WEST.” members reported “Limit”… Performance of debut song “Ee-jana-nai” has been changed!

Important concerns” over his debut song

In April 2002, the seven-member group WEST. made its CD debut with the release of its first single, “Ee Jana Yana”. As they approach the 12th anniversary of their debut this April, some of the members have confessed to health problems they are experiencing. They declared that their performance of their debut song may change in the future.

WEST. is a group of seven members from Kansai Junior, and debuted in April 2002 with the festive song “Ee ja ja nai” (the group name at that time was “Johnny’s WEST”), which is characterized by its cheerful tune. On the January 24, 2012 broadcast of the radio program “bay-na-na-na-na” (bayfm), member Takahiro Hamada (37) began by saying, “May I complain out of the blue?

He explained that during the interlude of the song, there is a part in which he and Tomohiro Kamiyama (32) each perform acrobatics. It has been 12 years since his debut, and he said, “My back is starting to hurt. I told the MC at one of the live performances that I wanted to cut down the number of songs.

During the concert on December 31 and January 1, Hamada asked the members to cut the acrobatics of “Ee-jana-nai” (I want to cut it). The concert was broadcast live on “FAMILY CLUB online,” so fans who could not attend the concert learned about Hamada’s “earnest proposal.

When the two perform acrobatics, the other five performers are dancing, but Hamada said on the radio, “They are dancing like, ‘What are you doing?　I was wondering what they were doing. I mean, after our acrobatics, isn’t it too weak?　I think it’s too weak after our acrobatics,” Hamada blurted out.

After Hamada and Kamiyama performed acrobatics such as “Folia” and “Butterfly,” the five dancers danced a dance called “Wave,” which Hamada jokingly said, “Weak, weak, weak, weak!　Hamada jokingly said, “It’s weak, weak, weak!

Thus, Hamada wants “ee-jana-nai” without acrobatics, but he also said, “I may still work hard (on acrobatics) in my 12th year,” about singing on TV programs. In fact, he unveiled a new “ee-jana-jana” on stage the other day when he was not on TV.

WEST. held a free live performance in front of Tokyu Kabukicho Tower (Cine City Plaza) in Shinjuku, Tokyo, on January 23. As seen in the video “[WESTube Live Distribution] WEST. Special Street Live” uploaded on the group’s YouTube page, they sang “Ee ja ja ja” in the first song, but the acrobatic part in the interlude had already “sealed” their previous skills. “. Terushi Kiriyama (36) said, “The latest version!” Terushi Kiriyama (36) introduced the newest version.

This time, the stage was an outdoor stage, which was different from a regular concert, so the change may have been made as a precaution. Nevertheless, both Hamada and Kamiyama had been showing signs of back pain for some time.

You have to think about when to stop.”

In June 2009, Hamada reported on stage that he had a backache while changing costumes during the Kumamoto leg of the tour. He was dancing while covering his back during the latter half of the show. Kamiyama also reported on the January 2010 broadcast of “CDTV Live! Live! (TBS), which aired in January 2010, he later confessed on the radio that he had suffered from a slipped back on the day of his live appearance. He had experienced a number of back problems in the past, and he revealed that he had to wear a corset for “CDTV” to prepare for the show.

Many fans are probably aware of these circumstances. In response to Hamada’s claim that he wanted to cut the acrobatics in “Ee-jana-nai” on SNS,

[Claire] I was hoping this day would come one day. …… I’ll miss you, but I hope you take care of your hips.
I know how you two feel about your backs, so just take it easy on yourselves!
[Dramaworld] Thank you, Hama-chan, for trying to do your acrobatics even just a little bit better. Stay healthy!
Of course I want to see the acrobats in Ee-ay-na-nai, but I’ll be sad if you two get injured. I think it’s good for them to evolve as they get older.

Many of the comments were positive.

In the past, “V6” (disbanded on November 1, 2009) was one of the groups that excelled at acrobatics at the former Johnny’s (now STARTO ENTERTAINMENT), but in later years, there were fewer opportunities for acrobatics. Currently, “A.B.C-Z” is a mid-sized group that continues to include acrobatics in their performances, including Ryoichi Tsukada (39).

However, Tsukada was once asked by a member of “20th Century,” a unit formed by the three older members of V6, “You are doing acrobatics, right? You have to think about when to stop. Your body is important. If you break your body, you won’t be able to do anything.” In a “documentary series RIDE ON TIME” (Fuji TV, broadcast on January 20, 2011), he talked about this.

Hiroshi Nagano, 53, of 20th Century, recalled in a variety show he appeared in in ’19 that the last time he did a backflip was two years ago. He said that the audience would have been excited in the past, but gradually they began to buzz when he went on standby, and that there was an air of relief after a successful backflip. Akihiko Inohara (49) stated, ‘You should stop when it’s not cheers anymore. Even though the former Johnny’s have excellent physical abilities, acrobatics inevitably come with the risk of injury. As they get older, it is inevitable that the talents themselves think about when they should quit.

Hamada said on the radio that if there are no more acrobatics in “Ee-jana-nai”, “Hamada, please remember that you used to say ‘my back hurts'”. It will be interesting to see how the choreography of “Ee-jana-na-nai” will change in the future.