Utada Hikaru
Encyclopedia
, known by her stage name Utada (lang) in America and Europe, is a Japanese-American singer, song writer, arranger
, and producer. Since the release of her Japanese debut album First Love, which went on to become the best-selling album in Oricon
history, Utada has had three of her Japanese studio albums in the list of Top 10 best-selling albums ever in Japan (number 1, 4, 8) and six of her albums (including one English-language and one compilation) charting within the 275 Best-Selling Japanese albums list.
Utada has had twelve number-one singles on the Oricon
Singles chart, with two notable record achievements for a female solo or group artist: five million-sellers and four in the Top 100 All-Time Best-selling Singles.
Utada has an estimated more than 52 million records sold worldwide.
She was described by Time Magazine as a "Diva On Campus," a reference to her having attended Columbia University for a brief, career-break semester in 2000. In 2009, she was considered "the most influential artist of the decade" in the Japanese landscape by The Japan Times
. In 2003, Utada was ranked number 24 in the survey of Top 100 Japanese Pop Artists of All Time by HMV, number 10 in HMV's Top 30 Best Japanese Singers of All Time in 2006.
Additionally, Utada is best known in the West for making two theme song contributions to Square Enix
and Disney's collaborative video game series Kingdom Hearts
: "Simple and Clean
" (which is the re-written English-language version of her 10th Japanese single Hikari
) for Kingdom Hearts and "Sanctuary" for Kingdom Hearts II
(later re-recorded with new Japanese lyrics as "Passion" for the Japanese releases of the game). In 2007, her single "Flavor of Life
" reached number 2 in worldwide digital download yearly single chart with over 7.2 million downloads, and contributes to 12 million digital sales for her over the same year.
, a Japanese record producer, and his wife Junko Utada, an enka
singer, performing under the stage name Keiko Fuji
. She did her recordings with her mother, releasing songs under a band named “U3” (also known as Utada 3) until 1996 when she started her first solo project, "I'll be Stronger." The "Cookin' With Moses
Vocal" from this project was called the "Cookin' With Gas Vocal" on the promotional release.
"I'll Be Stronger" was the first song Utada wrote. It was released under the artist name "Cubic U", a mathematical reference to her being the third Utada 'power', which was Hikaru's pseudonym before becoming a superstar in Japan. The song was not released in the United States, and in 1997, she started her next project, though at first she was hesitant. Cubic U released her debut single "Close to You", which was a cover of The Carpenters' song
. She then released her debut album Precious
.
She released Precious in Japan on January 28, 1998, and then later re-released it on March 31, 1999.
, and later the American School in Japan
, while continuing to record on a new contract with Toshiba-EMI
. Her movement originally came from Japanese FM radio. Unlike other pop-stars at the time, she was more focused on becoming a singer and songwriter while other Japanese female singers were attempting to become idols
. Leading up to the release of her Japanese debut album First Love, Utada released two successful million-selling singles: "Automatic/Time Will Tell" and "Movin' on Without You
". "Automatic/Time Will Tell" sold over two million copies. Backed by her singles, her debut album First Love went on to sell over 7 million units in Japan alone (with an additional 3 million overseas, bringing it to a sum of at least 10 million units), becoming the highest selling album in Japan's recent history. The album yielded the single "First Love", which peaked at the number-two spot. By the end of the year, Utada was rank number 5 on a Japanese radio station Tokio Hot 100 Airplay's Top 100 Artists of the 20th Century by the station and its listeners.
After a two years' break, Utada released her follow up album Distance
, garnering a first-week sales of 3 million units sold. Ayumi Hamasaki
's first greatest hits compilation album
was released the same week in the aim to make a positive duel by Hamasaki's label, Avex Trax. This duel helped the two albums to break the record of fastest selling album worldwide, with Utada's album reaching first position by less than 150,000 copies. Backed by her singles — "Addicted to You", "Wait & See: Risk", "For You/Time Limit" and "Can You Keep a Secret?
" — Distance became the best-selling album of the year, with 4.469 million copies sold in Japan alone. Additionally, "Addicted To You" became Utada's best-selling single, selling one-million in its first week which became the highest first week sales for a female solo artist and staying on top of the chart for two consecutive weeks. "Wait & See: Risk" and "Can You Keep A Secret" also were later ranked at number 6 and number 10 respectively on Oricon's list of 10 Best-Selling Singles from January 1, 1999 to April 24, 2006. Utada also went on to release a single which was dedicated to the female victim of a murder case
in Ikeda, Osaka
, titled "Final Distance
".
In 2001, Utada has recorded a song for the action-comedy film Rush Hour 2
, Blow My Whistle, which is a collaboration with American
rapper Foxy Brown, and was written by Utada herself, alongside Pharrell Williams
and Chad Hugo
. The song is included on Def Jam
's Rush Hour 2 soundtrack
, which peaked the 11th spot on both the Billboard 200
and the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
and also the 1st on the Top Soundtracks. Although Hikaru usually produces her own songs, Blow My Whistle was produced by The Neptunes
.
Leading to her third album, Utada released "Traveling", "Hikari
", and "Sakura Drops/Letters": all the songs reached the top of the charts. Before the release of Utada's third album, Deep River, the artist underwent surgery after being diagnosed with a benign
ovarian tumor, causing Utada to put her promotional activities on hold. After recovering, she released Deep River and immediately went on promotional tours. While there were no TV appearances, she promoted her album in magazine and radio interviews.
Deep River sold 2.35 million copies on its first-week sale: Oricon reported that sales eventually surpassed 3.60 million, making Utada the only singer or group in Japanese music history to have three consecutive albums surpass the three million mark, by RIAJ standards. It was her third consecutive time to hold the number 1 position on Oricon's Yearly Albums chart and became the eighth best selling album of all time in Japan.
In 2003, Utada's promotional and personal life schedules became more active due to her marriage and an imposing agreement with Island Records
in the United states to release a "proper" full-English debut album. Though she released "Colors
", it was her only single release for 2003. The song featured heavy ethereal and experimental
tones for the first time in Utada's discography. It became her longest charting single ever with a 45 week trajectory on the Oricon Singles chart, selling 881,000 copies, and was number 3 on the Yearly Singles chart.
Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol.1 was released on March 31, 2004. It became the best-selling album of 2004 in Japan, making her the only solo or group artist to reach number 1 four times on the yearly charts. It was the first compilation album to reach number 1 in six years on the yearly charts, and the first compilation album to reach number 1 in twenty-six years by a female artist. Despite its success, the album received very little promotion and contained no new material or photos; moreover, it charted longer on the Oricon Albums chart longer than any other Utada release to date (over 2 years). The album sold over 2.575 million units in Japan, making it the 34th best-selling album ever in the country. A month later, on April 21, she released her only Japanese single in 2004, "Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro," which topped the singles chart for two consecutive weeks and sold 365,000 units by the year's end and was also the main theme song for Casshern, her now ex-husband's directorial debut.
In mid-2004, Utada moved back to New York, and began work on a new recording contract with Island Def Jam Music Group
. On October 5, 2004, she released her North American English-language debut album, Exodus, under the name "Utada," which was her new American-given artist title at the Universal Convention. It was released nearly a month earlier, on September 9 in Japan, with a special booklet and housed in a cardboard slipcase. In an MTV interview, Utada said: "I don't think it's the music that I'm concerned about. It's obviously that I look really different and there really aren't any completely Asian people [who are popular singers in the U.S.] right now." Exodus became Utada's fourth consecutive release to debut at number 1 and boast 500,000 copies in its first-week sales in Japan. In spite of enlisting the help of Timbaland
to produce and co-write some songs, her American debut as an Island Records artist was met with indifference by the American market, selling 55,000 units. "Easy Breezy
" was released as the lead single in early August 2004, peaking at number 9 Billboard Hot Dance/Club Airplay chart, followed up by "Devil Inside" a month and two weeks later. And Utada became the cover of the Interview magazine June, 2005 issue.
"Exodus '04
" was released at the end of June 2005 and featured remixes from The Scumfrog
, Richard Vission
, JJ Flores and Peter Bailey. In the UK, Mercury added another 2 remixes for "You Make Me Want to Be a Man" in the original album Exodus 04, titled "You Make Me Want to Be a Man [Bloodshy & Avant Mix]" and "You Make Me Want to Be a Man [Junior Jack Mix]." By the end of the year Utada was voted "Number 1 Favorite Artist of 2004" by Oricon
's annual readers poll.
