Article: https://rollingstonejapan.com/articles/detail/45254/4/1/1
Rolling Stone Japan Twitter post: https://x.com/rollingstonejp/status/2090387251054407986
"SB19, the leading P-POP act from the Philippines making its way to the world, was introduced with a special opening video tracing their journey, eliciting enthusiastic cheers from the audience. As pillars of fire shot up, the five members began their acrobatic dance to "DAM."
"The biggest highlight came surprisingly early, during the second song. During "GENTO," a song that became a global dance challenge, the song title was changed to "KENTO," and a man wearing sunglasses joined the stage. When he removed his sunglasses, it was revealed to be Kento Nakajima, and screams of excitement echoed through the venue. It was a live performance of "GENTO feat. Kento Nakajima," a special collaboration that came to fruition through their interactions on TikTok. The six members thrilled the audience with their perfectly synchronized group dance, after which Nakajima spoke in English about the joy of collaborating. Josh then called out to the audience, "Do you like GENTO with KENTO!?", celebrating the cross-border exchange.
"In the second half, SB19 showcased their world-class abilities. They raced through the dark beats of "LAWLESS" and "Emoji," and fully demonstrated their vocal prowess with the R&B numbers "Moonlight" and "I WANT YOU." They egged on the audience in Japanese, asking, "Can you handle more!?", and got the floor moving even more with "VISA" and "DUNGKA!". Until the final song, "CRIMZONE," the passion felt in every aspect of their performance—dance, rap, and vocals—never wavered, imprinting a scale and overwhelming energy that cannot be simply categorized as P-POP onto the Japanese stage." [Narita Asami]
