"Dearest" is the 24th single released by Ayumi Hamasaki. It was released September 27, 2001. It is featured on the Best of InuYasha Soundtrack. It was the 3rd ending theme of the anime series InuYasha.

Music Video[link]

It first aired on September 6 2001.

Synopsis (Original Version)[link]

It begins with Ayumi on her sofa, then, it shows another scene where businesspeople are on a table talking about Ayumi, then the scene changes to Ayumi where she takes her glass but one of her servants takes it and changes the drink and all of the servants smile, the song begins while she is singing at a mirror, then, Ayumi and her bodyguards are walking, then her look changes to a blond haired woman with a cow girl hat on her head, after she is seen in a car, In the chorus, they walk into the rain and paparazzi are there, Ayumi covers her face with her hand and the guards try to get rid of paparazzi, after, Ayumi runs away from the paparazzi and guards and changes into a pink outfit, then a little girl gives her sweets, and everyone looks around and smiles at Ayumi, after, she is chased by her guards and she changes into a black outfit, after, one of the guards slip, then, changes the scene, where Ayumi is on a field in front of windmills.

Synopsis (Acoustic Piano version)[link]

This video version aired the day after the main version on the 7th, this time in the music video she is on the same field from the original version in front of the windmills.

Track listing[link]

1. "Dearest" – 5:33
2. "Dearest" (Depth Nostalgic windmix)
3. "Never Ever" (Jonathan Peters Radio Mix)
4. "Dearest" (Energized Mix)
5. "Dearest" (Huge 20011002 mix)
6. "Endless Sorrow" (Hex Hector Main Radio Mix)
7. "Dearest" (Laugh & Peace Mix)
8. "Dearest" (Fresh energy Mix)
9. "M" (Johnny Vicious Radio Vox)
10. "Dearest" (Instrumental) – 5:33
11. "Dearest" (Acoustic Piano Version)

Charts[link]

Oricon Sales Chart (Japan)

• RIAJ certification: 3x Platinum

References[link]

External links[link]

• Dearest information at Avex Network.
• Dearest information at Oricon.

This 2000s Japanese single-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Buddy Holly
Buddy Holly in 1957
Background information
Birth name	Charles Hardin Holley
Born	(1936-09-07)September 7, 1936 Lubbock, Texas, U.S.
Died	February 3, 1959(1959-02-03) (aged 22) Grant Township, Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, U.S.
Genres	Rock and roll, rockabilly
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, musician
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, piano, violin
Years active	1955–1959
Labels	Decca, Brunswick, Coral
Associated acts	The Crickets, The Picks
Notable instruments
Fender Stratocaster

Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known professionally as Buddy Holly, was an American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of rock and roll. Although his success lasted only a year and a half before his death in an airplane crash, Holly is described by critic Bruce Eder as "the single most influential creative force in early rock and roll."^[1] His works and innovations inspired and influenced contemporary and later musicians, notably The Beatles, Elvis Costello, The Rolling Stones, Don McLean, Bob Dylan, and Eric Clapton, and exerted a profound influence on popular music.^[2] Holly was among the first group of inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.^[3] In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked Holly #13 among "The Fifty Greatest Artists of All Time".^[4]

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Charles Hardin Holley was born on September 7, 1936, in Lubbock, Texas, to Lawrence Odell and Ella Pauline (Drake) Holley. In Philip Norman's biography it is stated that his mother's family claimed to be descended from the English navigator Francis Drake.

Holly was always called "Buddy" by his family because he was so nice to everyone. Buddy was the youngest of three siblings, and brothers Larry and Travis taught him to play a variety of instruments, including the guitar, four-string banjo and lap steel guitar. At the age of five, his young voice and exuberance won him a talent contest singing a then-popular song, "Have You Ever Gone Sailing (Down the River of Memories)."^[5] In 1949, still retaining his soprano, he recorded a bluesy solo rendering of Hank Snow's "My Two Timin' Woman" on a wire recorder borrowed by a friend who worked in a music shop.^[6]

In 1952, he met Bob Montgomery at Hutchinson Junior High School. They shared an interest in music, and teamed up as "Buddy and Bob". Initially influenced by bluegrass, they sang harmony duets at local clubs and high school talent shows. The duo performed on a local radio station KDAV Sunday broadcast that made them a top local act. Hutchinson Junior High School now has a mural honoring Holly, and Lubbock High School, where he sang in the school choir, also honors the late musician.^[7]

The Crickets[link]

Holly saw Elvis Presley sing in Lubbock in 1955, and began to incorporate a rockabilly style, similar to the Sun Records sound, which had a strong rhythm acoustic and slap bass.^[5] On October 15, 1955, Holly, along with Bob Montgomery and Larry Welborn, opened the bill for Presley^[6] in Lubbock, catching the eye of a Nashville talent scout.^[8] Holly's transition to rock continued when he opened for Bill Haley & His Comets at a local show organized by Eddie Crandall, the manager for Marty Robbins.^[6]

Following this performance, Decca Records signed him to a contract in February 1956, misspelling his name as "Holly".^[6] He thereafter adopted the misspelled name for his professional career. Holly formed his own band, later to be called The Crickets, consisting of Holly (lead guitar and vocals), Niki Sullivan (guitar), Joe B. Mauldin (bass), and Jerry Allison (drums). They went to Nashville for three recording sessions with producer Owen Bradley.^[9] However, Holly chafed under a restrictive atmosphere that allowed him little input.^[9] Among the tracks he recorded was an early version of "That'll Be The Day", which took its title from a line that John Wayne's character says repeatedly in the 1956 film The Searchers.^[10] (This initial version of the song played more slowly and about half an octave higher than the later hit version.) Decca released two singles, "Blue Days, Black Nights" and "Modern Don Juan", that failed to make an impression. On January 22, 1957, Decca informed Holly his contract would not be renewed,^[6] insisting, however, that he could not record the same songs for anyone else for five years.^[11]

Norman Petty Recording Studios in Clovis, New Mexico

Holly then hired Norman Petty as manager, and the band began recording at Petty's studios in Clovis, New Mexico. Petty contacted music publishers and labels, and Brunswick Records, a subsidiary of Decca, signed the Crickets on March 19, 1957.^[12] Holly signed as a solo artist with another Decca subsidiary, Coral Records. This put him in the unusual position of having two recording contracts at the same time.^[13]

On May 27, 1957, "That'll Be The Day" was released as a single, credited to the Crickets to try to bypass Decca's claimed legal rights. When the song became a hit, Decca decided not to press its claim. "That'll Be the Day" topped the Billboard US "Best Sellers in Stores" chart on September 23, and was on the UK Singles Chart for three weeks in November. The Crickets performed "That'll Be the Day" and "Peggy Sue" on The Ed Sullivan Show on December 1.^[6] They also sang "Peggy Sue" on The Arthur Murray Party on December 29 and were given a polite introduction by Kathryn Murray.^[14] The kinescopes of these programs are the only record of their 1957 television appearances.

Holly helped win over an all-black audience to rock and roll/rockabilly when the Crickets were booked at New York's Apollo Theater for August 16–22, 1957.^[6] Unlike the immediate acceptance shown in the 1978 movie The Buddy Holly Story, it actually took several performances for the audience to warm up to him. In August 1957, the Crickets were the only white performers on a national tour including black neighborhood theaters.^[8]

As Holly was signed both as a solo artist and a member of the Crickets, two debut albums were released: The "Chirping" Crickets on November 27, 1957 and Buddy Holly on February 20, 1958.^[15] His singles "Peggy Sue" and "Oh Boy!", with backing vocals later dubbed on by The Picks,^[16] reached the top ten of United States and United Kingdom charts. Buddy Holly and the Crickets toured Australia in January 1958 and the UK in March.^[17] Their third and final album, That'll Be the Day, was put together from early recordings and was released in April.

