[Translation] Ayumi on Cawaii! 2006 Sept Issue
 

Ayumi Hamasaki: “The Relaxed Smile Underneath”

After the concert, how is Ayu doing? To fulfill the curiosity of “Cawaii!” readers, we asked Ayu and she said “OK”!! And here we go for her rare mega luxurious interview together with her concert costumes.

The concert tour, started since March 2006, has finally closed its curtains on second half of June at “Yoyogi 3 days Concert”. The costume shown at the cover pages of this magazine is one of the costumes featured during the concert. It was being wore inside of the bright red long robe which is decorated with blossomed roses. Of course this is its very first time being exposed on the magazine.

At this concert performance that has a total track list of 13 songs; Ayu has changed 8 sets of costumes, which is an eye candy for her audiences. Not only had herself, even her dancers’ costumes were very remarkably featured fashion that were specially designed. The linked movies on the stages, the sudden simulated rain drops on the illusion stage floor… and also the creatively-made costumes and choreographed-performances that make the fans’ eyes stay glued on her… she has completed one of the best entertainment show in Japan.

[I learned really a lot during these 7 years; at first I really know nothing]

During the interval MC of the concert, Ayu stated that, “I do not feel nervous because of upcoming live performances” her current displayed confidence were of a total contrast during her debut era, on those days, during the concerts with other artists, she was “I spent all my energy just by standing in front of the stage, I was shaking uncontrollably.”

“I still remember the time when I stood on the stage for the very first time, my first line of voice bounced back onto me” (laughs), I can’t really say that line again anymore, but it should be the shouting of “How are you, everyone~~~”, it should have a teenage girl kind of feeling, but little did I know, the “how are you” became “gow are you”!

I instantly froze, and the slowly built up atmosphere of the entire concert just totally fell down! It was such a blow to me (laughs). Although I couldn’t remember the contents of that concert, but because of the huge blow, I can only remember that I silently swore to myself that there will not be a second mistake anymore.

At that time Hiro (EXILE) was helping me out as a dancer too, he even gave some advice on my dancing, how memorable… Even if I wanted to watch that live concert again, in practice I would just stop the tape at the “how are you” time frame (laughs).

Before my debut, I did take part in velfarre’s events. I was thinking, “Can I really do it? Does everyone know me?” TRF did their performance on that day too. Before the start of the show, I actually decided to send my regards to them after I look at the schedule time, but I was so foolish that I mistakenly crossed into their resting room in the first place! I was like, “Oh god!” and thought that I mustn’t be noticed so “Zoom!”, I scoot away!(laughs). I was so nervous!

Comparing to seeing a lot of people from the stage, I am easier to get nervous when seeing my sempais (senior singers). Even now TRF will ask me, “Why do you always become nervous when you’re in front of us?” Until this very day, I can’t overcome that habit. Because they are the ones that were viewed by me on the television screen, they are always the ones that being respected. I just can’t outperform them in any case, because I didn’t exist during that time.

Therefore when I am in front of those who had walked through the history, I will respect them and feel nervous. Whether I am becoming an adult, or I known them better, or I become a little bit more famous than last time, only because of this, I feel that, I can’t let down my guard and no mistakes should be made.

This is the way I express my respects. Not only TRF, Miss KEIKO, and Miss Namie Amuro too… it’s impossible not to respect them. Their histories will be continued, and I can’t achieve their success within my life. And it is not a thing that you can eventually exceed, because that’s my idea.”

“It’s not that kakkoi (handsome, cool)”

Recently Ayu finally released her latest single “BLUE BIRD” and it’s her 40th single! Plus the songs in her albums, Ayu has presented more than 100 songs to her fans around the globe, while creating yet another record in J-Pop history.

“Although I do not sing for sake of breaking records, but honestly I do feel happy from the perspective of ratings given by those music critics. But these things aren’t just belongs to me, that is a praise to everyone who is associated with ‘Ayumi Hamasaki’.”

When searching through the memories, I discovered that she once said…

“Previously, I totally have no idea that I have the ability to release 40 singles, or imagine what I look like right now. I has never given a thought that I can walked this far, simply because I’m not an ambitious type of person.

