I'm with you on that, although I happen to like Xtina and Britney, people tend to ignore the greater portion of music in America when comparing to Jpop. It's so ironic because if an American can't accept American music, how can you go around saying others are closed-minded?

Back on topic, it was kind of shocking for me to see that only a few female soloists got over $1 million USD for 2004 considering how much they promote and stuff. I guess that goes to show that popularity doesn't necessarily translate into a boatload of money.
Ayumi definitely peaked in 2001. Just look at the number of photoshoots she did then compared to now; her visibility in that sense has decreased but she's still everywhere thanks to endoresments. She still earns alot compared to the general public so there's no reason to feel sorry for her.