And is not like she's worried about her financial situation (how lucky lol), I think people say that because of her health, but we know she won't quit and that's her decision so I'm fine with it. I know she's smart, if she were really risking her life or something she would stop, but as she's still touring and singing I take it as it is still safe for her so I don't see the problem, she has always said she's most happy when she's on stage, so let her be :yes

I also thought they were multiple album covers!:tipsy
I got scared for a second when I saw it.:phew:laugh

"Let's teach the best selling solo musician in Japan's history how to be a succesful musician!"

:P

Like she has to worry about it!


I might be wrong but especially with japanese artists people seem to keep pressing the "retirement" button.
(I would not even think about retiring at 39 lol!)
But tbh it feels weird, so often people say how she should basically just retire but then I also adore much older artists where we people just let them do their thing. People still complain too but they don't go like "xy goes downhill/peak is over she should stop/earn money" but let them just have fun. Ayu, like many artists after their peak doesn't do it (she also doesn't have to lol) for money but for fun, passion etc..

Two of my absolute favorite Japanese releases in recent years were Seiko Matsuda's single Bara no Youni... and Matsutoya Yumi's Cosmos Library album both released in 2016. Cosmos Library made Yumi the oldest female artist to top Oricon 200 with an original studio album when it debuted at #1 with 60,000 sold. And Bara no Youni became Matsuda's highest charting single in over 20 years and left many people wide-eyed and questioning if she was going to have a huge comeback.

I had never really liked what either of them did until those releases. So I'm real glad Seiko didn't retire in the 90s. And I'm even happier that Matsutoya did not retire in the 70s. Both of them can still captivate decades later, just depends on having the right people around at the right time to put it all together.

It's an unwritten law here not to speak badly of her vocals and God forbid if you happen to mention the lip syncing.

Haru yo, koi, most likely Matsutoya Yumi's biggest hit, was released during the 90's when she was way into her 40's. Sales aren't everything, there's nothing really making it impossible for Ayu to get another big hit in the future and her sales and tickets sales are pretty solid for someone 20 years into their career.

Two examples of being successful at an older age.
Obviously industry can make it harder but it's not impossible.
Overall, as you said it just takes the right people.

That actually made me think of when Cher (different country I know) had her highest solo debut at the Billboard 200 with #3 and 63,000 copies sold at the age of 67 (I think she even got #1 digitally). Or when she was the oldest female to top the Billboard Top 100 with her Believe single which is the best selling single by a female in the UK. her highest peak to this point. And that at 52.
One can still achieve things (not that it matters) when things are right. But artist needs to want it first.

I think Ayu could go for more success but something needs to be done. She needs to want it first. If she doesn't, no one can push her anyway. Some just still need to accept that just because ayu isn't trying to be at the top again, she doesn't have to retire since she still does her thing and has fun.

But that's all about success, with my point being, it's fine if they are not huge anymore when they're older but it's not like one HAS to be totally dead career-wise in that department. It depends on how one wants to continue at a certain age. Still, successful or not in your 50s/60s/70s there shouldn't be a reason to retire if the artist is happy imo.

If it's about the musical direction, again, let them do.
When older artists make music that some don't like I keep hearing "retire, you had a good run" etc.. Like, you don't tell that someone who's in their 20s, do you? Then you just wait for the next album or just 'leave'.

Plus, 39 is not even old.

Anyway, as it seems that no one has uploaded it yet, here Ayu with fans:


EDIT: apparently it already was, sorry x.x

Ayu isn't retiring right now and she will retire when ever she wants to and anyone who is familiar with Ayu would know that.
Many artists have continued to be successful past their top popularity. Artists like Ayu and Seiko Matsuda are not popular or trendy anymore but are still successful and are able to maintain a professional career against the odds. If an artist is able to form a very loyal fan base they can continue past their mainstream popularity.
I don't get why everyone is getting all worked up over this suddenly.:laugh

man, I absolutely adore that single of Seiko. it was a collab with X JAPAN's Yoshiki so I wasn't surprised it was so good I even bought a first-press CD.

so yeah, I'm sure ayu can pull off something great in the future. I'm glad she stopped releasing albums every year. it kinda makes you hope she'll release something big next time.

http://i65.tinypic.com/2q2rc5i.jpg

出会いの理由や始まりを追求する意味って何だろう？
もしもそれを言葉にして説明しないといけないのならば、わたしは「ハートの奥で感じた直感」だとしか言えな い。誰の腑に落ちなかったとしても。続

そうやって出会えた大切な人がこの有限ある人生にいてくれるんなら、願わくばそのほとんどが笑顔で溢れてい て欲しいよね。
それでもそこには涙の日も勿論ある。

だったら、わたしはそれを先に察して、ガハハハハ笑いながら涙を拭ってだきしめようと思うんだ 。

Can anyone translate?

