Well I didn't use mu-mo because only avex songs are on there. As for the Chaku-Uta full, I don't think #3 will get her any high download certifications by the RIAJ. (Plus, it's already falling down the daily charts)

The slump in sales really makes you think. It's clear that Ayumi is still popular in Japan. She still ranks high on Oricon polls and magazines so she still has fans, her tours are always mighty popular and she seemed to have several fans visiting in her radio shows. So it's not exactly a matter of popularity. She also still wins several awards despite the fact that she has stepped back on the major ones.

Guess the problem is that this single just didn't attract the attention of Japan. Now when I think back on Ayu's discography I guess this was a gross miscalculation by avex. Usually Ayu's powerful rock singles are B-Sides, while the A-Sides are more pop and happy. I think avex was trying to do something powerful, experimental and different but from what I can see it wasn't attractive for Japan. Same goes for Shimatani's angsty crossover songs which are fantastic but sell around 10k and Olivia's pre-NANA sales were so bad. I suppose this was the reason why these kind of songs got the b-side or album treatment.

I think it's time that avex does yet another style makeover. At this stage her next album will sell less than 500k and that would be a big problem. Maybe they should try collabs or something that appeals to the public more since this single's sales are not a good sign. A heartfelt ballad sounds a good choice since we all know how Japan love these emotional ballads.

What positon is it today?
Oricon didn't update the whole day... (or just I don't see it?)

But avex showed that mu-mo's membership grew a lot this year, so the fans of the avex artists as it seems (of ayu, kumi, tohoshinki etc.) download the singles through mu-mo the most and don't buy physical copies.
That's mainly the reason why I think they still sell good but mainly on legal downloads through mu-mo, because all of avex artists sell less physical copies lately.

Oh, I was referring to the Chaku-Uta full charts. It's #6 today.

While mu-mo membership did grow, I think most of the mu-mo members represent the more hardcore avex fans and not the casual listener/buyer. These people would have probably bought the physical copy and the soft copy on their cell phones. Personally, I think other companies like Recochoku, music.jp, the au Music store probably have more traffic than mu-mo does.

So why do they need membership that they can dowload legally if they only buy physical copies? Do they pay for nothing?

I still do think that from the different methods avex gained a good profit over this single, radio plays, legal downloads, decent amount of physical copies etc.
I really don't see why this single did any bad like people here exaggarate mainly only because of the physical sales. It even was a #1 hit, the 2nd single on the charts sold around 40,000 copies less and they are a boy band...

^No, what I meant is that they buy both physical and soft since I think most mu-mo members are more hardcore than the casual buyer.

I personally don't think it will do anything spectacular that will "make up" for the lower physical sales, but I guess we'll see when RIAJ releases their certifications next month.

EDIT: I guess what I'm trying to say is that I don't think mu-mo downloads in general will be that much compared to other sites. And since it didn't do that well in the other sites, I don't think legal downloads "stole" that many sales from the physical side.

RIAJ releases certifications monthly?
And I don't think that a gold CD means something bad.
I think that t2m might reach Gold CD certification and it's already means good sales.

^Both Download and Physical certifications are released monthly.

I think it already got Gold physical certification already but I'm not too sure for downloads.

Woah! Woah! Woah! Woaho! I thought mu-mo had a varity of artist from different labels....at least that's what I saw when I saw on Hikki's BW/K&C profile (on wikipedia).

That could very well be a part of it because everyones sales have been crap the last couple of weeks. Kinki Kids did manage to sell 190,000 of their new single it's first week if I remember right, but even so, that is one of their lowest numbers ever.

Woah! Woah! Woah! Woaho! I thought mu-mo had a varity of artist from different labels....at least that's what I saw when I saw on Hikki's BW/K&C profile (on wikipedia).

As I tried to say many times in this whole thread.

Things show a + general decrease in physical copies shopping.
ayu's physical copies get hurt from this too.

Obviously. But I was specifically referring to Japan's political situation and the effect it could be having on all artists cd sales.

i completely agree. shes been making music for the sake of music since she started her singing career. as long as she keeps making quality music and shes enjoying what shes doing, at the end of the day that is what's most important isn't it?