Some people do plan their lives clearly and really did carry out their plans with strong will, but I think I’m the one with the “not too OK” attitude (laughs). Not only sometimes I will skip certain vocal training classes, I would suddenly feel my tummy hurts if I go (laughs).

I think nobody starts to be very busy since the moment of their debut? It’s not like you will become busy as soon as you build up the order of your career. Sometimes you will feel free suddenly and you will sometime feel so high… you will naturally get used to it as long as your workload increases slowly. However, things aren’t suppose to be like that in reality. You must put everything in effect as soon as you have the idea of that particular thing… as if like it’s been sucked up by the tornado. I’m like this.

I have no time to think of anything and yet the next job keeps on coming, I have not time to think about sleeping or hunger either, because I spend away all of my energy just by doing my job properly as “Ayumi Hamasaki”. Although I have a good set of memory, but at certain times (during concert performances) my memories would as if derailed, thus memorizing doing certain things. I did squeeze such a lot of strength (to perform well in concert)… but that shouldn’t be considered as a “kakkoi” thing.

It is all because of my fans’ given support and the hardworking back stage crew when I was singing and dancing on the concert event, which created me, at this very moment.”

[You call this perfect; I rather felt that it won’t end just like this. This is the kind of job I’m having right now…]

In the year 2000, after the completion of the 1st stage and 2nd stage of the her very first Concert tour, she always cried with the crew members because I was so touched.

“Right now, whenever the concert just finished, I would just have a quick shower and straightaway reconfirm and check on my performances via the VTR at the backstage… if there’s unsatisfactory parts, I will discuss with my crew members together on ways of overcome the problems on the spot. It’s alright if it’s just accidents or freak surprises, but you can never neglect the existence of the errors.

For the perfect concert performance tomorrow, I would want to understand the cause of the errors occurred today by 100%. I totally cannot bear to worry about it, yet ignore it and again repeat the same mistakes. Same for today, everyone gave their best shot, and it made me tearful and moved me because we were able to make our audiences happy. But from a practical and constructive point of view, I rather sport better stage performances to respond to my fans…naturally I do have mindsets of these.”

Ayu and her crew members would use VTR to ran an analysis on her performance of the day, using scientific-experiment-like careful methods, thus seeking out the way to overcome problems and mistakes.


“Although I lost count on how many times did I stand on the stage, but I had never drank beer right after my live performances, nor I will have those happy feelings of yeah~ after the show. In contrast, I would be getting myself prepared in the backstage, and after the performance I will return to there and chat, in an astonishing manner of relaxation (laughs).

Even when I mustered all my courage and enter the small chamber used for rapid costume changing during the live performance, I would just feel the same thing (relax) (laughs). The atmosphere of my mood should be changing around 2 minutes before the opening of the event…”

Even if she said was true, she always gathered all she have and gave it all for each and every of the live concerts. She would be trained by the personal trainers appointed by her record company (Avex Trax Co.) to adjust her condition , even if it’s only a can of drink, she was willing to try it out if it’s believe to be nutritious for her body. Such positively focusing attitude of hers were not only found during her live concert times, but she always have the “seeking for the perfect” mindset goals for any of her projects. Ayumi Hamasaki would always relentlessly search for the word “perfect” without a second thought.

[It’s impossible to have no pressure, but I have messages to convey rather than pressure]

It has been 7 years ever since her very first concert tour. Whether it’s organized inside the Arena or Domes, the amount of public performances and crews added up over the years. This year, the amount totaled at 13 venues nationwide (Japan) and 30 performances. That is simply because more and more loyal fans wanted to see Ayu again, as well as new fans joining into the scene. In other words, this is the most accountable ratings given by Ayu fans to the concerts.

“Why do I make concerts… this is a hard question indeed. One of the reasons would be communicating with my fans nationwide, but the ultimate reason was because there were some messages that only I can convey, or that I should convey, hence why I make concerts. Because those messages were very difficult to send through magazines or television, so it still has to be done via some ways…right.

But definitely it’s not some phrases like “Recently I’m like bla bla bla” during the performances interval MC. It was some messages that only can be sent via the entire concert. That’s why we can finish the content structure, complete the layouts, set the costumes…, it’s not like we do this just for having a fun crowd around.

