Utada Hikaru Celebrates 40th Birthday with Streaming Concert

An iconic Japanese pop artist just turned 40 – and celebrated the event with 80,000 of their closest fans.

Utada Hikaru has released hit after hit ever since they dropped their first album, First Love, in 1999. They marked the release of their new album, BAD MODE, with one of their once-every-decade birthday concerts on January 19th.

The event, called “40-Dai-wa Iro Iro” (４０代はいろいろ; My Assorted 40s) began with a Q&A session between Utada and their fans. Director Takeru Sato and actress Yoshitaka Yuriko then joined their friend for an intimate discussion of their career.

Utada kicked off the concert with a rendition of their first single “First Love”, which is the inspiration for a new series from Netflix. Utada and Yoshitaka then sang a rendition of “Kimi ni muchuu” (君に夢中, Lost in You), the theme song to the TBS drama Saiai starring Yoshitaka.

宇多田ヒカル『君に夢中』

12月9日(木)0:00 よりミュージックビデオのプレミア公開が決定！ 毎週、金曜日に絶賛放送中のTBS系金曜ドラマ「最愛」の主題歌「君に夢中」。 11月26日(金)より好評配信中！ 今作「君に夢中」は、映画『シン・エヴァンゲリオン劇場版』テーマソング「One Last Kiss」に続き、楽曲のプロデューサーとしてA.G.クックが参加。A.G.クックはイギリスのレーベル・PC Musicの設立者で、チャーリー・XCXらとの作品でも知られる音楽プロデューサー。　　「One Last Kiss」が今年映画とともに大ヒットを見せただけに、最強タッグで臨んだ今作も要必聴。 ●配信シングル 「君に夢中」　好評配信中 https://erj.lnk.to/4knmEP 宇多田ヒカルオフィシャルHP： http://www.utadahikaru.jp/ TBS系金曜ドラマ「最愛」オフィシャルサイト：https://www.tbs.co.jp/saiai_tbs/ We are excited to announce “Kimini Muchuu” music video to premiere on YouTube at 12am December 9. Lead single “Kimini Muchuu” (main theme for TBS Friday night drama “Saiai”) is out digitally on November 26.

The concert used Sony’s 360 Reality Audio technology to create an immersive experience. Fans who missed the initial livestream can view a recording soon on their Web site. Utada also plans to release a photo book of scenes from the concert featuring pics by photographer Sambe Masahiro.

You can also watch their 20th birthday concert and their 30th birthday concert while you wait.

From “First Love” to “BAD MODE”

Utada Hikaru (宇多田ヒカル; birth name 宇多田光) – known affectionately as Hikki – was born in the United States to enka singer/actress Fuji Keiko and her husband. After performing with their parents from a young age as the group U3, Utada released their first breakthrough single, “First Love”, in 1998. They released their first full album of the same name a year later.

First Love was a smash success. In 2019, Oricon named it the “album of the Heisei Era” with 7 million copies sold.

Both domestic and international audience have longed praised Utada for their musicianship. Japanese musician Komuro Tetsuya once referred to Utada as “an artist who makes you think about retiring”.

Utada took a personal break in 2010 to focus on their personal life. They came roaring back in 2016 with two singles, followed by the album Fantome.

Utada had a busy 2022, including a performance at Coachella and releasing their new album, BAD MODE. Utada released BAD MODE the same day of their concert as a digital download. The album is currently available to stream on services such as Amazon (affiliate link; Unseen Japan earns a commission if you make a purchase).

Some English-speaking fans may know Utada thanks to their songs for games and anime. Their single “Face My Fears”, composed with Skrillex, was the theme song for Kingdom Hearts III. And two of their tracks are included in the soundtrack for the feature film EVANGELION:3.0+1.0 THRICE UPON A TIME (SHIN EVANGELION).

In 2021, during Pride Month, Utada officially came out as nonbinary on their Instagram. Their coming out helped raise awareness around nonbinary people and gender diversity in Japan.

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Sources

【オリコン平成ランキング】平成No.1のヒットアルバムは宇多田ヒカル『First Love』 700万枚超え歴代最高売上枚数. Oricon