In the liner notes to Buddy Holly: The Definitive Collection, Billy Altman notes that "Peggy Sue" was originally written as "Cindy Lou" (after Holly's niece), but Holly changed it prior to recording as a tip of the hat to Crickets drummer Jerry Allison's girlfriend, Peggy Sue Gerron. Allison wanted the song to be named after Gerron to make up for a recent fight. The two later married.

Holly wrote "True Love Ways" about his relationship with his wife, Maria Elena. It was recorded in her presence on October 21, 1958, at Decca's Pythian Temple, with Dick Jacob, Coral-Brunswick's new head of Artists and Repertoire, serving as both producer and conductor of the 18-piece orchestra, which included members of the New York Symphony Orchestra, NBC Television's house orchestra and Abraham "Boomie" Richman, formerly of Benny Goodman's band.^[18]

Holly in New York[link]

In June 1958, he met Maria Elena Santiago, a receptionist for Murray Deutch, an executive for New York publisher Peer-Southern Music.^[18] Holly managed to have Santiago invited to a luncheon at Howard Johnson's, thanks to Deutch's secretary, Jo Harper. He asked her to have dinner with him that night at P. J. Clarke's. Holly proposed marriage to her on their very first date. "While we were having dinner, he got up and came back with his hands behind his back. He brought out a red rose and said, 'This is for you. Would you marry me?' Within the beautiful red rose, there was a ring. I melted." Holly went to her guardian's house the next morning and Maria came running at him and jumped into his arms, which was a sign to him that it was a "yes".

They married in Lubbock on August 15, 1958, less than two months later.^[18] "I'd never had a boyfriend in my life. I'd never been on a date before. But when I saw Buddy, it was like magic. We had something special: love at first sight. It was like we were made for each other. He came into my life when I needed him, and I came into his." she told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal on what would have been their 50th wedding anniversary.^[19] The newlyweds honeymooned in Acapulco.^[18] Maria Elena traveled on tours, doing everything from the laundry to equipment setup to ensuring the group got paid. However, many fans became aware of his marriage only after his death.^[18]

The ambitious Holly became increasingly interested in the New York music/recording/publishing scene, while his band mates wanted to go back home to Lubbock.^{[citation needed]} As a result, the group split up in late 1958. The Hollys settled in Apartment 4H of the Brevoort Apartments located at 11 Fifth Avenue in Greenwich Village. Here he recorded the series of acoustic songs, including "Crying, Waiting, Hoping" and "What to Do," known as the "Apartment Tapes," which were released after his death.^[20]

The Hollys frequented many of New York's music venues, including The Village Gate, Blue Note, Village Vanguard, and Johnny Johnson's.^{[citation needed]} Maria Elena reported Buddy was keen to learn finger-style flamenco guitar, and would often visit her aunt's home to play the piano there.^{[citation needed]} He wanted to develop collaborations between soul singers and rock 'n' roll, hoping to make an album with Ray Charles and gospel legend Mahalia Jackson. He also had ambitions to work in film, like Elvis Presley and Eddie Cochran, and registered for acting classes with Lee Strasburg's Actors' Studio, where the likes of Marlon Brando and James Dean had trained.^[18]

According to Billy Altman's liner notes to the Geffen/Universal compilation, Buddy Holly: The Definitive Collection, in addition to "True Love Ways", during the October 1958 sessions at Decca's Pythian Temple, Holly also recorded two other songs, "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" and "Raining In My Heart." The songs were firsts for Holly, not only in the use of orchestral backing players, but also the tracks were his first stereo recordings. They were also to be his last formal recording studio sessions.

Although Holly had already begun to become disillusioned with Norman Petty before meeting Maria Elena, it was through her and her aunt Provi, the head of Latin American music at Peer-Southern, that he began to fully realize what was going on with his manager, who was paying the band's royalties into his own company's account.^[18] Holly was having trouble getting his royalties from Petty, so he hired the noted lawyer Harold Orenstein at the recommendation of his friends the Everly Brothers, who had engaged Orenstein following disputes with their own manager, Wesley Rose. Yet, with the money still being withheld by Petty and with rent due, Buddy was forced to go back on the road.^[18]

Death[link]

Signpost near the Clear Lake crash site

Holly was offered a spot in the Winter Dance Party, a three-week tour across the Midwest opening on January 23, 1959, by the GAC agency,^{[citation needed]} with other notable performers such as Dion and the Belmonts, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson. He assembled a backing band consisting of Tommy Allsup (guitar), Waylon Jennings (bass) and Carl Bunch (drums), and billed as The Crickets.^{[citation needed]}

Following a performance at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa, on February 2, 1959, Holly chartered a small airplane to take him to the next stop on the tour. Holly, Valens, Richardson and the pilot were killed en route to Moorhead, Minnesota, when their plane crashed soon after taking off from nearby Mason City in the early morning hours of February 3.^[21] Bandmate Waylon Jennings had given up his seat on the plane, causing Holly to jokingly tell Jennings, "I hope your ol' bus freezes up!" Jennings shot back facetiously, "Well, I hope your ol' plane crashes!" It was a statement that would haunt Jennings for decades.^[22]

Holly's funeral was held on February 7, 1959, at the Tabernacle Baptist Church in Lubbock.^[23] The service was officiated by Ben D. Johnson, who had presided at the Hollys' wedding just months earlier. The pallbearers were Jerry Allison, Joe B. Mauldin, Niki Sullivan, Bob Montgomery, Sonny Curtis and Phil Everly.^[24] Waylon Jennings was unable to attend due to his commitment to the still-touring Winter Dance Party. Holly's body was interred in the City of Lubbock Cemetery in the eastern part of the city. His headstone carries the correct spelling of his surname (Holley) and a carving of his Fender Stratocaster guitar.

Holly's pregnant wife, a widow after barely six months of marriage, miscarried soon after, ending that part of the Holly family tree. The miscarriage was reportedly due to “psychological trauma”.^[25] Because of this incident, authorities found it necessary, in the months following, to implement a policy against announcing victims’ names until after families had first been informed.^[25] María Elena Holly did not attend the funeral, and has never visited the gravesite. She later told the Avalanche-Journal:

In a way, I blame myself. I was not feeling well when he left. I was two weeks pregnant, and I wanted Buddy to stay with me, but he had scheduled that tour. It was the only time I wasn't with him. And I blame myself because I know that, if only I had gone along, Buddy never would have gotten into that airplane.^[19]

The first song to commemorate the musicians was “Three Stars” by Eddie Cochran. This song was recorded just one day after the disaster occurred.^[25] Twelve years later, in 1971, Don McLean released his single, "American Pie”, to commemorate Buddy Holly’s death and further accentuate the loss of the United States’ innocence.^[25] Don McLean’s song began the reference to the tragedy as "The Day the Music Died".

Influence[link]

Holly set the template for the standard rock and roll band: two guitars, bass, and drums, He was one of the first in the genre to write, produce, and perform his own songs.

