Enka singer Hiroshi Miyama appeared at a rehearsal for the 75th NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen(General and other channels) held at the NHK Hall in Shibuya, Tokyo on December 29th.
When Miyama appeared at the press conference, the press asked him to take a photo of himself "playing kendama." He then turned his gaze to the camera and demonstrated playing kendama without looking, drawing cheers of "Wow!"
Although he failed in the Kendama challenge last year, he said, "I'm going to make a strong decision this year and have a good 2025." This will be his 10th consecutive appearance at the Kohaku Uta Gassen, and he said, "It's important to me whether I can appear at a Japanese festival. Now that I've come this far, I want to keep going."
He said that those who failed last year will also be participating in the Kendama Challenge, and sent the message, "I hope you will feel good and prepare for next year."
The 75th NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen will be broadcast on December 31st from 7:20pm to 11:45pm (with some news breaks). Hiroiki Ariyoshi, Kanna Hashimoto, Sari Ito, and announcer Naoko Suzuki will be the hosts.
