Joji w/ SavageRealm and Rei Brown• September 10, 2022• UCCU Center
Reviewed and Photographed by Tomo Crestani
Japanese born singer Joji brought out a massive crowd when visiting the UCCU Center in Orem, Utah. As he continues his Smithereens tour, Joji brought along a few friends to support his performances. For the months of September and October, Joji brings along both Rei Brown and SavageRealm. Selling out very early on, I expected this show to be a fun one. It did not disappoint.
Upon arriving at the venue I noticed the longest line I think I have ever seen at a concert. There were two lines, one general admission and one VIP. Both lines were very lengthy. Right at 7:00, they let everyone in. There was a rush of people running to get to the front. Having listened to Joji a lot I knew his music was a little more laid back and relaxed than most artists. I expected the crowd to be more relaxed and chill during this show. I was wrong. They still brought so much energy and emotion to the venue.
UCCU Center
The UCCU Center did a perfect job hosting this event. From managing lines to making sure the crowds were safe inside, it was an excellent job by all the staff. There were also very clear signs all over the place to make sure everyone knew where to go. This was especially helpful for me because I had never been to this venue. The lighting and sound were on par for any arena tour. Even though it is technically a smaller arena, I was impressed with the quality of show they were able to provide. All the staff from both the artist and the venue were very kind and helpful. They also allowed the photographers to have more access than normal. Making sure we could go up to the top floor to take photos of the entire arena from above.
SavageRealm
First to the stage was SavageRealm. Once he walked on stage he actually just talked to the crowd for a solid 5 minutes. It was kind of funny to have an artist just talk with people from the crowd for a little while before even playing a single song. He also explained he was his own DJ and was using an iPod Classic. It was set on a little table on the corner of the stage. I thought it was super funny that he was using such an old piece of technology on a fairly large tour.
Once he began to play his music the crowd immediately began partying with SavageRealm. He had a few unreleased songs that he played and I really enjoyed all of them. He ended up paying tribute to SpongeBob which was a really fun addition to his set. My favorite of his set would have to be his closing song. It was unreleased and he didn’t give a title. It was a super emotional song that closed his set perfectly.
Rei Brown
Almost immediately after SavageRealm left the stage, Rei Brown entered and began to play his set. Although I had never heard of Rei, I was very impressed by his vocals. Brown matched Joji’s style of music much more than SavageRealm did. He sounds a lot like Joji. He definitely relied on his vocal talent mixing with unique beats.
One thing I noticed was that Rei was making sure to make eye contact with the crowd and wave at many fans. It is always fun to see an artist engaging with specific people in the crowd and making them feel seen. When there are so many people in the arena it could make a big difference to have the person on stage simply wave back to you.
As he closed his set Rei ended with a powerful closing song. He hit very difficult notes and sang with a lot of emotion. He had the entire arena holding their phone lights up and waving them in the air. It was one of the coolest scenes I have seen at a concert.
Joji
There was a little bit of a longer gap until Joji took the stage, but he did eventually come out. He walked onto the stage holding a big camera. It looked like an older camcorder. He carried it around the stage for the entire intro. His intro consisted of his guitarist and drummer going as hard as they could for about 2 minutes. Once the intro ended he stood on his elevated stage and waved at the arena. He explained that he actually used the UCCU as his reference for practice because he had secured this venue very early on. I was surprised that he booked Orem, Utah so early on in his planning process for this tour.
I have listened to Joji for years so it was so fun to listen to all his classic songs that I have known for so long. He opened with “Sanctuary” and had the entire arena singing every word. He also was able to play some of his really old tracks like “Will He”, and “Yeah Right”.
Joji had a lot of interactive props on stage including multiple ways to launch t-shirts into the crowd. He had a catapult that was launching shirts into the back of the arena. He also had a handheld launcher that he was shooting at the crowd below. This was definitely a first for me. I loved the idea of him just having fun on stage. It seemed like he was just enjoying himself the entire time.
Joji ended his set with the current viral song “Glimpse of Us”. It was one of the most powerful performances I have seen live. Although I already loved the song, I came to love it even more since the show.
Overall I would highly recommend any of these three artists. SavageRealm is a little more trap than the other two if that is what you are into. Rei Brown and Joji both sing very soulful songs with beats that you won’t hear anywhere else. I would also recommend visiting the UCCU Center. It was an excellent place to enjoy a concert.