"39 isn't that old" is a relatively new way looking at 39. It's still a relatively new phenomenon that someone like Madonna could debut at #2 with her 15th studio album, or that Kylie Minogue could hit #1 in the UK with her 15th album almost 31 years after her first release. I mean, look at artists like Britney Spears, who have half their longevity and relatively similar success. Britney will be a bigger star in 10 years as popular music becomes more diverse. (I hope it does sooner rather than later. I love Cardi B, but I am already sick of rap music dominating everything. We did this in 2002 and 2003, and back then you could at least hear the words through the sizzurp.)

I think Ayu needs to sit down with another team like HAL, Tim, and definitely Kikuchi Kazuhito -- people who truly get or built Ayu's sound with her -- and figure out what an Ayumi Hamasaki song should sound like if they started over today. Ayu has pulled in a lot of people who simply don't know what to or how to produce things that actually add to her canon rather than distract from it. Ayu is diverse artist, but everything has a common thread. Her best work is ethereal and cinematic, melodic, evolving and complexly layered and has unexpected twists. Songs like Free&Easy, OVER, Real me, July 1st, M, are all songs we experience more than we listen to. I think songs like Sweet scar fit that evolution wonderfully, while songs like petals or You&Me are just there. They're not present, they're just "and then i recorded this one too" songs.

Also, Ayu needs to make videos with serious budget again. I've been over these one-dress-one-scene-for-five-minutes-shot-in-a-studio videos. I want the BALLAD PVs and the GREEN PVs and the You were... PVs again. That has always been a huge proportional element of Ayumi, and I think less touring, more serious heads down self-discovery would be right for her right now.

I miss the subtleties in her videos. I'm one of the few people who consider Daybreak one of her best videos. But even videos like For my dear and Love destiny are just really amazing imo. Sweet scar was probably the last video I actually -really- enjoyed.

I love simple videos when they're thoughtful and executed well.

I think that for Ayu to rise again to #1 and become popular again people would have to miss her.

But it's impossible to miss an artist who tours sooooo much, every year. Plus, an artist that seldom releases new material, and when she does it's something low-budget and rushed with barely any promo.

Doing the ~Just the beginning 20~ tour was a big mistake. Both the long length of the tour and that name, when it wasn't even her 20th anniversary yet. The time and energy she wasted on that tour compromised the real 20th anniversary.

Personally I don't think the public needs to "miss" her and I actually think she can release whatever music she wants, it woudn't change how the public feels about her. I just held a presentation about Ayu in my Japanese society class at a uni in Tokyo. What basically every Japanese student there said about her was that they really liked Ayu when she wasn't as diva like and didn't look as fake. I'm hearing this from Japanese people again and again. Their reactions to pics of her A BEST to RAINBOW era where very kind and they were making a lot of positive comments. That drastically changed when I showed pics from MY STORY onwards. They don't like her pink princess like dresses during TV lives, they don't like her overall style and doll like makeup whenever she appears in public, because they think it looks fake. Ayu's style and image from the last 15 years simply isn't what made her famous in the first place and they don't like it. The Ayu from back then with the darker eye makeup but not much else and the more "casual" style is what they liked. Her more casual and therefore mature style and image was working perfectly well with her lyrics. It made the public believe what she sang and they were able to relate.
But they can't relate when Ayu is wearing a princess like dress with a doll like makeup, she simply doesn't appear as sincere as back then anymore, no matter the content of her lyrics.
The best song in the world isn't going to change that. As long as the public don't get the Ayu they fell in love with back image wise, I don't think they will ever like her again. It's not so much a specific sound they want from Ayu, but the feeling they had when hearing someone who kind of looked like the girl next door sings about struggles they were able to relate to.

I actually love her contradictory lyrics and style. I find it more interesting. I love the princess dresses :laugh

I am just over her corset outfits. They remind me of when I was in dance class in the 90s :P

I don’t understand the Japanese public at all, I mean do they even know what they want from ayu. I remember at the beginning of power of music, they complained because the show was too simple. So ayu changed it to a more “superficial” scale. So do they want the simple ayu or over the top ayu. :tired. I mean do WE even know what we want from ayu and if so what is it. There’s a lot of back and forth going on.

Don't confuse fans with the public.

^Amen to that.

Stepping back, I see this conflict of diva ayu vs what people think of as a more natural, real ayu, the way she was early on in her career. I mean, I'll admit, the music from her first couple of years is what I now predominantly listen to from her and I do find myself much more drawn to that image, but I'm not gonna stand here and demand or even hope that she'd pick that style up again because she might as well be a different person now. When people grow up, they change. It's such a simple concept to me.

People are always like this, though. Even with western artists, you go to a video of theirs that came out a few years ago, and "fans" will be complaining that they miss this version of the singer. LOL I saw someone say that about Miley Cyrus' Wrecking Ball video, saying, "I miss this version of Miley, I wish she hadn't changed," and I thought it was hilarious because when she, as some people might put it harshly, went off the deep end in 2013, people were missing Hannah-Montana-Miley.

For me, personally, I would like to just see something new. And I felt like her PV and image for Mad World was a great side of her, and something newish. So...I'm pretty content, tbh. I mean, her image she has on the Tshirts for the tour goods...that particular style does nothing for me. But I just don't really care.