Instances of Ayu's lyrics in older songs

[truehappiness]

I found Japanese websites that collect lyrically similar portions of older songs to Ayu songs (2007 is the latest they go up to). Perhaps implying that she copied them, but I'd say that for the most part these are coincidences, haha. Sometimes there are entire phrases that are taken, but other times there are a few words that are similar.

http://www.geocities.jp/ark312604806/TEKIO/oaasldk.htm
http://2nd.geocities.jp/hamanna1998/

[waterballoon]

Interesting find! I'm gonna read up on these... thanks

[ownsarai]

Like people don't use the same words/phrases in songs, right? Everyone uses the same words/phrases in songs, it's hard not to. I think that a lot of people just like to pick apart Ayu's songs because they don't like her or whatever. Thanks for the links, though.
[edit]lol I love how she "ripped off" hide's Pink Spider and Namie's Respect the Power of Love in the same song.

[zyoeru]

Everyone uses the same clichés in songs. XD

[~StarCatcher~]

There are some things that are expressed with similar or the same phrases so I don't think ayu copied anything.
maybe she got little inspirations but not more I think^.^

[zyoeru]

I honestly don't think that the Yumi Matsutoya ones are surprising considering she loves Yuming.

[Tom Punks]

LOLOLOL I never knew Ayu had a song called Garols.

[Picaflor 7/4]

oh yeah I can totally read that site. anything in english maybe?

[StarSUCKER]

OK, how often do Japanese songs have similar or the same phrases? v_v

[Crystal_Ageha]

It's one thing to say somebody copied the melody, because as many songs as there are, you can still find a way to manipulate it to become your own. Lyrics, however... Especially when we're talking about singers from the same country, or even area of the world, there will definitely be uncountable similarities. There are only so many things you can sing about at this point! Unless you go off on a rant about cutting of a beaver's arm and feeding it to your pet monkey for the sake of pride, or something...it's already been used! >_>

[Embleu]

Huh, some of them do look pretty similar. I thought some of them were Ayu's original thoughts, but ... (Of course, it's not certain that she did or didn't copy; are some of those phrases just part of the mass Japanese vocabulary for songs as English has? I'm no good with colloquial Japanese.)

[ストロボ・EdGE]

I think most of those aren't so substantial other than Dearest's, but it's not such an original phrase.

[JackieRos]

i think ayu got their permission cos you can see comparisons with trf and globe
arent ayu and them close?
or admires them perhaps?

[Rainbow141]

Ooh, interesting! I have to check these out.... ...hmm....

I gotta find a good translator engine for that first site. I'd like to see what Ayu's and the "ripped-off song" lyrics actually mean. Or, meh, the romaji would be good enough.

[Delirium-Zer0]

This is gonna sound like I'm being sarcastic but I swear on my life I'm not....
Thank you, I was looking for these!

I'd seen one that compared lyrics from Ayu & B'z before.

Some of these are stretches, or they're cliche's anyway. But this is pretty hard evidence that ayu has some seemingly great passages & lines that really aren't hers. Doesn't mean she deliberately ripped someone off - sometimes you have an idea in your head & you can't quite place where it came from. But Ayu's certainly been inspired by alot of these. Anything by Yuming or B'z on here, I know for a fact she's a big fan of both so you can bet she knew their lyrics before writing hers.

I do find this interesting, just for the record. I don't think that much less of ayu for it - some great jpop songs have melodies ripped straight from other things, and this is no different really - but I do acknowledge that this happened, and, again, find it fascinating

I translated a bunch of the more interesting ones. I had no IDEA Ayu had so many lyrics from songs by Cocco, although I did know the prevalence of B'z and Yumi Matsutoya lyrics & themes in her songs.


FRIEND
1998.4.8
"hanaretetemo mune no oku de tomodachi da yo."
"Even while we're separated, in my heart, you're my friend."

Hello, my friend (Yumi Matsutoya)
1994.7.27
"hanaretemo mune no oku no tomodachi de isasete"
"Even if we're apart, in my heart, let us be as friends"

*The entire songs' general stories are similar.