You guys know why kinki kids's single has first week sales so much higher than that of other artists?

I wouldn't say it's low---just not up to Ayu's regular standards. It still got number 1. You also need to take into account the fact that t2m was available for download a long time before the single was released, as well as online vendors like iTunes Japan, mu-mo, etc. Physical sales are slumping because of digital advancement.

Furthermore, the promotion/budget for this single is rather low IMO. t2m and decision's PVs were rather lackluster compared to her previous efforts (really out there PVs like fairyland aside, even). Also, the TV performances of t2m were less than spectacular...in the majority of them, her voice sounds punctured and tired and people who are usually not fans of Ayu may be turned off by such lives.

And about taking breaks: I'm not really sure that would help? The Brilliant Green took a hella long break and when they came back, they sold only decently and it wasn't a brilliant comeback or anything. In comparison to the earlier years, Ayu does release at a slower pace; she's only had two singles a year for the past two years....who knows though.

The industry is quite unpredictable now, so whatever happens, happens. Ayu will still continue to make great music, regardless of sales, and that's what matters.

Well, it's not like the single sucked or anything. At least, not for me. And for a lot of other people.

But it was low for them. Ayu's sales are a lot higher than any other artist this week too, but by her standards it's low - same thing with Kinki Kids.

Ehh... I think that only applied for last year... in 2005 she released STEP you/is this LOVE?, fairyland, HEAVEN, BnD/Pride.

I really hope she'll release one more single this year.. cross my finger for that :).

Yeah, I wasn't counting 2005. I consider 2007 almost over so I meant 2006 and 2007 when I said "past two years" :)

they're one of the most well-recognized music acts from Johnny's Entertainment. JE units do not have their music on iTunes or any music site, so fans have to buy physical copies, which often inludes many different versions (like Normal & Limited Editions). the Johnny's fanbase is also one of the most hardcore ones too.

i'd like to know what direction Ayu's gonna take after this too. i really want avex to consider using her songs as tie-ins with j-dramas. it worked with Hikki, Namie, Ai Otsuka, & Mika Nakashima with their sales.

Yeaaaa...do you know if they've always sold better than Ayu?

Interesting to note, but Utada has had two 200k+ selling singles. Go her!

Surprising though, Ayumi does more work than Utada (promotional work) but Utada is able to sell more...it's always been this way though, Utada beats ayumi in every category. (Album sales and single sales)

Still, not bad though, the single will still sell 100k at the least. =)

thanks 4 the info foxxy :)
im relieved now...
i thought ayu's physical single sales are dropping so low that avex might cut her as the top artist slowly

but compared to the others, i think its doing OK

for utada's BW/K&C, it deserves the good sales. the music is very good
beside that, it's also a theme song for evangelion, cult anime.

cumulative sales?

its really low for her since its such a great single, but ah well. not like old times anymore.

its really low for her since its such a great single, but ah well. not like old times anymore.

EDIT: MAN, AHS is really slow, stupid double post.

ah I still think this single was a mistake =( Probably because I don't like it and it sold bad =( I dunno about the decreasing sales, I agree that ales are decreasing but taht doesn't mean that 70k is a good number =x Glitter managed to hit 108k so I thought that was good, but below 100k =( seems too big of a drop. I hope her next single ( I heard was a ballad) is empowering or else Ayu will be in big trouble. I doubt that downloading is lowering her sales too. Glitter almost tied with Startin =S She just needs to release more happy pop music just to sell well or gain more popularity before risking a new style.

I highly disagree with that, she shouldn't just release STUFF in ORDER TO GET HIGHER SALES.I have no idea what do you MEAN BY BIG trouble?I mean the songs were great & did the best they could ^^, its not her fault the people aren't interested in buying cds when they don't have to.The old times will never be back as the MUSIC industry has changed a lot, since 2002, I mean look at Ku's sales, at her peak she sold as much as Ayu's medium selling singles from MY STORY/(miss)understood era, there is nothing wrong with ayu's current sales.If this single was released a few years ago it would sell as high as evolution or NEVER EVER.Face the fact that she nor in fact MOST of the people will never sell as much as hey used to.AGain take Shimatani for exemple compare hers and Ayu's sales from a few years ago, than compare them now, I belive that they're pretty proportional^^ (at least most of the time XD).

