“You are my god”: Japan’s self-described “rocker” prime minister meets with Deep Purple ahead of Budokan Hall show
Japan’s 65-year-old conservative prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, told Deep Purple drummer Ian Paice “you are my god” ahead of the band’s show at Tokyo’s legendary Budokan Hall on Saturday.
Takaichi, who became Japan’s first-ever female prime minister in October last year, played keyboards in a Deep Purple tribute band and drums for a heavy metal group at university. She has reportedly been a fan of the group since grade school, which children in Japan attend until the age of 12, when she purchased their 1972 album, Machine Head.
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“I can’t believe Deep Purple are here,” she beamed as she greeted the London metal five piece. “I have the deepest respect for the way you continue to make rock history while embracing new challenges and creating captivating music to this day.”
She added that she hopes the tour will promote cultural exchange between the UK and Japan and that their show will excite fans all over the country.
Meeting the band at Tokyo’s tourism office, she gifted Paice a pair of signed Japanese-made drumsticks, to which Paice told her: “You’re a drummer: we are friends!”.
Deep Purple are in Japan for their on-going world tour, which included a show at Budokan Hall, Tokyo. The legendary arena has welcomed the likes of The Beatles, Bob Dylan and ABBA, who performed their last-ever show at the venue in March 1980.
In 1972, Deep Purple released their Made in Japan live double album to critical acclaim, which included recordings from Budokan Hall, a venue the band have described as one of their favourites to play.
“It’s always a pleasure to come to Japan,” said Paice, “and this time we have an added bonus.”
Takaichi, who enjoyed a 92 per cent approval rating among young Japanese voters as recently as December, has repeatedly flexed her musical background and acumen.
In January, a clip of her drumming K-pop super-group BTS’s track “Dynamite” and the song “Golden” from hit Netflix film KPop Demon Hunters with South Korean president Lee Jae Myung went viral.
Takaichi also made multiple appearances on Babymetal’s Metal Radio, a Tokyo FM show hosted by members of the all-female Japanese metal band Babymetal, prior to her election.
She told them: “When I get irritated by my husband’s choice of words or behaviour, I play the electronic drums after he’s gone to bed. ‘Burn’ by Deep Purple is a staple. I play songs like this to let off steam.”
She repeated the anecdote to Deep Purple, joking: “These days, when I fight with my husband I drum to ‘Burn’ and cast a curse on him.”
Takaichi has been called Japan’s ‘Iron Lady’ for her adulation of Margaret Thatcher and her conservative social and economic views. She is also a member of the Nippon Kaigi, a nationalist lobby group, and is considered the protege of the country’s assassinated nationalist ex-prime minister, Shinzo Abe.
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