Kawaii metal J-pop group BABYMETAL started their 2018 world tour in Kansas City on Tuesday night down one member. Yui Mizuno, or Yuimetal, was missing in action, resulting in only Suzuka Nakamoto, dubbed Su-metal, and Moa Kikuchi, Moametal, in attendance.
Neither BABYMETAL nor the act’s management company Amuse Inc addressed the absence before or after the show. As of Wednesday, there is no update regarding the rest of the group’s upcoming U.S stops, including sold-out shows on Thursday and Friday in Austin and Dallas, respectively.
Su-metal and Moametal were joined by two dancers onstage along with their band as they performed a set that featured 11 songs, including their new single “Distortion.”
The act performed as a duo last December in Hiroshima, reportedly due to Yuimetal being ill. No image of Yuimetal has appeared on the group’s Twitter account since November.
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The Kansas City show came just days after BABYMETAL announced that they will launch a new label, and also start featuring seven “metal spirits” during their world tour. No clarification has been given regarding what that means, but the music video for “Distortion” featured seven supernatural beings; the members of BABYMETAL did not appear.
Upon the news of Yuimetal’s absence, Amuse Inc.’s stock dropped drastically on May 9 in Japan but upon market opening on May 10 it appeared to be recovering.
Confirmed @DownloadFest #DL2018 !!#BABYMETAL #UK pic.twitter.com/z3zLQuvBBn
— BABYMETAL (@BABYMETAL_JAPAN) November 29, 2017
BABYMETAL fans took to social media with hashtags such as #WhereIsYui and #WhereIsYuimetal following the Kansas City show, and tweeted at the group’s account demanding explanations.
The drama comes just four months after BABYMETAL’s guitarist Mikio Fujioka died at age 36.
Billboard has reached out to Amuse Group USA for clarification regarding Yuimetal’s absence.