Report/fangirling coming tomorrow, hopefully. Maybe Friday. Three hours to NYC, three hours waiting in the cold, and three hours to get back home...I'm beat!



When I heard Utada would be in New York City, I knew I had to be there. I had to cut a class, take a three-hour trip, and spend about $50 for transportation. But it was definitely worth it. I met someone on the Utadanet message board (I'll call her K here), who not only was coming from Philly as well, but we go to the same school! So she was my travel-buddy. I also had another fan on my contact list who was coming from North Carolina (!!) that I planned to wait outside the Sephora with (I'll call him Q).

Utada made an appearance in LA on Tuesday, and, um...reports of the event said it was quite chaotic. A lot of people didn't get in (what was the point of an RSVP?), and only a few who got in got autographs/pictures with her. And she disappeared suddenly and early. (She apologized on her blog right afterwards. Aww.) Our original plan was to get to the Sephora by about 3 PM (the event started at 6), but early on, we started to wonder whether that was early enough.

I was getting ready that morning, and an e-mail came from Facebook, telling me Sephora had canceled the event. I freaked. But, fortunately, I checked the actual Facebook page, and a note from Sephora said they deleted the page because of high demand, but the event was not canceled. Whew. I packed a copy of Heart Station, a marker, and a camera...because you never know!

We caught the train from Philly around noon. K was IMing someone on her phone, and they said there were about 50 people waiting outside already. We freaked. Q texted me, saying he was on his way to Sephora...and I tragically told him I was still three hours away ;_;

As we continued our trip, the numbers rose to 60...to 70 people waiting. K asked if they were giving out yellow wristbands (guaranteed to get in) yet. Nope. We breathed a sigh of a relief.

We got into New York, grabbed a cab. I told Q I was almost there - like, 8 minutes away. THEY WERE GIVING OUT THE YELLOW WRISTBANDS. The Sephora's on 5th Ave and 48th street, and the cab was driving down 6th Ave...but couldn't make a turn because a truck was in the way. We freak. We tell the driver it's fine, we throw money at him, and then run to the Sephora.

The line's not so bad. We're relieved. The woman in front of us says that the line actually continues further back. We freak again, and go to the real end of the line. We see yellow wristbands, but no one giving them out. I call Q; he says to try asking. I wait in line, and K goes into the store to drop the term "RSVP" XD

No go. We're stuck here, hoping we can get in. (If we had yellow wristbands, we could have walked around and came back later.) Then a woman comes around giving out ORANGE wristbands. SCORE. They tell us we'll get into a separate line from the wristbandless people, and after the yellow group goes in, they'll see if they can let any of us in. So, still stuck in line.

K runs across the street to get something to eat. And about two minutes later, they move the orange group up - WAY up by the door. I text K and tell her to get back ASAP. She jumps back in line with me (and with some food, no worries, she didn't starve).

Most of my pictures are pretty cruddy. Sorry for the EPIC FAIL, but I was shivering:





It was easy to see how this was great promotion for Utada. A line wrapped around the block to see her, and people coming up to us and repeatedly asking what's going on (some asked, "what are they giving away?") K had a copy of This Is The One and showed it to them while I said, "Japanese pop singer, Utada!" It never got old. Some people lost interest as soon as the words "Japanese pop singer" came out of my mouth. One woman knew who she was, and was surprised she would be there. I was particularly amused by this mother and daughter from Mexico...the mother turned to her daughter and asked her, in Spanish, if she knew of Utada. The daughter was clueless. LOL. The new Utada fan inside joke needs to be, "You-tada? Is he any good?"

People across the street were trying to figure out was going on. The building across the street, a few floors up, had people peeking out the window trying to figure out what was going on. And, of course, the press was there.

We realized that, even if we don't get inside, we should be able to see Utada coming into the store. So we all had our cameras ready, and jumped every time people started cheering. Damn them. Every black car seemed really important suddenly. But K spotted Utada first, sitting in the backseat with her father. I saw nothing! The crowd went wild, and somehow, she got in.

They started playing songs from her new album, and we could hear from the outside. Okay, so if we don't get in...we should be able to hear what's going on.

Soon, the yellow group was let in a little at a time, and we're holding our breath, hoping some orange will get in. Eventually, they start letting in some of our group. K and I were getting a little separated at this point, so I grabbed her arm. We were getting in together, damnit. They counted off by 10, stopping at me, and practically pushed me into the store. Oh man. I ran in, but kept looking back. THIS WAS NOT HAPPENING. I couldn't enjoy this. I would feel guilty the entire time.

And then K got in. I think she was in the last group of orange allowed in. We hugged and rejoiced. We made it in!

And in came Utada.





I didn't know until I came home and watched some videos that were posted, but she stopped when she came in (at the front) and signed a few autographs. Aww. Gotta love her. The hostess (don't know her name - from z100) was pretty amusing, and was in awe of Utada's insane fanbase. People were waving stuff - teddy bears, one person drew a picture of her, a lot of us held up CDs (I spotted a few First Loves and a Deep River and UH2 out there).

The hostess asked Utada a few questions. One was about a tour, again. All the previous times, she just said she didn't know, but her answer this time sounds like her label is starting to think about it now. The hostess said it looks like there's enough of a demand. (Agreed!) Who she wanted to collaborate with? Utada said they were all dead...Freddie Mercury and Aaliyah. Her favorite songs? She sang a little bit of the Little Mermaid and part of a Metallica song. Crowd went wild. There was some talk about how Utada writes, composes, and often produces her own music. Someone yelled, "That's what's up!" Utada responded by saying, "Word!"

She finished the interview, and they played "Me Muero." Utada mouthed some of the words and in general looked adorable for the next three minutes. (I know K recorded some of the event - I have to see if she caught that part!)

Then they started a Q&A session. See, this is where I'm kicking myself. Before the event, I tried to think of a question to ask her, but I read all her interviews, so I know the answers already! (And in some cases, what not to bother asking.) The guy with the mic was standing right next to me...and I didn't know what to ask. *sob*

The hostess had said ahead of time, "no marriage proposals!" One guy decided to, instead, asked Utada to dinner. Haha. A Japanese girl asked about her favorite food, in English. Utada replied in English, then thought the girl didn't fully understand, and repeated in Japanese. Someone asked about advice for aspiring singer/songwriters, and Utada gave a wonderful response about not depending on other people's opinions. I heard her say it before, but it gives me the warm fuzzies still. If she makes it here, she'll be a refreshing kind of celebrity - down-to-earth but self-confident, and clearly appreciates her fans deeply.

Then she left early! The event was said to be 6-8 PM, and she was gone at 7:15, I think. At least they told us she was going. So no one got to take pictures with her. (I was so far back that I wouldn't have been able to, anyway.) Bizzarre. We thought we might have longer than they did in LA because she doesn't have anything scheduled (as far as we know) tomorrow, and plus, New York's her home.

But then they told us they had gifts for us, and that there was enough for everyone. But they started with the yellow group, first. Apparently, they got a make-up bag and an autographed poster (JEALOUSY BEAM). Us orange folks got the poster sans autograph, and a lip gloss case (seriously, such a thing exists?). I heard there were still some posters left over and they were given out to the poor saps stuck outside.

Yeah, so that's how I saw Utada. From a distance. Not as awesome as originally advertised, but I greatly enjoyed it nonetheless. K and I agreed they we will stalk her again if she comes around this area again, tour or otherwise.



"Come Back To Me" is up to #72 on Billboard's Pop 100 Airplay charts, and her album's #19 overall on iTunes =)