This year’s concert tour also have its own formed ideas and themes, but pardon me for unable to say it to everybody right in here (laughs). I always wanted to convey my concept to everyone. That was also the purpose for the role I’m playing during the concert tour.

So I think that I don’t really have to say something like “This is _____”, but I do hope that everyone to be able to experience it themselves. Whether it’s something straightforward such as nice visual effects, Ayu being cute, or feeling happy to be able to attend the concert… anything will do, it’s entirely up to the audience for their perception of the concert stage and the chosen track list.

But then, we do have a meaning or theme behind all these track listing, content structuring and every other part of the concerts. I can clearly say that, if the audience wishes to uncover the hidden meaning behind the scenes, it’s not impossible.”

The ideas covered inside her songs was so thick, that the word “1st in every generation” to describe Ayu sounds too easy. But note that her past songs are not simple pop hits, they do possess meanings, themes and messages, the songs feel like as if they suddenly stab through your chest. Right now, it seems inappropriate that if we use the word “past” on Ayu’s songs.

“Somehow my voice and the perform style changed, but inside my heart, there’s no such thing as “finished song”. The reason that I don’t regard this song (I believe it’s Blue Bird) lyrics too old or unfit for current trend is perhaps due to my unchanged thinking and ideas. No matter it’s now or then, and the remixed songs, my will didn’t feel even once shaken.”

[From now on I will still work hard without regret, just like what I have been doing all these years]

“No matter how you consider and plan about your future, you can fulfill them all in practice, right? This is the thing that I felt the most after all these years. Really, always some unpredictable things will happen around (laughs).

It’s no use if I’m tensed up, so right now I might even enjoy it. I used to be feeling confused in the past, but I guess now I am afraid of confusing because it might causing me to hesitate around. After all, it’s not that good though without regrets. Even now if I look behind my past, I won’t feel regret.”

Does that mean “things that you can feel when it’s painful right away?” or “always feeling regret when you are looking back?” To this question, Ayu first said, “it’s so hard to answer…” and she fell into a long, deep silence before finally saying fluently, “but you can only do things that you won’t feel regret about it.”

[Whenever there’s an important decision, I always felt that I have decided the choice before I choose the option.]

“Everybody knows that as long as you are living on this world, it is inevitable you will feel regret, right? “Huh? If I known earlier that it’s ____, then I might as well as do ____.”

“So when I realized that such “known earlier” feeling has been going thinner and thinner inside my mind, perhaps it’s because I feel tired of something, or I understand that something that I must give up or couldn’t avoid, or something that I must let go. Moreover, there’s no regret over unimportant things. Humans will only feel truly regret for the truly important things in their lives, otherwise they will just laugh at it after a period of time.

If there’s something that they feel regret about regardless how long they have been occurred, it must be an important decision. But just upon making any major decision, I tend to felt that I have decided the choice before I do the physical choosing, but lack of that courage needed for making the choice… Doesn’t that courage also include the ability to protect the decision until the very end, whether or not it has the results?

I’m terrified of making choices. I can’t think of the possible results if I make a random choice, I also won’t know if I can continue to uphold my choice, and worrying that I might make the wrong move.

Isn’t there only one choice that you can truly want to make? So all that’s left could only be “known earlier”. The reason that you known earlier but not choose, it totally different with the laziness or unwillingness to make a choice. If you understand this, you will give your best shots no matter what you select, but you will tend to fail always (laughs).

With this idea, you won’t hesitate on what you should do, and you can’t do anything about it should you fail in the end. So to sum up, it’s always the best to think what you should do right now…”

Ever since her debut, she has always having a fierce battle with her heart, and had walked this far because of having confidence with herself. If the title named as “songstress” represented the ones that climbed to the pinnacle of the success and the proof of being dreamed-to-be and respected, then it is truly fits our one and only “Ayumi Hamasaki.”


Translated by isaac hiew
Translated from Cawaii! Magazine, International Chinese version
2006 September Issue
Translation completed on 23rd August 2006

This article and picture scanned here forth are owned by Cawaii! Magazine. The translator disclaims all sorts of legal claims as this article’s translation copyright is owned by the author. All rights reserved.

