Opinions on Ayu's music and voice

[Unimatrix Prime™]

Originally posted by kournikova
... I wnat the old style single one... like UNITE! Evolution... Much track and much release so it is really money-worthy... She uses her new style in Because of you, Memorial Address, and moments (in my opinion)... now she sing more mature and deeper... ^^

People still buy them whether they have 4 or 10 tracks, and Avex knows that. So until people perhaps boycott buying Ayu's CDs, or if people are just fed up with 4-track singles, I don't think Avex will change that much (perhaps one 6 or 7 track single here or there, but that's about it).

[ImpactBreaker]

I remember reading a article LONG ago that avex was having problems paying the european remixers. If that is true that would explain the lacks of remixes and the fact that Ayu-mi-x V was mostly done by japanese remixers. So I think boycott would just hurt her sales and not make avex change things for the old times.

[Unimatrix Prime™]

There's also the fact that Japan's economy isn't as great as it used to. Back in the days where dot-com businessed and such were all the rave, I suppose Avex had enough to pay off all those remixers (above & beyond, armin, ferry, etc). These days, whether it's because of Japan's economy, Ayu's slowing sales, or the new artists Avex is trying to promote, I don't really think Avex will ever go to more than 7 tracks a single, and we'll probably be lucky to have her next album with more than 10 tracks.

[hiro]

Originally posted by Chrono
well, true, for ayu standards it was pretty good. i was surprised when i saw it. let's assume this is true: 20 stops are taking their toll, so ayu maybe can actually sing a little bit. i'm not argueing about that anymore, everyone values singing and vocals with different standards and norms. imo she can sing due to alot of hard work, but talent, no. (and you can hear the difference, i you listen well)

You can't sing well just because you work hard at it. It's kinda like painting a picture. I doesnt matter if you work on it for 10 hours or 20. If you suck and don't have any talent it's just gonna look like a mess. Same goes for singing. You can't build on something if you don't have "it".

[LX DAI]

Originally posted by hiro
You can't sing well just because you work hard at it. It's kinda like painting a picture. I doesnt matter if you work on it for 10 hours or 20. If you suck and don't have any talent it's just gonna look like a mess. Same goes for singing. You can't build on something if you don't have "it".

Good point Hiro.

As I used before, Trent Reznor's voice doesn't get messed up after his concerts and after lots of them at that and he yells and screams waaaaaaaaaaaaaay more than Ayumi will probably ever do in her life.

Ayumi just isn't good live which also means she isn't THAT good in the music industry. Why? Well even I can make CDs from my heart and soul and with real emotions and personal experience and sound decent. But put me live no stage and it will blow.

If this doesn't make any sense then I'm probably still blowing off steam from other issues.

[squirty]

Originally posted by hiro
You can't sing well just because you work hard at it. It's kinda like painting a picture. I doesnt matter if you work on it for 10 hours or 20. If you suck and don't have any talent it's just gonna look like a mess. Same goes for singing. You can't build on something if you don't have "it".

Somehow this is true and untrue. I'm saying this purely as a music person, I heard hundreds of performers, some good, some bad, and I have to say, singing is a God given talent. HOWEVER, that is NOT to say that someone who works hard on their craft, no matter how small the amount of talent they have, is a failure. I mean, if that were the case, there would be a small percentage of people in this world who can actually do anything worthwhile with their craft simply based on talent. What people look for in performers are the talents, yes, but that's not to say that someone with a "smaller" amount of talent is less qualified to be a performer than a person who has a greater amount of talent. I personally like people who have a somewhat raw edge. It gives a definition to their style of music. And, also, it's like a teacher of mine once said, "If you have two students, and one is a straight A student but lazy and irresponsible and the other a C to B student but diligent and mature, which would you rather have?"

[SheFliesHigher]

Originally posted by hiro
You can't sing well just because you work hard at it. It's kinda like painting a picture. I doesnt matter if you work on it for 10 hours or 20. If you suck and don't have any talent it's just gonna look like a mess. Same goes for singing. You can't build on something if you don't have "it".

