Ayumi Hamasaki Sekai - [2007][article] Love me? LOVE OUR EARTH

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SHE may be dressed like a Snow Queen, but there is nothing icy about J-pop star Mika Nakashima.

So what if she has often been portrayed as cool and mysterious, whether in her music videos or her big-screen debut, Nana, in which she plays a punk rocker.

But at Tokyo Kokusai Forum where she performed to a full-house crowd of 5,000 last Thursday as part of her ongoing Yes My Joy concert tour, the petite songbird was more like an endearing picture of girlish innocence instead.

A consummate performer, she was a joy to watch.

She belted out her signature power ballads like Stars, Will and Yuki No Hana with confidence, composure and class in an emotive style uniquely her own. She even sings barefoot.

But, in between songs, the 24-year-old chanteuse would curtsy, giggle and even banter with fans who screamed out to her.

When fans shouted 'Mika-san kawaii (cute)!', she chuckled and joked softly: 'I already know that...'

And when one guy asked how much her wig cost, she replied: 'I won't tell!'

Her impish side also showed when she tied a knot in her face towel, covered her eyes and pitched it to the crowd as a souvenir.

But, most of all, Mika proved to be a role model with a heart of gold, when she spent a good five minutes delivering an eco-friendly message about saving the earth.

She spoke about her childhood and how she was taught since young that global warming would one day destroy the earth.

Everything forecasted on TV then is now starting to come true, faster than she can imagine, she said, so she hopes to do her part to save the earth.

To start, everyone can take a leaf from her book. She said she uses her own water tumbler, recyclable shopping bags and non-disposable chopsticks.

And she proved she was not just paying lip service. When someone in the crowd asked to see her chopsticks, she promptly whipped it out from backstage.

'Give it to us as a present!' someone screamed.

A laughing Mika refused, explaining that she has already used it.

But she continued: 'If the 5,000 people here can stop using disposable chopsticks, we can help cut down on a lot of waste. Don't you think it's a good idea to try to change the present situation?'

With that, Mika ended her two-hour gig with a moving rendition of the Louis Armstrong classic, What A Wonderful World.

BETTER VOCALS

MTV Taiwan's resident J-pop and K-pop expert Ken Wu said: 'This is Mika's most complete showcase to date. Her vocals have improved more than 100 times. She didn't have stable vocals before, but now she can control them so freely, like a superstar.

'She can be like a little girl when interacting with the crowd, but when she sings, she takes charge of the stage as a grown-up.'

The VJ also recalled how Mika was so nervous on stage two years ago that she behaved like a shy newbie who dared not interact with fans lest she forgot her lyrics.

'Last time she was scared and nervous on stage, so she never talked. But now that she is able to share her feelings, it shows she has matured and grown accustomed to the stage.'

Discovered in an audition in 2001, husky-voiced Mika had beat 3,000 girls to win the debut role of an aspiring singer in the drama Tainted Love Song, starring opposite Katsunori Takahashi.

She made her musical debut with the stirring CD single Stars and quickly shot to stardom, selling more than 1.1 million copies of her debut album, True.

But it was the deeply moving single Yuki No Hana that brought her fame in Asia in 2003. (See report, above.)

She then literally morphed into cool punk rocker Nana in the titular movie that would bring her international acclaim.

With her latest album Yes, which is out in stores here, she has officially bid her Nana phase farewell and returned to being the Queen of Ballads.

Explaining her song title to Oricon Style magazine recently, she said: 'It's positive and nobody hates the word.

'And I want to live life saying 'yes' instead of 'no' to things that come my way.'

Mika tries to lead by example instead, be it chasing dreams, campaigning for a good cause, or something as simple as embracing life.

On stage, she talked about her new project, a fairytale pictorial book to be released next month.

She revealed she has always loved reading fairytales as a child, and hopes her book will leave the same lasting impression on others.

Also, she did not even try to impress with fanciful costume changes during the Tokyo concert, limiting herself to just four outfits that blended well with each segment.

From the elegantly elaborate Snow Queen, she changed into a simple beige dress with black embroidery which she had personally picked in New York.

And she needed no smoky eyes or a punk Lolita outfit to get the crowd moving when delivering Nana theme songs Glamorous Sky and Hitoiro.

After all, she's no longer Nana the manga-adapted rocker, just Mika clad in a rather classy red-black checkered dress that's a more feminine version of her usual punk style.

Not the sort to scream the roof down, her fans sat and listened intently when her beautiful ballads filled the air.

Perhaps the biggest compliment to her would be to stop using disposable chopsticks and help her save the earth?

http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/show/st...130545,00.html