Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2
Encyclopedia
Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2 is Japanese
pop
singer-songwriter
Hikaru Utada's second compilation album, released on November 24, 2010, the same day as her Universal
-released English language compilation album, Utada the Best
. The album includes two discs, with the first being a 13-track greatest hits album spanning 2004—2009, while the second is an extended play
featuring new material. Along with Utada the Best, this is Utada's current last album release for the time-being due to her announced hiatus. Several of the new songs achieved commercial success, with "Goodbye Happiness
" reaching number one on Billboard
s Japan Hot 100
chart, and "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas
" reaching number one on the Recording Industry Association of Japan
's digital track chart
. Both songs have been certified by the association as gold records for full-length cellphone downloads.
According to Oricon
, the album sold 334,000 copies by the end of 2010, being the #20 best-selling album of the year and 107,000 more copies by 2011, being the #29 best-selling album of mid-year 2011. These brings to a total of 441,000 copies sold in Japan alone. The album is certified Double Platinum by RIAJ
for shipping half-a-million units to Japanese record stores.
, a contract signed in 2010 to release music globally under her name Hikaru Utada. Utada explained in an interview on Tokio Hot 100 that the hiatus was to ground her, as since she was 15 she had not grown up, and had no concept of 'true personal growth'. During her hiatus, she intends to do overseas volunteer work, learn French
and re-establish relationships with her relatives, such as with her father and manager Teruzane Utada
, who she admitted not even meeting outside of work.
The first disc is a collection of Utada's physical and digital singles released from her albums Ultra Blue
(2006) and Heart Station (2008) in a reverse chronological order. This includes the 2009 Russell McNamara remix of "Beautiful World
" for the film Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance, "Beautiful World (Planitb Acoustica Mix)," however the collection does not include "Fight the Blues
," the lead digital single from Heart Station, or her 2008 digital single "Eternally (Drama Mix)," a re-arrangement of a song from her 2001 album Distance
for use in the drama Innocent Love.
The second disc of the album features five previously unpublished songs. The songs, except for "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas
," are all composed in a single coherent manner, with Utada writing about reconciling with herself, her past and her true self. Utada believes that this manner of writing was similar to her writing style for her debut Japanese album, First Love. Utada tweeted on September 28 that she was still in the process of writing the lyrics to the final song. Utada wrote "Arashi no Megami" as a thank you song for her mother, Keiko Fuji
. "Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
" was inspired by the feelings Utada felt while making her decision to go on hiatus. "Goodbye Happiness" was written while attempting to write a love song.
effort This Is the One in 2009.
The first single from the album was "Hymne à l'amour (Ai no Anthem)," a cover of the 1950s song by French chanson
singer Édith Piaf
. Utada sings the original French lyrics, as well as a personally written Japanese translation. It was used in commercials for Pepsi Nex
in Japan, as a part of a campaign featuring famous Japanese musicians covering songs (such as Kumi Koda
, Perfume
and L'Arc-en-Ciel). The commercial began airing on October 2, with a digital release date of October 9.
The lead single
from the album was "Goodbye Happiness
," released digitally to cellphones on November 10. The song received heavy airplay before the album's release, further peaking at #1 on Billboard
s Japan Hot 100
chart on airplay alone. The song also received a music video, directed by Utada personally. This video was packaged on a bonus DVD that came with pre-orders of the album. The song was used in commercials for Recochoku.
"Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
" was released as a digital download a week before the album's release. It will be used as the theme song for the Tomohisa Yamashita
starring film adaptation of the manga Tomorrow's Joe
, to be released on February 11, 2011. Much like "Goodbye Happiness," the song was used in commercials for Recochoku.
The two remaining new songs were also used in commercial campaigns. The song "Arashi no Megami" was used in confectionists Morinaga & Company
's commercial campaign, which is part of the wider to combat child poverty. From November 24 until February 14, one yen from every digital download of the song will be donated to the cause. "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas" was used for the second round of Pepsi Nex commercials featuring Utada, after "Hymne à l'amour (Ai no Anthem)."
In promotion for the album, Utada set up a Twitter
account, Utadahikaru, on September 28. An official Hikaru Utada YouTube
account was also set up in early November, featuring the music video for "Goodbye Happiness." The channel was briefly taken down due to a false copyright infringement
claim by a company called Media Interactive Inc., which was reported in the media. Utada personally tweeted about the incident.
