Why call Ayu the Japanese Madonna?
 

People here always freak out when magazines call Ayu the Britney of Japan, calling Britney trashy and skanky. Okay, fair enough, I agree she isn't the Japanese version of her. But then you say she should be called Japanese Madonna instead, isnt it a little hippocritical? Cause Madonna sure as heck isn't exactly a goodie two shoes herself, and she was quite radical when she started her career, pushing alot of boundaries, being blasphemic... I really cannot see any similiarities with Madonna and Ayumi besides the whole cowboy-hat thing she had going a few years back... Not even in terms of sales. Madonna is world known, and been in this business for more than 20 years. I think Ayu is Ayu, and should not be compared to any american artists, cause she is just being herself... :)

they probably call her the Japanese Madonna because Ayu is a pop icon. (I don't know why people make a fuss over calling her a japanese brittany. But the likiness between is very hard to see) Like how, Madonna had her face all over MTV, on every Music Show, every magazine, every CD store and every person (when they all took on madonna's style)
or they could say it because Madonna was a unique artist that did things that no other artist had ever done before. Ayu is the same in that way, I guess.

well..ayu adores madonna, what about it?
if she's called as the japanese's madonna, she must be pretty happy with that..
you know..people are not perfect..people have bad and good things on them..so try to accept that.. that's all i think..

i think people said ayu's the japanese's madonna in the term of her of being famous in the world..
(i would like to say ayu's the japanese's madonna as well)
we're not comparing here..but just taking the word "FAMOUS" to be compared.. not comparing the totally two different persons..

Because both are famous and have many years on the road. And... well, I don't like that comparison!

ayu is far from madonna.

come back in 15 years and if ayu is still going strong, then we'll talk.

^Exactly... I'm not angry, nor am I pointing this to anyone special, I've just read it many times, people say she should be compared to Madonna instead, cause Britney is so slu**y:)
And she really isn't as famous as Madonna either. Ayu hasn't tried to be famous outside Japan/Asia. If she did, and succeeds, then her (poularity wise)might be comparible.

Everyone calls Madonna the queen of re-invention. Similarly, Ayu is a chamaleon who constantly changes her look and style of music. I think because they are both so versatile, they are often compared. Also, much like Madonna, Ayu seems to have close control over her career and is a self-made superstar. Even though Ayu started out as a very manufactured pop star, she soon made it obvious that she had a lot of musical integrity and staying power.

I don't think calling Ayu the Japanese Madonna is too big of a stretch. Even though Madonna has been around since like forever ago, Ayu has been a lot more productive in the relatively short time she's been around. Madonna has released 10 studio albums since her debut in 1982, while Ayu has released 8 since 1998. Also, the number of music videos they released is pretty close (Madonna- 68, Ayu-56, 61 including short PV's used in commercials). Whether Ayu will still be going in 15 years remains to be seen, but Ayu's library of music is just as impressive as Madonna's.

well, i guess, it's not really a big deal to say ayu as the japanese's madonna..
and there's not effect on that...
it just like taking "madonna" as the example for the famous person..
both of them may be have same kind of tastes in changing hairstyles, changing music style or whatso ever..
i some kind of believe that ayu's music must be inspired from madonna..

see at madonna's changing kind of music since she first became a singer..

ayu still has her own talent like her lyrics-writing talent..

that might be true since she had openly admitted that she really admired madonna during an interview. i guess that is also when the comparisons between them began... but to be honest i never really bothered with such comparisons because i think they are rubbish and ayu is jus being ayu...:yes

They both always change themselves..

Yup they're both master's or reinvention. Madonna changes her look/style often, which is the same as Ayu... i think that's where the biggest comparison is drawn from... anything else i just don't get. I'm not a madonna fan though and i'll cut myself off here incase i starts flaming her ^^

I agree with No_Doubt's post. I don't think the comparison regards their behavior, but the nature of their success. It's not quite the same to compare Ayu with Britney, when Britney probably does/did not have as much control over her career whereas we know Ayu to be a relatively powerful, self-made star (of course, she has a great production team to help). She writes all her own lyrics, has composed a fair share of her own tunes and has considerable control over her wardrobe. Madonna is more similar in those aspects.

i don't think that calling ayu the japanese madonna is too much of a stretch because although yes, she does have quite a few years left to go before she can have been in the business as long as madonna has, it's simple to make such a comparison on an iconic level. regardless of her sales right now, she is still an icon of japanese pop. not many artists last it as long as she has, and especially at her age. some say she's the next matsutoya yumi...and that very well could be possible. is ayu the madonna of japan because of her style? to an extent. the fact that ayu's style changes with every release of an album resembles the same sales tactic that madonna uses. they both "re-invent" themselves whenever they put out an album. the difference in image between "American Life" and "Confessions on a Dance Floor" is HUGE. the difference in image between "MY STORY" and "(miss)understood" is HUGE.
Oh yeah. and they sell. a LOT.

hm. they are quite alike, after all.