Yeah gotta agree that the promotion on this single was really crappy for Ayu's standards. Seriously avex should be more careful with Ayu when promoting her because she's not some random artist. These marketing experiments are usually not so great but a way to reduce budget and try to get away with it. And predictably enough they fail.

The pvs weren't that bad but it was obvious that they were on a tight budget. I did like the performances though, it seems that her vocals are improving with every performance, considering how t2m is not an easy song to sing.

Finally taking a break doesn't exactly work in Japan. In the West it is perfectly acceptable and some artists go on long hiatuses but in Japan if an artist takes a break she'll lose a load of fans and she'll have to work very hard to rebuild a fanbase. And sometimes they just don't because the fans have moved on to someone else. Take it from hitomi and Ami Suzuki who have really bad sales.

I think the problem is that there's not enough hype about her music. People always see her on photoshoots and think she's attractive but Ayumi seems to become more of an image rather than a musician lately. Two singles a year is not enough to create excitement for an album, especially if they hated one of them. Probably they won't bother to pick up the album at all. This is especially relevant with casual fans who just buy what they enjoy, because only die-hard fans are collectors in the end. If they find the singles leading to the album boring, they just won't consider buying the album.

Three should the minimum and she really should work harder to try and release more. I know that her schedule's hectic and she's been working hard for a long time but waiting around 7 months for new material is seriously a pain. People just lose interest because they are waiting way too long for a single to be released.

I do think so, hikki sell more because of some reasons, not just like that ^_^.
and BW/K&C did get a lot of promotion too.

BTW t2m was #6 yesterday! Only new singles are above it, it's not a big drop at all! I think it's good!

BW/K&C had anime tie-ins and stuff too, so it should sell more considering how crazy otakus are XP! But imo t2m > BW/K&C.

Pfft...not surprised. But she's STILL number one, so I doubt she'll be complaining that much. -_-

i think this is good single but why the sales very bad like that???
and the download too...
very bad??
is it the sign that her popularity goin' down??
bad??

i think this is good single but why the sales very bad like that???
and the download too...
very bad??
is it the sign that her popularity goin' down??
bad??

No, and we can't know the legal downloads numbers so we can't know if they're low either.

t2m is #7 today.
I think it will be 5-6 weekly for the 2nd week which is not bad.

hohoho..
this single must pass 100K

argghh.. The bumber is already out!!!! theres nothing we can do!!
lets face it!!!

its a digital world right now.. people dont buy CD anymore they download it for FREE!!!

dont care about the sales numner.. at leat shes #1!!!!

thx for the info

Yeah I mean, how bad is to be #1 x_x =P

again with this number 1?!?!? do u understand that one week at number one where there aren't any very good single is not synonym of good? This single is a flop! I really can't believe it but this is the truth :(. It will be the the 30th-40th best selling single of 2007! how can u considerate it good???! Ayu is the queen of jpop not a normal female singer

Because those sales are GOOD, maybe not for you, but for ayu and avex they are enough. #1 does indicate good sales, and if not, so let's not talk about everyone popular who is under #1. For this week the single was the best selling single in Japan.

It's one of her best single... Only 70k... But it's stil #1!! xDD Ayu rocks xD

so for yous is better one week at number 1 with 70k and in next 2 weeks exit from top20 than one mounth in top 20 with 150k?

Even ayu can't keep sell millions in her entire career. No one can.
As for these days, those sales are great.
And yes I prefer #1 over lesser rankings if possible XD.
I'm convinced that a #1 hit single is better than #2 or less hit singles.

wow LOVE&TRUTH is doing really well!

Same for BoA...she's doing rather well compared to her recent releases, no?

but i think ayu will be fine once another album comes out.

Nevertheless, we still have the panasonic CMs to look forward to a possible new song.

