No Sleep Till Chicago - Miyavi Imaginary Tour

In person concerts are starting to make their grand return in the United States after almost two full years. Many music enthusiasts have been patiently waiting for their favorites to take the stage again and for Miyavi fans that dream became a reality.

Takamasa Ishihara, better known as Miyavi, is a 40-year-old Japanese singer-songwriter, actor and talented guitarist. He helped break the concert dry spell in North America with the Imaginary Tour which stopped in Chicago for two days at the Cobra Lounge on October 19th and 20th. The tour originally only had one concert scheduled for the windy city, however the show completely sold out and a second show got added. 

Night two of the Chicago leg definitely proved to be the original sold out stop as the lines grew larger and larger as the day went on. Many fans were thankful for the weather being ideal for waiting outside as it isn't very common in the Chicagoland and Mid West area around this time of year.

Before the doors opened for the general audience, VIP ticket holders took place in a meet and greet event with Miyavi. Each fan went in one by one to get their picture taken with him using their personal cell phone. On the floor in front of the bright ring light were two spots a few feet away from each other marked with tape indicating where to stand to help social distance. To also ensure the safety of everyone involved, the artist, staff and guests wore masks at all times. Miyavi gave every fan a fist bump while making small talk before the pair posed for two separate pictures.

Once the VIP event concluded, Cobra Lounge quickly filled with a wide variety of different people eager to see the one and only Miyavi. The venue didn't have a barricade so that allowed the crowd to get right up at the stage. While waiting for the show to kick off, fans mainly passed the time mingling with those around them while a small group in the first row played the water bottle challenge, flipping the container onto the platform in front of them.

Everyone instantly came to a halt once Miyavi and his crew took their places on the stage. The second his song "Flash Back" started the crowd jumped up and down while singing their hearts out. The energy only increased as "Need for Speed" followed. The stage lacked the space to move around freely but that didn't stop Miyavi one bit. If there was an opening to stand, he'd be there with his guitar dancing and playing with an enormous smile present.

With the audience warmed up, the singer took a moment to welcome everyone to the show. He introduces the drummer, DJ and back up singers, each getting cheers from fans. "What's my name?" Miyavi asks, referencing one of his popular tracks "What's My Name" and without missing a beat everyone yells back his name.

Someone handed Miyavi a Chicago flag covered in messages from fans attending that night. The musician didn't believe Chicago had its own flag "You're making fun of me" he told the crowd, but everyone insisted that they were telling the truth. Instead of just putting the flag off to the side, Miyavi decided to have it displayed on the equipment behind him with the help of his assistant.

Another member of the tour staff, Arthur, wasn't able to participate in the night's events as he left to take the U.S. Citizenship Test. Miyavi joked that once Arthur returned he'd no longer have that name. "He's Arnold or Archie or something" the musician lists off potential names before his back up singers mention Arthur is actually a pretty American name. A fan asked Miyavi what his American name would be which he wittily responded with "It's a country of freedom. It could be Tom or Brad or Leo or DiCaprio."

The tour ending means going back to Japan where Covid-19 regulations require him to quarantine upon return, but Miyavi feels that the Imaginary Tour is more than worth it. The virus isn't the only thing that makes an impact the the world. "To feel the power of music and you know with Covid, the virus is invisible but the music is also invisible" Miyavi compares the two. "That's our power, our weapon to defeat this fucking virus." He encourages everyone to wear a mask or whatever is need to stay safe while enjoying the moment "Protect yourself but don't forget to go wild today."

And going wild is exactly what happens the rest of the night. During his song "In Crowd," Miyavi counts to three before skipping around the stage while the crowd go crazy by either jumping or headbanging to the beat. The audience's movement might have gone down a tiny notch but the energy only went up as "Bumps in the Night" began. 