Utada featured in an extensive number of magazines during album promotions, including CD&DL Data, Edge Style, Gekkan Songs, Gekkan the Television, Happie Nuts
, Mini, Musica, Non-no
, Ori Star
, Patipati, Pia, PopSister
, Rockin' On Japan, Smart, Tokyo Calendar, Tokyo Walker, What's In? and You Music. Utada also promoted the album by appearing on radio shows through late November and early December, including appearances on Artist Special, Au On Air Music Chart, Bang! Bang! Zip!, J-pop Magazine, Love & Green, Music Coaster, On8, Paradise Beat, Stadium Rock! and Tokio Hot 100. The entire album was broadcast on November 17 on Tokyo FM
, followed by 9 other radio stations also airing the album later. The album also received releases in other Asian countries, with South Korea
releasing the album on December 3, Taiwan
on the 10th and Thailand
on the 23rd.
Utada performed a short tour for the album, a concert series titled Wild Life
. The tour features only two dates, both held at the Yokohama Arena
on December 8 and 9. The December 8 concert was broadcast on a live feed to 70 screens in 64 cinemas across Japan. Tickets were released for the events on November 21, and sold out on the same day. The December 8 concert was broadcast on Ustream.tv, a live video streaming website. Between the two channels set up for the concert, they were accessed a total of 925,000 times, with 345,000 unique viewers, as well as 185,000 comments left on the feed. This was a global record on Ustream.tv, for the highest number of simultaneous accesses of any video, with the previous highest being only 100,000. The December 8 concert will be broadcast on January 22, 2011, on music video channel Space Shower. A different cut of the concert will later be shown in February, dubbed the "Space Shower TV Original Edition." The original cut was created in collaboration with Sky PerfecTV.
On the 15th of January, 2011, a documentary named was aired on Japan's public broadcast channel NHK
. The documentary followed Utada through her activities before her hiatus, including recording backing vocals for "Goodbye Happiness" in London
in August 2010, filming the music video for "Goodbye Happiness," preparing for her Wild Life concerts and footage from the concerts. Interspersed through this was scenes of Utada being interviewed by Chris Peppler, a navigator for J-Wave
's radio program Tokio Hot 100. Two songs were performed live in a studio, "Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
" and "Goodbye Happiness
," and clips of "First Love," "Nijiiro Bus" and "Prisoner of Love
" from the concerts were broadcast.
, believing the album "gives birth to an unconscious sympathy." Vibes Mio Yamada believed that Vol. 2 was like "self-cutting sharpness hidden in shadows," and described the collection as "an emotional and sentimental autobiography." She believed love dealt with in Vol. 2 was much more mature than on Vol. 1, and noted "Passion" and "Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro
" on their lyrics that expressed weakness and strength simultaneously. Yamada, Jiro Yamazaki of Barfout! and Mikio Yanagisawa of What's In? all felt the songs on the album had the ability to relate to everybody. Yanagisawa described the work as "blue introspection," and the album as a "jem that feels like a miracle." Yamada similarly likened all of the singles as "jewels."
Akira Kondō from Listen Japan felt the collection expressed an extremely personal world outlook, and believed the collection was an excellent way to experience the change in Utada's sound between Ultra Blue and Heart Station. Similarly, Hiroki Yokuyama of Rockin' On Japan remarked that the album was a rare pathway showing Utada's expression.
Many critics commented that all of the new songs were of high quality. Kondō described them as "perfect," and that they "rise and flood with a powerful energy." Yanagisawa singled out "Show Me Love (Not a Dream)" as the best of the new tracks. Hiraga felt her performance in the music video for "Goodbye Happiness" was thrilling, also called the song a "lovely masterpiece" that was "like a fight towards loneliness." Yokuyama had an appreciation of "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas," feeling that it was much more universal and original than most Christmas songs
.
