There was a curious rumbling throughout Yokohama’s K-Arena as 18,000 concertgoers filled the sold-out venue for the final night of Hikaru Utada’s Science Fiction tour on Sept. 1.
Maybe it was from the excited fans, who had descended upon Yokohama undaunted by heavy rain and thunderstorm warnings to see the J-pop superstar perform their first tour in six years. Some arrived hours before doors opened to queue for tour merchandise such as T-shirts, glow-up wristbands, wormhole keychains and drinkware.
The singer (who is nonbinary and prefers they/them pronouns) embarked on their Science Fiction tour this summer to celebrate the 25th anniversary of their debut. The nostalgia-laden 18-show tour, which drew 258,000 attendees in total, kicked off in Fukuoka on July 13 and hit seven cities in Japan, as well as Taipei and Hong Kong for two sold-out solo concerts. In addition to the tour, Utada released a greatest hits album, also titled “Science Fiction,” featuring two discs with 26 tracks, including three new songs: "Gold (Mata Au Hi Made)," "Naniiro Demo Nai Hana" and "Electricity."
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