He’s really settling into his new YouTuber gig.
Back in October the former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe surprised everyone by starting his own YouTube channel. At the time, it was unclear if he would truly embrace the format or just use it as a simple campaign platform, but there were small signs he was getting into it, like this cooking video of a katsudon bento.
Admittedly, that was just flirting with the genre, because it’s really just a veiled stump for the general election that was only a week away. Katsudon has the word “katsuwhich is synonymous with “winning” in Japanese, so in a way, he’s more or less a bit lucky here.
However, this time he really outdid himself and put on a piano performance that seems to have no other ulterior motive than to entertain. The video was actually shot a while ago for use during the Japan Spirit Concert 2021 held last October. However, he now shares it with everyone on YouTube.
So, without further ado, here is the former Prime Minister Abe performing Hana with Saku at the piano.
▼ The intro is about a minute long if you feel like jumping right into the action
Now, maybe my expectations were really low, but… that was pretty good, wasn’t it? It was not only technically sound, but it even seemed to put just the right subtle emotion into the song as well.
For those who don’t know, Hana wa Saku was a song created following the 2011 Tohoku earthquake as a tribute to lost people, and was sung by a large number of actors, singers and celebrities in a we are the world fashion.
▼ Here is the original video for comparison.
Again, I’m having a hard time getting used to it, but I think I prefer Abe’s version? To make matters even more shocking, at the end of the video, he admits to having given up the piano in first grade about 60 years ago. He says he only recently restarted, most likely after retiring as prime minister in 2020.
I still have a hard time believing my own opinion on this, so let’s see what others online had to say.
“Wait a minute! He can play the piano?
“I cried a little”
“He said he only played in primary school, but I’m really impressed with his ability.”
“He seems like a totally different person.”
“He doesn’t just play well. He plays well.
“It’s a Christmas present from Abe!”
“Oh, he’s becoming a complete YouTuber now!”
“Abenopiano”
“I so wanted him to say ‘please subscribe’ at the end.”
“Maybe AbePiano and PanPiano can have a collaboration.”
Others seem to like it, so I guess the former head of state really does have some chops after all. Even non-Shinzo Abe fans really have to give it to him for this video, if only to encourage him to step even closer into the conventional YouTuber sphere.
Once we get that game flow, it will finally be here. I feel like this apple game from Aomori is a great chance to give it a try.
Source: YouTube/あべ晋三チャンネル via Hachima Kiko
Top image: YouTube/あべ晋三チャンネル
● Want to be up to date with the latest articles from SoraNews24 as soon as they are published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!