Your Relationship with Ayumi Hamasaki

[Tom Punks]

Originally Posted by Coelacanth

For me, many of her recent albums lack concept, direction, and have no distinct "atmosphere" to them.

I just mentioned this in the FIVE thread, but I totally agree with this. I mean FIVE is mostly ballads yet the covers would have suited a Microphone single.

Originally Posted by haikudasai

I actually stopped posting here because whenever I posted a comment about something in particular that I didn't like I'm told to leave, I'm told to go listen to her old works, I'm told that I'm not a fan, I'm told that I always post the same thing when I rarely post here anymore, I'm told I'm a "hater".

I really think people should learn what the word hate means. Not loving does not mean hating. The world is not black and white.

This, too. I've even gotten a PM asking if I was "posting mean thing about Ayu just to get a rise out of fans." I mean, I know that I don't hesitate to voice my disappoint over anything she releases, but if anything I think that just goes to show that I hold her up to a higher standard than other artists because I really expect more from her.


When you look at Ayumi Hamasaki, do you see Ayu, the human being, or do you see Ayumi Hamasaki the Entertainer? Is there a grey area?
Honestly, I used to see her as an entertainer who was so good at what she did because she was so human. Even when she was performing, it just felt so real, because you could tell she was pouring her heart into every word she sang. Nowadays, it seems like everything is about putting on an entertaining show, which I find is just a lot less... well, entertaining. For example, her old performances of ASFXX still make me cry! But I can't even bear to watch that '08(?) a-nation performance of ASFXX because every single move was rehearsed. Basically, I view her more as an entertainer now because I feel like, in the past few years, she's forgotten how to put real emotion into her performances and everything is dramatized now.

How do you think that affects what you want from what she does? What do you want from her?
Right now, I just want her to put out quality music with good covers and PVs. Her covers since NEXT LEVEL have been (in my opinion, of course) really cheap, poorly planned, lacking concept, and ruined by bad, bad facial expressions, font placement, and background choices. If I didn't know who she was and I saw most of these covers, I would hardly be able to believe she was Ayumi Hamasaki, queen/empress/awesome legendary person in j-pop.

Anyways, I've given up even trying to watch her concerts nowadays since I am not at all entertained by the over-dramatized performances. So I don't expect much from her as far as concerts go. ^^;

Do you think that being so close to Ayu with social media affects your view of her?
Yes, and I don't even use Twitter or try to contact her. Like someone else said, I dislike how it takes away the mysterious veil around her (and other stars). I also don't like how she occasionally gets into the middle of the drama. In fact, I feel like I relate to Ayu a lot less now that she uses Twitter.

How do you feel about the way other people see Ayu?
I love seeing people praise her, even if I don't agree with it or think she deserves it for a particularly release. It really hurts my feelings when people hate her though. I can totally take it when her fans make fun of her, but not when actual haters bash her. It really offends me personally, which might sound weird or stupid, but whatever.

Are you a little pig-headed about your opinions?
Oh yes. My opinion is right 95% of the time. The good thing is, my opinion is very easily swayed. And while I apparently come off as a hater/troll/whatever, if you actually took the time to talk to me one on one, you'd see that my opinions aren't really that rigid or nasty and that I love Ayu like I love no one else.