This chapter is best enjoyed while listening to [Hey Jude].
Located in Saitama Prefecture, the 'Saitama Super Arena' is a megaton-class venue with a capacity of 36,500 people. It is the stage where the semi-finals and finals of [ASAYAN] would be held.
Completed in 2000, the facility is state-of-the-art. In modern times, it is a stadium that holds a status just below the Tokyo Dome—the final goal for singers who have already conquered the Nippon Budokan.
'We were originally going to hold it at the Budokan, though.'
Offline tickets were already sold out and impossible to find. So many viewers flocked to the broadcast station's website that it crashed, leading to the decision to move the event to the much larger Saitama Super Arena.
The [ASAYAN] semi-finals were a grand festival for the entire Japanese archipelago, yet the PD's face was etched with anxiety.
[Manipulating text votes and audience evaluations isn't that hard. Just help us out with that. We'll even help mobilize people for you.]
What [AAA]'s agency and the broadcast station director demanded was match-fixing—a clandestine method enabled by live broadcasts and the spread of mobile phones, impossible for the public to know unless someone leaked it.
The [ASAYAN] PD made his decision. He would follow their instructions, yet not follow them. Even if he became a sacrifice, [ASAYAN]—which was essentially his entire life—would survive.
'Eat shit, you bastards.'
'I don't have the confidence. I don't have the confidence to lose at all.'
The original goal for Enfants Terribles was to reach the finals. Because of that, I gritted my teeth and prepared our setlist.
From my past life, I brought forth the immortal masterpiece [Hey Jude] by The Beatles, and [Can't Stop] by RHCP, which contains the very essence of funk rock. Furthermore, [Tears], composed by Yokishi, is a damn amazing song that carries a man's entire life within it.
"Alright, what's our goal?"
"Quick and decisive!!"
"Brother, I'd prefer if we finished it before I even have to sing."
We placed Yokishi's music last. There was Yokishi's personal insistence, but it was also because the vibe of [Tears] itself felt like the ending credit song of a movie.
Dramatic structure is crucial in a performance. We'd lead the crowd into a sing-along with [Hey Jude], carry that heat into [Can't Stop] to immerse the audience, and then make them weep with [Tears]. That was our plan.
"Over 30,000 people are waiting for us. Let's turn every single one of them into our fans."
"Yeah!"
"Brother, that sounds absolutely fantastic."
A crowd of over 30,000—specifically, 36,500 people—were screaming for us.
The three of us locked eyes.
We had finally made it here. Men who were a mess, owning nothing, had reached the front of 30,000 people armed with nothing but their [sincerity] toward music.
Our eyes were filled with mutual trust.
Individually, we might be disasters, but when we come together, we become the 'terrible children.'
That is 'Enfants Terribles.'
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In the waiting room across from Enfants Terribles, [AAA] was also steeling their resolve. They, too, were people who had dedicated their lives to music.
Nishijima, the leader of [AAA], looked around at his colleagues.
'I admit that [AAA] is at a disadvantage against Enfants Terribles. However, we can't just hand them the victory.'
Nishijima huddles with his teammates to talk.
"We might lose individually, but there are five of us. We can win."
The [ASAYAN] semi-finals had long been tainted by their agencies regardless of their will, but the fact that they were approaching the semi-finals with [sincerity] for music remained unchanged.
Even if the results were distorted, their [sincerity] toward music would not be.
Waaaaaaah!!!
The Host steps onto the center of the stage, riling up the crowd and inducing cheers.
"We will now begin the first stage of the [ASAYAN] semi-finals!!! The first stage belongs to the children who cannot be stopped! Enfants Terribles!!!!"
The first song is [Hey Jude] by the legendary band, The Beatles.
It was a song created by the legendary musician Paul McCartney to comfort the son of his rival and close friend, John Lennon. In my past life, there wasn't a human being breathing on Earth who didn't know the sing-along part at the end.
While the original version has a mood closer to a soft ballad in the beginning, we rearranged it with a rougher sound to suit a live performance. Instead, to maintain the original feeling of tenderly comforting a child, I sang with a clear and refreshing voice, unlike my usual style.
The crisp instrumental sound blended with the clear, refreshing vocals to create a sense of coolness and invigoration.
The members of [AAA] watched the performance of Enfants Terribles with clenched fists. That song surpassed being 'great'; it was a masterpiece worthy of being called 'legendary.'
Even before their own stage began, they had a premonition of defeat. They could never beat that song.
If the quality of the other songs was at this level, their defeat in the semi-finals was certain.
We intended to send a message of comfort to the world through this song.
Although Paul McCartney wrote this for his friend's son, its sincerity cemented it as a song that comforted hearts across the entire globe.
As the song reached its climax, 36,500 audience members began to sing along with Enfants Terribles. The sight of over 30,000 people holding each other's shoulders and singing the same song was nothing short of overwhelming.
In a world where band music didn't exist and thus 'sing-alongs' didn't exist, Enfants Terribles had created a new concept.
That historic scene continued for over three long minutes.
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The first round was a victory for Enfants Terribles.
"In some ways, it's a natural result! The winner is Enfants Terribles!!!"
As the Host's words finished, a result of 2:1 was announced on the screen behind the stage.
"However, [AAA]'s potential is not to be underestimated!! [AAA] takes the win in the text voting!!!"
As the Host's voice rang out, the stands were filled with murmurs. To the audience's ears, Enfants Terribles' [Hey Jude] was absolutely superior. And yet, they lost the text vote.
It was a bizarre phenomenon.
Under the shadow of doubt from both the performers and the audience, the second round commenced.