On 30 September 2018, X JAPAN’s third-straight night of sold-out concerts for 100,000 fans — X JAPAN LIVE IN JAPAN 2018 THREE DEEP RED NIGHTS AT MAKUHARI MESSE — was suddenly cancelled due to the impending weather effects of Typhoon Trami.
With concern for the safety of fans as their top priority, X JAPAN sent the entire audience home and announced that the band would perform an unprecedented large-scale closed-door concert with complete stage effects and crew which was broadcast to an audience of over 1 million viewers.
Band leader YOSHIKI told Billboard Magazine, “It was really hard to deal with that situation. Before we decided to cancel the show, we had around 10,000 fans at the venue already. But we had to think about the safety of the fans first… When we announced the cancellation, there was such a loud reaction — we could hear it everywhere inside the venue. So we made the quick decision to broadcast the show for everyone to watch safely from home.”
“Playing full strength in front of all those empty seats was a little strange,” YOSHIKI continued, “but we could hear the screams of the fans in our hearts, just as we always hear the voices of our late members Hide and Taiji. No matter what the situation, I believe the show must go on. Nothing is impossible.”
X JAPAN’s 3-hour full-length concert without an audience is now streaming worldwide via Nico Nico’s Yoshiki Channel in Japan and the newly-launched Yoshiki Channel International subscription service on YouTube.
Yoshiki Channel International is currently available in 40 countries outside Japan including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Finland, France, Greece, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Philippines, Sweden, Taiwan, UK, USA.
Earlier this week it was announced that Yoshiki will make guest appearances on Sarah Brightman’s HYMN World Tour including New York’s Radio City Music Hall and Hollywood’s Dolby Theater, The Masonic in San Francisco, and Yokohama Arena in Japan. Recently, YOSHIKI paired with Brightman for her concert film which premiered in U.S. theatres in November and is currently showing on PBS stations across the United States. Brightman joined YOSHIKI on stage to perform the song Miracle during his sold-out YOSHIKI CLASSICAL 2018 concert series in Tokyo which was broadcast internationally on Yoshiki Channel.
The digital single of Miracle – composed by YOSHIKI, performed by Sarah Brightman featuring YOSHIKI’s performance on piano – was released worldwide on November 16, reaching the Top 10 on iTunes Classical Charts in 15 countries, including #1 in Mexico, Singapore, and Japan, #2 in Brazil, and #5 in the USA and Germany.
Source: Press release