Holly managed to bridge the racial divide that marked music in America. Along with Elvis and others, Holly made rock and roll, with its roots in rockabilly country music and blues-inspired rhythm and blues music, more popular among a broad white audience.^{[citation needed]} From listening to their recordings, one had difficulty determining if the Crickets, the name of Buddy's band, were white or black singers. Holly indeed sometimes played with black musicians Little Richard and Chuck Berry. The Crickets were only the second white rock group to tour Great Britain. Holly's essential eyeglasses encouraged other musicians, such as John Lennon, also to wear their glasses during performances.^{[citation needed]}

In his biography of rock legend Elton John, Philip Norman recounted that by his early teens, John (then known as Reg Dwight) was wearing glasses "not because he needed them, but in homage to Buddy Holly." After wearing glasses for a while, his eyes became adjusted to the lenses, and at that point he became nearsighted and really did need glasses, which would years later establish John as one of the most famous "four-eyes" in rock and roll, though Holly is widely considered to be the first.^{[citation needed]}

Contrary to popular belief, teenagers John Lennon and Paul McCartney did not attend a Holly concert, although they watched his television appearance on Sunday Night at the London Palladium;^{[citation needed]} Tony Bramwell, a school friend of McCartney and George Harrison, did. Bramwell met Holly, and freely shared his records with all three.^{[citation needed]} Ian Whitcomb said "Buddy Holly and the Crickets had the most influence on the Beatles."^[26] Lennon and McCartney later cited Holly as a primary influence.^[27] (Their bug-themed band's name, The Beatles, was chosen partly in homage to Holly's Crickets.)^[26] The Beatles did a cover version of "Words of Love" that was a close reproduction of Holly's version, released on late 1964's Beatles for Sale (in the U.S., in June 1965 on Beatles VI). During the January 1969 sessions for the Let It Be album, the Beatles played a slow impromptu version of "Mailman, Bring Me No More Blues" — although not written by Holly, it was popularized by him — with Lennon mimicking Holly's vocal style;^{[citation needed]} the recording was eventually released in the mid-1990s on Anthology 3. In addition, John Lennon recorded a cover version of "Peggy Sue" on his 1975 album Rock 'n' Roll. McCartney owns the publishing rights to Holly's song catalogue.^[28]

A 17-year-old Bob Dylan attended the January 31, 1959, show, two nights before Holly's death. Dylan referred to this in his 1998 Grammy acceptance speech for his Time out of Mind being named Album of the Year:

"And I just want to say that when I was sixteen or seventeen years old, I went to see Buddy Holly play at Duluth National Guard Armory and I was three feet away from him...and he LOOKED at me. And I just have some sort of feeling that he was — I don't know how or why — but I know he was with us all the time we were making this record in some kind of way."^[29]

Keith Richards attended one of Holly's performances, where he heard "Not Fade Away" for the first time.^{[citation needed]} The Rolling Stones had an early hit covering the song.

The launch of Bobby Vee's successful musical career resulted from Holly's death, when he was selected to replace Holly on the tour that continued after the plane crash. Holly's profound influence on Vee's singing style can be heard in such songs as "Rubber Ball" and "Run to Him."

Holly influenced many other singers during and after a career that lasted barely two years. Keith Richards once said Holly had "an influence on everybody."^[30] In an August 24, 1978, Rolling Stone interview, Bruce Springsteen told Dave Marsh, "I play Buddy Holly every night before I go on; that keeps me honest."

The Grateful Dead performed "Not Fade Away" 530 times over the course of their career, making it their seventh most-performed song.^{[citation needed]} The song also appears on eight of their official live recording releases.

Various rock and roll histories have asserted the singing group The Hollies were named in homage to Buddy Holly.^{[citation needed]} According to the band's website, although the group admired Holly (and years later produced an album covering some of his songs), their name was inspired primarily by the sprigs of holly in evidence around Christmas of 1962.^[31]

Don McLean's popular 1971 ballad "American Pie" is inspired by Holly and the day of the plane crash.^[32] The American Pie album is dedicated to Holly.

On September 7, 1994 (Holly's 58th birthday), Weezer released their single, "Buddy Holly".

Discography[link]

Buddy Holly released only three albums in his lifetime. Nonetheless, he recorded so prolifically that Coral Records was able to release brand-new albums and singles for 10 years after his death, although the technical quality was very mixed, some being studio quality and others home recordings.

Buddy Holly continued to be promoted and sold as an "active" artist, and his records had a loyal following, especially in Europe. The demand for unissued Holly material was so great that Norman Petty resorted to overdubbing whatever he could find: alternate takes of studio recordings, originally rejected masters, "Crying, Waiting, Hoping" and the other five 1959 tracks (adding new surf-guitar arrangements), and even Holly's amateur demos from 1954 (where the low-fidelity vocals are often muffled behind the new orchestrations). The last new Buddy Holly album was Giant (featuring the single "Love Is Strange"), issued in 1969. Between the 1959–60 Jack Hansen overdubs, the 1960s Norman Petty overdubs, various alternate takes, and Holly's undubbed originals, collectors can often choose from multiple versions of the same song. There are also many different versions of Holly's "Greatest Hits" as well as covers/compilation albums of Buddy's songs performed by various artists. One such album has been announced recently at an event at P.J. Clarke's in New York.^[33] Listen to Me: Buddy Holly is being produced by Peter Asher and includes contributions from Stevie Nicks, The Fray, Cobra Starship, Jeff Lynne, Train's Pat Monahan, Patrick Stump, Jackson Browne, Chris Isaak, Natalie Merchant, Imelda May, Ringo Starr, Lyle Lovett, Zooey Deschanel, Brian Wilson and more.^[34]

Film and musical depictions[link]

Holly's life story inspired a Hollywood biographical film, The Buddy Holly Story. Star Gary Busey received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Holly. The movie was widely criticized by the rock community and Holly's friends and family for its inaccuracies. This led Paul McCartney to produce and host his own documentary about Holly in 1985, titled The Real Buddy Holly Story. This video includes interviews with Keith Richards, Phil and Don Everly, Sonny Curtis, Jerry Allison, Holly's family, and McCartney himself, among others.

In 1987, Marshall Crenshaw portrayed Buddy Holly in the movie La Bamba. He is featured performing at the Surf Ballroom and boarding the doomed airplane with Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper. Crenshaw's version of "Crying, Waiting, Hoping" is featured on the La Bamba original motion picture soundtrack.

Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story, the Jukebox Musical depicting his life, is credited as being the first of its kind, spawning a breed of jukebox shows, including the likes of Mamma Mia! and We Will Rock You. Buddy – as it is abbreviated on occasion – is still running in the UK after 22 years, with a UK tour that went out in February 2011.

Holly was depicted in the Quantum Leap episode entitled "How the Tess Was Won" although his identity isn't revealed until the very end of the episode. According to this episode, Dr. Sam Beckett (Scott Bakula) influences Buddy Holly to change the lyrics from "piggy, suey" to "Peggy Sue", thus setting up Holly's future hit song.

There are also a number of acts both in the US (Johnny Rogers, John Mueller) and UK (Marc Robinson, Spencer J etc.) who specialize in bringing Holly's songs to life.

In 2010, Guy Kent portrayed a modern-day interpretation of Holly in the independent film The Day the Music Died.^[35][36] The film has yet to be theatrically released.