daily albums chart, with 22,000 copies sold. It later debuted at number one on Oricon's weekly charts with 231,000 copies sold, her seventh successive Japanese language number one album. It outsold albums of Kara, Masaharu Fukuyama
and Ikimonogakari that week but the figure was less than half of that of the first week of her 2008 studio album, Heart Station, which had sold 480,000 copies. The album has been certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan
for more than 500,000 physical copies shipped to music stores. According to Oricons sales data, the album was the 20th most sold album in Japanese CD stores in 2010. However, with 441,000 copies sold, it is currently Utada's lowest selling Japanese album. However, including her entire discography, it is her third worst selling album, after Universal
English-language albums This Is the One (2009) and Utada the Best
(2010). In South Korea
, the album debuted at the #1 spot in the Gaon International Albums Chart
in the week of December 5–11, 2010, but the album only charted for a week. In Taiwan
, the album debuted at the sixth spot on the G-Music Combo album charts, having 1.54% of total album sales in the week of December 10–16, 2010 but it quickly dropped to the #19 spot, contributing to 0.81% of the total album sales for the week of December 17–23, 2010, charting for only two weeks, selling almost 8,000 copies in total, but behind other Asian acts which sold above the 8,000-mark in the said chart like Ayumi Hamasaki
, Namie Amuro
, Wonder Girls
and Super Junior
.
During the album's release, the leading track "Goodbye Happiness" reached number one on Billboard
s Japan Hot 100
chart, after charting for four weeks. "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas" charted at number 85 in this week, due to paid downloads on provider iTunes
. On the Recording Industry Association of Japan
's digital track chart
for full-length cellphone downloads, "Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
" charted at number 21 a week before the album's release. During the week of release, "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas" reached number 59, "Arashi no Megami" number 62 and "Prisoner of Love" number 90.
Since the release of the album, "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas
" has reached number one on the Recording Industry Association of Japan's digital track chart, and number 2 on the Japan Hot 100.
and music by Marguerite Monnot
, with Japanese translation by Utada.
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Hikaru Utada's second compilation album, released on November 24, 2010, the same day as her Universal
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
-released English language compilation album, Utada the Best
Utada the Best
Utada the Best is Japanese pop/R&B singer-songwriter Utada Hikaru's first English language compilation album, released on November 24, 2010, the same day as Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2...
. The album includes two discs, with the first being a 13-track greatest hits album spanning 2004—2009, while the second is an extended play
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
featuring new material. Along with Utada the Best, this is Utada's current last album release for the time-being due to her announced hiatus. Several of the new songs achieved commercial success, with "Goodbye Happiness
Goodbye Happiness
"Goodbye Happiness" is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released as the lead track from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, in November 2010...
" reaching number one on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
s Japan Hot 100
Japan Hot 100
The Japan Hot 100 is a music singles chart in Japan. It is compiled by Billboard and Hanshin Contents Link ever since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at billboard-japan.com and every Thursday at billboard.com ....
chart, and "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas
Can't Wait 'Til Christmas
"Can't Wait 'Til Christmas" is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released on Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, on November 24, 2010.- Composition and inspiration :...
" reaching number one on the Recording Industry Association of Japan
Recording Industry Association of Japan
The Recording Industry Association of Japan is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved the music industry...
's digital track chart
RIAJ Digital Track Chart
The is chart ranks the best selling digital singles in Japan, provided by the Recording Industry Association of Japan since April 2009. The chart measures cellphone downloads ....
. Both songs have been certified by the association as gold records for full-length cellphone downloads.
According to Oricon
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
, the album sold 334,000 copies by the end of 2010, being the #20 best-selling album of the year and 107,000 more copies by 2011, being the #29 best-selling album of mid-year 2011. These brings to a total of 441,000 copies sold in Japan alone. The album is certified Double Platinum by RIAJ
Recording Industry Association of Japan
The Recording Industry Association of Japan is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved the music industry...
for shipping half-a-million units to Japanese record stores.
Background and development
In a blog entry dated August 9, 2010, Utada announced the greatest hits album, as well as a planned hiatus. Utada does not consider the hiatus her retiring from music, as she enjoys the process of making music, and considers herself a musician. Furthermore, Utada still has a contract to fulfill with EMI GroupEMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
, a contract signed in 2010 to release music globally under her name Hikaru Utada. Utada explained in an interview on Tokio Hot 100 that the hiatus was to ground her, as since she was 15 she had not grown up, and had no concept of 'true personal growth'. During her hiatus, she intends to do overseas volunteer work, learn French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and re-establish relationships with her relatives, such as with her father and manager Teruzane Utada
Teruzane Utada
is a Japanese music executive producer and attendant.He married Junko Utada and worked as her attendant. Their daughter and only child is the singer Hikaru Utada, one of Japan’s most successful pop music singers of all time. The couple have been married and divorced to each other seven times. He...
