So much to tell about this trip! I'll do my best to tell it all...
At 4:30am December 25, 2009 we all arrived at the airport in Atlanta to catch a 6:30am flight to Houston, TX. We catch a connecting flight about 2 hours later headed for Tokyo (13 hour flight) Needless to say, we got some great sleep on the plane. (at least I did!)
Around 3:45pm December 26 we land in Tokyo (they are 12 hours ahead of us on the east coast) and we checked into the hotel - only to leave an hour later to head to JWave radio for an interview and an on air live performance. The city was lit up with white Christmas lights and lots of people walking about the city. So pretty... Anyway, we sing two songs, "Tennessee" and "the World Is Changing" and answer several questions. Then we took a few pics and headed to our hotel for some much needed rest.
The next day, we have sound check at Billboard to make sure the sound is right for the show day #1. The wait staff at Tokyo Billboard is so nice! After each show they would line up in the hallway and cheer for us as we returned to our dressing room. It was so cool. They fed us in between shows (the food was delicious!) then we freshened up for show number 2! Yep, that's right! We did 2 shows per night and each show was at least 70 minutes long. And for those of you who have been to an Arrested Development concert, you know we don't sit still! BTW, our first show was recorded and aired live on Pay Per View (that was cool!) After the shows, we signed autographs and took a lot of pictures (see below). We performed for 2 sold out crowds!!
Next day, we got to sleep in because we didn't have to be back at Billboard until 6pm. And that day, I slept until 4pm! I was wore out completely. I slept so good I didn't even get food. I just drank water and ate the meal replacement bars I brought from home, ha! Show day #2 was just as successful as the first day. Both shows were sold out and we were signing autographs for a long time. It's really cool to look out in the crowd and see people singing along to the songs- just proves that there is no language barrier in music. The audience seemed to be drawn to the music by the feeling they got as they heard it. It was awesome.
Now with 4 shows down and 4 more to go, we pack up and head to Osaka which is an hour flight away from Tokyo. This was a travel/free day as we did not have a show that night. A break I believe we all needed.
The last 2 days of 2009, we spent on stage rocking in Osaka! We played to 4 sold out crowds and it was a blast! The more we did the show, the better it got. People dancing everywhere and singing along to all the songs-amazing. I even saw a couple who appeared to be in there late 50's early 60's singing and dancing to the music. So encouraging!
The second show we did on New Year's Eve was also recorded and it was the best show of the entire tour! People screaming everywhere, over 80% of the audience stayed on their feet the entire time! We sang for about 70 minutes then took a 20 minute break. We came back on stage at 5 minutes til the new year with wine glasses and noise makers to count down the new year. A hugh clock is displayed on the screen and then the count down begins 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! The entire room is filled with celebration, toasts, and cheers! Then we sing about 4 more songs and end our concert. Shake a ton of hands and give well wishes to everyone. About 5 minutes after we've left the stage, someone comes backstage and asks us to do a double encore because the fans have been cheering for us to come back for the past 5 minutes! Can you believe that? That is so awesome! I was so humbled by the entire experience. And we went back out and did 2 more songs! I don't know where they got all that energy from but I'm glad they had it!
I returned to my hotel room exhausted and exhilarated! It was hard to sleep but I eventually drifted off to sleep.
This trip was one of the funnest trips we've taken and I look forward to more shows in 2010. Here are a few pics from the tour taken by different members of the group.
For more pics, info, tour dates, videos, etc you can visit our website at www.arresteddevelopmentmusic.com and join our mailing list.
We are all on facebook (arrested development), myspace, and twitter- which ever social network you prefer ;o)
A.D. advertisement in the subway/ Tokyo in the daylight/President Barak and Michelle Obama dolls!
Pic of candy in a coner store in Tokyo/ street life in Japan/ Sold out A.D. CD stand in HMV record store!
Fans stand in line for autographs after Tokyo show/ Billboard Live sign/ more autograph sigings
A.D. group shot at JWave radio station.