Lubbock[link]

The Buddy Holly Center, a small museum located in Lubbock

Holly was based in Lubbock as his career took off between 1956 and 1958. In 1980, Grant Speed sculpted a statue of Holly playing his Fender guitar. This statue is the centerpiece of Lubbock's Walk of Fame, which honors notable people who contributed to Lubbock's musical history. Other memorials to Buddy Holly include a street named in his honor and The Buddy Holly Center, which contains a museum of Holly memorabilia as well as a Fine Arts Gallery. The Center is located on Crickets Ave, one street over from Buddy Holly Ave, in what used to be the Fort Worth and Denver South Plains Railway Depot.^[37]

In 2010, Grant Speed's statue was taken down for refurbishment, and construction began on a new Walk of Fame. On May 9, 2011, the City of Lubbock held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for The Buddy and Maria Elena Holly Plaza, the new home of the statue and the Walk of Fame.^[38] The plaza is across the street from the museum.

Due to copyright restrictions, personal and professional photography of memorabilia is not allowed inside of the Holly exhibit. Visitors are, however, welcome to take pictures of objects outside the museum. These include the giant recreation of Buddy's glasses at the entrance and the Grant Speed statue across the street. His actual eyeglass frames recovered from the crash site are on display inside the museum.

Hollywood Walk of Fame[link]

On September 7, 2011 (what would have been Holly's 75th birthday), he received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame posthumously. His widow, Maria Elena Santiago, attended, as did Phil Everly, Peter Asher, Priscilla Presley and actor Gary Busey, who played Holly in The Buddy Holly Story.^[39]

References[link]

Further reading[link]

External links[link]

	Book: Buddy Holly
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Buddy Holly

• Buddy Holly news archives at the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
• Buddy Holly And The Crickets.com
• Buddy Holly Lives.info
• Buddy Holly at the Internet Movie Database
• Buddy Holly discography at MusicBrainz
• Listen to Me: Buddy Holly - Songmasters
• peermusic presents Maria Elena: My Life with Buddy
• Buddy Holly - sessions and cover songs
• Telegraph article on the last songs written by Buddy Holly
• 'The Day the Music Died' at The Death of Rock: The Archive
• Buddy Holly is Alive and Well On Ganymede
• The Texas Experience - John Connally Presents Buddy Holly, from the Texas Archive of the Moving Image

Ayumi Hamasaki 浜崎あゆみ
Ayumi Hamasaki in Taiwan, March 2007
Background information
Birth name	浜崎 あゆみ, 濱崎 歩[1] (Hamasaki Ayumi)
Also known as	Ayu, Crea
Born	(1978-10-02) October 2, 1978 (age 33) Fukuoka, Japan
Origin	Fukuoka, Japan
Genres	Pop, electronic dance, rock, classical
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, performance artist, record producer, lyricist, actress, model, spokesperson, businessperson
Years active	1994–1996, 1998–present
Labels	Nippon Columbia Avex Trax Drizzly
Website	www.avexnet.or.jp/ayu

This article contains Japanese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of kanji and kana.

Ayumi Hamasaki (浜崎 あゆみ, Hamasaki Ayumi^?, also 濱崎 歩; born October 2, 1978) is a Japanese singer-songwriter, record producer, model, lyricist, and actress. Also called "Ayu" by her fans, Hamasaki has been dubbed the "Empress of Pop" because of her popularity and widespread influence in Japan and throughout Asia.^[2][3] Born and raised in Fukuoka, she moved to Tokyo at fourteen to pursue a career in entertainment. In 1998, under the tutelage of Avex CEO Max Matsuura, she released a string of modestly selling singles that concluded with her 1999 debut album A Song for ××. The album debuted atop the Oricon charts and stayed there for four weeks, establishing her popularity in Japan.^{[fn 1]}

Hamasaki's constantly changing image and tight control over her artistry has helped her popularity extend across Asia; music and fashion trends she has started have spread to countries such as China, Singapore, and Southeast Asia. She has appeared in or lent her songs to many advertisements and television commercials. Though she originally supported the exploitation of her popularity for commercial purposes, she later reconsidered and eventually opposed her status as an Avex "product".^[4]

Since her 1998 debut with the single "Poker Face",^{[fn 1]} Hamasaki has sold over 50 million records in Japan, making her the best selling solo singer in Japanese history as well as one of the country's most successful songwriters, ranking her among the best-selling singers in the country.^[5] As a female singer, Hamasaki holds several domestic records for her singles, such as the most number-one hits overall by a female artist, the most consecutive number-one hits by a solo artist,^[6] the highest sales, and the most million-sellers.^{[7][fn 2]} Since 1999, Hamasaki has had at least one single each year topping the charts (except 2011, which she released a mini-album, Five, without any singles).^[8] Hamasaki is the first female singer to have eight studio albums since her debut to top the Oricon and the first artist to have a number-one album for 13 consecutive years since her debut.^[9][10]

Life and music career[link]

Childhood and early endeavors[link]

Born in Fukuoka Prefecture, Hamasaki was raised as an only child by her mother and grandmother. Her father had left the family when she was three and never again came into contact with her.^[11][12] Hamasaki's mother worked to support the family, so Hamasaki was primarily taken care of by her grandmother.^[11]

At age seven, Hamasaki began modeling for local institutions, such as banks, to supplement the family's income. She continued this career path by leaving her family at fourteen and moving to Tokyo as a model under SOS, a talent agency.^[11] Her modeling career did not last long; SOS eventually deemed her too short for a model and transferred her to Sun Music, a musicians' agency. Under the name of "Ayumi", Hamasaki released a rap EP, Nothing from Nothing, on the Nippon Columbia label in 1995. She was dismissed from the label when the album failed to chart on the Oricon.^[13] After this failure, Hamasaki took up acting and starred in B-movies such as Ladys Ladys!! Sōcho Saigo no Hi and television dramas such as Miseinen, which were poorly received by the public.^[12][14] From August 1995 to March 1996, Hamasaki also co-hosted the SoundLink "magazine" Hōkago no Ōsama (放課後の王様^?, After-school King) for the Nintendo Satellaview once a week with Shigeru Izumiya.^[15][16] Growing dissatisfied with her job, Hamasaki quit acting and moved in with her mother, who had recently moved to Tokyo.^[11]

Hamasaki was initially a good student, earning good grades in junior high school. Eventually however, she lost faith in the curriculum, thinking that the subjects taught were of no use to her. Her grades worsened as she refused to put her mind to her studies. While living in Tokyo, she attempted to further her studies at Horikoshi Gakuen, a high school for the arts, but dropped out in the first year. Hamasaki did not attend school or have a job, so she spent much of her time shopping at Shibuya boutiques and dancing at Velfarre, an Avex-owned disco club.^[11][12]

At Velfarre, she was introduced to her future producer, Max Matsuura, through a friend. After hearing Hamasaki sing karaoke, Matsuura offered her a recording deal, but Hamasaki suspected ulterior motives and turned the offer down.^[12] He persisted and succeeded in recruiting her for the Avex label in the following year.^[12][17] Hamasaki started vocal training, but skipped most of her classes after finding her instructors to be too rigid and the classes dull.^[12] When she confessed this to Matsuura, he sent her to New York to train her vocals under another method. During her foreign sojourn, Hamasaki frequently corresponded with Matsuura and impressed him with her style of writing. On her return to Japan, he suggested that she try writing her own lyrics.^[12]

1998–1999: Rising popularity[link]

