We already knew about the East Coast leg of Babymetal’s U.S. / world tour, but now we have some dates for the West Coast and an additional East Coast city:

Per the official Babymetal site, dates have been added for Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles in July, plus Boston in May along with the rest of the eastern leg.

Those cities aren’t surprising. I know that some people had speculated that they might try Vegas or Phoenix, get back into a large metro area that they had visited with Lady Gaga in 2014, but they honestly aren’t there yet in this country, so three huge population centers that are well-spaced out is the smart move. I had thought that they might try to do Portland instead of Seattle and then add Vancouver, and either of those could yet be added (July is a long way away), but consider:

These shows are in July. All three girls are still in high school, and Japan has a more always-on academic calendar than most U.S. districts, I believe with June being part of the first quarter, so to speak (graduations, as Sakura Gakuin fans know all too well, happen at the end of March).

The East Coast happens in May and includes the beginning of festival season. West Coast is in mid-July. They’re giving themselves not quite two months’ worth of time between those legs, which is either a school consideration or is leaving time to book other festivals or European or Asian dates, either of which can still be added to the back half of summer and the fall.

What I’m saying is that I very much doubt that Babymetal is done with adding to their schedule, and fans in Mexico and Canada in particular may be happy to have chances to see them pop up soon. But the world is their oyster now — fans from Brazil to the Philippines have been clamoring to have Babymetal appear in their countries, and 2016 may be the year to do it.

Regardless, Kobametal should never be doubted at this point.

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— hirokazu sato (@hiro_kazu_sato) January 25, 2016