The fourth single from Exodus, "You Make Me Want to Be a Man
", was released in October 2005 in the UK. "Devil Inside" became a club smash in the U.S. and topped the Billboard Hot Dance/Club Airplay
charts. Both the Exodus album and the "You Make Me Want to Be a Man" single were released in the UK, with different artwork from the USA and Japanese versions.
, Utada released a string of successful hit singles: "Colors
" (number 1), "Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro
" (number 1), "Be My Last
", (number 1), "Passion" (number 4), and "Keep Tryin'
" (number 2). The digital single "This Is Love" was released to promote the album, netting 1,000,000 digital downloads.
Ultra Blue
sold 500,317 copies in the first week, lower than that of the previous album, although it still topped the Oricon Daily, Weekly, and Monthly charts. Ultra Blue gave the artist her fifth consecutive chart-topping Japanese album (excluding her English album) to sell in excess of 500,000 copies for a first-week sales. On July 13, Toshiba EMI published a report stating that Ultra Blue
had sold over one million copies worldwide and four million digital ringtones already making it one of EMI's 10th best-selling album of the past year. The album, which did not contain much pop music, was met with indifference and did not boost sales, although the album was certified Million by RIAJ
for one million shipments. Additionally, it was the highest-selling original studio album by a Japanese female artist in 2006.
Ultra Blue
later became available on the iTunes
Japan online music store, charting at number 4 on the 2006 yearly download rankings. Two weeks after the release of Ultra Blue, Utada began a nationwide tour titled "Utada United 2006
" on June 30, 2006 which ended on September 12, 2006. This was Utada's second concert tour after her debut tour "Bohemian Summer 2000" and five performances at the Nippon Budokan in 2004. Aside from her Japanese work, the tour's set list featured three tracks from her 2004 English-language album, Exodus.
The singles that were released prior to Utada's fifth studio album, Heart Station, were able to reach the Top Five position on the chart, including the number 1 hit "Flavor of Life
", which would become the best selling digital single in Japan with over 7,500,000 copies download. Around the same time, Utada said she visited New York to talk with producers and executives at Island/Def Jam about recording a new English album. Later in the year a digital track by American R&B artist Ne-Yo
, titled "Do You
" from his 2007 album, Because of You
featured Utada and was released in Japan on November 21 (the song was later featured on Ne-Yo's "best of" album, Ne-Yo: The Collection
, released on September 2, 2009 in Japan and November 2009 in the US).
The year 2007 ended with the single "Flavor of Life
" becoming the best seller of 2007 and with Utada being voted "Number 1 Favorite Artist of 2007" by Oricon
's annual readers poll, three years after she was last voted number 1 on the poll. She sold 12 million digital ringtones and songs in 2007, the highest of a Japanese artist in one year. The single was featured as the main song in second season of TV drama Hana Yori Dango.
Utada's fifth studio album, Heart Station, was released on March 19, 2008, becoming her fifth consecutive number-one Japanese studio album. Although it had collected the lowest first week sales for Utada's career, with 480,081 copies sold, the sales of this album reached a million on the Oricon charts in January 2009, making it her first Japanese album to do so since her 2004 compilation album
. It was given a certification of one million for shipments by the RIAJ
. Heart Station became the best-selling digital-format album on the iTunes
2008 yearly album charts in Japan, and was also the highest-selling original studio album by a solo female artist on the Oricon Yearly Chart.
Her song "Prisoner of Love
" was used as the theme-song for the highly successful TV drama Last Friends
, which was aired in the spring TV season. Although not originally released as a single, after being used in the show, the song was released as a single and it reached number 1 in iTunes and the Chako-Uta charts. It reached number 2 at the Oricon Weekly charts. It won Best Theme Song at the 57th Drama Academy Awards and sold 2.9 million downloads. It marked the fourth successful Utada drama tie-in (following 1999's Majo no Jouken and First Love, 2001's Hero and Can You Keep a Secret and 2007's Hana Yori Dango and Flavor of Life).
On October 20, 2008, her song "Eternally" from her 2001 album Distance
was used as the theme for the drama Innocent Love. The song was later released as a digital single.
By the end of the year, Utada was also voted the "Number 1 Favorite Artist of 2008" by Oricon
's annual readers poll, making it her second consecutive year, and third time overall, to win the vote; her previous years being 2004 and 2007.
", would be scheduled for airplay release through U.S. Rhythmic/Crossover and Mainstream formats on February 9 and 10, 2009 respectively via Island Records
, according to credible American radio news sites FMQB
and R&R
. The song then was made available for streaming on Island's, All Access' website, and her MySpace Music Page for advanced promotion. Island Records also updated their webpage with information regarding Utada's new single, and included a link to her official Japanese website and MySpace page, both featuring a track preview. Additionally, a number was included that fans could text to join Utada's mobile list to receive future news updates. The new English album, titled This Is the One, was released on March 14, 2009 in Japan and on May 12, 2009 in the United States. On February 23, 2009, Utada announced that she was in studio recording her next Japanese-language single. This Is the One debuted at number 1 in Japan on March 13, 2009, the day it was released in Japan, but became Utada's first album not to top the weekly chart since Precious. On March 30, 2009 she appeared on New York City radio station Z-100
(100.3), the largest pop radio program in the U.S., and granted a live on-air interview on the station's Elvis Duran Morning Show, a noteworthy breakthrough that would lead to a promotional schedule up and through the album's international physical release on May 12. Utada also sang the theme song for the latest Evangelion film, Evangelion 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance. The single was released on June 27, 2009, and is a remix of her previous single, Beautiful World
. The new single is titled Beautiful World -PLANiTb Acoustica Mix-.
On October 14, Utada mentioned that she was writing lyrics that were due on October 15. She also added that some "German magic" would be added to the music. It was revealed that Goetz B, who had previously worked with Utada on her album Ultra Blue
was in the process of mixing tracks for her. Most notable was a track called "Show Me Love", which is reported to be released as a Japanese single at a then-unspecified date.
On November 30, 2009, at Studio Coast, Tokyo, Utada sung a duet of Let It Snow
with pop singer Mika
. Mika posted on his Twitter
account about Utada: "Was joined on stage by Hikaru Utada tonight. We sang "let it snow". It was glorious. I love her."
On December 21, 2009, Utada's Dirty Desire
remixes were released only on Amazon.com, Zune Marketplace, and the U.S. iTunes Store
, in support of This Is the One and her upcoming tour. The tour, Utada: In The Flesh 2010
, was her first concert tour outside of Japan and included eight cities in the US and two dates in London, UK. The tickets for the second London performance went on public sale November 13, and reportedly sold out in just 5 hours. In an interview before she kicked off In The Flesh, Utada said she is planning on promoting This Is the One, and her newest single, Dirty Desire. She also expressed she could be planning to do a cover album, or just take a break to get some new ideas.
Before her hiatus began, she said that she would go "full throttle" on her artistic activities, and soon after her site was updated, and a new compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2
, was announced, with a release date of November 24, 2010. This new album would include all her Japanese singles from Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro
to Prisoner of Love
on disc one, as well as an extra EP
, featuring five new tracks. Later it was announced a DVD containing the promotional video
for Goodbye Happiness would be included in all first-press edition pre-orders.
On September 27, 2010, Utada revealed a new single, entitled Hymne à l'amour (Ai no Anthem), which became a commercial tie-in for Pepsi
's newest soft drink, Pepsi NEX. The song features both French and Japanese lyrics, specifically translated and written by Utada herself. At this time, official Twitter
accounts were set up by Utada, her staff, and her father, Teruzane were created to keep fans and the public with up-to-date information.
An announcement was made that Utada would perform a short concert tour titled Wild Life
(December 8 and 9 2010 only) at Yokohama Arena
, Yokohama
to promote the album, her first Japanese concert since 2006's Utada United
.
On October 3, 2010, Utada's official EMI Web site was updated with the album artwork and final track list for Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2.
