[AyUmIXx]

Originally Posted by LUOYUXIANG

I agree with the above posts.

I think at this point of her career, her fans need to realize that the Ayumi Hamasaki now is no longer the old product anymore. What we get now is so close to ayu the real person that the image is of course imperfect. Ayu used to say that Ayumi Hamasaki the product and ayu the person are two different things, which is clearly not happening anymore, because:

1. She has more power and more control over her own music/image, hence the lack of criticism or creative input from new teams. In other words, what you get is what she wants, not necessarily what the company thinks what's right or attractive.
2. She doesn't care about the market much anymore. She has stated many times in magazine interviews or the lifestyle book that she releases music not to cater to anyone but to express her self. She is not afraid of anything, not even failure, as she has her own judgment of success or what's worth.

So, it really left the fans to decide what to do: take it or leave it. If your goal is to seek and enjoy highly crafted visuals, I really don't think the present ayu is the right thing to look for: she might occasionally come up with something the market accepts, but it won't be as consistent as the last decade. If you stick to her because you find her stories interesting or enjoy her company, it might be a nice experience to grow with her. After such a successful career in the past (at such young ages) and quite a few failing relationships, ayu has become a very strong person who is at the same time pushy. Of course she can experiment with new sounds and new images always, but I really doubt she would change this kind of attitude - the idiosyncratic, pushy, and courageous personality that took her so long and so much to gain, which has distinguished her from a lot of other highly successful Jpop artists and super stars.

very well said!