Unauthorized usage is strictly prohibited, if you see this article on anywhere else except Ayumi Hamasaki Sekai, it could be a stolen copy.

If you really want to use this article and picture on your personal website, kindly PM, MSN or email me. I will reply to you as soon as possible. Please remember to give your website address and give me credit on your website. Thank you.

Special thanks to Kinokuniya KLCC for charging such a high price on the magazine :P

Thanks to the internet cafes for scanning the pics.

And biggest thanks to you who read this article XD

This article is now eligible at:

www.ayu.no requested by Maxker
http://www.ayudynasty.com/translations.php requested by Choyan

Yay! Thank you much <3

I've been waiting for this.

woww arigatoooo finally another translation :)
thx :)

Well, I appreciate the fact that you guys enjoy my translations.... but instead of only thankies, I would love it if you guys can give some comments or honest crtiticisms about my article, or at least say about how you feel about ayumi via this translation.

It would be sadly pointless if you guys don't know what ayumi's thinking are. As a fan, we aught to know what our idols' thinkings are. I personally think that is the highest form of loving your idol.

That's why I translate her interviews for you guys, because it would be kind of unfair if you guys couldn't know what she thinks about or her past experiences just because you don't know Japanese or Chinese. I'm quite lucky that I can get a translated copy of Cawaii! (Originally it's a Japanese mag) because I don't know Japanese too.

I'm just doing my part in enriching the ayumi fan community. This is not a tool for promoting the AHS. But it's exclusive for AHS members. So enjoy, and please tell me what you think of the article.

Once again thank you very much for viewing this article. I'll post more translations in the future.

I don't quite understand alot of it for some reason.. It's just kind of the way it's worded.. but I guess that's just the way it is when certain things are translated from one language to another ... but still, thanks alot for doing this!

I believe that the articles that we get via magazine could give us much more insight on Ayu than what we currently have now. She says so much that we don't hear on her webpage, in concerts, or at live performances.

I read the whole thing and a few things stuck out:
-The tracks on the setlist..wasn't 13.. I think. :p
-Some things don't seem to go together like.. "The ideas covered inside her songs was so thick, that the word “1st in every generation” to describe Ayu sounds too easy." Just a bit confusing or unclear.. at least to me.

I think that this overall was a pretty good translation :] I can't wait for the next <3

Thanks for translating this! It took quite a while to read but was worth it for sure.

Ayu always sounds so smart when she talks, she even lost me a little towards the end of the article because it got a little complex for me. I had to re-read it. Every interview I read with her makes me respect her a little more and this definitely helped.

Only problem is that there were a couple parts that sounded a bit odd, so I had to re-read them quite a few times before understanding. =/ But that's pretty much expected now when I read translations.

Awww, why did'nt they have this issue when I was there? D=

You so lucky!! D=

I'm so sorry that the whole translation sounded like Nostradamus's predictions :P

OK, about the tracks, I'm sorry that I honestly just following the article.

About the second question, it actually meant that it's sounded too simple if you would describe and label ayumi as "always the no.1". Her songs aren't being popular just because it's melody and tune and rock elements.

Besides her voice, besides her lyrics, what do you see? You see the hidden meaning, theme and messages that she wanted to send through her songs.

And that's particulary the same when she organizes her concerts, she wanted to send something that "only she could send" and "she should send".

So I guess she don't like people label her as "always the no.1 all these years".

Well, it is sort of fact that she is number one a lot of the time :p

I'd imagine that many people dislike Ayu for that fact.. :/

Ok, here's some trivia about the translations:

The "_____" actually means nothing. Yes, please do not get the wrong idea that I can't translate the word and I left it there. Hell no. X_x

It just mean "putting your choice of words." It's same as "bla bla bla" or even as closely as the "A song for XX" where XX means anyone's names. Get it? ^_^

The mag that I was working on was actually the second mag I bought. Yes, I lost the first one.... together with the pants I wore during the KL gathering with jasonrey and the lot.... don't ask me why... it's too embaressing.

