Anisong World Matsuri Returns with THREE Nights of Concerts!

110,000 Anime Expo attendees braved the heat to attend the 27th year of the convention last weekend. One of the highlights of the convention, Anisong World Matsuri, returned in 2018 with a line-up bigger and better than ever. Nine groups and solo performers amazed their audiences over three days of concerts, a day longer than previous years.

DAY ONE: LOVELIVE! SUNSHINE!! Aqours World Love Live! in LA Beyond the Pacific

July 4th LoveLive! Fans rejoiced as the voice actresses from Love Live! Sunshine!! (Aqours) took the stage. Aqours performed in the Anime World Matsuri 2017 Japan Kawaii Live, but this year they returned with a full concert dedicated just to them. 

Aqours started the night with “Mirai no Bokura wa Shitteru yo” (The opening song for the second season of the anime) as the crowd went wild. The group then performed “Kimi no Hitomi o Meguru Bouken” before introducing themselves and the characters they portrayed. The girls then performed “Kimono Kokoro wa Kagayaiterukai?” and “Mirai Ticket” before going into sub-unit performances. Cute and energetic CYaRon! sang “Genki Zenkai Day! Day! Day!” and “Kaigandori de Matters Yo”. Sweet and soft Azalea followed with “Torikoriko Please!!” and “LONELY TUNING”. Cool and sleek  Guilty Kiss finished off the sub-unit portion of the concert with “Strawberry Trapper” and “Guilty Night, Guilty Kiss!”. Between the sub-unit performances, animated skits played on screen, keeping the crowd entertained while the girls prepared for the next part of the performance. 

Aqours all came together again to perform the last three songs of the night: “Taiyou o Oikakero!” was followed by the season two ending theme: “Yuki wa Doko ni? Kimi no Mine ni!”. The performances were then concluded with the girls donning blue happi robes to sing “Sunshine Pikkapika Ondo” accompanied by taiko drums. 

The girls then said their goodbyes to the audience as the concert came to a close, ending a perfect Love Live! Sunshine!! night. 

DAY TWO: Japan Super Live

July 6th marked the second day of Anisong World Matsuri 2018. The lineup for this show included Aimer, Yuki Kajiura, May’n, and Sanketsu-girl Sayuri

The show began with May’n performing six of her anisong hits: “Chase the world” (Accel World), “One in a Billion -May’n Ver.-“ (Wake Up, Girls!), “You” (The Ancient Magus' Bride), “Belief” (Taboo Tattoo), “Northern Cross” (Macross Frontier), and “Diamond Crevasse” (Macross Frontier). May’n’s set was backed by a live band and really started the night off right with energy and excitement!​DAY TWO Japan Super Live

The next artist on stage was Sanketsu-girl Sayuri who performed “Heikousen” (Kuzu no Honkai), “Sore wa Chiisana Hikari no Youna” (Erased), Tsuki to Hanataba” (Fate/EXTRA Last Encore), Furaregai Girl, and “Mikazuki” (Rampo Kitan:  Game of Laplace). Her set started off with just an acoustic guitar, before being joined by a keyboardist for the final two songs. It was a contrast to the previous set, and left the audience excited to see what was coming next.

Next up was Aimer, who last appeared at Anime Expo 2015. Her performance involved lighting and smoke effects to back her songs “StarRingchild” (Mobile Suite Gundam Unicorn), “Brave Shine” (Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works), “Ref:rain” (Koi wa Ameagari no You ni), “broKen NIGHT” (Fate/hollow atraxia), and “LAST STARDUST” (Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works).

Yuki Kajiura finished the night backed by a five piece band and three vocalists:  Kaida Yuriko, Joelle, and Kaori. The ladies performed “the beginning of the end” (Fate/Zero), “Lancer and Assassin” (Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel), “longing” (Sword Art Online -Ordinal Scale-), “key of the twilight” (.hack//SIGN), “Yasashii Yoake” (.hack//SIGN), and “luminous sword” (Sword Art Online).

