The reason for Ayu's style change after (miss)understood...
 

So, it seems like many people have noticed that Ayu's fashion choices lately for the last few years have been a little... "different" for Ayu.

After looking at some booklets for singles/releases in the past, after Bold & Delicious, a new team of stylists began working for her.

I don't think it was ever addressed, but she switched from her usual stylist from the start of her career**** (I am not sure about this. First note I have of Hideo Suzue is from 2002/RAINBOW era) to Bold & Delicious (Hideo "Kokomi" Suzue) and starting from (miss)understood until now, she started to use someone else (Kei 'okei' Ito from ab fab)...

Perhaps this is the reason for why some styling decisions have appeared to be very different compared to earlier on in her career? Just an interesting factoid to bring up after so many have wondered if something changed with her fashion tastes or whatever, haha.

It's interesting to note that Hideo Suzue is currently working with alan as her stylist, and many people appear to feel that she has the "image" of old Ayu... well, there's the reason why.

Well I feel that ever since (miss)understood, Ayu has sort of matured to be a woman rather than a girl. So maybe she changed her stylists to achieve a more "mature" look... but meh the only thing she needs to change is her vocal coach.

What does a stylist do btw

A stylist basically chooses clothes that a celebrity will wear for an event/photoshoot/etc.

They pick from a huge selection, and from there, the celebrity can choose what they like from the choices made by the stylist.

All right that makes sense cos it's around 2006 that her style has changed from the "t-shirt & jeans girl" to the woman who dresses in the huge-whoa dresses... I guess she wanted something more mature and glamorous to fit her age and wealth?

I think her fashion started to change (into glamorous style) near the end of 2004, the time when MY STORY came out. She went to a more mature look in MY STORY, and that further extended to 2005 with STEP you --> BnD. I love everything she wore in 2005, mature yet not super glamorous. And then from 2006 --> a few months before (?), she kept on her glamorous diva style. It's actually quite a long period. Now it seems she's trying to change her style (using those newest magazines as an indication). Hopefully she's not gonna maintain her divaish look again. I know she's mature and wealthy, but she doesn't need to show that on her fashion every single time :P.

now she's adapting a rocker chic look, which I love. :D

Yeah, the old stylists were still around at the time, and left around B&D. It's kind of sad that they're working with alan now, but... eh.

I hope they can tone down on the glam, haha.

I honestly think alan is Ayu's rip-off but even I can't deny that alan is a good singer.
I think she changed her style because she needed to, An artist needs to constantly change their style because people will get tired of their old style.

^Right, but then again ayu said in around 2003 - 2005 (can't remember exactly) that she would not change her fashion as dramatically fast as she used to be, since she's a more mature woman (something like that).

However, I never expect her glam diva look would be prolonged for so long. I mean her hair style is practically the same --> blond and long, with bangs. And she switched back and forth with straight and curly, that's all. I was really happy to see a change in Mirrorcle World (with no bangs on the cover), but somehow she put the bangs down again in just 2 weeks or so.

Well she still have bangs on her forehead, but at least the hair color is darker, and longer (with wigs), and she's not in the "look i'm a glam diva" style.. Change is good :P

I think Ayu looks the best when she's sporting an alternative-looking style. Her diva image with all the expensive designer clothes turns me off. Any rich person can wear those clothes - I prefer for her to have her own individual style.

i think ayu just loves glamorous stuff (with all her branded stuff collection), so she tends to wear glamorous clothes, which i don't really care though.. she still looks so fine..and i adore of her every fashion styles.. she's just gorgeous :)
she has money, she can always look good because she's a famous artist.. the changing style doesn't really turn me off though.. and never did i think she tends to shows off with her glamorous life :)
with all those diary's entries which she shows off her branded stuff, guess that she really really loves branded stuff.. which we can't stop her to do that..

and now, she's more like a rocker..maybe her new album's concept will be more like rockier style? *i hope so*

^ Yeah I really love her current image
Like something I gotta try if I were girlier XD

alan is a total Ayuclone
no offense, I love alan, but her music & her looks are very Ayu-ish
although her voice is not ;)

*alan fans kill me :P*

I don't think alan is an ayuclone, but I admit that there are similarities increasingly between them (in style and musical terms).

They have a lot of similarities but like I said alan is also talented so you can't hate her for that.

It's very interesting that you pointed out how ayu's former stylist is working with alan (in addition to many of ayu's arrangers).

However, I don't think this stylist in particular choose the direction of ayu's fashion choises, and like other pointed out, (m)u seems in many way a bigger departure from "old ayu" than Secret is compared to m)u.

On the ever reocurring subject of alan "copying" or being similar to ayu, I think that when it comes to avex, many of their most famous acts, esp coming out of the 90s have a lot in common. Compare for example old hitomi shimatani, dream and ayu tracks. It all boils down to who's producing and writing melodies.

In the case of alan, she's in many ways appearing similar to ayu due to her striking looks, esp eyes and tiny fragile appearance. Combining that with a musical style that echos ayu surely leads many comparisons.

IMO allthough the musical and visual image is similar to that of ayu, alan offers a potentially very different listening experience. She's got much better voice control than ayu, all in all she's a much better singer technically and her general knowledge of music is much more develloped. In the future, if avex allows it, these are the attributes will set her apart. In addition I think avex is interested in making alan's presence greater in china depending on how she's received of course.

In ayu's case it's her emotional (not technically well done) singing combined with touching lyrics that are her main points. We all know how her voice has suffered and her future as a singer is sadly uncertain.

May if one day cannot sing anymore, she could be the creative director of alan, that would be absolutely amazing! The fact that the label are already managing her like they do, makes me think the have great plans for her, and if there's one person who really merits this amount of confidence, it's alan. Like her or not, she's obiously one of the most talented "idols" in jpop at the moment musically and potentially a great artist and performer as well.

Her style has certainly changed a lot since (miss)understood, but she is still Ayu, so I don't love her any less, and her new style is nice, too! :D

Alan is openly an Ayu fan, no wonder she is inspired by her

^ She is? Where did you read/see that?

I know that alan is really a Namie fan~

Yeah, I think she decided to try a more mature look with MY STORY but if you look at the clothing styles, loads of pinks, cute, girly shots with her in the bathtub etc, it's still an "immature" look. She looks more like a doll than a mature woman.

I'm really torn when it comes to her looks...I love her glam style but I think it alienates her from regular young women. I'd be so happy to see her doing a casual clothes photoshoot again just once! :P