Photojournalist: Athena

As a longtime fan of Joji, I had the honor of photographing him at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle on Sunday July 19th, on his SOLARIS TOUR. I have been seeing Joji live since 2018 when he was taking the stage with artists like Rich Brian and the 88rising crew in venues that held around 3,000 people. It’s amazing to see him playing arenas eight years later.

Joji has grown so much as an artist since he started taking music more seriously back in 2017-2018. He truly carved out his own unique “bedroom pop” and sad boy sound. 

I find it difficult to describe Joji’s music to people who have not heard it, but if you are on the internet, ”Slow Dancing In The Dark” and “Glimpse Of Us” are his more well-known songs. 

He has a way of making sad, somber songs beautiful. He creates his own cinematic universe through his chord and lyrical choices, as well as music videos. He did not disappoint when translating that to a live show.

On this tour Joji, aka George Miller, truly created his own world. Seeing Joji perform live is a very chill yet mesmerizing experience. He combines trippy visuals with beautiful cosmic lighting to truly transport you to another dimension. His shows are very surreal and simple yet perfectly balanced with comedy as well. From doing things like shooting t-shirts into the crowd to bringing a robot onstage and hilariously “harassing” it. He has a way of maintaining a relaxing yet mesmerizing atmosphere with comedic relief. After all, his roots are in comedy. 

The setup for the stage was a unique one that I had never seen before. Almost turning the stage into a television set box, making it have more depth for the eclectic visuals. The setlist was a perfect variety of new favorites and old classics. He sang old hits like “Rain On Me” to new ones like “PIXALETED KISSES.” Along with fan favorites “Slow Dancing in the Dark” and “Glimpse Of Us.” He had a band onstage, which put a new spin on classics. He has always had this theme for tragedy and space and it all came together very well on this show. 

You could tell how excited the crowd was to see Joji. Many fans repped his “Demons” jersey merch, as well as some in the occasional “pink guy” suit from his YouTube days. He is truly a unique face in the industry given his YouTuber to musician arc. If you're a fan of sad songs, appreciate artists with cinematic depth, and love stunning visuals and lighting, I highly recommend the SOLARIS TOUR to transport you out of this world for the night. 

You can find all of Joji’s upcoming tour dates and ticket information at https://www.jojimusic.com/ 

JOJI

photos by Athena

CORBIN

photos by Athena

NAT SIB

photos by Athena