For My Dear...
(1998.10.7)
"ichiban ni iitai kotoba dake ienakute
kono uta wo utatteiru no ka mo shirenai"
"It's only the words I want to say most that I can't say
Maybe that's why I continue singing this song"

Murasaki Tsuyukusa (poem by Hoshino Tomihiro)
(?)
"ichiban iitai koto ga ienai...
uta wo utau no ka mo shirenai"
"I can't say what I most want to...
Maybe I'll sing a song"



For My Dear...
(1998.10.7)
"sabishisa ga jibun wo tsukurou
hitorikiri naritakunai kara"
"Mending myself with feelings of loneliness
Because I don't want to be alone anymore"

You just gonna sing a song (Kahala Tomomi)
(1997.12.24)
"sabishii koto ga jibun wo tsukurou
hitorikiri naritakunai kara"
"Mending myself by doing solitary things
Because I don't want to be alone anymore"



Depend on you
(1998.12.9)
"tsukareta nara
hane yasumete ii kara watashi wa koko ni iru yo"
"If you ever get tired
It's okay to rest your wings, because I'm here."

Queen of Madrid (B'z)
(1994.3.2)
"tabi no tsukarenara...
hane wo nobashite okure yo itsudatte I'm here."
"If you get tired on your journey...
Feel free to spread your wings, because I'm always here."



from your letter
(1999.1.1)
"ikutsu mono koi wo noritsugi
toki ni hito wo KIZUtsuketa yo dakedo deatta"
"I've connected myself in a great many loves
Sometimes hurting people, but then I met you"

Urei no GYPSY (B'z)
(1991.11.27)
"ikutsu mono koi wo noritsuide
hito wo kitsukete kimi ni atta"
"Connecting myself in a great many loves,
I hurt people before meeting you"


LOVE ~Destiny~
(1999.4.14)
"nee doushite konna ni mo kurushii no ni
anata ja nakya dame de"
"Hey, why are things so painful
and useless when you're not there?"

Sabishii Nettaigyo (WINK)
(1989.7.5)
"nee konna ni kurushii no ni
naze naze anata ja nakya DAME na no"
"Hey, things are so painful
Why, why are things so useless when you're not there?"


appears
(1999.11.10)
"hajimete no denwa wa juuwaki wo motsu
te ga furueteita"
"The first phone call,
the hand holding the phone trembled"

Diamonds (Princess Princess)
(1984.04.23)
"hajimete denwasuru toki ni wa
itsumo furueru"
"The first time on the phone,
I kept trembling"


kanariya
(1999.11.10)
"koe wo oshi koroshita KANARIYA tachi wa"
"The canaries, whose voices have been squeezed & killed..."

Kumoji no Hate (Cocco)
(1998.10.07)
"kotori ga koe wo koroshite ireba"
"If the small bird's voice is killed..."


Who...
(1999.11.10)
"tsuki ga tooku de naiteta"
"The moon was far away, and it was crying"

Anata e no Tsuki (Cocco)
(1998.10.07)
"tsuki ga tooku de naiteiru"
"The moon is far away, and it's crying"


ever free
(2000.03.21)
"sore wa totemo hareta hi...
kuroi retsu narabezu ni"
"It was a very sunny day...
Everyone lined up in a black row"

Raining (Cocco)
(1998.03.21)
"sore wa totemo hareta hi de...
shiroi fuku de tooku kara kyou retsu ni narabezu ni"
"It was on that very sunny day...
In white clothes, we lined up from faraway places"



ever free
(2000.4.26)
"ikisaki wa dore kurai tooku tooi tokoro na no
mou nido to wa modorenai hodo"
"How far away is your destination? Is it such a
faraway place that you can never return again?"

VOYAGER (Yumi Matsutoya)
(1984.2.1)
"ikusaki wa dore kurai tooi no
mou nido to modorenai no"
"How far away is the place you're headed?
So far that you can never return again?"