Hamasaki made her debut under Avex on April 8, 1998 with the single "Poker Face". It—and the following four singles—were not major hits. Hamasaki's debut album, A Song for ×× (1999), was likewise "unassuming":^[18] the tracks, composed by Yasuhiko Hoshino, Akio Togashi (of Da Pump), and Mitsuru Igarashi (of Every Little Thing), were "cautious" pop-rock songs.^[12][18] However, Hamasaki's lyrics, introspective observations about her feelings and experiences that focused on loneliness and individualism, resonated with the Japanese public.^[19] The songs gained Hamasaki a growing following, and the release of the album was a success: it topped the Oricon charts for five weeks and sold over a million copies.^[13][20][21] For her achievements, she earned a Japan Gold Disc Award for "Best New Artist of the Year".^[22]

With Ayu-mi-x (March 1999), the first of a series of remix albums, Hamasaki began moving beyond the pop-rock of A Song for ×× and began to incorporate different styles including trance, dance, and orchestra.^[18] Hamasaki began to experiment with different musical styles in her singles as well, releasing dance tunes and ballads as well as remixes on the singles which spanned reggae and house. The singles were milestones: Hamasaki earned her first number-one single ("Love: Destiny") and first million-selling single ("A").^[8][23] Her second studio album, Loveppears (November 1999), not only topped the Oricon charts, it sold nearly 3 million copies.^[20] The album also showcased a change in Hamasaki's lyrics. Though the lyrics of Loveppears still dealt with loneliness, many of them were written from a third-person perspective.^[19] In support of Loveppears, she held her first tour, Ayumi Hamasaki Concert Tour 2000 A.

2000–2002: Commercial peak[link]

From April to June 2000, Hamasaki released the "Trilogy", a series of singles consisting of "Vogue", "Far Away", and "Seasons". The lyrics of these songs focused on hopelessness, a reflection of Hamasaki's disappointment that she had not expressed herself thoroughly in any of her previous lyrics and a sense of shame of her public image.^[24] Likewise, many of the songs she wrote for her subsequent studio album, Duty (September 2000), involved feelings of loneliness, chaos, confusion, and the burden of her responsibilities. She described her feelings after the writing as "unnatural" and "nervous".^[11][25] The musical style was darker as well; in contrast with Loveppears, Duty was a rock-influenced album with only one dance song, "Audience".^[11][26] Duty resonated with fans: the "Trilogy" were "hit singles" ("Seasons" was a million-seller), and the album became Hamasaki's best-selling studio album.^[27][28] At the end of 2000, Hamasaki held her first New Year countdown concert at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium.

In 2001, Avex forced Hamasaki to release her first compilation album, A Best, on March 28, putting the album in "competition" with Hikaru Utada's second studio album, Distance. The "competition" between the two singers (which both claimed was merely a creation of their record companies and the media) was supposedly the reason for the success of the albums; both sold over 5 million copies.^[29] In support of Duty and A Best, Hamasaki held a tour of Japan's domes, making her one of few "top-drawer" Japanese artists to hold a concert at the Tokyo Dome.^[30]

I Am... (January 2002) marked several milestones for Hamasaki. Hamasaki increased her control over her music by composing all of the songs on the album under the pseudonym "Crea", of which the 2000 single "M" was the first. "Connected" (November 2002) and "A Song Is Born" (December 2001) were the exceptions.^[31] I Am... also showed evolution in Hamasaki's lyrical style: it was a retreat from the themes of "loneliness and confusion" of some of her earlier songs.^[32] Moved by the September 11 attacks, Hamasaki revised her vision of I Am..., focusing on issues such as faith and world peace. "A Song Is Born", in particular, was directly influenced by the events.^[32][33] The single, a duet with Keiko Yamada, was released as part of Avex's non-profit Song Nation project, which raised money for charity.^{[34][35][fn 3]} She also dropped the planned cover and opted instead to be portrayed as a "peace muse", explaining,

I had a completely different idea for the cover at first. We'd already reserved the space, decided the hair and makeup and everything. But after the incident, as is typical of me, I suddenly changed my mind. I knew it wasn't the time for gaudiness, for elaborate sets and costumes. It sounds odd coming from me, but I realize what I say and how I look has a great impact.^[33]

The outlook inspired by the September 11 attacks extended beyond I Am.... In 2002, Hamasaki held her first concert outside Japan, at the MTV Asia music awards ceremony in Singapore,^[33][36] a move interpreted as the beginning of a campaign prompted by a sluggish Japanese market.^[37][38] At the ceremony, she received the award for "Most Influential Japanese Singer in Asia".^[36] In support of I Am..., Hamasaki held two tours, Ayumi Hamasaki Arena Tour 2002 A and Ayumi Hamasaki Stadium Tour 2002 A.^[39][40] In November 2002, as "Ayu", she released her first European single, "Connected", a trance song from I Am... composed by DJ Ferry Corsten. It was released in Germany on the Drizzly label.^[41] Hamasaki continued to release singles (all of them remixes of previously released songs) in Germany on Drizzly until 2005.^[42]

In April 2002, Hamasaki released the single "Free & Easy". In collaboration with the magazine Free&Easy, Hamasaki also released Hamasaki Republic, a photobook that was actually a special issue of Free&Easy, in conjunction with the single. "H", Hamasaki's next single, became the best-selling single of 2002.^{[fn 4][43]} Hamasaki released her last single of 2002, "Voyage", on September 26. In lieu of a regular-length music video, the short film Tsuki ni Shizumu, starring Hamasaki, was created for "Voyage" and was released at a select theater in Shibuya.^[44] Hamasaki's next studio album, Rainbow (December 2002) was her first to use English lyrics. After performing at the 2002 MTV Asia music awards, Hamasaki felt that by writing only Japanese lyrics, she was not able to bring her "message" to other countries. Realizing that English was a "common global language", she included English lyrics in three songs.^{[45][fn 5][fn 6]} The album was stylistically diverse; Hamasaki included rock- and trip-hop-influenced tracks as well as "summery", "up-tempo" and "grand gothic" songs and experimented with new techniques such as gospel choruses and the yells of an audience. The lyrics were also varied: themes in the album included freedom, the struggles of women, and "a summer that ends in sadness".^[46]

2003–2006: Decline in Sales[link]

Hamasaki performing in her (Miss)understood tour

In 2003, Hamasaki released three singles, "&", "Forgiveness", and "No Way to Say". To celebrate the release of her thirtieth single ("Forgiveness"), Hamasaki held the A Museum concert at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium.^[47] Her mini-album Memorial Address (December 2003) was her first album to be released in CD+DVD format in addition to the regular CD-only format, a decision that came from her increased interest in the direction of her music videos.^[48] Like her previous albums, Memorial Address topped the Oricon chart and sold over a million copies.^[49][50] Sales of Hamasaki's singles began to wane. Although all three of the album's singles topped the Oricon charts, "&" was Hamasaki's last single to sell over 500,000 copies.^[51]

By the end of her Arena Tour 2003–2004, Hamasaki had grown dissatisfied with her position in Avex: she felt that the company was treating her as a product instead of a person.^[52] Along with her dissatisfaction over her last two studio albums (which she thought had been rushed), this led her to begin work on My Story (December 2004) early. In contrast with her previous albums, My Story had no set theme, nor did Hamasaki attempt to write "something good" or even "something that would give people hope"; rather, she simply wrote freely and honestly.^{[52][fn 7]} As a result, the album contained mostly autobiographical lyrics about her emotions and reminiscences of her career. She approached the composition of the music with the same freedom as the lyrics, with the album's notable rock overtones expressing her liking for rock music.^[53] She was so pleased with the result that she declared My Story the first album she felt satisfied with.^[53] My Story and its singles, "Moments", "Inspire", and "Carols", all topped the weekly Oricon charts; moreover, with sales of over 1,100,000 units, My Story became Hamasaki's last million-selling studio album according to Oricon.^{[fn 8][54][55]} From January to April 2005, Hamasaki held the nationwide My Story arena tour, her first album-based tour.^[52] Also in January, she began working with Lamoureux Orchestra to create My Story Classical, a classical version of My Story; the album served as an "alter-ego" of the mostly aggressive My Story. The orchestra also created a classical version of "A Song Is Born", which was included on My Story Classical and which Hamasaki performed at the opening of the Expo 2005.^[56]

