Err, an A-side single versus a quadruple A-side? No contest. Of course 4 hot wave will win. I won't argue quality, because some very mediocre singles and albums make the top 10 every year, and a lot of brilliant stuff doesn't even crack the top 20.

4 hot wave = 4 PVs to promote it. Plus a photobook.

The truth is, people buy singles based on the popularity of the song. Which is a redundant statement in itself :) Quality is pretty much subjective.

It's not so much who wins, but who will be remembered in the years to come. Does anyone remember Tomomi Kahala?

MAROC was sold separately.
Ayu's singles prior to her "OMG I PUT 2 SONGS NOW FOR EVERY CD" era also were single A-sides (M, Forgiveness, No Way To Say, Free & Easy) and I'm sure there were double/triple-A's released back then. Still Ayu sold a lot more than those..

It's only natural that she won't sell as much these days. Ayu and Hikki's era is on the wane. Really, it is. There's nothing bad about that, it's happened to every artist (Namie, globe, Seiko Matsuda, Akina Nakamori, etc.). It's Koda Kumi's time, so it only makes sense that she sells more than anyone else.

He meant it promoted the single D:

Well, 2 songs on each CD makes it so that we get a closer look at the album, rather than being totally surprised.. :/

Ayu's in her stable status right now, to me anyway. I think that she has done her best sales in the past and now she can steadily have consistent sales that will probably last her a while [i.e B'z.]~

The reason why she sold tons more? It was because she was in. Now she's in-ish. KK-person seems to be in (but really isn't ~) at the moment.. but it's only a matter of time before the same thing happens.

Or destroy the album by dishing out spoilers. It works that way too. :yes

If you're talking about promotion, there's always the photobook, DVD and multiple covers (albeit very ugly ones) for (miss)understood.

And I remember a calendar too released around Fairyland. That should also count as promotion for Fairyland or HEAVEN. But those sold lots less than 4 hot wave.

Destroy the album.. no.. because the tracks would be there, just unlistened D: And possibly without a PV :< Imagine alterna without the place on the fairyland single.. without a PV..

fairyland and HEAVEN should NOT be compared to 4 hot wave. The only singles eligible to be compared are &, H, and A because those were like, the most similar that one can think of.

The calendar was shot during fairyland but was not released until like, October[?] or something.

Ah, so the calendar was promotion too, except maybe for B&D promotion...
Inelligible because sales that time were a lot different.

So we can conclude that there's no way to compare Koda's success with Ayu's success. They exist in different times, don't they?

Well, a calendar that's totally not-in-sync with a single release shouldn't count as promotion, whereas having a photobook filmed in the same location by the same photographer as the single.. is different >>

Technically, they coexist in the same time, but their peaks of 'success' can be sort of judged as... KK's peak is equal to about Ayu's fall from her peak.

Kinda post RAINBOW, I guess.

And the day Ayu releases another triple/quadruple A-side, all of you will go "oh, it's perfectly normal. The attached concert tickets, photobook, DVD and lottery ticket is nothing bad." or something similar.

Yep, different peaks. I wonder, Koda existed shortly after Ayu. Maybe Koda's successor is already around now, just that we don't know who. Maybe... Yuna Ito?!

And Mika has a cult following, not a queen but still pretty damn popular. Above all, pretty.

Because for Ayu, it IS 'normality'. It's been sorta abnormal that she hasn't done anything like that since &. We were supposed to get it this year, but it was failed due to time issues.

Next year probably. (since when has Ayu included actual extras in her CD+DVD singles.. usually its just albums with that kind of thing.. M.A had the Xmas card and (m)u had the photobook..)

Yuna Ito. Will mostly likely. NOT. Be next. She might be a Mika though.

I'll beg to differ, but there is a way to compare. See how well Koda Kumi performs this year with regards to chart positions. Then compare that to Ayu's chart positions in the past. Album-wise, Koda Kumi's at the same level. Singles-wise, she hasn't been as successful.

Koda Kumi's main rival now is... herself. No other female idol has really stepped up to the plate. The same thing happened with Namie Amuro in the past.

If the calendar is a promotional item for Bold & Delicious, then you should count the skanky underwear Koda Kumi has been putting out.

I personally prefer getting a huge taste of the album before it comes out. I only buy Japanese originals, and damn those things cost a lot!

The ugliest covers this year have been the 4 hot wave covers, in my opinion. And what's so bad about promotional material? Everyone has a CHOICE to buy them or not. It's not our fault people have to have everything. And it's not Avex's fault that people lack the will to resist the power of advertising.

At what point did Mika enter the discussion??? How funny.

I can't wait for them though, a strand of hair, fingernail clippings, spit in a tube.. LOL, jk. xD

Oh, because he said something about..

And that could mean that sales => quality.. and Mika's sales have been kinda.. o______o lately..

Blame the fans, not the artist.

Sort of like blame the users, not the pusher :P

No matter how much Avex promotes Ayu's stuff, she's not going to sell as much because she's not as popular as before. Simple logic. Do you think Avex can revive Ami Suzuki's career even if they offered her hand in marriage with a quadruple A-side now? I don't think so.

Oh, thanks for clearing that up. Ai Otsuka hasn't been doing too well as well, and I think she's been putting out her best stuff since Planetarium :)

Well not really. There's always Koi no Tsubomi and BLUE BIRD...

Koi no Tsubomi had a drama tie-in or something, didn't it? D:


About Ami Suzuki, they DID give her a mini album thing of sorts with Little Crystal, I believe. 4 A-sides and 2 PVs..

Well, it sounds like some of Ayu are finding reasons to validate Ayu's decisions and sales and status. And dismiss Kumi's sales because she isn't "talented". Kind of like Realpolitics or however it's spelled.

*Free & Easy sounds so damn awesome, I have to add this*

Wasn't it realpolitik XD Anyways, I think that the sales of KK are being dismissed due to the quick-fashion-thing-rate that they increased at. Ayu sort of steadily climbed from 40k onward, whereas it was sort of KK's 20k or w/e and 90k with a first album that kinda just busteddd.

Where would her sales be without the 2nd session / 12 singles? :/ That's a question that can only be asked, not answered T__T

I guess it's because she seems like her whole 'omg big sales' thing is based on gimmicks and image..

Gimmicks is also promotion, only not as nice sounding. So Kumi had good promotion. :yes Ok, Ayu and Mika pwns in quality though.

No, cause gimmicks require the purchase of the actual item.. XD

So technically, can it really be called promotion if you have to buy it first..? o_o;