Sales have generally been low. Face it. Don't expect figures like 300K or 500K anymore for any of Ayu's singles from now onwards. She's not doing horrible, she's doing perfectly fine. Just look at everyone else, if you think Ayu's sales are bad, how about theirs?

That's why you have chart rankings. Chart rankings are an indication of the popularity of the singer in relative relation to others and the sales of their singles. Ayu's still coming out tops relative to the others. This goes to show she's still really going strong. It's people who are living in the past that take this and go "Look at Ayu, she's really falling in her popularity." Time to wake up your idea.

Well said and put! It's exactually like that.

But when the yearly rankings come in, it'll probably rank in the lowest position since her ASFXX singles.

#1 Ayu~ ^^ I'm happy for you.

All these others are expecting way too much from her with this single sales wise...but she DOES have the #1 spot, for 2 weeks now, so tell me...how is that bad? >.>

^For 1 week, not 2.

*stands and claps* I have to agree with u. We HAVE to face the fact that Ayumi can't really pull off big sales now. We are expecting too much from her. I think Ayu did get some really decent promotion but like I said earlier, maybe her JAPANESE fans weren't feelin' this single. Just because we like it does not mean they like it. We were ALL hyped about this single but we didn't take into account of how her local fans feel. It's weird b/c most of u guys didn't like glitter/fated but yet it achieved some really good sales (I mean she has the 4th highest female single of the year) and it good some good reviews...unlike t2m. Let's just hope that her next single will sale into 100k in it's first week!! Let's keep hope alive guys and stop saying it's Ayu fault!!!:)

Actually it's the 6th highest selling female single of the year.

????......6th?

Utada Hikaru - FoL (642k)
Koda Kumi - FREAKY (193k)
Utada Hikaru -BW/K&C (191k)
-----
-----
Ayumi Hamasaki - glitter/fated (164k)

Who are the other two that are in front of Ayu???

Yui - Rolling Star (169 K)
Yui - CHE.R.RY (167 K)
Pretty soon: Ai Otsuka - Peach/Heart (158 K). And it sold 4 K this week!

Half-year sales (incomplete), for everyone to FINALLY see that Ayu is doing OKAY:
http://wiki.theppn.org/2007_Oricon_T...es_-_Half_Year

Compare with last year's:
http://wiki.theppn.org/2006_Oricon_Top_200_Singles

Sales ARE going down in Japan. Down. Down. Down. How many times does it have to be repeated? Down. Down. Down.

Has everyone forgotten that Blue Bird was the 32nd bestselling single of last year? I predict around the same for Glitter. Anyway, male single, female single, animal single, I don't think the labels matter. They're all in the same music business. (I remember people really only started using it when Koda Kumi became popular :P)

The good old days:
http://wiki.theppn.org/2002_Oricon_Top_100_Singles

Number 1 single. Not number 1 female single. Not number 1 single with the shortest title. Number 1 single. Period.

I also think that Talkin' 2 Myself will stay in the charts longer than Glitter, but it won't sell as well. Maybe 130-140 K. Fingers crossed.

It just takes a bit of research. The Internet is your friend :)

And, please, Ayu, give us a better lead single next time!

Oh, wow, I didn't know Yui was on in the top 10 list (in terms of female singles.) Good for her. Yea, the SELLS period are down in Japan. Quite sad! I just the Japanese aren't feelin' music like it was back than.....and who can blame them. I feel the same way about American music. All the Best albums and (some meaningless) singles have prolly dried them out too (just a wild theory) I do hope that sales and stuff will rebound this year or next. I think that next year will be nothin' but full of albums being released and less singles. Hmph!:shrug

The magic words: digital music.

Would you rather buy a bulky physical single that you'd have to lug around with an unfashionable discman or download it on your hip and happening cellphone/I-pod/laptop? Japan prefers the latter. Check the digital music sales. The music business in Japan is not in trouble.

