HYDE [INSIDE] LIVE 2025 WORLD TOUR Live Report: Tokyo Show

Who would’ve thought I’d be calling this HYDE’s greatest show yet? The madness set off as “HYDE [INSIDE] LIVE 2025 WORLD TOUR” kicked off its first night on June 21st at Zepp Haneda, Tokyo left me with no other option. The stage and audience worked off one another, creating bombarding waves of energy, as if the venue itself was alive and wild, roaring in marvelous unity, taking the aggressive live-style that HYDE has been forever seeking to its peak. And that’s not an exaggeration. After the release of his newest album in five years, “HYDE [INSIDE]” released in October last year, he set out on tours “HYDE [INSIDE] LIVE 2024”, “HYDE [INSIDE] LIVE 2024 -EXTRA-“, “HYDE [INSIDE] LIVE 2024 WORLD TOUR”, traveling nationwide across Japan, as well as Asia and America. The newest installment, “HYDE [INSIDE] LIVE 2025 WORLD TOUR”, expands the show in a 5 month tour across not only Japan, but also South America, Asia, and Europe, making it his grandest scale world tour to date. (The report below will include details from said show. Caution for spoilers for those planning to attend the tour.)

As the show starts at 17:06, a digital clock projected onto the stage’s black curtain reads “16:66”, filling the room with shouts of delight as HYDE’s beloved devil’s number “666” emerges. As the curtain rises, revealing a theatrical stage set whose concept has been passed down from the previous domestic and international tour named after the same album title. Amongst the classical decorations, reminiscent of a circus, a tall podium in the middle of the stage catches my eye. As the band members make their way in, in their usual masks, the imposing mood hits its peak, and HYDE appears on the podium. The immediate excitement is explosive.

Opening the show was “LET IT OUT”, essentially the first number on “HYDE [INSIDE]”. Growling out “Wake it up / Get it started now” in a low voice, it was the perfect phrase to instigate the madness. As HYDE spread his arms over the podium, moving his fingers and urging the crowd to “go crazy”, the audience answered in a sing-along with their fists high in the air. Though it’s been a whole eight months since HYDE’s last domestic show, “HYDE [INSIDE] LIVE 2024 -EXTRA-” held last year October, the perfect harmony of the moment filled the gap.

“We’ve started this year again. Were you all waiting for me? Let’s let out everything you’ve built up inside here, today. We’re gonna go crazy together, Tokyo! Make this a fun night for me.”

After stepping off the podium, HYDE dropped aggressive numbers “AFTER LIGHT” and “I GOT 666” back to back, calling out to the audience, enticing them, before bursting into “DEFEAT”. Making a 180 from its glamorous, jazzy intro, this song bared its fangs towards its listeners, devouring them as HYDE tore off his half-mask to the squeals of the crowd. During the especially hard and heavy “BLEEDING”, HYDE jumped on the large barrel on the stage left, and putting his foot on the speaker as he roared out shouts, and in “TAKING THEM DOWN” HYDE leaned out into the floor from the stage, not backing down even as waves of crown surfers pushed towards him one after another, taking a loud speaker and fighting back with his sensational voice in an irresistible way.

Gently soothing the delirium with his piano’s sound, hico (Key.) played an eloquent keyboard solo as an interlude, renewing the mood of the venue, and amid the solemn atmosphere started “Tokoshie”. This was a self-cover of the song originally released as the ending theme for TV anime “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Hashira Training Arc” under the name HYDE × MY FIRST STORY, and the band members were able to bring out a heavier band sound from the original, working wonders to embody the atmosphere HYDE was seeking. The crowd was enchanted by HYDE’s exceptional vocalization, with its deep and dramatic reverb. Heavily nuanced with Japanese sound, it’s no doubt this song plays an important role in the show.

“The break is over. There’s no stopping us now. Are you ready? We’re all gonna become one and go wild together” declared HYDE, daringly, giving us not even a moment to linger on “Tokoshie”. “Let me see your brains shaking!” he shouts as “6or9” starts, and on command with the words “3, 2,1”, the audience jumps from a crouch. And just as HYDE declared, the show burst off into a chaotic whirlwind. Astonishing with his forceful long shouts as he covers “Given Up” by Linkin Park, the floor spins into a state where anything goes, from head banging to crowd surfing to moshing, but HYDE demands “I want to see more chaos”, creating uncontrollable excitement for “SOCIAL VIRUS”, and during “MIDNIGHT CELEBRATION II”, HYDE takes off his shirt, pouring fake blood on his head and rampaging from one side of the stage to the next, dripping dark red everywhere.

The heat grows, knowing no peak. But, one might say the true backbone of this tour lied within “LAST SONG” which followed. As the title foreshadows, it is the last song on “HYDE [INSIDE]”, and the only ballad on the album. That song, soft at first, cheerful even, links with the isolated feelings of the lyrics’ protagonist, and slowly fills with lunacy. As red light shines and confetti fluttered down, he kneels on the stage, head covered in blood and bursting in intense emotions, HYDE’s soul crushing vocals and heart filled performance might be the true embodiment of this work’s title itself, his “INSIDE” on display. Even when he falls to the ground and goes out of view as the black curtains lower, the audience is still for a moment. The applause and ovation to follow was deafening.

Once more, the curtain rises. But HYDE is nowhere to be seen. As the band members maintain the flow with their splendorous playing, a sturdy ensemble comes together piece by piece. A tough voice singing out “This feels unreal to me” was the checkmate. The room comes to life as we realize “it’s “PANDORA”!” and HYDE shows up on the second floor. A mic in one hand, and a water gun in the other, HYDE makes his way down the aisles as those on the first floor look up after him, and aims and fires at the audience. The atmosphere of Zepp Haneda (TOKYO) comes to a boil at this surprise.

After that, HYDE returned to the stage, introducing a new band member, miki (Ba.), who’s joining this tour. “I hope you’ll get along with him. All of my band members are so handsome. I’m not quite sure why we’ve got them all in masks haha” he brags to the audience. Going on, he talks about how he thought he would spend 2025 focusing on music production and wasn’t planning on doing too many shows, before he realized, between music fests and other things, the year was filled with live shows. “So I’m gonna make it a fun year for everyone. Will you join me for the ride?” he asked. “Well then can you get a little crazy again?” he laughs, and pulls out “Mugen,” which was originally released under the name MY FIRST STORY × HYDE, the opening theme for TV anime “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Hashira Training Arc”, bringing the mood back up as the show rolled to a close. “Don’t leave any regrets! Come on, I’m about to go around the globe! This is day one, show me the good stuff!” says HYDE as drops the last number, “SEX BLOOD ROCK N’ ROLL”. With that chaotic and exuberant finale, the curtains closed on the first night of the “HYDE [INSIDE] LIVE 2025 WORLD TOUR”. HYDE’s journey, and this tour, has only just begun.

Text by Yuko Honma