2021: Reflecting on Ayu's career

[tokyoxjapanxfan]

My “issue” with Timmy was similar in the sense that it felt like he was being used as a spectacle. We don’t know how much he wanted that, though. I mean he did his own makeup and it’s obviously something he was comfortable with (for at least some time.)

So it wasn’t my issue with him, just how he was used.

It felt... like a parody. I mean, Gomi also became a parody of himself (who is also gay), and Hikaru is now kind of going down that road lol. Still, it’s impossible to say Ayu is forcing any of this. I can’t imagine that if they expressed that they wanted to be used more “normally” that she’d oppose? In the end they’re in the world of entertainment and screen time and getting a name for yourself is surely part of that for some.

Timmy’s just felt closer to home because I’m also a foreigner and I’d hear the things people were saying about him. Kimoi, kimochiwarui, kowai... not very often that they were positive.

But I know that Ayu loves and values the gay community so I don’t really believe anything was ever done maliciously or forcefully.

(None of this is aimed at anyone, just offering my opinion.)

Personally I don’t think her embrace of the lgbtq community hurt her, considering is was done after her popularity had already started to wane. I think it’s just a case of over exposure and changing of trends. No one stays at the top forever.

My biggest annoyance now is just that I feel like for the past 10 years she failed to utilize the immense amount of talent that still exists in the music / entertainment industry. Instead, she just kept using the same team over and over again. (Minus a few instances of course.) For someone as big as Ayu, it just strikes me as odd that she seemingly just... stopped trying to progress.


This all comes from a place of love. I know it might sound too critical, but I don’t take it as seriously as it might sound haha.

[indigochild]

Originally Posted by tokyoxjapanxfan

My biggest annoyance now is just that I feel like for the past 10 years she failed to utilize the immense amount of talent that still exists in the music / entertainment industry. Instead, she just kept using the same team over and over again. (Minus a few instances of course.) For someone as big as Ayu, it just strikes me as odd that she seemingly just... stopped trying to progress.

Now here's the real tea. She is AYUMI HAMASAKI. She's not some small artist struggling to make it big. She has all the resources in the world to branch out but is just so comfortable in her little work family that it gets to the point where everything just starts to sound stale.

Like yes, she absolutely doesn't have to "prove" anything at this point in her career but that doesn't mean you just become... monotonous. And that's been my problem with Ayumi. Everything became boring. The songs she's been releasing aren't "bad"... but they also don't excite me anymore.

That said - I'm hopeful that she feels inspired again if her latest TA entry is accurate to how she is feeling and perhaps we'll get something interesting again.