The mag originally costs me RM15.98 which equivalent to my 3 day's food money. Ouch! That doesn't include the scanning costs.... woo hoo ayu I love you! not to mention this is my second mag..... my heart's bleeding.

thoughout the magazine, some models of Cawaii! expressed that their fave idol is indeed, Ayu. They even admitted that Ayuis their guiding line of fashion choice.

The translations took me a week.... this is the longest one since i have to prepare for my Sept exams.

Is there any way for us to donate to like a 'AHS translation fund?' :p

To pay for nourishment and magazines? :D :D

Thanks for this. Let's us know more about Ayu. ^_^ But like others have said, there's some strange wording due to translating from one language to another.

Thank you for that.

Thanks isaac :D

This is my favorite line:

Awww thats awesome :)

OMG I pasted that too OMG OMG XD

moomba-sister, we think alike. XD

OMG!

Thanks.... but being nervous as an expressment of respect....? hmmmm ayu's an interesting gal nonetheless....

When searching through the memories, I discovered that she once said…

“Previously, I totally have no idea that I have the ability to release 40 singles, or imagine what I look like right now. I has never given a thought that I can walked this far, simply because I’m not an ambitious type of person.

I find this odd, since you'd expect Ayu to be an ambitious sort of person? :o

Thank you.

Reading english translations about recent article issues like these really make you feel close to Ayu. It's something she recently wanted her fans to know, and very rarely us non-japanese people get the chance to read it. For that I am really really thankful for the translation!

You know what actually surprised me? Ayu is afraid of making decisions. That would mean she would be terrified to end her career! Also I would have thought that Ayu did all those concerts for the sake of promotion. I mean, it can't be about money, she has plenty. But Ayu really seems to 'want' to get a message across. And thus we must not only enjoy the show because it's a fantastic event; we must listen to what she has to say.

If I were to do a concert like that, I would want to party afterwards. But it seems like Ayu is always working at the end of each concert. Trying to perfectionize her performance. I think that because Ayu has that remarkeble attitude inside of her, she became the great queen that she is today.

Amibitious? I never thought Ayu to be that. For instance, she never thought that she would release an album like A BEST at the time. She never said she wanted to become this big at her debut. Madonna once said that "she wanted to become more famous than God" when she first started. Ayu doesn't seem to think about those things. She lives now; in the present. She focuses on what she's doing now, and then she'll see what she'll do next.

Thank you for this article. Although there are some minor english mistakes or typo's; it seems quite perfect =) Making is SO COOL to read :D

Thanks a bunch!!

Thank u for da translation!
gud job there! thx isaac!

edited* nice sign. set Rody! hehe

wow thanks for the translation! LOL i just received my issue of that magazine today and i just stare at it like O_O because i didnt understand a word of japanese! so thanks so much :D

Thanks so much for the translation~
Although there's sth that I really can't get what tehy mean~
Ayu's really a positive and hardworking person..
She is really my role model as she always works so hard~
Also, she is not just a singer,but a person who gives out msgs~
Thats really special of her~

woot! I just scanned the pics and yeah, you won't see the chinese words, so only 2 pics and the cover page....

will put it up after i resized it.

thx so much for this...hope u post more...it really gives us an insight about Ayu....and yea, she sounds really smart when she talks...

thank you for the news

Question:

isaac, is this going into the databank? :3

thanks for the translation

no, but it will be in the library :D

Thankies sooo much for the translation! I bit of it was confusing to understand but every interview helps me get to know Ayu better.

I think that it's like she gets nervous when she around people she respect... if that makes any sense.

Thanks for the translation! It's very interesting to learn more about Ayu.

Interesting perspectives she has, thanks for sharing

Do U mean the Cawaii! september issue had sold at KLCC??? JP ver or HK/Taiwan ver???

I agree totally!

I think the key to understanging Ayu is to understand her spirit and character by reading her interviews and lyrics, by listening to her speeches and observing the way she speaks, and her body language as well.

Of course, knowledge of the Japanese language would help a lot, but it's not absolutely necessary, I think. I say this because many of her fans are non-Japanese speakers, so it is possible to be a big fan of hers without knowing much Japanese, as long as she moves our hearts to love her.

