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【日本語で読む】
Google Gemini translated this article from Japanese to English.
Prologue
On Sunday, May 12th, I performed at ABETEN STREET BATTERFLY, also known as Stobata.
I'd like to share my experience with you all.
What Stobata Means Me
I first learned about the Stobata music festival last year. The spring Stobata had already concluded, and the call for performers for the autumn Stobata (also known as Akibata) was open.
Upon further research, I discovered that Stobata is a circuit festival with 12 simultaneous live venues in the Abeno and Tennoji districts. With many high-foot-traffic venues, no ticket quotas, and the potential for media coverage, it seemed like an exciting opportunity.
This is exactly the kind of live event I've been looking for!
Upon learning about it, I decided to research it further before applying, since there was still plenty of time until the Akibata application deadline. I wanted to make sure I wasn't just mistaken in thinking it was my ideal event. So, for the time being, I decided to put my Akibata plans on hold.
However, at that time, I was already fully occupied with my resumed live activities and taking care of my mother alone, having just resumed my live activities after the pandemic subsided the previous year. I was curious about Akibata, but I didn't have the time to research it.
※This article is available in Japanese only.
Finally, around the end of August, I started researching Akibata, thinking that I still had time since it was an autumn event. However, I discovered that the application deadline for Akibata performers had already passed.
As a result, I was unable to perform at Akibata this year. However, I decided to attend Akibata in person in the fall and visit all 12 venues, seeing one stage at each. This confirmed for me that this was indeed the event I had been looking for.
While some of the venues were quite different from my ideal, I learned that I couldn't choose which venue I would perform at, so it was all up to chance whether or not I would end up at a venue that met my expectations.
My Unlucky Venue
I don't have any friends for various reasons.
I was the one who distanced myself from my friends, so I don't want friends and I don't feel lonely without them.
I do feel lonely after losing my mother and being left all alone, but what I crave is not friends but family.
As a result, since I have no friends to invite to my shows, a venue with no foot traffic is considered an unlucky venue for me.
Well, even if I had friends, I wouldn't call them to my shows anyway.
The reasons are simple: I don't want to turn my concerts into a gathering of friends and I don't want to fill the venue with my friends instead of real fans. I want to reach out to genuine fans, connect with them through music, and share my values with those who truly appreciate my music and personality.
※This article is available in Japanese only.
In that sense, I came across four unlucky venues. The ones I disliked the most were the two venues where only people who were 100% there for the concert would come. The second most disliked were the two venues that were in a deserted location, but not completely devoid of people for other reasons.
When I applied for Stobata this time, I prayed that I would not be assigned to any of those four venues. However, my wish did not come true, and one of the two venues I disliked the second most ended up being the venue for my concert.
An unlucky venue. That's what I believed, at least at that moment.
The venue in question was none other than Abeno Harukas Wing Garden.
Abeno Harukas Ungarden Stage
Abeno Harukas Wing Garden Stage, view from above the stage
Abeno Harukas Wing Garden, stage and audience seats
The audience in the third photo consists of next performer's audience and performers waiting for their turn.
My audience was smaller than the one in this photo.
Two Firsts
Fearing a zero-attendance event, I brainstormed ways to attract an audience, but nothing substantial came to mind. As a countermeasure, the only thing I could do was to get permission to put up Stobata flyers at a place I frequently visited.
While I knew some acquaintances there, I had no real friends, so I figured putting up flyers wouldn't have much of an impact.
There was a time when I used to ask businesses to let me put up flyers or hand them out myself whenever I had a live performance scheduled.
However, I never had anyone come to my live performances after seeing the flyers. That was my experience.
Still, all I could think of doing this time was to ask for permission to put up flyers again.
I also promote the live shows online, but the number of people who come to the live shows after seeing the online promotion is always zero.
And this time, for the first time ever, it actually worked!
Only one person I recognized from the facility where I put up the flyers came to my live show!
It was the best thing that happened at the show!
And another first for me: after the live show, I was asked for my autograph for the first time by a fan.