Hamasaki performing the song "Part of Me" in her Tour of Secret

(Miss)understood (January 2006), Hamasaki's seventh studio album, showed new musical directions.^[57] Wanting to sing a tune like those of the group Sweetbox, Hamasaki obtained the permission of Sweetbox composer Roberto "Geo" Rosan to use demo songs he had intended to use in Sweetbox's upcoming album. She edited the songs to fit her personal vision, rewriting the lyrics and rearranging some of the songs.^[57] The result was more musically diverse than the previous album; (Miss)understood included ballads, funk, dance-pop, R&B, and rock songs.^[58][59] All of (Miss)understood's singles reached the top of the Oricon; "Bold & Delicious" became Hamasaki's twenty-fifth number-one single, tying her with Seiko Matsuda for the record of most number-one singles by a solo female artist.^[60] Though (Miss)understood also reached the top of the charts, Oricon stated that it sold fewer than a million copies—Hamasaki's first studio album to do so.^{[61][fn 9][fn 8]} In support of the album, Hamasaki held the (Miss)understood arena tour, which spanned three months with thirty concerts, from Saitama on March 11, 2006 to Yoyogi on June 11, 2006.^[63]

Hamasaki's first single of 2006, "Startin'", became Hamasaki's twenty-sixth number-one single, setting a new record for most number-one singles held by a solo female artist.^[64] The subsequent studio album, Secret, was released in November 2006.^[65] "Secrets" was, appropriately, the theme of the album; the album also explored strong female figures, love, and sadness; songs depicted the artist's struggles and were written to encourage females.^{[66][fn 10]} Although Secret was originally intended to be a mini-album, Hamasaki "began brimming with things to say" while producing the album and wrote five more songs.^{[66][fn 11]} The album consisted mostly of rock songs and ballads; to complement these, Hamasaki experimented with new vocal techniques.^[65] The album also topped the Oricon weekly charts, making Hamasaki the only artist to have eight consecutive number-one studio albums.^[67] Her sales, however, continued to decline: according to both Oricon and the RIAJ, Secret failed to sell a million copies.^[61][68]

2007–present: Market beyond Japan[link]

On February 28, 2007, Hamasaki released A Best 2, a pair of compilation albums containing songs from I Am... to (Miss)understood. The two versions, White and Black, debuted at the first and second positions on the Oricon weekly charts, making Hamasaki the first female artist in thirty-six years to hold the top two positions on any Oricon album chart.^[69] At the end of 2007, the pair became Japan's fifth and seventh best-selling albums of the year respectively.^[70] In support of A Best 2 and Secret, Hamasaki held the four-month-long Tour of Secret from March to the end of June. It was her first international tour, and aside from Japan, she performed in Taipei, Shanghai, and Hong Kong.^[71] Her foreign fanbase highly anticipated the concerts, and tickets for the Taipei and Hong Kong performances sold out in less than three hours.^[72][73]

Hamasaki in Paris for the filming of the music video for "Mirrorcle World"

In July 2007, Hamasaki released her first single in over a year, "Glitter/Fated". A short film, Distance Love, was used as the music video for "Glitter" and "Fated". The film, shot in Hong Kong, co-starred Hong Kong actor Shawn Yue as Hamasaki's romantic interest.^[74] "Glitter/Fated" and the following single "Talkin' 2 Myself" reached the top of their respective charts, continuing Hamasaki's streak of number-one singles.^[75] In December, Hamasaki released her first digital-only single, "Together When...", which topped the RIAJ's monthly download chart.^[76][77] Unlike its predecessors, the writing of Hamasaki's ninth studio album, Guilty (January 2008), was not an emotional experience for her, nor did it have a set theme. However, she said later that the album's tracks appeared to tell a story.^[25] Most of the songs were dark; the album had a notable rock tinge.^[25][26] It contained some upbeat dance tracks and ballads, though the latter also had rock overtones.^[78][79] Guilty peaked at the number-two position on the weekly Oricon charts, making it Hamasaki's first studio album not to reach the top and ended Hamasaki's streak of 8 consecutive number-one albums.^{[fn 12][82]} Guilty was later released as a digital album in twenty-six countries outside Japan, nineteen of them Western nations. That, along with Hamasaki's decision to employ western DJs such as Armand Van Helden for her 2008 remix albums Ayu-mi-x 6: Gold and Ayu-mi-x 6: Silver, has been interpreted as her first step into the global market.^[83]

Hamasaki (bottom center) in London with a group of European fans

In April 2008, to commemorate her tenth anniversary in Avex, Hamasaki released the single "Mirrorcle World"; it topped the Oricon, making Hamasaki the only female solo artist to have a number-one single every year for ten consecutive years.^[8] Hamasaki also held her second tour of Asia, Asia Tour 2008: 10th Anniversary, to celebrate her tenth anniversary. From April until June, she toured Japan, holding seventeen concerts. Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Shanghai were again the foreign stops after the domestic performances.^[84] On September 10, 2008, Hamasaki released A Complete: All Singles, a compilation album that includes the A-sides of all her singles along with previously unreleased footage from her A-nation concerts which is the 8th best selling album of 2008.^[85]

Hamasaki's next two singles, "Days/Green" (December 2008) and "Rule/Sparkle" (February 2009), continued Hamasaki's streak of number-one singles. "Rule" is used as the international theme song for the film Dragonball Evolution.^[86] The subsequent studio album, Next Level, was released on March 25, 2009 in several formats: CD, CD+DVD, 2CD+DVD and a two-gigabyte USB flash drive.^[87][88] Sonically, Next Level was mainly an electronic dance album.^[89] Next Level reached the top of the Oricon charts, making Hamasaki the only artist to have a number-one album every year for eleven years in a row since her debut.^[10] However, the album was only certified double platinum, making it Hamasaki's lowest-selling studio album to that date.^[90] On August 12, 2009, Hamasaki released her forty-sixth single, "Sunrise/Sunset (Love Is All)". "Sunrise (Love Is All)", one of the A-sides, is being used as the opening theme song for the Japanese television drama Dandy Daddy?.^[91] The single reached the top of the weekly charts, making it her twenty-first consecutive (thirty-third total) number-one single. "Sunrise/Sunset" is also her forty-fourth single to enter the Top 10, making Hamasaki the artist with the most Top 10 singles ever.^[92] Hamasaki's third single of the year, "You Were.../Ballad", was released on December 29, 2009. Hamasaki's eleventh studio album Rock 'n' Roll Circus was released on April 14, 2010. Though the album contained a few "powerful and melodramatic gothic rock" tracks, it was mainly "pure and classic J-pop", with pop-rock songs and ballads.^[93] The album topped the charts, making Hamasaki the first female solo artist in twenty years to have ten number-one original studio albums.^[94] Hamasaki also began expanding her online presence, setting up accounts on MySpace, Ustream, and Twitter.^[95][96] In July, entertainment company Livespire announced that Hamasaki's 2009 Next Level tour would be shown in 3-D at Toho cinemas nationwide beginning on August 28.^[97][98][99]

