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I think some are reading too much into the song. It's very much a Kazuhito composition, and it definitely sounds like an idea from A ONE that was maybe too similar to Walk and Anything For You to include on the album. So, I don't think she's singing cautiously as an art form, or that this was intended to be a big comeback. I think it's just a tie-in thing, a way of wrapping up the television series about her career.
The lyrics are definitely new, but some of it reads too like lyrics she's held onto for some time. Anyone remember when Ayu used to do this? IIRC, some of the songs on (miss)understood were ideas she had during the MY STORY era, but just hadn't found their right time and place. And I know Secret was a song she'd held onto for some time. She'd wanted to do something Enka for awhile, and it just happened to come together at the last minute for the album. This feels like a mix of writing styles from A ONE and however she's approaching writing now. She's evolved a lot, from the more quirky and pop-inspired writing on songs like Startin' and RULE/Sparkle, to the more difficult to describe ideas on projects like A ONE. These lyrics read more like MIJ/TROUBLE were one-off projects, and like Ayu personally wanted to keep the more mature and elegant writing style that she had during A ONE and sixxxxxx.
Anyway, I'm impressed with the lyrics. Definitely something fresh for her to sing about. And even if the composition and production sound very same ol', same ol', the message and theme seems more purposeful. I can only describe it as sounding *not* like Ayu is obsessed with love (AGAIN... sorry, I had to roll with the pun here.) Instead, it seems replaced with an Ayu who is confident that "love" is what makes the experiences she has with others meaningful. That it's not some thing she can go hunting for, but is instead something she's learned to tap into as a woman, a mother, and a veteran of her line of work. She sounds like she's grown past a lot of insecurity. And that is, at least for me, the best part of this song.
I am very curious if she has been recording a lot more than just this song lately because she's posted about work and being very busy, which is odd for someone who just canceled months of tour dates. She's also been unusually lowkey on social media, which in the past has been the pattern for her during the 2-3 months she'd record. Ayu is a workaholic. Always has been, probably always will be. And it's been four years since MIJ. She's grown as a person, matured. I think the angst of MIJ and feeling trapped by the industry could be behind her. She's looked so much more self-assured in her photos, both on tour and on social media. So, I feel like she's in a good position to write about new things, like motherhood and self-reflection and hope, more now than even one year ago. I'm now super curious to see if Ayu does put out a new album in the near future, and what it could (or will) sound like.
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