Back when the GnP video came out, this new direction seemed a little awkward for Maki. It seemed like she was just trying to compete with her former contemporary and 3rd gen auditioner, Koda Kumi. While Koda's referred to as "ero-kakkoi", she seems to strike everyone I know as more than a little bit slutty. I was initially a bit upset when Maki was starting to go in that direction, but after seeing the rip of this concert, I am once again a believer.
This concert sets a new high water mark for H!P. It's so much more developed than any other H!P concert I've seen, to the point where one would not recognize it as one. We've known forever that Maki is an amazing singer, dancer, and has amazing showmanship. The stage direction and other performers had never been at her level before. How this concert is put together is just so different than other H!P concerts, that I can't help but think that it's partially because of her performance in Seoul, where UFA seems to desperately want to make some headway.
I think the ratio of female fans to male fans Maki has in Korea is quite telling of the impact that wotas have on H!P's popularity in Japan. When she calls out to the girls in the Japan concert, they're barely audible, but in Korea, they seem just as loud as the guys. With all the mucking about UFA has done with the Japanese market, I think they know how important success in Korea could be, especially after seeing the cross-cultural appeal of performers like BoA.
Some forumgoers have called Maki a "goddess". After seeing the G-Emotion concert, I think I'm finally starting to understand.
Topic: [02/21] Maki Goto Live Tour 2006 ~G-Emotion~ DVD! (Read 31118 times)