, who she admitted not even meeting outside of work.
The first disc is a collection of Utada's physical and digital singles released from her albums Ultra Blue
Ultra Blue
Ultra Blue is the award-winning fourth Japanese studio album by Hikaru Utada, released in 2006. It debuted at #1 on the Oricon daily, weekly and monthly charts and sold 500,317 copies in its first six days of sales...
(2006) and Heart Station (2008) in a reverse chronological order. This includes the 2009 Russell McNamara remix of "Beautiful World
Beautiful World/Kiss & Cry
"Beautiful World/Kiss & Cry" is Utada Hikaru's 19th Japanese single . The single was released on August 29, 2007 as her second single for 2007. "Beautiful World" was re-released in 2009 as "Beautiful World " for the release of the movie Evangelion: 2.0 You Can Advance.Beautiful World / Kiss & Cry...
" for the film Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance, "Beautiful World (Planitb Acoustica Mix)," however the collection does not include "Fight the Blues
Fight the Blues
"Fight the Blues" is Utada Hikaru's second Japanese digital single and 29th single overall. It was released on March 27, 2008 as a promotional single for her fifth Japanese studio album. "Fight the Blues" was tied-in as the CM song for her Heart Station album...
," the lead digital single from Heart Station, or her 2008 digital single "Eternally (Drama Mix)," a re-arrangement of a song from her 2001 album Distance
Distance (Hikaru Utada album)
Distance is the second Japanese album released by Japanese-American J-pop singer Hikaru Utada, released on March 28, 2001 in direct "competition" with A Best by Ayumi Hamasaki ....
for use in the drama Innocent Love.
The second disc of the album features five previously unpublished songs. The songs, except for "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas
Can't Wait 'Til Christmas
"Can't Wait 'Til Christmas" is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released on Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, on November 24, 2010.- Composition and inspiration :...
," are all composed in a single coherent manner, with Utada writing about reconciling with herself, her past and her true self. Utada believes that this manner of writing was similar to her writing style for her debut Japanese album, First Love. Utada tweeted on September 28 that she was still in the process of writing the lyrics to the final song. Utada wrote "Arashi no Megami" as a thank you song for her mother, Keiko Fuji
Keiko Fuji
, real name , is a Japanese enka singer and actress. She had success in Japan in the 1960s and 1970s with her ballad-type songs. Her parents were itinerant musical performers. Her father was a rōkyoku singer. Her mother was a blind shamisen player or goze...
. "Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
"Show Me Love " is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released digitally as the third single from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol...
" was inspired by the feelings Utada felt while making her decision to go on hiatus. "Goodbye Happiness" was written while attempting to write a love song.
Promotion and release
Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2 was released two years and nine months after her previous original Japanese album Heart Station in 2008 and a year and nine months after her second and last Island RecordsIsland Records
Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group...
effort This Is the One in 2009.
The first single from the album was "Hymne à l'amour (Ai no Anthem)," a cover of the 1950s song by French chanson
Chanson
A chanson is in general any lyric-driven French song, usually polyphonic and secular. A singer specialising in chansons is known as a "chanteur" or "chanteuse" ; a collection of chansons, especially from the late Middle Ages and Renaissance, is also known as a chansonnier.-Chanson de geste:The...
singer Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf , born Édith Giovanna Gassion, was a French singer and cultural icon who became widely regarded as France's greatest popular singer. Her singing reflected her life, with her specialty being ballads...
. Utada sings the original French lyrics, as well as a personally written Japanese translation. It was used in commercials for Pepsi Nex
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
in Japan, as a part of a campaign featuring famous Japanese musicians covering songs (such as Kumi Koda
Kumi Koda
, better known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer and songwriter from Kyoto, known for her urban and R&B songs. Having debuted in 2000 with the single "Take Back", Koda gained fame for her seventh single, "Real Emotion/1000 no Kotoba", the songs of which were used as themes for the video game...
, Perfume
Perfume (group)
Perfume is a Japanese all-girl trio from Hiroshima, Japan, consisting of Ayano Ōmoto, Yuka Kashino, and Ayaka Nishiwaki. They debuted locally in 2001 and made their transition to a major label in 2005, focusing more on electropop...
and L'Arc-en-Ciel). The commercial began airing on October 2, with a digital release date of October 9.