"I'm not the only one who's sweating yeah?" Miyavi asks which fans confirm he's not while catching their breaths from the last two songs. The difference between an in person concert and an online concert is outstanding. A virtual show cannot compare to ones where the artist can physically see and hear the crowd while bouncing energy off of each other. After hosting multiple livestreams in 2020, the guitarist cherishes being on tour again instead of being behind a screen.

His track "Tokio" was released back in 2020 and planned to play it during the Tokyo Olympics, however the opportunity vanished when the games got postponed. Instead of looking back, Miyavi chose to keep moving forward and is happy to play the song and encouraged those who know the lyrics to sing along.

Not only did fans sing along, there were times Miyavi stopped singing and let them take over throughout the song. The singing along carried over for "Perfect Storm" plus another beautiful voice joined in. His back up singer, Gaby Borromeo, joined in on the duet and the crowd loved every second of it. She joined Miyavi at the front of the stage while she sang and danced along with perfect chemistry that had everyone hyped up. 

Being both a musician and actor Miyavi kept busy while he was stuck in Japan. However, he did not want to think of it as being trapped. "I just wanted to do something that I was able to do because I was in Japan" he explains. Some of his new and upcoming projects include roles in Kate, Bright: Samurai Soul and Arcane: Animated Series, a panelist for the Japanese version of Masked Singer, various activities as a Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR on top of his third child being born. It also got revealed that there will be a music video for the track "Hush Hush" featuring K-Pop idol Kang Daniel off of his latest album Imaginary coming out soon.

Time to get back to the music with songs "Tears in Fire" and "Other Side," both reigniting the same fun atmosphere as the ones prior. Miyavi himself fell into the music pouring all his being into performing, especially during his guitar solo in "Tears on Fire" which took the song to a whole other level. While there wasn't much guitar playing for "Other Side" the raw vocals were captivating. Paired with the singer acting as if he's possessed by the song with his movements, including grabbing the speakers and wires hanging from the ceiling made the song much more personal.

The limited floor space and low ceiling forced Miyavi to improvise on moves he usually does at concerts. To maximize what he can do, practice before the show became important. The biggest problem with the ceiling on the front half of the stage being roughly a foot above his head was jumping. To avoid hitting his head Miyavi made adjustments, which he provided a visual, of tilting his head to the side more than normal to the point it's almost parallel to his shoulder.

"Under the Same Sky" slowed the pace down quite a bit from the rest of the concert. Groups of people scattered throughout the crowd swayed together while others held their hands in the air, slowly waving them side to side. The beautiful tune and vocals reenergized fans to continue partying with everything they have.  

One of the few changes to the original tour setlist is "Super Hero" that got added by popular demand. The older track received enormous amounts of love the second it started. Fan song requests aren't able to be fulfilled often because of the amount of preparation needed to keep the show going smoothly but Miyavi decided to make an exception.  

The next set of songs come from the latest album Imaginary, that dropped back in September. The theme is imagination because it can give you hope for the future. 'When we're planning for the future, it's our time and we get excited" and this is exactly what Miyavi wishes to accomplish with his music. To give fans a moment of hope and to never feel sad.

First song is the title track "Imaginary" followed by "New Gravity." Both songs were packed with overwhelming energy and everyone appeared to be having the time of their lives. Lyrics were being belted out as loud as humanly possible without stop. It's almost hard to believe that both songs haven't been out that long and are still fairly new with how well fans knew them.

If you had to pick a single song to head bang to, "Warrior" is extremely high up the list. If not number one. The only time you'd see anyone in the front row stop was when Miyavi stood at the end of the stage in front of them to avoid hurting said guitarist. Those who are fans of Nirvana will fall in love with the reimagined version of "Smells Like Teen Spirt." The classic song instantly got everyone singing along, no doubt feeling nostalgic.

The most jumping definitely occurred during these four songs; "Fire Bird," "Raise Me Up," "No Sleep Till Tokyo" and "Day 1." Miyavi interacted with the crowd whenever he wasn't killing it on the guitar, sometimes he did both at once. Everything throughout each performance was prefect, even ideal for how a concert should end. Near the end of "Day 1" he told the audience to get as low as possible and on the count of three everyone jumped back up. 