First Press editions included a 3-fold paper slip case, along with a Kuma-chang good luck charm
, and a lottery slip for fans to have a chance at winning one of 1000 tickets to WILD LIFE (this idea was, however, later scrapped).
On October 15, 2010, it was announced that the anticipated footage from Utada's In The Flesh 2010 tour would be released in the following months, confirmed by both Utada and Teruzane's Twitter accounts, and a physical DVD release would be ousted in favor of a digital-only package with a promise of release before the year's end. On the same day, Teruzane posted on Twitter that the plans for Wild Life were beginning to take shape, as talks were under way and a mock-stage had been created. The show was the first self-produced by Utada, with Teruzane acting as co-producer.
In late October, despite no previous announcements from Utada or any of her staff and management, it was revealed online at Tower Records Japan and several other websites that an English-language 'best of album' titled "Utada the Best
" would become available in Japan on the same day as Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, November 24.
Utada herself reacted to the news, stating "I understand that if it doesn't sell I'm the one who will take the hit, but to be honest, I don't want my fans putting down money for something that my heart isn't in.", and later "The release of 'Utada the best' is entirely against my will. I wish that my fans won't have to buy it. There's no new material in it."
Utada later announced a new single, Goodbye Happiness
, began radio airplay in Japan on November 1, 2010, and Chaku-Uta downloads began on November 3, with its accompanying PV appearing publicly on November 9, 2010.
The song was also chosen as the new Recochoku Chaku-Uta TV commercial theme song.
On 8 November 2010, EMI Japan announced on its Web site that the company had made a new global recording deal with Utada, also stating that all of her future works regardless of language would be released under one name: Hikaru Utada.
From November 24, 2010, first-week sales for Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2 were 231,000 units according to Oricon album daily charting. Although replacing Heart Station as her lowest first week sales of any Utada Hikaru album to date, this release marked Utada's seventh consecutive number 1 album (5 original and two best-ofs) since her debut, surpassing Kinki Kids
' previous record of six and making her the artist with the most successive consecutive number 1 albums in Oricon chart and Japanese music history (the latter according to her label EMI) since premiering. On April 10, 2011, Utada won the award for "Best Conceptual Video" in the SpaceShowerTV Music Video Awards for the PV for "Goodbye Happiness
", which also marked her directorial debut.
, Yokohama
. The December 8 concert was broadcast in 64 cinemas in Japan; whilst it was simultaneously broadcast on Ustream.tv, a live video streaming website. Between the two channels set up for the concert on Ustream, they were accessed a total of 925,000 times, with 345,000 unique viewers, as well as 185,000 comments left on the feed. This was a global record on Ustream.tv, for the highest number of simultaneous accesses of any video, with the previous highest being only 100,000.
The Japanese TV station NHK
premiered a documentary about Utada on January 15, 2011. Titled Utada Hikaru ~今のわたし~ (Utada Hikaru: Ima no Watashi, Utada Hikaru: What I Am), the documentary featured new studio performances by Utada (Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
and Goodbye Happiness
), as well as some of her Wild Life performances from December. It also featured a post-Wild Life interview with J-Wave
host Chris Peppler about her decision to go on hiatus as well as what she plans to do, in which she said she wanted to do volunteer work overseas, and also travel. Utada also stated that she would continue writing music during her hiatus. It was later revealed that the documentary would be broadcast internationally, specifically the US on February 12, 2011 and Europe on February 2, 2011, on the NHK channel (TV Japan in America, and JSTV in Europe).
A DVD
and Blu-ray release of Wild Life was confirmed and initially set for release on April 6, 2011. However, on 24 March 2011, Utada Tweeted that both the DVD and Blu-ray release of Wild Life had been postponed, due to the earthquake and resulting tsunami in Japan damaging the pressing factories. The DVD was released on 20 April 2011, the Blu-ray followed under a month later on 8 May.
, a photographer and film director who was fifteen years her senior and who had directed several of her music videos. After four and a half years of marriage, the couple announced their divorce (which became official on March 2, 2007), citing personal changes, different viewpoints on the future of their marriage, and lack of communication due to the nature of their jobs.
Utada confirmed she had a boyfriend 8 years her senior, and began their relationship in at least September 2009. On January 27, 2010, it was reported that they had ended their relationship, due to the fact they never saw each other, and that she was much too busy with her In The Flesh 2010 tour. However, in August 2010, it was reported that the couple had reconciled.
, Cocteau Twins
, Nine Inch Nails
, Jimi Hendrix
, Prince
, Édith Piaf
, Chick Corea
, the Blue Nile
, Björk
, Lenny Kravitz
, Béla Bartók
, Mozart
, Jeff Buckley
, Yutaka Ozaki
, and Hibari Misora
as some of her favorite artists.
Utada is also inspired by the late R&B artist Aaliyah
.
Arrangement
The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
, and producer. Since the release of her Japanese debut album First Love, which went on to become the best-selling album in Oricon
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
history, Utada has had three of her Japanese studio albums in the list of Top 10 best-selling albums ever in Japan (number 1, 4, 8) and six of her albums (including one English-language and one compilation) charting within the 275 Best-Selling Japanese albums list.
Utada has had twelve number-one singles on the Oricon
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
Singles chart, with two notable record achievements for a female solo or group artist: five million-sellers and four in the Top 100 All-Time Best-selling Singles.
Utada has an estimated more than 52 million records sold worldwide.
She was described by Time Magazine as a "Diva On Campus," a reference to her having attended Columbia University for a brief, career-break semester in 2000. In 2009, she was considered "the most influential artist of the decade" in the Japanese landscape by The Japan Times
The Japan Times
The Japan Times is an English language newspaper published in Japan. Unlike its competitors, the Daily Yomiuri and the International Herald Tribune/Asahi Shimbun, it is not affiliated with a Japanese language media organization...
. In 2003, Utada was ranked number 24 in the survey of Top 100 Japanese Pop Artists of All Time by HMV, number 10 in HMV's Top 30 Best Japanese Singers of All Time in 2006.
Additionally, Utada is best known in the West for making two theme song contributions to Square Enix
Square Enix
is a Japanese video game and publishing company best known for its console role-playing game franchises, which include the Final Fantasy series, the Dragon Quest series, and the action-RPG Kingdom Hearts series...
and Disney's collaborative video game series Kingdom Hearts
Kingdom Hearts
is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square in 2002 for the PlayStation 2 video game console. The first game in the Kingdom Hearts series, it is the result of a collaboration between Square Enix and The Walt Disney Company. The game combines characters and settings from Disney...
: "Simple and Clean
Hikari (song)
is Hikaru Utada's 10th Japanese-language single , and is also her 3rd single on the Deep River album. Its release date was March 20, 2002...
" (which is the re-written English-language version of her 10th Japanese single Hikari
Hikari (song)
is Hikaru Utada's 10th Japanese-language single , and is also her 3rd single on the Deep River album. Its release date was March 20, 2002...
) for Kingdom Hearts and "Sanctuary" for Kingdom Hearts II
Kingdom Hearts II
is an action role-playing game developed by Square Enix and published by Buena Vista Games and Square Enix in 2005 for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console...
(later re-recorded with new Japanese lyrics as "Passion" for the Japanese releases of the game). In 2007, her single "Flavor of Life
Flavor of Life
"Flavor of Life" is Hikaru Utada's 18th Japanese single . The physical single was officially released on February 28, 2007.Compared to the preceding singles following Colors, Flavor of Life garnered far more success...
" reached number 2 in worldwide digital download yearly single chart with over 7.2 million downloads, and contributes to 12 million digital sales for her over the same year.
Early life and beginnings
Hikaru Utada was born in Manhattan as the only child of Teruzane UtadaTeruzane Utada
is a Japanese music executive producer and attendant.He married Junko Utada and worked as her attendant. Their daughter and only child is the singer Hikaru Utada, one of Japan’s most successful pop music singers of all time. The couple have been married and divorced to each other seven times. He...
, a Japanese record producer, and his wife Junko Utada, an enka
Enka
is a popular Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically. Modern enka, however, is a relatively recent musical form which arose in the context of such postwar expressions of modern Japanese nonmaterial nationalism as nihonjinron, while adopting a more...
singer, performing under the stage name Keiko Fuji
Keiko Fuji
, real name , is a Japanese enka singer and actress. She had success in Japan in the 1960s and 1970s with her ballad-type songs. Her parents were itinerant musical performers. Her father was a rōkyoku singer. Her mother was a blind shamisen player or goze...
