over the country who made the long trip for the idols they love. Interestingly enough, I was the only foreigner that I was able to spot. The concert itself was really cramped, but really charged. The most exciting part of the whole experience was that everyone could clearly see the group and everyone could get noticed by the group. When it comes to idols, oftentimes those are the most important things. It was a very personal experience and I enjoyed it thoroughly (even if I didn’t win any of the raffle). Incidentally, if you’ve gone to any of the overseas Hello! Project performances then you have an idea of how a Naruchika is, since these concerts tend to be modeled in that way.
 
So if you’re a fan of Hello! Project groups, I can’t recommend enough that you do your best to make it out to a Naruchika concert at some point. With the rare exception like Berryz Kobo going to Bangkok in 2015, Naruchika concerts are held exclusively in Japan. It’s a very endearing experience from a fan’s perspective and also opens opportunities to see areas of Japan you may not go to normally!
 
- Teepu