Well if its just the population-part, as you say... Then Britney would fit just as well, Madonna has established a much more versatile popularity career, Britney and Ayu has been around for about the same time... Like i tried to say in the first post, it's not really any meaning in giving her those nicknames, cause Ayu is herself.. I remember when Shakira first got popular outside Latin America, she was also referred to as the Britney of L.America, but they are very different persons in the end... So, to sum it up, popularity-wise, Ayu is as well known as Britney, Beyonce, Madonna etc, but the similiarity pretty much ends there.

I think the Madonna-Ayu comparison works. They're both famous for their changing styles. Both had determination: their voices weren't the best but they overcame that with hard work and charisma. They've always been able to have some control over their careers: Madonna is a good businesswoman and Ayu write her own lyrics right from the start. Ayu's career isn't as iconic as Madonna's but being around since '98 and still getting #1s is a respectable accomplishment.

I'd guess that Britney is most famous for her sexiness and dancing, two things that were never a huge part of Ayu's image. She's also come across as depending on other people to tell her what to do (managers, producers, her mother), unlike Ayu who doesn't seem to be lost when she's being interviewed. Britney has also had two very public relationships while Ayu keeps silent about her love life. She also hasn't released a studio album since '03 but Ayu keeps on working and touring. Those are some of the main reasons why I don't like the Britney-Ayu comparison: they don't have much in common except level of fame and calling Ayu a Britney-type would imply that her music/image are similar.

So when I call Ayu the Madonna of Japan I think the listener gets a decent enough idea of what her image/songs might be like, but if I called her the Britney of Japan I think there would be too much emphasis on sexiness and tabloid attention.

I agree on that, but Ayu still ha a long way to go before she reaches Madonnas popularity and career

:yes


Britney was marketed in a different way, reminding me more of how Kumi is being marketed now.

To me the name Britney Spears screams fake straight at me, I enjoyed some of her songs, but only her very early work. I got her first CD as a christmas present a long time ago LOL.

The name Madonna screams originality, staying at the top, the absolute queen etc. She has also had ups and downs, but there's never been any doubt about who is the biggest, it's not like anyone ever will be able to take her place. Madonna also hate being ruled over or told what to do or not do, so does Ayu - quitting school, skipping vocal lessons.

Well, I don't know nearly as much about Madonna or Britney as I do about Ayu, but to me she got more in common with Madonna.

True, she can never ever be anything like Madonna, she needs a world wide breakthrough and another 15 years on her neck first :).

I think this is a good comparison. I'm always a little iffy when it comes to giving Ayu nicknames-of-japan, because, honestly, i don't know if there's anyone like her.

You can give her names in terms of sales and some popularity but thats it. And regarding britney's tabloid crap...hasn't Ayu had the same in Japan? more so in China? I just think that a lot of us who are international fans don't see her tabloids all the time because no "respectable" (need a better word) person on this forum would post them...

this is the best reason why Ayu is compared to Madonna.

I understadn what you're saying though, that she has a long way to go...unfortunately, until Japanese becomes a universal language, or until Ayu starts making EXCELLENT songs in English (not engrish), i don't think Ayu will ever reach Madonna status.

Japan is much faster paced in terms of shifting popularity and releases, so the two markets aren't really comparable. Ayumi has already released what, 8 original albums? That's more than half the amount of original albums madonna has released in her entire career. She has released more remix albums already. IMO It would be wrong to say that Ayumi needs 15 more years, because the japanese market is so much faster overall. ALso it's xtraordinary to have the staying power of ayumi in japan, just like madonnas staying power is extraordinary in the west. Her record breaking proves this, no solo artist ever had that many number ones in a row. I see what you mean in your first post, ayu was never "dirty" in order to get success, but she was scandalous. So all in all I don't think the comparison is that bad. It's the closest we get I think.

She has, but far from as much of it as there is in the US or Europe, and they're most often about different things than the extreme leves our tabloids go to. It's much more common in China than Japan I think, but still nothing compared to here. Now and then there's tabloid stuff posted here, or at other places, the weaknesses in their accusations - if those are present - are often very obvious or they try to lift up things such as that Ayu was party smoking, trying to make it sound like something horrid and that the world will go under. Some people catch on those and start hating Ayu, or read a few posts below and see how silly it is to belive them. :P

I'd never want that day to come, that would be horrible :D. Well, if she really would change to English because that's what she'd like to give us, I'd be okay I guess. To me it's what she want to give me that matters, not what I want. What she has given me this far is what makes me love her, I trust her to keep it up, hehe.

I don't either, but on the other hand I don't think Madonna will ever reach Ayu status :D.

That's quite true when you think about it :yes, but those quick stars also exist on the US/Europe market, who are famous for a short time then is switched. But I can see the other ways the market is faster, with releases and such.

Good point, good wording, excellent way of saying it :D. Haha, I will remember this quote.

Purely out of curiosity, when and what are you thinking of? I know Madonna was, due to several events, if that's the way you (you as in everyone, not You) want to view them, which I admire her a LOT for. But Ayu?