At least it will be ranked, which is not bad at all.
Most aren't ranked.
We need to see ayu as a singer, not as a selling robot.
She gets pretty good achivements, some are high some aren't but nothing like that means we should stop liking her, be pesimistic and be disappointed.

t2m is one of the last singles on earth who could get me even near disappointed.
Therefore I still think t2m will even do well on physical sales. 100,000 is already good and is a gold hot cd, it doesn't called Gold certificate for nothing.

I wonder what people would say if it would sell 50,000 in total sales and be ranked 10 or 30?

The only people who are disappointed in those sales and think that they are low are peopel who expect too much from ayu and expect her to always sell 200,000 or really high numbers and at the end will always be dissapointed, in any way it's not ayu's fault or even connected to her. Just don't expect too much and be happy with the good sales, so what if they are not 200,000 or even 150,000? 100,000 is good too, at least it's not 50,000.
and it's a #1 hit and not 10.

*raises hand* I'd rather download it (buy it!) :yes

@ayumirael: It would be total chaos among the Ayumi Hamasaki fans on here. lol

^Yeah, people need to stop obsessing about the sales all the time (it can be fun sometimes) and just enjoy the music.

If I cared about sales at all, why do I think that the top 20 singles so far are either mediocre or just plain terrible? :P

lol I'm an ayu fan and I'm not a total chaos, and don't even think that those sales are bad, 'cause at the end they aren't.
I would say that the sales are BAD when they'll be 50,000 in total or something low like that.

you also have to think about other singles that are already released. people aren't just limited to buying the singles that are released that week. people can buy whatever they want. in this case people chose to buy t2m. they didnt have to but they did. so yes #1 does equal good.

I don't understand why ppl make such a big fuss over her sales. Seriously she's not the only one with low sales...and the sales she have now is not that bad compared to others. You can't expect her sell as much as she used to..its just too hard nowadays unless she have a huge tie in..like a drama (ex. hikki) Ayu is selling close to koda who is suppose to be popular...and she's been in the industry for almost 10 years now and her peak was long passed...doesn't that mean anything? Actuallly talkin' 2 myself's first week is higher than ai no uta. (even though it might not sell more than ai no uta in the long run) but isn't that pretty good already? She can still be compared to young female artists nowadays and that is amazing to me already.

The songs in this single is a improvement from her recent singles and that is enough for me.

^10000% agree with you, Ayumiko!!
ayu will always be the greatest singer, the best lyricist, as long as she makes music i will always love her no matter what!!

btw, congrats for #1 weekly sales to ayu!!

well its good though she still manage to be no.1, but rather from saying "why the sales is so low" I think it would be wise if we introspect with ourselves.... we dled the track and how many of US buy the actual physical single? I think not 100% of us buy it... and it is only on AHS... not in other forum.... and that play a HUGE drop to the sales :P if you say "because we are not from japan" then japanese people will have the reason "spending 1000+ yen for a physical cd, getting only 5 tracks + 2 pvs is not that worthy while we can dl it from international forum for FREE" ^^

peaceeeeee neee

Well if a single charts on the weekly TOP 200 then it will be ranked by Oricon for the year end. I remember in 2005 there someone on livedoor put a list for the TOP 1000 singles of the year and I think there was more that the person didn't post up.

LOL I'm sure ayu wasn't that far downXD maybe her older older singles might've been there I suppose ^_^

njanja I understand what you are saying, but her sales shouldn't slip too much. She still has to stay above a minimum standard. I know Mu-Mo has affect the sales , but still this is pretty bad =( She shouldn't release stuff to just aim for high sales but she should release something to at least chart well. Ayumi isn't out of the spotlight yet, she can still get back in, but I'm afraid that if she keeps experimenting, people might not buy her material which means she will get less attention from avex =(! And plus we can't compare her to another artist like Kuu and hitomi, just because they aren't doing as well doesn't mean ayu should slump too. I dunno I just hope she doesn't end up like Ami =( who btw is a good singer in my opinion

Ayumi will never be forgotten....she's done too many great things for people to forget about her. She inspired people with her voice, style, lyrics, records (lol) and so on. I really don't care about her sales nowadays but rather her #1s. I just want to see how longing she can keep it up..hehehe. People should look at the fact that Ayumi IS still in game. She still sales like crazy and IS still popular. Can u say that much for hitomi (as of popularity) and Namie (as of single sales). Nope, u can't! Like what 100s of people have said in this thread, there will be a day when Ayu isn't selling like crazy and the same goes for Hikki, Kumiko, Namie, Ai Otsuka, Yui and other popular female artist. So quit all the whining and crying....it's not needed...AT ALL. Just face it and stop all drama at her sales and move with ur lives!!!!