I think what we really need is more fans, who are fluent in both Japanese and English, to sacrifice a little time and effort to translate into English, directly from the Japanese, more articles about Ayu, and then post them at AHSforum. Translations of her talk shows, i.e. Hey!x3, Music Station, AyuReady, etc., would be helpful too.

after read the whole article
my love to ayu was grown...

Thank you so much for translating :D Now i finally understand what she is saying..instead of harassing my friend trying to explain what it says on the magazine!! TＨＩＳ　is one of my first japanese magazines that i bought in japan so i feel special reading this translation:love :love

Thank you so much<3

It's really interesting, I'd like to read to original article. It was neat to hear the way she spoke about TRF, KEIKO, and Amuro Namie. It's humbling.

For evolusean [since isaac hiew's article would be in Chinese if he scanned it..]~
http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/9...0803vg8.th.jpg http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/559...0804ol9.th.jpg http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/8...0805dz7.th.jpg

Click to enlarge <3 From ayudreampics. <3

tq for da Japanese scan truehappiness ! keke....
i wanna go get one too! thx alot!

thx!

here are the scan links
 

The cover page

http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/5...overrb8.th.jpg

The first pic

http://img216.imageshack.us/img216/6...pt01nl4.th.jpg


The second pic

http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/7...pt02mc3.th.jpg

Sorry for not uploading the words page because it's simply full of.... words.

Yers I bought the mag from KLCC Kinokuniya. Imported from Taiwan, International Chinese version.

wow, truly awesome of you to post this.

thanks so much !!

Thanks for the scans and translation isaac, just wonderful. :D

Thanks for the translation.

As people said before me, some parts are a bit hard to understand, but overall it's fine.

Thanks for the effort, we really appretiate it.

Was it not 19 songs? (sorry if this was already mentioned, I only skimmed some of the earlier posts)

The teeny pop girl Ayu has really grown up, becoming the pop queen Ayu, it went so fast, but obviously the years have given her experiance. That experiance has only made her more confident in herself and in how she want to entertain her fans. I get the feeling we still have many years of Ayu to look forward to :).

Haha, lil shy Ayu :)... I like how human she is, despite how goddessly-perfect she sometimes is put forth.

I love this part, I love love love it... haha, and I love Ayu :). What she says is so true, but it is also very true that neither Namie or KEIKO could ever achieve the success that Ayu has had. Their histories and their kinds of success are so different, at least that is my way of seeing it :).

Tsk, couldn't they have mentioned more than 150 original songs? :D.

Healthy view :yes, I love her way of thinking.

Not ambitious? Don't even try telling me you're not ambitious, not after the proof you've given us of how a hard worker you are throughout the years. Especially for your live performances... Ayu, don't ever try to tell me you're not ambitious ;).

Not good, you would do better in some of your lives if you practiced or warmed up your voice more :yes. The difference between the two Yoyogi performances I was to was quite noticeable, vocally I mean, I don't know if that had to do with how much she was warming up before the performances or if she just had a bad day.

That last bolded part reminded me a bit of myself actually, haha... I think so at least, in a way. I really like the way she thinks and express herself.

At the bolded part, do you think she means when she forgets her lyrics?

She sound quite mature, talking about herself in that way, not being too bold but yet she is very confident in herself, when she mentions that she has a good memory.

Ah, how funny she mentions it, because a friend and me once had a discussion about what we think she does immediately after the concert, hehe, actually that discussion was held while we were waiting outside the Yoyogi Stadium in order to see Ayus car pass by, which we never did anyway, haha, we might have done, but we were never sure.

Haha... and you try to tell me you're not ambitious? tss... don't try to fool me Ayu ;).

Her live performances are just... out of the box, yes.

Without a second thought? Amazing woman. Not ambitious at all ;).

And concerts just HAPPEN to be what provides the largest profit ;).

I've always had the feeling that there's more to her performances than just randomness, the songs are picked for a reason, they are put in the order they are for a reason, the costumes are made for a reason and so is the choreography and so on.

I like that, giving the fans freedom to interpret however they want is just a nice thing.

Like I said... :)!

Something more that adds to my hope that there's still many more years of Ayu to come.

I wonder what the next unpredictable thing will be.

Maybe it's just me, but to me it seems hard to choose an option without knowing the choices at first ;).