On July 14, Hamasaki released her forty-eighth single, "Moon/Blossom". The single was released as the first of a three-part project to celebrate her yet-unreleased fiftieth single.^[100] The two other singles in the project (her forty-ninth and fiftieth singles respectively), "Crossroad" and "L", were released within a week of each other, "Crossroad" on September 22 and "L" on September 29.^[101] "Crossroad" was composed by Tetsuya Komuro and its coupling was her cover version of Komuro's band TM Network's 1988 song "Seven Days War", which was her first cover of a male song.^[102] The three singles all topped the Oricon, becoming Hamasaki's twenty-third, twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth consecutive number-one singles and setting a new record for the most consecutive number-one singles by any female artist (solo or group) as well as by any solo artist.^[6] On December 22, Hamasaki released her twelfth original studio album, Love Songs. On the same day, Naoya Urata of AAA released his debut solo single "Dream On". The song, which featured Hamasaki, was written and produced by her as well, marking the first record she produced for another singer.^[103] Love Songs and "Dream On" both reached the top spots on their respective Oricon charts. Love Songs became Hamasaki's fourth consecutive and seventeenth total number-one album. The album also marked Hamasaki's thirteenth consecutive year with a number-one album, breaking her old record.^[104]

In February 2011, it was announced that her arena tour of the year, Hotel Love Songs, would start in April. Shortly after the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami hit, it was announced that the tour was rescheduled to start in late May and the tour was renamed to Power of Music.^[105] Deeply affected by the Tohoku Earthquake and tsunami devastation, Hamasaki decided to collaborate with fashion magazine, Vivi, with the sale of charity shirts and the profits going to help the victims in the devastation. On April 20, 2011, Hamasaki simultaneously released four new remix albums, Ayu-mi-x 7:House, Acoustic Orchestra, Trance 4, Ayu-ro Mix 4, and a Limited Complete Box Set, which were also released internationally on iTunes.^[106] On that same day, Hamasaki also released 2010 Rock 'n' Roll Circus Tour and A 50 Singles Live Selection which topped the weekly chart at #1 and #2 respectively. The simultaneous releases made Hamasaki the first artist ever to have 4 albums in Oricon's top 10 and also the first artist to hold 2 top positions in the Oricon DVD chart.^[107] Their original release date of March 30 was postponed due to the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami and was pushed back to April 20 instead.^[108] On April 21, 2011, it was announced that she would perform in a-nation 10th Anniversary for Life Charge & Go!^[109] On May 4, it was announced that she broke another record — the female artist with the highest DVD sales with 2,313,000.^[110]

On August 31, Hamasaki released her second mini album Five, her first since Memorial Address in 2003. This is her first album to have no singles released. Five topped the Oricon Charts for 2 consecutive weeks, her first to do so since (Miss)Understood. The lead song, "Progress", was used as a theme song for the videogame, Tales of Xillia. ^[111] The album also features collaborations, with singers Juno and Naoya Urata from AAA. This album managed to be certified Gold by RIAJ, making Hamasaki's first album not to be certified Platinum.^[112] Complete Clip Box 1998-2011, consisting all her music videos from her first single, "Poker Face" till her latest mini-album, Five, was released on January 1, 2012.^[113] "How Beautiful You Are" will be the theme song for a drama "Saigo Kara Nibanme no Koi", and also Hamasaki's second digital single (52th single overall), which is released fully on February 8.^[114] Hamasaki describe the song as a mid-tempo ballad and a feeling of gratitude towards someone.^[115]

The International 3D Society announced the winners of its 2012 3D Creative Arts Awards. Ayumi Hamasaki was among the list of winners, receiving an award for "Electronic Broadcast Media (Television) – Live Event" for her "A3D ayumi hamasaki ARENA TOUR 2009 A ～NEXT LEVEL～" tour.^[116][117]

On March 21, 2012, Hamasaki released her thirteenth album, Party Queen.

Image and artistry[link]

Time magazine has noted that Hamasaki lacked talents such as the dance moves of Namie Amuro, the "supermodel allure" of Hitomi, and the "vocal pyrotechnics" of Hikaru Utada. Her own fans even considered her high-pitched voice screechy.^[38][118] However, her music is sometimes considered one of the major forces in shaping Japan's current music trends; this has been attributed to her constantly changing image as well as her self-penned lyrics,^[38] though critics credit clever marketing strategies.^{[14][38][118]} Hamasaki is also noted for the visual aspects of her artistry: she is considered a fashion trendsetter, with her influence extending beyond Japan.^{[119][120][121]} The Guardian says that Hamasaki has "married accessible, mainstream hits with over-the-top costumes and high-concept videos".^[122] The widespread influence of her music and her constantly changing image has meant that Hamasaki has often been compared to Madonna.^[123][124] Hamasaki's lyrics and image have gained a following predominantly among the Generation X of Asia, mainly because of the "conflicting or inharmonious beauty" of her fashion and lyrics; Hamasaki's fashions combine Eastern and Western elements, and her songs, unlike those of many of her contemporaries, all have English titles but contained no English lyrics (until Rainbow).^[38] The popularity of her music extends beyond Japan;^[125] she has a "sizable [following] across Asia" and is one of the few Japanese singers whose albums have sold over 10,000 copies in Singapore.^[126][127] In 2002, however, Hamasaki's domestic sales began declining due to a sluggish Japanese market and increasing piracy in Japan.^[128] As a result, she began moving toward the Asian market in 2002, performing at the 2002 MTV Asia awards in Singapore, at South Korea's "Asia Song Festival", and at a concert in Beijing to celebrate Sino-Japanese relations.^[129][130] With her popularity declining (due in part to the rising popularity of other singers like Kumi Koda), she made a foray into the Asian market, starting with her first tour of Asia in 2007.^[131]

Musical style[link]

In the beginning, I was searching for myself in my music. My music was for me. I didn't have the mental room to be conscious of the listener; I wrote to save myself. I didn't understand what it was to write songs. But over time I began to see many things, my influence, the responsibilities that gave me.

— Hamasaki on the new lyrical directions in I Am....^[33]

Hamasaki's lyrics, all her own,^{[fn 5]} have resonated among her fans, who praise them as being honest and heartfelt and "expressing determination"; in two surveys conducted by Oricon, respondents voted Hamasaki's lyrics as their favorite aspect of her artistry.^[132][133] Steve McClure of The Japan Times noted that Hamasaki has "developed a reputation as a thoughtful, introspective lyricist"; Barry Walters of The Village Voice comments that Hamasaki's lyrics "pack unlikely insights."^[18][134] Having "trouble voicing her thoughts", Hamasaki uses her lyrics as an outlet; she draws inspiration from her own (and occasionally her friends') experiences and emotions and tries to put them "honestly into words".^[135] She has stated that honesty is essential to her lyrics, saying, "If I write when I'm low, it will be a dark song, but I don't care. I want to be honest with myself at all times."^[135] This meant that she did not use English lyrics until her album Rainbow, as she felt that she could best express herself in Japanese.^{[fn 5]} As with her musical style, the themes of her lyrics have varied. Her debut album A Song for ×× dealt mostly with themes of "loneliness and confusion", as did her second album Loveppears. Duty likewise expressed feelings of disappointment and confusion. Hamasaki began to take on a more global outlook with her following albums I Am... and Rainbow, branching out to wider themes such as faith and peace.^[32] As Hamasaki matured, her lyrics began to express more confidence; themes in her later albums included love and the struggles of women.^[46][58][66] With Guilty, Hamasaki began to compose her lyrics not only as a exposition of her personal feelings but as encouragements for her listeners, an outlook she applied in Next Level as well. In songs such as "Talkin' 2 Myself" and "Mirrorcle World", Hamasaki deals with the "awareness and fighting spirit of surviving in a high-risk age" to encourage listeners; in "Rollin'" (from Next Level), Hamasaki writes, "The age is rolling around/At the speed of heading toward the end/Beyond the border/Disappointment and hope fight with each other".^[136] In addition to personal experiences and feelings, Hamasaki bases lyrics on sources such as historical events. The life of Joan of Arc was the inspiration for "Free & Easy", while a story told to her by her friend about a saint named Mary served as the basis for "M"; the September 11 attacks inspired "A Song Is Born".^[24][137]