Exactly ^^.And I was just saying that Ayu was doing great compared to other artists atm which still makes her "popular" and stuff.So let's just patiently await for the new single and hopefully an album in the next 6-7 months :).

I've never seen this side of you before..I like it :laugh

I'm not concerned with the actual sales in general though, but it baffles me that it sold so much worse than glitter. I guess they like songs that sound like every other pop song released in the summer.

That's what I cared about the most, and that's why I'm far from disappointed with talkin' 2 myself.

is this low or what?

This single as a whole (song + PV) was just not up to par with her usual works. I was especially disappointed by the "decision" PV. However, I like the first A-side and the PV was fairly interesting...I just felt so disconnected from this single for some reason. It didn't have the same Ayu feel that most of her songs have.

In any case, I can't wait until her next single, and I hope it's very creative and imaginative...and hopefully it'll sell more!

t2m went up to #5 today, as I said it will be 5/6 weekly (maybe even 4 but I think 5/6).

okay went to 5..
i hope the end of week this single same with glitter it's about #4 weekly chart..

I was hoping for great sales since I loved the single so much, so this is somewhat disappointing.

I believe this single will still sell about 110-120K, which is good. I'm just happy that ayu took a risk and finally released a full-on rock single, she usually pairs her rock songs with more upbeat pop tracks or ballads. That, for me, is some good that comes out of this single - maybe ayu is willing to be more unexpected with her releases? ;D

I just can't believe Glitter sold better than this. :no

No offense but it's reality.....suck it up!


It's not the end of the world for Ayumi. She will still release and she WILL still sale!;)

#4 today good

yay rise! gd for AYu!

hooray!

I was dissapointed with the pv's, but the songs are still awesome.

looked like 2 weeks to me, guess I read it wrong.

anyone remember teh fake lyrics?

MY DECISION!


lolz

I thought this single was going to do really well, I am so shocked!
What is with overall record sales lately?
Everyones CD's/singles seem to not be selling as much, you know?
It is very odd! :(

t2m is #5 today...
I think it might be (specifically) #5 weekly.

well I think that the people download now more the songs than buy the cds

waw today go down to 5 again ??
hmm
it's okay..
i hope the 2nd week sales is about 30K

^It's probably going to be between 15k and 20k.

#5 again, I really think it will be #5 weekly XD

ye me too..but maybe 4. Anyway 20k

Yea, 20k seems about right....hmm, I expect her to obtain 100k by the next 2 weeks. She should finish the year off with 110K or under! That's the way I'm looking at the it or rather the sales!!!

agreed,but her LOVE~destiny~ single actually debuted with about the same number of copies sold,and look how many copies it sold to date,hopefully t2m would have constant sales.HOPEFULLY

hopefully it went up to #4 or #3 today because it's Ayumi's birthday :D

LOVE ~destiny~ was her first #1 single; it had longevity on oricon because she was still a fresh young artist then. t2m will in no way fare the same. Everyone who wants the single would have already bought it/will buy it within the month. Ayu is no small-name artist anymore.

#5 weekly would be good, hopefully the single has a little more longevity that glitter/fated and sell close to 120k.

Hmmm....to be honest, t2m doesn't seem like one of those singles that has longevity on the charts but it'll be surprised if it was still to chart by the end of the year.

2nd week:
*4　18,653　*88,978　Ayumi Hamasaki - talkin’ 2 myself

hmm..decent rise..hope t2m will hit 100k as soon as possible.

this is very bad...
2nd week only 18K..
if we compare with glitter the 2nd week still 23K

this is very bad..
if we compare with glitter in 2nd week glitter sold more than 23K. but t2ms only 18K..