The Last Dance: You’ll Melt More! Younapi Retirement and Tour Finale
You’ll Melt More! concluded their Surpriser Tour and bid farewell to retiring member Younapi before a sold-out crowd at Zepp Diver City Tokyo on October 20, 2020. It was the long-awaited end of a journey that began back in February and took a detour due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
You’ll Melt More! kicked off the evening with “Yuru Toro (slo-mo!)” as they took the stage before the glow of penlights of the socially-distanced audience wearing masks and face shields. From there, they rolled right into “WOW WOW WAR ~Ska Champon Seisho Sensen~” and “Dahlia” before concluding their opening block with “Reiwa Wonder”.
As the members paused to welcome their fans to the show, Younapi expressed relief that they were finally able to safely return to the stage and that she would give her all in her “retirement match”.
Setting back to the path of music with “Go Out”, “Peke Peke”, “Night Hiking” and “Uta”, You’ll Melt More! brought the audience on a musical journey. A more somber mood swept through the venue with “Eien no Shunkan” serving as a reminder of the performance being Younapi’s last with its choreography featuring the members waving farewell. Flashing lights pierced the darkness, accompanied by the pulsing bass and haunting vocals of “Mottomo Utsukushii mono”. As the stage lights grew brighter, the mood went with it as the members of You’ll Melt More bobbed and weaved to “Gachagaki”. Joining hands in a circle and casting their gaze to the heavens, Younapi, Kechon, Chiffon, Nani, and Nerun began “Watashi no Hanashi, Korede Oshimai” for the last time to close out the emotive block of songs.
The following block of songs blasted off with “Here!”, an energetic fist-pumping tune powered by the hyperactive musical stylings of long-time contributor Hayashi Hiroyuki (POLYSICS). The great curve towards the more uptempo end of You’ll Melt More!’s discography continued with “NEW WAVE STAR” and a sweltering rendition of “Summer Bokan”.
As the members caught their breath after sprinting around the stage, Younapi shared her thoughts about her retirement with the audience, admitting that the finality has yet to sink in, recalling her 7 years in You’ll Melt More!, and thanking everyone for their support.
Recharged, the members kept the momentum surging forward with “You to Piazza”, excitement spilling over into “Hamidasumo!” and “Surpriser!”. Unleashing a wall of screams, You’ll Melt More! clawed their way through “Only You”, the members nearly overwhelmed by emotion as they joined their voices in unison. As she had countless times before, Younapi climbed to the top of a stepladder to sing her solo lines, but as she did, the stage curtains behind her opened, revealing a giant poster with her portrait and the words “YONAPI THANK YOU!!!!!” and “WHITE FLAME FOREVER” (referring to her member color of white). Without missing a beat, they roared on with “Music, 3-4-pun de Owacchimau yo ne” en route to closing out the main performance with “A! Sekai wa Hiroi Sugoi”.
Thanking the audience and taking their bows, You’ll Melt More! left the stage, the encore claps starting up almost immediately. Moments later, they returned, wearing the tour T-shirts and jumping right into “manual of Tokyo girl Gendaishi” followed by “Nigero!!”. Younapi marveled at her poster as the other members ran off stage to gather up flower bouquets to present to her. With arms full of flowers, Younapi expressed her thanks and wondered what “white flame” meant, to which Chiffon replied, “it’s you, isn’t it?”
After posing for the commemorative photo with the audience in the background, the members shared their feelings about the performance, noting how the pandemic had gave them more time with Younapi as her original retirement (March 27, 2020) had been postponed and they had continued to work as a group in the interim. Rocking through “Nigenai!!”, Younapi’s last performance of You’ll Melt More! concluded with longtime closing number “Natsu on Blue”, the members running around the stage with inflatable pool toys.
You’ll Melt More! celebrated their 8th anniversary in October of 2020 and despite this year being a year like no other, they once again showed the determination that has carried them up until this point. After 7 years with the group, Younapi has moved on to concentrate on her solo career and Kechon, Chiffon, Nani, and Nerun have begun their new chapter as a quartet. While the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to change how performers and fans interact with each other while staying safe, You’ll Melt More! seems prepared to ride out the storm and emerge stronger than ever once some sense of normalcy returns to the world.
Setlist
01. Yuru Toro (slo-mo!)
02. WOW WOW WOW WAR ~Ska Chanpon Saisho Sensen~
03. Dahlia
04. Reiwa Wonder
05. Go Out
06. Peke Peke
07. Night Hiking
08. Uta
09. Eien no Shunkan
10. Mottomo Utsukushii Mono
11. Gachagaki
12. Watashi no Hanashi, Korede Oshimai
13. Here!
14. NEW WAVE STAR
15. Summer Bokan
16. You to Piazza
17. Hamidasumo!
18. Surpriser!
19. Only You
20. Music, 3-4-pun de Owacchimau yo ne
21. A! Sekai wa Hiroi Sugoi
EN01. manual of Tokyo girl Gendaishi
EN01. Nigero!!
EN01. Nigenai!!
EN01. Natsu on Blue
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Photos by Kai
Article by Kai, translated to French by Melody