Yet you, Ayu, seem to make the craziest of choices all the time, daringly swinging from one style to another, trying out this and then trying out that, loosing fans and gaining fans... Ayu, even if you are afraid of making choices you sure know how to make the crazy ones, and that's part of why I love you.

It's good that Ayu live 'here and now' instead of worrying about the future all too much, I think that might be why she seem to enjoy herself so much at any given moment. Well, we don't see all too much about her, but whenever we see her she sure seem to have fun ;).

It was a great honour to be allowed and able to do so, thank you from the bottom of my heart Isaac!


I agree, but then it should also be taken into consideration that this article was translated from Japanese to Chinese to English!

wow.... what a detailed research into my article..... coolest reply I've ever seen!

again..... I was following the article.... even if it's wrong, as a translator I still have to follow it. So, 13.

hmmm, I think our friend here is an expert of ayumism..... a study of ayumi hamasaki.

Thank you Mr. Hiew, I value this compliment very highly.

And you did a great job for sure! I just wanted to mention it.

So funny that you say it, because HiruNoKaze once told me something like it... let me find the quote...

...ah, here it is, in the midst of a conversation, on a subject I won't go deeper into right now, this came up:

Hiru no Kaze says:
we are scholars in the school of ayu
Hiru no Kaze says:
and we do research at ahs university
Hiru no Kaze says:
at least you used to lol

That last comment was because of my recent inactivity, hehe.

Woot~ cool ^^ thanks :)

I actually believe Ayu when she says she isn't ambitious. :) I've never thought of her as an ambitious person actually. How she got into the industry is a prime example - she was spotted singing karoake, she wasn't actively looking for a record deal and even turned down Max's offer at first. It took somebody else to finally get her ass in gear and stop loitering around Shibuya all day and Roppongi all night. :) She has said in the past that left on her own, she couldn't have done anything by herself - she's said this in interviews and the entire song To Be is about it.
Once she did agree, it just started a snowball effect that kept building and building and she was brought along for the ride - that's always how it has appeared to me. Along the way as she got more popular, she gained more and more control over the direction of her career and she is a perfectionist, but that is not the same as being ambitious. As she herself stated in the article, she lives in the now - thinking about things far down the road and making plans far in advance do not seem like things that she does. This would explain why her releases seemingly come out of nowhere and often times seem to be done at the last minute - because they actually are done at the last minute. I think Ayu possibly procrastinates a lot, but then when it comes time to do the work, she zeros in and works hard and gets it done in a short period of time, thus the whole "You must put everything in effect as soon as you have the idea of that particular thing… as if like it’s been sucked up by the tornado. I’m like this." line in the article.

Anyways, just my little analysis of why Ayumi is indeed not a very ambitious person. :)

Actually, I think the "1st in every generation" line is probably meant to say "One in every generation." Meaning that an artist like Ayu comes along only once every generation - she's a rarity. But the writer is saying that even that phrase is not enough to describe how good of an artist Ayu is.

Hmmm, in the original article, which is written in Chinese, it litterally meant "over these generations, the first place".

Which means that nobody has achieved as much as her over these years. She broke Seiko Matsuda's record, 20 million total accumulated sales record worldwide, and 7 consecutive years on Kouhaku......

A generation is equivalent to 30 years. the above phrase meant that she is the first artist that are on so many no.1s -- a first time in 30 years of Japan Music industry...... I know this sounded wierd. But that's ayu.

So even I was the one who translated the article, I firmly believe that Ayu is not the "the one who get no.1 " in every 30 years, but she is the one who made a remarkable history in Japanese Music Industry.

I can only say that she is the "no.1 among the no.1s".....

Interesting analysis Sunshine, and to be honest I agree very much. We're all free to change our point of view I hope? :)

I think, though, that the excessive amount of work she puts down on a tour, in order to make it perfect, is ambitious in a sense.

There's no one who says she need to have the most awesomest live performances, yet she makes sure she does, haha. But that could just be a lot of quick and hard work so that she can procastrinate more ;).

oh, THANK YOU A LOT!!!!

now all I need is to find the photoshoot here...
searchin` in progress :laugh