"Evolution" (2001) noicon Many of Hamasaki's songs are dance tunes, such as "Evolution" (2001), a self-composed single that also has rock elements. "M" (2000) noicon "M", the first song composed by Hamasaki under the pseudonym "Crea", shifts to a relative key, like most of her self-composed songs.[138] "Bold & Delicious" (2005) noicon Hamasaki took new directions on (Miss)understood, as epitomized by the single "Bold & Delicious", a funk-influenced song that used a gospel-style chorus.

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In addition to writing her own lyrics, Hamasaki has also involved herself in other aspects of production such as artistic direction. Though Max Matsuura is officially credited as the producer of her records, he said of Hamasaki, "Ayu is a very meticulous worker behind the scenes. A lot of the work she does by herself is more in the producer's arena. I think really we should say 'Produced by [A]yumi [H]amasaki'."^[139] Until her single "M", however, Hamasaki left the task of composing to her staff; as she has explained, "I'm not a professional; I lack even basic knowledge about writing music."^[31] However, she started to compose her own melodies after her staff had failed to compose a tune for "M" that appealed to her.^[11] Wanting to produce works faithful to her visions, Hamasaki took control of most aspects of her artistry.^[32][33] I Am... is representative of this stage in Hamasaki's career; she directed the production of its songs, videos, and artwork. She began to compose less after I Am...: whereas nearly all of I Am... was her work, only nine of Rainbow's fifteen tracks were composed by her. She was even less involved in the composition of subsequent albums, composing two tracks on Memorial Address, three on My Story, and one on (Miss)understood; since Secret, none of the songs on her studio albums have listed her as a composer. With later albums, Hamasaki also began to delegate to her staff tasks she had once handled herself.^[140] Hamasaki cites Madonna, soul musicians Babyface and En Vogue, and rock bands Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple as her influences and states that she admires Michelle Branch, Kid Rock, Joan Osborne, Seiko Matsuda, Rie Miyazawa, and Keiko Yamada;^[31][135] these diverse influences have led to the variety of her own music. Hamasaki began commissioning remixes of her songs early in her career, and this practice also influenced the diversity of her music.^[18] Found on many of her records, these remixes span different genres of electronic dance music including Eurobeat, house, and trance, as well as acoustic genres such as classical and traditional Chinese music. She has employed Western as well as Japanese musicians; among those she has worked with are Above & Beyond, the Lamoureux Orchestra of France,^{[fn 13]} and traditional Chinese music ensemble Princess China Music Orchestra.^[141] Hamasaki has released more than a hundred original songs; through them, she has covered a wide range of musical styles, such as dance, metal, R&B, progressive rock, pop, and classical.^[18] She uses different instruments and techniques including piano, orchestra, gospel choirs, guitars, traditional Japanese strings, music boxes, and effects such as yells, claps, and scratching.^[18][46]

Hamasaki's live performances are often lavish productions that use "grand-scale props".^[142] Performances of "Mirrorcle World" in her 2008 tour of Asia used a floating ship.

Hamasaki is often involved in the artistic direction of her music videos. They are often artistic productions through which Hamasaki tries to convey the meaning or feeling of their respective songs.^[65] The themes of the videos are varied; she has made "sad and fragile" or "emotional" videos ("Momentum", "Endless Sorrow"), "refreshing" summer videos ("Blue Bird", "Fairyland"), surreal or "scary" videos ("1 Love", "Marionette"), and humorous videos ("Evolution", "Angel's Song", "Beautiful Fighters").^[132][143] Additionally, many of the videos contain short storylines, some of which use symbolism to convey their respective messages.^[132] The video of "Voyage" depicts Hamasaki as a woman in a mental hospital whose previous incarnation was a woman in feudal Japan who was sacrificed to the moon; the video of "Endless Sorrow" features a young boy living in a society where speaking is forbidden by law. In the video for "Free & Easy", Hamasaki portrayed a "twenty-first-century Joan of Arc" to convey her message "freedom cannot be easily obtained; there is a price to pay for it" and to express her opposition to her marrying at the time;^[144] the video for "Ourselves" featured masked people destroying "effigies of [Hamasaki's] past" such as photographs and album covers to symbolize destruction and rebirth.^[145][146] Additionally, the videos of "Fairyland", "My Name's Women", "Jewel", "Green", and "Virgin Road" are among the top twenty or so most expensive music videos, making Hamasaki the only non-American artist to hold such a distinction.^{[147][148][149]} Hamasaki is also involved in the production and artistic direction of her live performances; they, like her videos, are often lavish productions and use a variety of props, extravagant costumes, and choreographed dances. She has used large video screens, fireworks, simulated rain drops, trick stage floors, and suspended devices.^[142]

Public image[link]

Hamasaki's influence goes beyond music; she is often considered a fashion icon and trend-setter,^{[140][150][151]} a status attributed to her tight control over her image.^{[3][152][153][154]} Besides her frequent appearances in fashion magazines, such as Vivi, Popteen, and Cawaii!, Hamasaki has often been lauded for her trendy choices in apparels and accessories; Oricon has repeatedly named her the "Most Fashionable Female Artist".^{[1][118][155]} Many aspects of Japan's fashions—including clothing, hair, nails, and accessories—have in some way been influenced by her.^[118][156] As with her music, trends Hamasaki started have spread to Asian countries as Taiwan, China, and Singapore.^{[119][120][121]} Among the trends Hamasaki has started are hime-kei (a look inspired by the fashions of 18th century French aristocracy) and chapatsu; she has also heavily influenced the kogal subculture.^{[157][158][159]} Hamasaki's constantly changing image is apparent not only in her fashion photo shoots and commercial endorsements but also in her record covers, an element she considers essential in conveying her message.^[32] She has portrayed herself as a vine-clad "peace muse" or "Greek goddess" (on her album I Am...), as a "twenty-first-century Joan of Arc" (for her single "Free & Easy"), and as a "funky Lolita".^[137][160] Though Hamasaki has portrayed herself in earlier releases as a "girl next door", she has adopted a more sexualized image since the release of Loveppears. The covers for records including Loveppears, I Am..., and Rainbow feature Hamasaki in states of partial nudity, for which she has generated controversy.^[161] Hamasaki also garnered criticism after she modeled bra for lingerie manufacturer Wacoal, though most of the criticism alleged that Hamasaki was only trying to "play catch-up" with Kumi Koda, who gained popularity for her overtly sexual image.^[162]