The lead single
Lead single
A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less...
from the album was "Goodbye Happiness
Goodbye Happiness
"Goodbye Happiness" is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released as the lead track from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, in November 2010...
," released digitally to cellphones on November 10. The song received heavy airplay before the album's release, further peaking at #1 on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
s Japan Hot 100
Japan Hot 100
The Japan Hot 100 is a music singles chart in Japan. It is compiled by Billboard and Hanshin Contents Link ever since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at billboard-japan.com and every Thursday at billboard.com ....
chart on airplay alone. The song also received a music video, directed by Utada personally. This video was packaged on a bonus DVD that came with pre-orders of the album. The song was used in commercials for Recochoku.
"Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
"Show Me Love " is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released digitally as the third single from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol...
" was released as a digital download a week before the album's release. It will be used as the theme song for the Tomohisa Yamashita
Tomohisa Yamashita
, also widely known as Yamapi, is a Japanese idol, actor, and singer.Yamashita joined the Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates in 1996 at the age of 11 and made his official CD debut with NEWS in 2004. He debuted as a solo artist in 2006 with the hit single "Daite Senorita". His first solo...
starring film adaptation of the manga Tomorrow's Joe
Tomorrow's Joe
is a critically acclaimed boxing manga written by Ikki Kajiwara and illustrated by Tetsuya Chiba in 1968 that was later adapted into an anime series and movie. It is most commonly referred to as Ashita no Joe. Outside Japan it is also referred to as Rocky Joe or Joe...
, to be released on February 11, 2011. Much like "Goodbye Happiness," the song was used in commercials for Recochoku.
The two remaining new songs were also used in commercial campaigns. The song "Arashi no Megami" was used in confectionists Morinaga & Company
Morinaga & Company
is a confectionery company in Tokyo, Japan, in operation since August 15, 1899. Their products include candy and other confectioneries. Morinaga has Ayumi Hamasaki and Mao Asada appear in their commercials....
's commercial campaign, which is part of the wider to combat child poverty. From November 24 until February 14, one yen from every digital download of the song will be donated to the cause. "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas" was used for the second round of Pepsi Nex commercials featuring Utada, after "Hymne à l'amour (Ai no Anthem)."
In promotion for the album, Utada set up a Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
account, Utadahikaru, on September 28. An official Hikaru Utada YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
account was also set up in early November, featuring the music video for "Goodbye Happiness." The channel was briefly taken down due to a false copyright infringement
Copyright infringement
Copyright infringement is the unauthorized or prohibited use of works under copyright, infringing the copyright holder's exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works.- "Piracy" :...
claim by a company called Media Interactive Inc., which was reported in the media. Utada personally tweeted about the incident.
Utada featured in an extensive number of magazines during album promotions, including CD&DL Data, Edge Style, Gekkan Songs, Gekkan the Television, Happie Nuts
Happie Nuts
Happie Nuts is a gal fashion magazine published monthly in Japan by Inforest Publishing. Targeted at women in their late teens and early 20s, Happie Nuts is highly oriented toward the style of oneh-gal Happie Nuts is a gal fashion magazine published monthly in Japan by Inforest Publishing. Targeted...
, Mini, Musica, Non-no
Non-no
is a Japanese fashion magazine published by Shueisha. Like CanCam, non-no has a comparatively longer history than other Japanese fashion magazines e.g. Cawaii!, Olive and so forth. The magazine is targeted at teens and young women in their early 20s....
, Ori Star
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
, Patipati, Pia, PopSister
PopSister
PopSister is a Japanese monthly gal-shibuya-kei-oriented fashion magazine published by Kadokawa Publishing & Co.. Launched in 2010 as the "older sister" magazine of Popteen, PopSister is targeted at females in their teens and early 20's.-History:...
, Rockin' On Japan, Smart, Tokyo Calendar, Tokyo Walker, What's In? and You Music. Utada also promoted the album by appearing on radio shows through late November and early December, including appearances on Artist Special, Au On Air Music Chart, Bang! Bang! Zip!, J-pop Magazine, Love & Green, Music Coaster, On8, Paradise Beat, Stadium Rock! and Tokio Hot 100. The entire album was broadcast on November 17 on Tokyo FM
Tokyo FM
Tokyo FM Broadcasting Co., Ltd. is a radio station in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the flagship station of the Japan FM Network .-Program:*Countdown Station** DHC Countdown jp** cosmo Pops Best 10...