. She did her recordings with her mother, releasing songs under a band named “U3” (also known as Utada 3) until 1996 when she started her first solo project, "I'll be Stronger." The "Cookin' With Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
Vocal" from this project was called the "Cookin' With Gas Vocal" on the promotional release.
"I'll Be Stronger" was the first song Utada wrote. It was released under the artist name "Cubic U", a mathematical reference to her being the third Utada 'power', which was Hikaru's pseudonym before becoming a superstar in Japan. The song was not released in the United States, and in 1997, she started her next project, though at first she was hesitant. Cubic U released her debut single "Close to You", which was a cover of The Carpenters' song
(They Long to Be) Close to You
" Close to You" is a popular song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. It was first recorded by Richard Chamberlain and released as a single in 1963 as "They Long to Be Close to You," without parentheses. However, it was the single's flip side, "Blue Guitar," that became a hit...
. She then released her debut album Precious
Precious (Cubic U album)
Note: Several US-promo copies of the album have the track "Here and There and Back Again" as track 5. This was not on the re-released Japanese version.-Release history:-Single:- Charts :Precious - Oricon Sales Chart...
.
She released Precious in Japan on January 28, 1998, and then later re-released it on March 31, 1999.
Japanese debut and breakthrough success: 1997–2003
Utada moved to Tokyo in late 1997 and attended Seisen International SchoolSeisen International School
Seisen International School is an all-girls' Catholic school located in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan. Students and faculty from over sixty countries are represented at Seisen, with English being the main language of instruction...
, and later the American School in Japan
American School in Japan
The American School in Japan was founded in 1902 and is an international private day school located in the city of Chōfu, Tokyo, Japan. The school consists of an elementary school, a middle school, and a high school, all located on the Chōfu campus...
, while continuing to record on a new contract with Toshiba-EMI
Toshiba-EMI
(formerly , is one of Japan's leading music companies. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of British music company EMI Group Ltd. in June 30, 2007 after Toshiba sold off its previous 45% stake. The current CEO and president is San-e Ichii. When EMI Music Japan was trading as Toshiba-EMI, it was...
. Her movement originally came from Japanese FM radio. Unlike other pop-stars at the time, she was more focused on becoming a singer and songwriter while other Japanese female singers were attempting to become idols
Japanese idol
In Japanese culture, are media personalities in their teens and early twenties who are considered particularly attractive or cute and who will, for a period ranging from several months to a few years, regularly appear in the mass media, e.g...
. Leading up to the release of her Japanese debut album First Love, Utada released two successful million-selling singles: "Automatic/Time Will Tell" and "Movin' on Without You
Movin' on without you
- Charts :"Movin' on Without You" - Oricon Sales Chart -Information:"Movin' on Without You" was featured in a US commercial for the Nissan Maxima....
". "Automatic/Time Will Tell" sold over two million copies. Backed by her singles, her debut album First Love went on to sell over 7 million units in Japan alone (with an additional 3 million overseas, bringing it to a sum of at least 10 million units), becoming the highest selling album in Japan's recent history. The album yielded the single "First Love", which peaked at the number-two spot. By the end of the year, Utada was rank number 5 on a Japanese radio station Tokio Hot 100 Airplay's Top 100 Artists of the 20th Century by the station and its listeners.
After a two years' break, Utada released her follow up album Distance
Distance (Hikaru Utada album)
Distance is the second Japanese album released by Japanese-American J-pop singer Hikaru Utada, released on March 28, 2001 in direct "competition" with A Best by Ayumi Hamasaki ....
, garnering a first-week sales of 3 million units sold. Ayumi Hamasaki
Ayumi Hamasaki
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. Born and raised in Fukuoka, she moved to Tokyo at fourteen to...
's first greatest hits compilation album
A Best
- International version :A Best was later re-released in other countries outside Japan, including Singapore, the Philippines and Korea. The international version did not have new vocal mixes and had a slightly different cover art to the standard Japanese version....
was released the same week in the aim to make a positive duel by Hamasaki's label, Avex Trax. This duel helped the two albums to break the record of fastest selling album worldwide, with Utada's album reaching first position by less than 150,000 copies. Backed by her singles — "Addicted to You", "Wait & See: Risk", "For You/Time Limit" and "Can You Keep a Secret?
Can You Keep a Secret?
"Can You Keep a Secret?" is a song by Hikaru Utada, released as her seventh Japanese-language single on February 16, 2001. It was the theme song for a Japanese television drama called Hero, Utada made a cameo appearance as well as her acting debut in this drama as a waitress...
" — Distance became the best-selling album of the year, with 4.469 million copies sold in Japan alone. Additionally, "Addicted To You" became Utada's best-selling single, selling one-million in its first week which became the highest first week sales for a female solo artist and staying on top of the chart for two consecutive weeks. "Wait & See: Risk" and "Can You Keep A Secret" also were later ranked at number 6 and number 10 respectively on Oricon's list of 10 Best-Selling Singles from January 1, 1999 to April 24, 2006. Utada also went on to release a single which was dedicated to the female victim of a murder case
Osaka school massacre
The Osaka School Massacre took place on June 8, 2001, at Ikeda Elementary School, an elite primary school affiliated with Osaka Kyoiku University in Osaka Prefecture, Japan.- The attack :...
in Ikeda, Osaka
Ikeda, Osaka
is a city located in Osaka, Japan. As of 2010, the city has an estimated population of 104,704 and a density of 4,740 persons per km². The total area is 22.09 km²....
, titled "Final Distance
FINAL DISTANCE
"Final Distance" is Hikaru Utada's 8th Japanese-language single and the 1st single on her Deep River album. "Final Distance" is the first song that Hikaru Utada's ex-husband Kazuaki Kiriya filmed the music video to. This is also the first time that Hikaru Utada has worked with M-Flo. The song...
".
In 2001, Utada has recorded a song for the action-comedy film Rush Hour 2
Rush Hour 2
Rush Hour 2 is a 2001 martial arts action comedy film. This is the second installment in the Rush Hour film series. A sequel to the 1998 film Rush Hour, the film stars Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker who respectively reprise their roles as Inspector Lee and Los Angeles police detective James Carter...
, Blow My Whistle, which is a collaboration with American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
rapper Foxy Brown, and was written by Utada herself, alongside Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams , commonly known simply as Pharrell, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, composer, and fashion designer. Williams and Chad Hugo make up the record production duo The Neptunes, producing hip hop and R&B music...
and Chad Hugo
Chad Hugo
Charles Edward Hugo is an American musician and record producer. He is best known as one half of the music production and writing duo The Neptunes and as a member of the funk/rock band N.E.R.D. He is a saxophonist, pianist and guitarist...
. The song is included on Def Jam
Def Jam Recordings
Def Jam Recordings is an American record label, focused primarily on hip hop and urban music, owned by Universal Music Group, and operates as a part of The Island Def Jam Motown Music Group...
's Rush Hour 2 soundtrack
Rush Hour 2 (soundtrack)
Rush Hour 2 Soundtrack is the soundtrack to the 2001 action-comedy film, Rush Hour 2. It was released on July 31, 2001 through Hollywood Records and Epic Records. The soundtrack was a success making it to 11 on both the Billboard 200 and the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and 1 on the Top Soundtracks, and...
, which peaked the 11th spot on both the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
and the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999...
and also the 1st on the Top Soundtracks. Although Hikaru usually produces her own songs, Blow My Whistle was produced by The Neptunes
The Neptunes
The Neptunes are a record production duo consisting of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, who are credited with contributing the sound for many successful hip hop, R&B and pop artists in the late-1990s and 2000s...
.
Leading to her third album, Utada released "Traveling", "Hikari
Hikari (song)
is Hikaru Utada's 10th Japanese-language single , and is also her 3rd single on the Deep River album. Its release date was March 20, 2002...
