See Rina Sawayama Perform ‘Bad Friend' With NewJeans' Hyein at Tokyo Show
See Rina Sawayama Perform ‘Bad Friend' With NewJeans' Hyein at Tokyo Show
K-pop stars NewJeans played a pair of sold-out shows at Japan's Tokyo Dome this week, and on Thursday, the group welcomed Rina Sawayama onstage for a surprise appearance to perform one of that singer's biggest hits.
During each gig, the members of NewJeans each deliver a short solo set, and during Hyein's portion, she opted to sing Sawayama's 2020 single "Bad Friend," during which the Japan-born Sawayama herself came out to assist on her own track, Stereogum reports:
The Tokyo shows follow NewJeans' latest single, "Supernatural," which also marks the group's first singles (along with "Right Now") sung in Japanese. Prior to the arrival of "Supernatural," NewJeans hinted at their entrance into the Japanese market with a "Right Now" video, a collaboration with Takashi Murakami that also leaned into the Powerpuff Girls iconography.
Since their debut in 2022, NewJeans have used each of their new music releases to expand their musical palette. Speaking with Rolling Stone in 2023 about their EP Get Up, which also featured prominent Powerpuff Girls allusions, member Hanni shared, "Everything about our new songs is … fresh. Compared to our previous releases, this new mini album definitely has a lot more variety to offer, in not just genre of music and dance style, but what we are striving to express and show to you."
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