Lighting designer Naoki Ito chose to work with Ayrton Rivale Profiles for Chiai Fujikawa at Tokyo’s Nihonbashi Mitsui Hall on 13 June.
Ito of OverTheClip kept his eyes fixed on the rigging over the empty stage. Overhead, his meticulously crafted visual arsenal sat waiting – 22 units of Ayrton Rivale Profile moving lights, positioned to turn sound waves into pure, unadulterated sight.
The silence snapped. A heavy, young hard beat exploded from the speakers, and instantly, the Ayrton Rivale Profile units fired into life. Piercing laser-like beams cut through the haze, moving in totally precise lockstep with the ferocious rhythm. The sharp, ultra-defined beams slashed across the venue, matching the aggressive pulse of the opening tracks and sending a physical jolt of absolute excitement through the crowd.
As the concert progressed, Chiai Fujikawa’s vocal range began to shift from raw, high-velocity rock to deeply vulnerable, cathartic emotions. This was where Ito’s artistry shone. Leveraging the incredible versatility of the Rivale Profile, Ito smoothly transitioned the atmosphere: the aggressive, biting strobes evolved into deep, saturated textures that enveloped the singer in a haunting glow. When the singer hit her peak emotional crescendos, the 22 Rivale fixtures blossomed outward, painting the entire room in a breathtaking display of light that felt like an extension of her very soul. The crowd didn’t just hear the heartbreak and triumph in her voice; they saw it fracture and bloom across the arena walls.
By the time the final echoes of the encore faded, the crowd was left breathless, completely swept away by the seamless world Ito had expanded for her music. Looking up at his rig as the live-venue lights finally came up, Naoki Ito reflected on the performance. He had chosen the Rivale Profile precisely because of its unmatched versatility, which was capable of keeping pace with the immense creative depth of an artist like Chiai Fujikawa. Yet, even after a triumphant show that perfectly bridged intense hard rock and fragile catharsis, the designer smiled. He knew this was only the beginning; he was still exploring the fixtures, driven to draw out the full, untapped potential of the Rivale Profile for the next grand stage.