", and "Sakura Drops/Letters": all the songs reached the top of the charts. Before the release of Utada's third album, Deep River, the artist underwent surgery after being diagnosed with a benign
Benign
A benign tumor is a tumor that lacks the ability to metastasize. Common examples of benign tumors include moles and uterine fibroids.The term "benign" implies a mild and nonprogressive disease. Indeed, many kinds of benign tumors are harmless to human health...
ovarian tumor, causing Utada to put her promotional activities on hold. After recovering, she released Deep River and immediately went on promotional tours. While there were no TV appearances, she promoted her album in magazine and radio interviews.
Deep River sold 2.35 million copies on its first-week sale: Oricon reported that sales eventually surpassed 3.60 million, making Utada the only singer or group in Japanese music history to have three consecutive albums surpass the three million mark, by RIAJ standards. It was her third consecutive time to hold the number 1 position on Oricon's Yearly Albums chart and became the eighth best selling album of all time in Japan.
In 2003, Utada's promotional and personal life schedules became more active due to her marriage and an imposing agreement with Island Records
Island Records
Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group...
in the United states to release a "proper" full-English debut album. Though she released "Colors
Colors (Hikaru Utada song)
"Colors" is Hikaru Utada's 12th Japanese-language single , and is the only single she released in 2003. It was released on January 29, 2003 and debuted at #1 on the Oricon charts with 437,903 copies sold in the first week, and became her fifth single to perform the rare two-consecutive weeks at...
", it was her only single release for 2003. The song featured heavy ethereal and experimental
Experimental music
Experimental music refers, in the English-language literature, to a compositional tradition which arose in the mid-20th century, applied particularly in North America to music composed in such a way that its outcome is unforeseeable. Its most famous and influential exponent was John Cage...
tones for the first time in Utada's discography. It became her longest charting single ever with a 45 week trajectory on the Oricon Singles chart, selling 881,000 copies, and was number 3 on the Yearly Singles chart.
Foray into International Market: 2004–2005
Her first singles compilation albumCompilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol.1 was released on March 31, 2004. It became the best-selling album of 2004 in Japan, making her the only solo or group artist to reach number 1 four times on the yearly charts. It was the first compilation album to reach number 1 in six years on the yearly charts, and the first compilation album to reach number 1 in twenty-six years by a female artist. Despite its success, the album received very little promotion and contained no new material or photos; moreover, it charted longer on the Oricon Albums chart longer than any other Utada release to date (over 2 years). The album sold over 2.575 million units in Japan, making it the 34th best-selling album ever in the country. A month later, on April 21, she released her only Japanese single in 2004, "Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro," which topped the singles chart for two consecutive weeks and sold 365,000 units by the year's end and was also the main theme song for Casshern, her now ex-husband's directorial debut.
In mid-2004, Utada moved back to New York, and began work on a new recording contract with Island Def Jam Music Group
Island Records
Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group...
. On October 5, 2004, she released her North American English-language debut album, Exodus, under the name "Utada," which was her new American-given artist title at the Universal Convention. It was released nearly a month earlier, on September 9 in Japan, with a special booklet and housed in a cardboard slipcase. In an MTV interview, Utada said: "I don't think it's the music that I'm concerned about. It's obviously that I look really different and there really aren't any completely Asian people [who are popular singers in the U.S.] right now." Exodus became Utada's fourth consecutive release to debut at number 1 and boast 500,000 copies in its first-week sales in Japan. In spite of enlisting the help of Timbaland
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper....
to produce and co-write some songs, her American debut as an Island Records artist was met with indifference by the American market, selling 55,000 units. "Easy Breezy
Easy Breezy
The Ultimix version is found on Ultimix 108 as track 3, remixed by Stacy Mier.-Charts:"Easy Breezy" - Oricon Sales Chart...
" was released as the lead single in early August 2004, peaking at number 9 Billboard Hot Dance/Club Airplay chart, followed up by "Devil Inside" a month and two weeks later. And Utada became the cover of the Interview magazine June, 2005 issue.
"Exodus '04
Exodus '04
"Exodus '04" is the 3rd English single by Utada and written by herself and Timbaland.It was released on June 21, 2005. It hit #24 on the Billboard Hot Dance/Club Airplay chart...
" was released at the end of June 2005 and featured remixes from The Scumfrog
The Scumfrog
Jesse Houk is a DJ/remixer/producer/artist from Amsterdam, The Netherlands. He is better known by his pseudonym, The Scumfrog, under which he has remixed songs by artists as varied as Britney Spears, David Bowie, Dido, Enrique Iglesias, and J-Pop Superstar Utada Hikaru. His first release was a...
, Richard Vission
Richard Vission
Richard "Humpty" Vission is a house music producer, remixer and DJ born Richard Gonzalez in Toronto, Ontario. He was raised in the San Fernando Valley, in Los Angeles, California....
, JJ Flores and Peter Bailey. In the UK, Mercury added another 2 remixes for "You Make Me Want to Be a Man" in the original album Exodus 04, titled "You Make Me Want to Be a Man [Bloodshy & Avant Mix]" and "You Make Me Want to Be a Man [Junior Jack Mix]." By the end of the year Utada was voted "Number 1 Favorite Artist of 2004" by Oricon
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
's annual readers poll.
The fourth single from Exodus, "You Make Me Want to Be a Man
You Make Me Want to Be a Man
- Utada, on the inspiration for You Make Me Want to Be a Man.-Track listing:CD+DVD Promo Version*Both You Make Me Want to Be a Man and You Make Me Want to Be a Man were featured as bonus tracks on the UK release of EXODUS.-Release history:- Charts :"You Make Me Want to Be a Man" - Oricon Sales...
", was released in October 2005 in the UK. "Devil Inside" became a club smash in the U.S. and topped the Billboard Hot Dance/Club Airplay
Hot Dance Club Play
The Hot Dance Club Songs chart is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs...
charts. Both the Exodus album and the "You Make Me Want to Be a Man" single were released in the UK, with different artwork from the USA and Japanese versions.
Return to Japan: 2005–2008
A year after the international release and promotion of Exodus, Utada moved back to Tokyo and returned to the Japanese music scene. Leading up the release of her fourth album, Ultra BlueUltra Blue
Ultra Blue is the award-winning fourth Japanese studio album by Hikaru Utada, released in 2006. It debuted at #1 on the Oricon daily, weekly and monthly charts and sold 500,317 copies in its first six days of sales...
, Utada released a string of successful hit singles: "Colors
Colors (Hikaru Utada song)
"Colors" is Hikaru Utada's 12th Japanese-language single , and is the only single she released in 2003. It was released on January 29, 2003 and debuted at #1 on the Oricon charts with 437,903 copies sold in the first week, and became her fifth single to perform the rare two-consecutive weeks at...
" (number 1), "Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro
Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro
is Hikaru Utada's 13th Japanese-language single and her 1st and only Japanese single for 2004. She released 2 versions of Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro: CD and DVD. It was released on April 2, 2004. Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro is also included in the "Our Last Days" - "Casshern" OST as the...
" (number 1), "Be My Last
Be My Last
"Be My Last" is a song by Hikaru Utada, released as her 14th Japanese single on September 28, 2005. It was used for the 2005 film Spring Snow, an adaptation of the 1966 Yukio Mishima novel of the same name....
", (number 1), "Passion" (number 4), and "Keep Tryin'
Keep Tryin'
"Keep Tryin" is a song by Utada Hikaru. It was released as her 16th Japanese single on February 22, 2006. The song was the first promotional song for Lismo! au Listen Mobile Service...
" (number 2). The digital single "This Is Love" was released to promote the album, netting 1,000,000 digital downloads.
Ultra Blue
Ultra Blue is the award-winning fourth Japanese studio album by Hikaru Utada, released in 2006. It debuted at #1 on the Oricon daily, weekly and monthly charts and sold 500,317 copies in its first six days of sales...
sold 500,317 copies in the first week, lower than that of the previous album, although it still topped the Oricon Daily, Weekly, and Monthly charts. Ultra Blue gave the artist her fifth consecutive chart-topping Japanese album (excluding her English album) to sell in excess of 500,000 copies for a first-week sales. On July 13, Toshiba EMI published a report stating that Ultra Blue
Ultra Blue
Ultra Blue is the award-winning fourth Japanese studio album by Hikaru Utada, released in 2006. It debuted at #1 on the Oricon daily, weekly and monthly charts and sold 500,317 copies in its first six days of sales...
had sold over one million copies worldwide and four million digital ringtones already making it one of EMI's 10th best-selling album of the past year. The album, which did not contain much pop music, was met with indifference and did not boost sales, although the album was certified Million by RIAJ
Recording Industry Association of Japan
The Recording Industry Association of Japan is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved the music industry...
for one million shipments. Additionally, it was the highest-selling original studio album by a Japanese female artist in 2006.