I essentially agree with your main point about singing, however I think your "painting a picture" analogy doesn't work. Whereas vocal quality, range, tone, etc are largely determined by physical traits that cannot be changed with practice, artistic ability is heavily reliant on effort and the amount of time one is willing to put into the craft.

Some people have natural artistic abilty, yes, but it's not a physically determined thing that can't be improved upon.

[FancySN]

I hate Ayu's nasal voice as well. But a throaty voice isn't good either. I guess Ayu is just not made for singing...
Does anyone remember A Song is Born? In that song, Keiko sounded good, she had a strong voice, but Ayu didn't really sound that good because Ayu voice isn't really strong.

I mean, I guess in the studio recording, it was okay because Ayu probably had multiple chances to work at it, but if you watch the live performance(s) of that song done by Ayu ALONE, really, they are the worst. It isn't even singing. It's just screeching and attempts to reach those high high high notes.

In terms of vocal abilities, Ayu is not very high on the list. But that isn't to say I'm not a fan, I still like Ayu a lot. But I still definitely don't think Ayu is really great, at singing or dancing or performing.

[sxesven]

Originally posted by SheFliesHigher
I essentially agree with your main point about singing, however I think your "painting a picture" analogy doesn't work. Whereas vocal quality, range, tone, etc are largely determined by physical traits that cannot be changed with practice, artistic ability is heavily reliant on effort and the amount of time one is willing to put into the craft.

Some people have natural artistic abilty, yes, but it's not a physically determined thing that can't be improved upon.

I think your point is a good one, but painting is actually much the same, altho it, to a certain degree, depends on practising. Nevertheless, if you don't have any talent, you're never gonna be a good artist, never. But, that doesn't mean you can't become a famous artist, there have been visual artists in recent history that couldn't paint *****, but still their paintings sold for millions. Pretty much the same with music. You don't need talent to sell millions.

what's my point... it's early... eh...

[gakkun]

To the people who think Ayu's music is getting sugary and generic, I don't think you should look at her new songs (such as Greatful days, Angel's song, etc) on their own...sure they may not be her best songs in their own right, but they make good starting tracks for albums and balance out the overall mood. I don't think people would've been happy if she made an album full of songs as great as M, but all with that anguish/melancholy feel to them.

Also to the people who thinks that Ayu isn't a natural-born singer, I agree with you but I think Ayu's achieved alot by becoming much more than just an idol singer (which was how she was made).

[Chrono]

You can't sing well just because you work hard at it. It's kinda like painting a picture. I doesnt matter if you work on it for 10 hours or 20. If you suck and don't have any talent it's just gonna look like a mess. Same goes for singing. You can't build on something if you don't have "it".

dude... that's that i have been saying all the time. I've always told ya that she isn't a great singer cause she has no talent.

[AznkidoOo2]

Well..i Lost all interest in her 2003 songs..
Greatful days,Because of you, Angel's song, independent, july 1st, ourselves etc.Memorial address was great thou..still like it alittle
i really love Evolution..and M alittle bit..
Evolution i can never get bored of....
Songs from the past like A Song for xx, Surreal, free & easy, Evolution , M i still like

[Chrono]

well, imo july 1st, ourselves and independent were good. but greatful days... unforgiveable

[becauseofyou77]

My first Ayu album was A Best. So the only version of A Song For XX I had experienced was the newer vocal version. When I finally heard the original, I cringed... I definitely prefer the newer Ayu.
Ayu is a good singer, maybe not the greatest, but good. If she couldn't sing at all she would not have had such a successful career as she has had so far. Yes her range has limits, but I would not call her an alto. I am an alto and I can't hit some of those notes she hits. I would say that she is a mezzo sopano, which is right inbetween soprano and alto. Her voice has always had a "screechy" quality to it. I think the training she had taught her about vibrato. The vibrato she has seems forced sometimes, but I think that it is necessary to help her control her voice.
I have only heard one bad live performance. Granted, I have not seen many of them. The Ayuready performances that I have watched so far are excellent.
I like how she changes her music. The upbeat pop songs, rock songs, ballads. Instead of just sticking with one thing she does something different.
On every forum I belong to, for any music artist, there is always a thread like this. It seems that some people just can't deal with change. I want music artists I listen to, to evolve and change. Not just stick to the same thing because it "works". I loved "Greatful Days" , “Ourselves”, “Forgiveness” when I first heard them. I have loved a lot of the new stuff lately. When I listen to an older song then a newer one I can instantly tell the difference, the production is better, her voice sounds better. It just seems better to me.