After her set, Yuki Kajiura was joined on stage by Aimer as they performed Aimer’s song “Hana no Uta” (Fate/stay night: Heaven’s Feel) together to end the night.

Japan Super Live 2018 was a powerful and magical experience, leaving the crowd hungry for more.

DAY THREE: Japan Kawaii Live

July 7th was the third and final night of Anisong World Matsuri 2018. After the energetic Aqours and the powerful ladies of the Japan super live, the artists of the Japan Kawaii Live (AKB48 Team 8, THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS, i☆Ris, and Nakagawa Shoko) had a lot to live up to. And live up to it they did!

THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS were up first, performing songs from the anime. They started with “Shine!!” together before braking into sub-groups to perform “SUN♡FLOWER” (Kirari and Miria), LOVE∞DESTINY (Mayu and Riina), and “Tulip” (Kanade and Shiki). The girls then had an MC before coming together again to perform “Onegai! Cinderella”. After their final song, the girls had another MC opportunity to talk to their fans. 

i☆Ris was up next. The group performed “Fantasia WONDERLAND”, “Changing Point” (Mahou Shoujo Site), A Pripara Medley (“Make it!”, “Miracle☆Paradise”, and “Realize!”), “Dream Parade” (PriPara), and “We Are!”. The girls also had an MC after the Pripara Medley, giving them a chance to talk to the audience. During the MC, fans near the front held up signs for them, it was obvious they had made an impact.

Third of the night was AKB48 Team 8 members Tanikawa Hijiri, Sato Akari, Yoshikawa Nanase, Hidaritomo Ayaka, Hattori Yuna, and Gyoten Yurina. The power of this idol super group was seen on stage as they performed some of the most popular AKB48 songs, both old and new. They started with “Aitakatta” followed by “Kibouteki Refrain”, “Everyday, Kachusha”, “Iiwake, Maybe”, “Hachinosu Dance” (One of Team 8’s own songs), “Koisuru Fortune Cookie”, “365 Nichi no Kamihikouki”, and “47 no Sutekina Machie” (Another of Team 8’s own songs). The mixture of Senbatsu songs and team songs brought the set an excitement that fans can still feel today.

​To finish the show, Shokotan (Nakagawa Shoko) took the stage. It had been 10 years since Shokotan had last performed in LA, so it was a special moment. She performed “Doridori” (Pokemon XY), “Tsuzuku Sekai” (Gurren Lagann The Movie: The Lights in the Sky are Stars), “RAY OF LIGHT” (FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: Brotherhood), “Magical Circle” (Magical Circle Guru Guru), “Pegasus Fantasy version Ω” (Saint Seiya: Omega), “Cruel Angel’s Thesis” (Neon Genesis Evangelion, originally by Takahashi Yoko), and “Sorairo Days” (Gurren Lagann). Shokotan has a different feel from the other groups, but her arising mega-hits were a great way to end the night for idol and anime fans alike. 

Overall, Anisong World Matsuri 2018 was a huge hit and this reporter can’t wait to see what happens next year.

-marisuga (Molly)

​For More Info:
Anisong World Matsuri Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/AnisongWorldMatsuri/
Anisong World Matsuri Twitter:
https://twitter.com/AnisongWorld
Anisong World Matsuri Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/anisongworldmatsuri/

Love Live! Sunshine!! Website:
http://www.lovelive-anime.jp/uranohoshi/worldwide/

​May’n Website: http://mayn.jp
Sanketsu-girl Sayuri Website: http://sayuri-web.com
Aimer Website: http://www.aimer-web.jp
Yuki Kajiura Website: http://www.fictionjunction.com

THE IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS Website: http://idolmaster.jp
AKB48 Team 8 Website: http://toyota-team8.jp
i☆Ris Website: http://iris.dive2ent.com
Shoko Nakagawa Website: http://www.shokotan.jp