Ultra Blue
Ultra Blue
Ultra Blue is the award-winning fourth Japanese studio album by Hikaru Utada, released in 2006. It debuted at #1 on the Oricon daily, weekly and monthly charts and sold 500,317 copies in its first six days of sales...
later became available on the iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
Japan online music store, charting at number 4 on the 2006 yearly download rankings. Two weeks after the release of Ultra Blue, Utada began a nationwide tour titled "Utada United 2006
Utada United 2006
Utada United 2006 was a 2006 concert tour by Japanese American pop singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada.- Set list :- The show :During the filmed concert, Utada wore 4 different outfits. The first outfit worn was a long, tattered, black and white outfit, with pieces of cloth that hung a little above her...
" on June 30, 2006 which ended on September 12, 2006. This was Utada's second concert tour after her debut tour "Bohemian Summer 2000" and five performances at the Nippon Budokan in 2004. Aside from her Japanese work, the tour's set list featured three tracks from her 2004 English-language album, Exodus.
The singles that were released prior to Utada's fifth studio album, Heart Station, were able to reach the Top Five position on the chart, including the number 1 hit "Flavor of Life
Flavor of Life
"Flavor of Life" is Hikaru Utada's 18th Japanese single . The physical single was officially released on February 28, 2007.Compared to the preceding singles following Colors, Flavor of Life garnered far more success...
", which would become the best selling digital single in Japan with over 7,500,000 copies download. Around the same time, Utada said she visited New York to talk with producers and executives at Island/Def Jam about recording a new English album. Later in the year a digital track by American R&B artist Ne-Yo
Ne-Yo
Shaffer Chimere Smith, Jr. , better known by his stage name Ne-Yo, is an American pop and R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, dancer and actor. Beginning his career as a songwriter, Ne-Yo penned the hit "Let Me Love You" for singer Mario...
, titled "Do You
Do You (song)
"Do You" is a 2007 single by American singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. It is about Ne-Yo questioning his ex-girlfriend if she ever thinks about him anymore. It is the second single from his second album, Because of You. The single was officially released to radio the week of June 12, 2007...
" from his 2007 album, Because of You
Because of You (Ne-Yo album)
- Chart history :AlbumChart procession and succession- Release history :- External links :* at Discogs* at Metacritic...
featured Utada and was released in Japan on November 21 (the song was later featured on Ne-Yo's "best of" album, Ne-Yo: The Collection
Ne-Yo: The Collection
Ne-Yo: The Collection is the first compilation album by American singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. The album was released in Japan on September 2, 2009...
, released on September 2, 2009 in Japan and November 2009 in the US).
The year 2007 ended with the single "Flavor of Life
Flavor of Life
"Flavor of Life" is Hikaru Utada's 18th Japanese single . The physical single was officially released on February 28, 2007.Compared to the preceding singles following Colors, Flavor of Life garnered far more success...
" becoming the best seller of 2007 and with Utada being voted "Number 1 Favorite Artist of 2007" by Oricon
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
's annual readers poll, three years after she was last voted number 1 on the poll. She sold 12 million digital ringtones and songs in 2007, the highest of a Japanese artist in one year. The single was featured as the main song in second season of TV drama Hana Yori Dango.
Utada's fifth studio album, Heart Station, was released on March 19, 2008, becoming her fifth consecutive number-one Japanese studio album. Although it had collected the lowest first week sales for Utada's career, with 480,081 copies sold, the sales of this album reached a million on the Oricon charts in January 2009, making it her first Japanese album to do so since her 2004 compilation album
Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 1
-Charts:Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 1 - Oricon Sales Chart...
. It was given a certification of one million for shipments by the RIAJ
Recording Industry Association of Japan
The Recording Industry Association of Japan is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved the music industry...
. Heart Station became the best-selling digital-format album on the iTunes
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
2008 yearly album charts in Japan, and was also the highest-selling original studio album by a solo female artist on the Oricon Yearly Chart.
Her song "Prisoner of Love
Prisoner of Love (Hikaru Utada song)
-Digital sales information:On May 13, Barks.jp reported "Prisoner of Love" had sold over 1.5 million downloads across all formats, and on July 7, Yahoo!Japan reported it had sold over 2.9 million downloads, it has been certified by the RIAJ on September 2 for reaching the 1 million mark for...
" was used as the theme-song for the highly successful TV drama Last Friends
Last Friends
is a Japanese television drama which aired on Fuji TV at 10:00 pm every Thursday from April 10, 2008 until June 17, 2008. The special, consisting of a recap and some new additional scenes aired on June 26, 2008....
, which was aired in the spring TV season. Although not originally released as a single, after being used in the show, the song was released as a single and it reached number 1 in iTunes and the Chako-Uta charts. It reached number 2 at the Oricon Weekly charts. It won Best Theme Song at the 57th Drama Academy Awards and sold 2.9 million downloads. It marked the fourth successful Utada drama tie-in (following 1999's Majo no Jouken and First Love, 2001's Hero and Can You Keep a Secret and 2007's Hana Yori Dango and Flavor of Life).
On October 20, 2008, her song "Eternally" from her 2001 album Distance
Distance (Hikaru Utada album)
Distance is the second Japanese album released by Japanese-American J-pop singer Hikaru Utada, released on March 28, 2001 in direct "competition" with A Best by Ayumi Hamasaki ....
was used as the theme for the drama Innocent Love. The song was later released as a digital single.
By the end of the year, Utada was also voted the "Number 1 Favorite Artist of 2008" by Oricon
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
's annual readers poll, making it her second consecutive year, and third time overall, to win the vote; her previous years being 2004 and 2007.
Return to North America: 2009–2010
On December 16, 2008, information leaked onto the Internet that Utada's next English-language single, titled "Come Back to MeCome Back to Me (Hikaru Utada song)
"Come Back to Me" is a pop and R&B song by Japanese American pop singer Utada. The song was written by Utada and Stargate and was produced by Utada, Stargate and her father, Sking U. "Come Back to Me" is the first single from her second English-language album This Is the One...
", would be scheduled for airplay release through U.S. Rhythmic/Crossover and Mainstream formats on February 9 and 10, 2009 respectively via Island Records
Island Records
Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group...
, according to credible American radio news sites FMQB
FMQB
Friday Morning Quarterback is a trade magazine which covers the Radio and Music industries in the United States. Its coverage includes programming, management, promotion, marketing, and airplay for music formatted radio. The magazine was founded in 1968 by Kal Rudman and is read by over 10,000...
and R&R
Radio & Records
Radio & Records was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It originally started out as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006, up until its final issue in 2009.-History:The company was founded in 1973 and...
. The song then was made available for streaming on Island's, All Access' website, and her MySpace Music Page for advanced promotion. Island Records also updated their webpage with information regarding Utada's new single, and included a link to her official Japanese website and MySpace page, both featuring a track preview. Additionally, a number was included that fans could text to join Utada's mobile list to receive future news updates. The new English album, titled This Is the One, was released on March 14, 2009 in Japan and on May 12, 2009 in the United States. On February 23, 2009, Utada announced that she was in studio recording her next Japanese-language single. This Is the One debuted at number 1 in Japan on March 13, 2009, the day it was released in Japan, but became Utada's first album not to top the weekly chart since Precious. On March 30, 2009 she appeared on New York City radio station Z-100
WHTZ
WHTZ — branded Z100 — is a commercial pop/contemporary hit radio radio station licensed to Newark, New Jersey serving the New York metropolitan area. The station is currently owned by Clear Channel Communications...