It didn't take long before fans started chanting for Miyavi to return to the stage after he and the others quickly disappeared out the backdoor following "Day 1." Many who were in the first row used the stage as their personal drum to enhance the clapping of those who were farther back. They refused to stop even when bruises began forming on their palms. 

As Miyavi returns to the stage dressed in a tour shirt with the sleeves cut off while holding his phone recording himself with the crowd. He starts jumping up and down creating a beat that everyone joins in by either clapping or hitting the stage floor while chanting the guitarist's name over and over. 

Miyavi experienced a first for himself that's never happened during a show before. Instead of using their cellphone to record videos of the concert, a fan facetimed another so they could see the performance live. "That's new" Miyavi commented while laughing. After calling them cheaters he took the phone from the fan holding it and tried having a conversation with those on the screen. "Next time come to my show. Okay? Your friend will buy your ticket" he joked before returning the device to its owner.

Even though the concert took place on October 20th in the United States, back in Japan it was actually the 21st. This is important because it's Jewelie's, Miyavi's daughter, birthday. To help celebrate her special day, Miyavi requested everyone to sing Happy Birthday as a special gift as he could not be there in person due to the tour. Fans thought it would be neat if Miyavi tried video calling said birthday girl so they could sing to her live instead of through a recording. Many thought he'd say no and only record a video, but he decided to give it a try. "I don't think she's going to pick up, she's at school" he commented and added on with a laugh "I don't want to get scolded by her teachers."

After a few rings with no answer, Miyavi hung up believing she wasn't in a place she could talk. He promised that he'd call her later that night (or day in Japan) to wait for the moment he can wish her a happy birthday. In the end fans sang to his precious daughter through a recorded video which turned out to be longer than expected since Miyavi forgot to press the button to stop recording.

"Another one?" The guitarist couldn't hold back his surprise seeing yet another person facetiming his concert. Because Cobra Lounge is a bar, only legal adults could be in attendance so the phone owner helped her young daughter still see Miyavi live. After learning that the daughter's name is Ava he tells her to attend the next concert in person "Not with your mom, with a boyfriend." Miyavi's joke catches Ava's mother off guard and humorously voices her disapproval. 

One by one the others are brought back to the stage, each getting recognition they deserve before getting back to the music. The first song of the encore is "Over the Rainbow" which is the only instrumental of the night. Fans stay silent for majority of The Wizard of Oz cover, most in awe of Miyavi's skillful playing.

The lyrics 'Sing for survival' in "The Others" hit hard knowing music helped many people through rough moments in their lives, especially recently. Using the last of his energy, Miyavi doesn't stop moving around for the entire song and neither does the audience. 

There's no better way to end the second night of the Chicago leg then with "What's My Name." The guitar heavy song got everyone going wild creating the perfect concert atmosphere that anyone would love to be a part of. He even did one of the jumps he practiced the day prior while playing without missing a beat. 

Both the stage and pit turn into dance floors as the studio version of "New Gravity" starts playing. The ones on stage gave their final bows before walking down the stairs and out the door. Miyavi, however, had other ideas as he quickly turned back around and retuned. Multiple high-fives were given to those close to the stage. Once the chorus hit, everyone including the J-Rocker belted out the lyrics for the first few lines until Miyavi stopped momentarily to admire those who came to see him with a humongous smile on his face as they kept going.

When the song loops back to the beginning Miyavi leaves the stage for the last time, but that didn't stop the party. Instead of looking towards the front, the crowd turned to those around them and danced together until the music got turned off.

Miyavi's mission to make his fans happy though his music succeeded flawlessly. Many who attended not only left Cobra Lounge in high spirts but also with at least one new friend that they can create more memories together. The feeling of pure bliss being surrounded by those who share similar interests while listening to music straight from the artist is something that's been long overdue.