On September 4th, idol group Nogizaka46 held the final performance of their "Midsummer National Tour 2024" at Meiji Jingu Stadium (Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo). Jingu Stadium, known as Nogizaka46's "holy ground," was the final venue for the group's summer tour, which began on July 20th with a total of seven performances in Osaka, Aichi, and Tokyo. The seven performances drew in 265,000 people, surpassing the 250,000 who attended last year's Midsummer National Tour.
The concert began on a castle-like stage, with the members dressed up as princesses. Halfway through, they changed into summery outfits such as yukata for each song, entertaining the fans.
This day also marked the eighth anniversary of the third-generation members joining the group. Third-generation member and captain Umezawa Minami said with a smile, "Before I knew it, I was in the top class, and I had a lot of cute juniors." The first and second generation members graduated, and the third generation members are now leading the group. This year's tour is the second year, but in order to deepen their relationships with their juniors, they interacted with them without showing any weakness or trying to cover up their past. "I was able to go on tour with the feeling that I had become closer to them," she said, reflecting.
Inoue Kazu, who led the tour as the center of the latest single, said she felt pressured, saying, "I thought I had to show that I had grown from last year, and last year I received a lot of help from my peers and seniors, so I felt that I had to lead them." She tearfully confessed, "I was really scared to go on tour in this position."
However, she revealed that the other members had kindly told her, "It's okay to run away," and added, "There are so many people who are willing to lend a hand at any time, and I love Nogizaka46 like that. I think I can do anything for Nogizaka46."
The concert ended on a high note after the encore, but the audience's enthusiasm was still high, as they all sang along to "Nogizaka46!", leading to a surprise double encore. They performed "Cheat Day" for the second time that day.
After the double encore, Inoue expressed her gratitude to the fans once again, saying, "I was crying a lot in the second half, but it was really, really fun and I was happy!". Umezawa mentioned the ongoing auditions for the 6th generation of members, saying, "I'm sure we'll come back to you all next year with new members," and added, "We're excited to see what kind of girls will join us, and we're ready to welcome them, so please look forward to it! Let's see an even more amazing view together next year than this year!"