(100.3), the largest pop radio program in the U.S., and granted a live on-air interview on the station's Elvis Duran Morning Show, a noteworthy breakthrough that would lead to a promotional schedule up and through the album's international physical release on May 12. Utada also sang the theme song for the latest Evangelion film, Evangelion 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance. The single was released on June 27, 2009, and is a remix of her previous single, Beautiful World
Beautiful World/Kiss & Cry
"Beautiful World/Kiss & Cry" is Utada Hikaru's 19th Japanese single . The single was released on August 29, 2007 as her second single for 2007. "Beautiful World" was re-released in 2009 as "Beautiful World " for the release of the movie Evangelion: 2.0 You Can Advance.Beautiful World / Kiss & Cry...
. The new single is titled Beautiful World -PLANiTb Acoustica Mix-.
On October 14, Utada mentioned that she was writing lyrics that were due on October 15. She also added that some "German magic" would be added to the music. It was revealed that Goetz B, who had previously worked with Utada on her album Ultra Blue
Ultra Blue
Ultra Blue is the award-winning fourth Japanese studio album by Hikaru Utada, released in 2006. It debuted at #1 on the Oricon daily, weekly and monthly charts and sold 500,317 copies in its first six days of sales...
was in the process of mixing tracks for her. Most notable was a track called "Show Me Love", which is reported to be released as a Japanese single at a then-unspecified date.
On November 30, 2009, at Studio Coast, Tokyo, Utada sung a duet of Let It Snow
Let It Snow
"Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!", also known as "Let It Snow", is a song written by lyricist Sammy Cahn and composer Jule Styne in 1945. The song was written in July 1945 in Hollywood, California during one of the hottest days on record. First recorded by Vaughn Monroe, it became a popular...
with pop singer Mika
Mika (singer)
Mika is a British singer-songwriter.After recording his first extended play, Dodgy Holiday EP, Mika released his first full-length studio album, Life in Cartoon Motion, on Island Records in 2007. Life in Cartoon Motion sold more than 5.6 million copies worldwide and helped Mika win a Brit...
. Mika posted on his Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
account about Utada: "Was joined on stage by Hikaru Utada tonight. We sang "let it snow". It was glorious. I love her."
On December 21, 2009, Utada's Dirty Desire
Dirty Desire
"Dirty Desire" is a song by Japanese-American singer-songwriter Utada. The single is known as Dirty Desire: The Remixes. It was released digitally as the second single from This Is the One, on December 21, 2009, mostly in aid of supporting Utada's then up-coming tour, Utada: In The Flesh 2010.Dirty...
remixes were released only on Amazon.com, Zune Marketplace, and the U.S. iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
, in support of This Is the One and her upcoming tour. The tour, Utada: In The Flesh 2010
Utada: In the Flesh 2010
Utada: In The Flesh 2010 was Japanese-American singer-songwriter Utada's first international tour. The 10-date sold out tour began in Honolulu and ended in London, with the London date reportedly selling-out in as little as five hours, to which another date was added...
, was her first concert tour outside of Japan and included eight cities in the US and two dates in London, UK. The tickets for the second London performance went on public sale November 13, and reportedly sold out in just 5 hours. In an interview before she kicked off In The Flesh, Utada said she is planning on promoting This Is the One, and her newest single, Dirty Desire. She also expressed she could be planning to do a cover album, or just take a break to get some new ideas.
Return to Japan and Hiatus: 2010–2011
On August 9, 2010, Utada announced on her personal blog that beginning in 2011, she would go on an indefinite hiatus, citing fatigue since her debut 12 years previously. She also stated a need for rest, to study new things and learn more about the world, as well as see to some personal matters. She said the hiatus would last anywhere from two to five years.Before her hiatus began, she said that she would go "full throttle" on her artistic activities, and soon after her site was updated, and a new compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2
Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2
Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2 is Japanese pop singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada's second compilation album, released on November 24, 2010, the same day as her Universal-released English language compilation album, Utada the Best...
, was announced, with a release date of November 24, 2010. This new album would include all her Japanese singles from Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro
Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro
is Hikaru Utada's 13th Japanese-language single and her 1st and only Japanese single for 2004. She released 2 versions of Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro: CD and DVD. It was released on April 2, 2004. Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro is also included in the "Our Last Days" - "Casshern" OST as the...
to Prisoner of Love
Prisoner of Love (Hikaru Utada song)
-Digital sales information:On May 13, Barks.jp reported "Prisoner of Love" had sold over 1.5 million downloads across all formats, and on July 7, Yahoo!Japan reported it had sold over 2.9 million downloads, it has been certified by the RIAJ on September 2 for reaching the 1 million mark for...
on disc one, as well as an extra EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, featuring five new tracks. Later it was announced a DVD containing the promotional video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for Goodbye Happiness would be included in all first-press edition pre-orders.
On September 27, 2010, Utada revealed a new single, entitled Hymne à l'amour (Ai no Anthem), which became a commercial tie-in for Pepsi
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
's newest soft drink, Pepsi NEX. The song features both French and Japanese lyrics, specifically translated and written by Utada herself. At this time, official Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
accounts were set up by Utada, her staff, and her father, Teruzane were created to keep fans and the public with up-to-date information.
An announcement was made that Utada would perform a short concert tour titled Wild Life
Wild Life (concert)
WILD LIFE was Japanese-American singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada's final concert tour before her scheduled hiatus from 2011. Performing only two dates at the Yokohama Arena, Japan on December 8 and 9 2010.-Set list:-Tickets:...
(December 8 and 9 2010 only) at Yokohama Arena
Yokohama Arena
is an indoor sporting arena located in Yokohama, Japan. The capacity of the arena is 17,000 and was opened in 1989. The arena was modeled after US sports venue Madison Square Garden in New York City. It is a five minute walk from the closest subway station, Shin-Yokohama Station on the JR/Yokohama...
, Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
to promote the album, her first Japanese concert since 2006's Utada United
Utada United 2006
Utada United 2006 was a 2006 concert tour by Japanese American pop singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada.- Set list :- The show :During the filmed concert, Utada wore 4 different outfits. The first outfit worn was a long, tattered, black and white outfit, with pieces of cloth that hung a little above her...
.
On October 3, 2010, Utada's official EMI Web site was updated with the album artwork and final track list for Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2.
First Press editions included a 3-fold paper slip case, along with a Kuma-chang good luck charm
Good Luck Charm
"Good Luck Charm" is a song recorded by Elvis Presley and published by Gladys Music, Elvis Presley's publishing company, that reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 list in the week ending April 21, 1962. It remained at the top of the list for two weeks. The song was written by Aaron Schroeder...
, and a lottery slip for fans to have a chance at winning one of 1000 tickets to WILD LIFE (this idea was, however, later scrapped).
On October 15, 2010, it was announced that the anticipated footage from Utada's In The Flesh 2010 tour would be released in the following months, confirmed by both Utada and Teruzane's Twitter accounts, and a physical DVD release would be ousted in favor of a digital-only package with a promise of release before the year's end. On the same day, Teruzane posted on Twitter that the plans for Wild Life were beginning to take shape, as talks were under way and a mock-stage had been created. The show was the first self-produced by Utada, with Teruzane acting as co-producer.
In late October, despite no previous announcements from Utada or any of her staff and management, it was revealed online at Tower Records Japan and several other websites that an English-language 'best of album' titled "Utada the Best
Utada the Best
Utada the Best is Japanese pop/R&B singer-songwriter Utada Hikaru's first English language compilation album, released on November 24, 2010, the same day as Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2...
" would become available in Japan on the same day as Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, November 24.
Utada herself reacted to the news, stating "I understand that if it doesn't sell I'm the one who will take the hit, but to be honest, I don't want my fans putting down money for something that my heart isn't in.", and later "The release of 'Utada the best' is entirely against my will. I wish that my fans won't have to buy it. There's no new material in it."
Utada later announced a new single, Goodbye Happiness
Goodbye Happiness
"Goodbye Happiness" is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released as the lead track from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, in November 2010...
, began radio airplay in Japan on November 1, 2010, and Chaku-Uta downloads began on November 3, with its accompanying PV appearing publicly on November 9, 2010.
The song was also chosen as the new Recochoku Chaku-Uta TV commercial theme song.
On 8 November 2010, EMI Japan announced on its Web site that the company had made a new global recording deal with Utada, also stating that all of her future works regardless of language would be released under one name: Hikaru Utada.