Far away
(2000.05.17)
"shiawase wa kuchi ni sureba hora
yubi no sukima kobore ochiteyuku"
"If you speak of happiness,
It slips through the cracks between your fingers"

Believe in Future (Tomomi Kahala)
(2000.02.23)
"shiawase wa itsudatte
yubi no sukima wo koboreteku"
"Happiness is always
slipping through the cracks between your fingers"



SURREAL
(2000.9.27)
"hitoribocchi de kanjiru kodoku yori
futari de itemo kanjiru kodoku no hou ga
tsurai koto no you ni"
"The lonliness you feel when you're by yourself
Isn't as painful a thing
as loneliness you feel when you're with someone else"

MY FRIEND (ZARD)
(1996.1.8)
"hitori de iru toki no sabishisa yori
futari de iru toki no kodoku no hou ga
kanashii"
"Loneliness when you're alone
isn't as sad as
solitude when you're with someone else"


girlish
(2000.09.27)
sore ga tadashii no ka machigatteru no ka
nante taishita mondai ja nakute
"Is this proper or is it wrong,
That's not the big important question"

Aikawarazu na Bokura (B'z)
(1991.11.27)
"itsudemo tadashii hito nante iru no ka na
maa sonna koto taishita mondai ja nai ne"
"Always wondering if you're a proper person
Well, that sort of thing is not the big important question"

*The songs' both have an overall acoustic guitar, singing with friends approach as well. There's also a sneeze in both songs.



M
(2000.12.13)
"wakenaku hajimari wa otozure
owari wa itsudatte wake wo motsu"
"Beginnings come about meaninglessly,
but endings always have meaning."

Lines said by Kaji in EVANGELION
(?)
"koi no hajimari ni wa wake wa nai ga,
owari ni wa wake ga arutte koto da na."
"The beginning of a romance doesn't have meaning but
when it ends, there's always meaning."


UNITE!
(2001.07.11)
"hito wa ne hakanaku
dakedo ne tsuyoi mono"
"People are short-lived
but very strong things."

Tsuyoku Hakanai Monotachi (Cocco)
(1997.11.21)
"hito wa tsuyoi mono yo
soshite hakanai mono"
"People are strong things
And short-lived things"


A Song is born
(2001.12.12)
"sorezore no hana mune ni idaite
itsuka ookiku sakeru you ni to"
"Holding every flower to our hearts
In order to let them bloom fully"

ALONE (B'z)
(1991.10.30)
"ALONE, bokura wa sorezore no hana wo idaite umareta
meguriau tame ni"
"ALONE, we were born to meet each other
in order to hold on to every flower"

*This is also similar to part of ayu's "Close to you" lyrics.


No way to say
(2003.11.05)
"tsutaetai omoi wa afureru no ni
nee umaku kotoba ni naranai"
"The feelings I want to express are overflowing
I can't put it into words very well"

JULIA (Ryuichi Kawamura)
(2001.8.22)
"tsutaetai omoi ga afuresugite
kotoba ni dekinai boku ga imasu"
"The feelings I want to express are overflowing too much
And here I am, unable to use words"


GAME
(2004.7.28)
"hora sukoshizutsu anata no nokoshita nukumori ga tokedashite"
"And little by little, what warmth you left for me melts away"

Anata no Ondo (Aikawa Nanase)
(2001.01.21)
"anata no ondo ga yukkuri tokedashite"
"Your temperature slowly melts away"

[Rainbow141]

^ Uwah, thanks so much for the Romaji! You saved me lots of time from sifting through and correcting Romaji.org translations.

Pretty interesting. I'mma settle in and read all these now.

EDIT: And you also translated the Romaji! =O Double thank you!!

[TeddyGrahams]

Definitely good find! Thanks Deli for translating! Haha I was about to do some but eh.

I guess everyone draws inspiration from people, especially if these songs were huge hits back in the days too.

[waterballoon]

@Del: Thank you. That was an interesting read~

[ownsarai]

So where are all the people that are going to say Ayu copied? I'm just waiting for it now.

[Andrenekoi]

Ayu copied!
a bunch of pop music cliches xD