[PrismaticTears]

With any art form/subject, natural talent for that specific form/subject is always helpful if you wish to work at all within that area, absolutely necessary if you wish to become someone who'll have a section in a history book on the arts later on.

Hard work and dedication are never all for naught, practice and recital can and generally will improve one's ability to perform a said art, HOWEVER, there is a limit as to how much hard work and how much practice can improve. Some can make it pretty high, but with no real talent for it in the first place, there will always be just one hurdle that you can't jump to get into the next level of that specific art.

I really don't think of Ayu as much of a singer but more of a performer/entertainer. I don't watch her lives for sake of her voice, it's for the show she puts on. They almost always have something worth watching/interesting in them (if not her amorphous fashion choices). She's certainly a JPop Queen, but I'd never consider her a Diva, she's a JPOP Queen for me and that's that.

An opinion shared by some others, I do believe she was never meant to have THE talent for singing. However, she certainly has put hard work into singing and she can indeed sing now. She can't woo you with her voice but she can certainly put on a show.

And yes that falsetto-vibrato is kinda irksome @_@ Especially when she wiggles her lower jaw to do it.

[hanabiwings]

Originally posted by hiro
Maybe she should stop singing her older songs or just lower the key that she sings them in. I really loved her performance of whatever and end roll on Stadium Tour. I thought those were great. I was suprised how much more poweful thye sounded than the original.

Actually, she is doing just this. UNITE is now sung in a lower key. The same goes for her tour performance of [TO BE] and [too late]. All three of these songs are sung lower than they used to be.

As for ayu's vocal problems and off-key singing, it does come from singing too high for her range. I would have to say that she does have a low range, as was exhibited in her performance of [Haru yo, koi] and [TOKYO] on Music Fair 21. I don't agree that she has a very limited range because we have seen how high and low she can go. I don't think that it is a question of range but rather, the way that she sings when trying to his high notes. Instead of singing lightly, she often strained in her earlier days to hit the notes.

The constant strain on her voice during her 2000 concert tour truly changed her voice for the first time. If you listen to the live performance on music shows before, you will hear her beautiful, fragile voice. After daily strain of the concert tour, her voice was probably damaged somewhat. IT continued to be damaged during some of her live concert tours that were especially long.

She needs to embrace her range and stop the damage to her voice. She has the potential to sing well in live performances as has been exhibited in the past. She needs to pay attention most to her INFLECTION, which is the way she shapes her mouth when she sings. She's not off-key for many songs, but often sings with a whiney sound that is produced when she merely sings the notes, throwing them out with no regard for tone. This is obvious when she sings SURREAL and starts singing lalalalai~ She is hitting the right notes, but just kinda going, "lahlahlahluhhhhh"

[sxesven]

Originally posted by hanabiwings
As for ayu's vocal problems and off-key singing, it does come from singing too high for her range. I would have to say that she does have a low range, as was exhibited in her performance of [Haru yo, koi] and [TOKYO] on Music Fair 21. I don't agree that she has a very limited range because we have seen how high and low she can go.

Indeed. Hary yo, koi; Tokyo; A Song For XX ~A Ballads~; Memorial Address; Ayu definitely CAN sing in a low voice, I WISH SHE'D JUST DO IT MORE OFTEN!

[AfanforXX]

i'm gonna make this brief: Ayu needs to take a year-long break, work on her vocals, and get some new experiences for lyric-writing. Her current vocals are horrible and everyone knows it.

[Piccolo]

Originally posted by AfanforXX
Her current vocals are horrible and everyone knows it.

I think her current vocals and music are excellent.

[tetsuo69]

well ---- i think her voice and music has been good ... maybe not as good as b4 but still good.

i do think she should take a break... for a while... and forgot ayuready... i dont think getting to see her every week is good for her .. people will get tired fast....

only true fans like me and some will stay ^_^ and wont complain