From November 24, 2010, first-week sales for Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2 were 231,000 units according to Oricon album daily charting. Although replacing Heart Station as her lowest first week sales of any Utada Hikaru album to date, this release marked Utada's seventh consecutive number 1 album (5 original and two best-ofs) since her debut, surpassing Kinki Kids
KinKi Kids
is a Japanese duo consisting of Koichi Domoto and Tsuyoshi Domoto under the talent agency Johnny & Associates. Although the members share the same surname, the only relation they have to each other is that they both hail from the Kinki region, hence the duo's name....
' previous record of six and making her the artist with the most successive consecutive number 1 albums in Oricon chart and Japanese music history (the latter according to her label EMI) since premiering. On April 10, 2011, Utada won the award for "Best Conceptual Video" in the SpaceShowerTV Music Video Awards for the PV for "Goodbye Happiness
Goodbye Happiness
"Goodbye Happiness" is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released as the lead track from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, in November 2010...
", which also marked her directorial debut.
Wild Life Tour (December 2010)
Utada held the last two concerts before her hiatus, called Wild Life, on Dec 8-9, 2010, performing both dates at Yokohama ArenaYokohama Arena
is an indoor sporting arena located in Yokohama, Japan. The capacity of the arena is 17,000 and was opened in 1989. The arena was modeled after US sports venue Madison Square Garden in New York City. It is a five minute walk from the closest subway station, Shin-Yokohama Station on the JR/Yokohama...
, Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
. The December 8 concert was broadcast in 64 cinemas in Japan; whilst it was simultaneously broadcast on Ustream.tv, a live video streaming website. Between the two channels set up for the concert on Ustream, they were accessed a total of 925,000 times, with 345,000 unique viewers, as well as 185,000 comments left on the feed. This was a global record on Ustream.tv, for the highest number of simultaneous accesses of any video, with the previous highest being only 100,000.
The Japanese TV station NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
premiered a documentary about Utada on January 15, 2011. Titled Utada Hikaru ~今のわたし~ (Utada Hikaru: Ima no Watashi, Utada Hikaru: What I Am), the documentary featured new studio performances by Utada (Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
"Show Me Love " is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released digitally as the third single from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol...
and Goodbye Happiness
Goodbye Happiness
"Goodbye Happiness" is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released as the lead track from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, in November 2010...
), as well as some of her Wild Life performances from December. It also featured a post-Wild Life interview with J-Wave
J-Wave
J-Wave is a commercial radio station based in Tokyo, Japan, broadcasting on 81.3 FM from the Tokyo Tower to the Tokyo area. J-Wave airs mostly music covering a wide range of formats. The station is considered the most popular among FM broadcasts in Tokyo, and has surprised the radio broadcast...
host Chris Peppler about her decision to go on hiatus as well as what she plans to do, in which she said she wanted to do volunteer work overseas, and also travel. Utada also stated that she would continue writing music during her hiatus. It was later revealed that the documentary would be broadcast internationally, specifically the US on February 12, 2011 and Europe on February 2, 2011, on the NHK channel (TV Japan in America, and JSTV in Europe).
A DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
and Blu-ray release of Wild Life was confirmed and initially set for release on April 6, 2011. However, on 24 March 2011, Utada Tweeted that both the DVD and Blu-ray release of Wild Life had been postponed, due to the earthquake and resulting tsunami in Japan damaging the pressing factories. The DVD was released on 20 April 2011, the Blu-ray followed under a month later on 8 May.
Personal life
On September 7, 2002, Utada married Kazuaki KiriyaKazuaki Kiriya
, born April 20, 1968 in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan, is a Japanese photographer and director of films and music videos. His birth name is .He made his feature film debut writing and directing the live action film adaptation of Casshern in 2004. In 2009, he wrote and directed his second film,...
, a photographer and film director who was fifteen years her senior and who had directed several of her music videos. After four and a half years of marriage, the couple announced their divorce (which became official on March 2, 2007), citing personal changes, different viewpoints on the future of their marriage, and lack of communication due to the nature of their jobs.
Utada confirmed she had a boyfriend 8 years her senior, and began their relationship in at least September 2009. On January 27, 2010, it was reported that they had ended their relationship, due to the fact they never saw each other, and that she was much too busy with her In The Flesh 2010 tour. However, in August 2010, it was reported that the couple had reconciled.
Influences
On her official Web site, Utada cites 15 musicians: Freddie MercuryFreddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury was a British musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Queen. As a performer, he was known for his flamboyant stage persona and powerful vocals over a four-octave range...
, Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins were a Scottish alternative rock band active from 1979 to 1997, known for innovative instrumentation and atmospheric, non-lyrical vocals...
, Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
, Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
, Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
, Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf , born Édith Giovanna Gassion, was a French singer and cultural icon who became widely regarded as France's greatest popular singer. Her singing reflected her life, with her specialty being ballads...
, Chick Corea
Chick Corea
Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, and composer.Many of his compositions are considered jazz standards. As a member of Miles Davis' band in the 1960s, he participated in the birth of the electric jazz fusion movement. In the 1970s he formed Return to Forever...
, the Blue Nile
The Blue Nile
The Blue Nile is an adult alternative/pop band from Glasgow. The music of The Blue Nile is built heavily on synthesizers and electronic instrumentation and percussion, although later works featured acoustic guitar more prominently.-Early years:...
, Björk
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
, Lenny Kravitz
Lenny Kravitz
Leonard Albert "Lenny" Kravitz is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and arranger, whose "retro" style incorporates elements of rock, soul, R&B, funk, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, folk and ballads...
, Béla Bartók
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...
, Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
, Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley
Jeffrey Scott "Jeff" Buckley , raised as Scotty Moorhead, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was the son of Tim Buckley, also a musician...
, Yutaka Ozaki
Yutaka Ozaki
was a popular Japanese musician.He is ranked at No. 23 in a list of Japan's top 100 musicians by HMV.-Biography:He was born in Tokyo Setagaya Ward SDF Central Hospital to Kinue and Kenichi Ozaki. He has one older brother, Yasushi. Early in life, he was hospitalized with intestinal torsion and...
, and Hibari Misora
Hibari Misora
was an award-winning Japanese enka singer and actress. and was the first woman in Japan to receive the People's Honour Award, which was awarded posthumously for her notable contributions to the music industry. Misora recorded 1,200 songs, and sold 68 million records. After she died, consumer demand...
as some of her favorite artists.
Utada is also inspired by the late R&B artist Aaliyah
Aaliyah
Aaliyah Dana Haughton , who performed under the mononym Aaliyah , was an American R&B recording artist, actress and model. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was raised in Detroit, Michigan. At the age of 10, she appeared on the television show Star Search and performed in concert alongside...
.
Japanese studio albums
- 1999: First Love
- 2001: DistanceDistance (Hikaru Utada album)Distance is the second Japanese album released by Japanese-American J-pop singer Hikaru Utada, released on March 28, 2001 in direct "competition" with A Best by Ayumi Hamasaki ....
- 2002: Deep River
- 2006: Ultra BlueUltra BlueUltra Blue is the award-winning fourth Japanese studio album by Hikaru Utada, released in 2006. It debuted at #1 on the Oricon daily, weekly and monthly charts and sold 500,317 copies in its first six days of sales...
- 2008: Heart Station
English studio albums
- 1998: PreciousPrecious (Cubic U album)Note: Several US-promo copies of the album have the track "Here and There and Back Again" as track 5. This was not on the re-released Japanese version.-Release history:-Single:- Charts :Precious - Oricon Sales Chart...
- 2004: Exodus
- 2009: This Is the One
Japanese compilation albums
- 2004: Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 1Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 1-Charts:Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 1 - Oricon Sales Chart...
- 2010: Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2 is Japanese pop singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada's second compilation album, released on November 24, 2010, the same day as her Universal-released English language compilation album, Utada the Best...
See also
- List of 50 Best Selling Artists of All-Time in Japan
- List of number-one dance hits (United States)
- List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. Dance chart
- Capitol RecordsCapitol RecordsCapitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
- List of awards received by Hikaru Utada
- Miracle HikaruMiracle Hikaruis a Japanese impressionist of the comedic performing arts from Toyooka, Hyōgo. She is best known for her impersonation of Hikaru Utada. Her professional activities are currently managed by Jinsei Pro....