（When Japanese celebrities and musicians sign autographs for fans, they often use stylized and difficult-to-read signatures, unlike the signatures used in official settings. These signatures are often unique designs that reflect the artist's personality.）
Last year, I did write setlists on notebooks for fans who requested it after a live show, but this was the first time someone asked me for my autograph directly.
Since I don't have a signature in the traditional sense, I just wrote my name and the date. I was happy to be asked for my autograph.
The live show had a small audience, but someone asked for my autograph, which was a surprise.
This made me wonder if I should start creating a proper signature.
Stobata Live: Unmasking the "Underdog" Venue from the Stage
As long as there are no zero audience members, even one person is greatly appreciated.
And with just one person, the live show is a success.
If the audience had been zero, I was going to think of it as a stage for filming live footage, but it was truly a blessing that customers came in.
And as the live performance began, the sound of my voice resonated clearly throughout the venue, creating a very pleasant sensation for me. Perhaps it was because the venue was located on a rooftop that the sound carried so well.
Tsukasa Minami, Abeno Harukas Wing Garden (Stobata) Live
This outdoor sensation is completely different from what I'm used to at Shiroten (Osaka Castle Park) where I usually perform.
After actually singing here, I realized that this venue is far from a dud. It's actually a very easy-to-perform venue, as long as we have an audience.
Performing here, I had a feeling that this venue would be a real winner for artists with a dedicated fan base. If an artist with a dedicated fan base were to secure this venue, I felt that it would be a great place for them to perform, not a bad one at all.
And Homeward Bound
I was the first act on, performing from 11:15 to 11:40 in the morning. By the time I finished, I was exhausted and starving.
There were a few other performances I was interested in seeing, including some at venues I'd been curious about and others by old acquaintances (who probably wouldn't remember me). I had planned to stay and watch some of them, but I didn't have the energy or motivation to lug my equipment and bags around Tennoji looking for a place to eat.
After finishing my set, I changed clothes, packed up my gear, said goodbye to the staff, and headed straight home.
Setlist
Please note: All of the original release recordings of the songs on the setlist are arranged for a full band, but they are always performed as acoustic guitar and vocals live.
１）Depression and Psychedelic Daily Life / Tsukasa Minami
（『せっかくだから、少しでもいい音で音楽を楽しんで欲しい。 』）
２）Pure and Sad Defense Song / Tsukasa Minami
（『せっかくだから、少しでもいい音で音楽を楽しんで欲しい。 』）
３）Gas Light / Tsukasa Minami
※This song hasn't been released yet.
This song is one that I wrote and rejected many years ago. The reasons for rejecting it are explained in the setlist section of the previous April 28th live report, so I will skip them here.
４）Yodo Big River Blues／Tsukasa Minami
（『せっかくだから、少しでもいい音で音楽を楽しんで欲しい。 』）
５）Parting Words / Tsukasa Minami
※This song hasn't been released yet.
This song is only available live for now.
The song will be released eventually, but it will be in a full-band arrangement. So for now, the only way to hear it as an acoustic performance is at live shows.
Finally
I had a blast at Stobata!
Starting with this Stobata, a new system has been introduced where only those who attend the venue in person can scan a QR code and vote for their favorite artists. It seems that the voting results will also be a factor in the selection of performers for Akibata (the nickname for the fall Stobata). Although I had a small audience, it may be unlikely that I will be able to perform at Akibata, but I would still like to participate in Akibata.
I probably only got two votes.
But I'm grateful to those who voted for me, and I was really happy that they voted for me.
I'm really grateful that most of the people who were there from the beginning stayed until the end.
Even though one group of two people left right when I said, "This is the last song," I was still happy that they came to see the live performance.
Thank you so much to everyone who came to my live performance, and to everyone who was involved in making it happen.
I hope to see you again at Akibata!（￣▽￣）。ｏ０○ POAAN
☆*ﾟ ゜ﾟ*☆*ﾟ ゜ﾟ*
If you are interested in me, please click on the link below.
The world of musician, Tsukasa Minami, is expanding. o(゜∇゜*o)(o*゜∇゜)o～♪
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