, followed by 9 other radio stations also airing the album later. The album also received releases in other Asian countries, with South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
releasing the album on December 3, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
on the 10th and Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
on the 23rd.
Utada performed a short tour for the album, a concert series titled Wild Life
Wild Life (concert)
WILD LIFE was Japanese-American singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada's final concert tour before her scheduled hiatus from 2011. Performing only two dates at the Yokohama Arena, Japan on December 8 and 9 2010.-Set list:-Tickets:...
. The tour features only two dates, both held at the Yokohama Arena
Yokohama Arena
is an indoor sporting arena located in Yokohama, Japan. The capacity of the arena is 17,000 and was opened in 1989. The arena was modeled after US sports venue Madison Square Garden in New York City. It is a five minute walk from the closest subway station, Shin-Yokohama Station on the JR/Yokohama...
on December 8 and 9. The December 8 concert was broadcast on a live feed to 70 screens in 64 cinemas across Japan. Tickets were released for the events on November 21, and sold out on the same day. The December 8 concert was broadcast on Ustream.tv, a live video streaming website. Between the two channels set up for the concert, they were accessed a total of 925,000 times, with 345,000 unique viewers, as well as 185,000 comments left on the feed. This was a global record on Ustream.tv, for the highest number of simultaneous accesses of any video, with the previous highest being only 100,000. The December 8 concert will be broadcast on January 22, 2011, on music video channel Space Shower. A different cut of the concert will later be shown in February, dubbed the "Space Shower TV Original Edition." The original cut was created in collaboration with Sky PerfecTV.
On the 15th of January, 2011, a documentary named was aired on Japan's public broadcast channel NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
. The documentary followed Utada through her activities before her hiatus, including recording backing vocals for "Goodbye Happiness" in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in August 2010, filming the music video for "Goodbye Happiness," preparing for her Wild Life concerts and footage from the concerts. Interspersed through this was scenes of Utada being interviewed by Chris Peppler, a navigator for J-Wave
J-Wave
J-Wave is a commercial radio station based in Tokyo, Japan, broadcasting on 81.3 FM from the Tokyo Tower to the Tokyo area. J-Wave airs mostly music covering a wide range of formats. The station is considered the most popular among FM broadcasts in Tokyo, and has surprised the radio broadcast...
's radio program Tokio Hot 100. Two songs were performed live in a studio, "Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
"Show Me Love " is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released digitally as the third single from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol...
" and "Goodbye Happiness
Goodbye Happiness
"Goodbye Happiness" is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released as the lead track from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, in November 2010...
," and clips of "First Love," "Nijiiro Bus" and "Prisoner of Love
Prisoner of Love (Hikaru Utada song)
-Digital sales information:On May 13, Barks.jp reported "Prisoner of Love" had sold over 1.5 million downloads across all formats, and on July 7, Yahoo!Japan reported it had sold over 2.9 million downloads, it has been certified by the RIAJ on September 2 for reaching the 1 million mark for...
" from the concerts were broadcast.
Critical reception
The album was received positively by music critics. Tetsuo Hiraga from Hot Express noted that there was much more sorrow and pain in her songs in the collection, as opposed to the songs collected in Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 1Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 1
-Charts:Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 1 - Oricon Sales Chart...
, believing the album "gives birth to an unconscious sympathy." Vibes Mio Yamada believed that Vol. 2 was like "self-cutting sharpness hidden in shadows," and described the collection as "an emotional and sentimental autobiography." She believed love dealt with in Vol. 2 was much more mature than on Vol. 1, and noted "Passion" and "Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro
Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro
is Hikaru Utada's 13th Japanese-language single and her 1st and only Japanese single for 2004. She released 2 versions of Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro: CD and DVD. It was released on April 2, 2004. Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro is also included in the "Our Last Days" - "Casshern" OST as the...
" on their lyrics that expressed weakness and strength simultaneously. Yamada, Jiro Yamazaki of Barfout! and Mikio Yanagisawa of What's In? all felt the songs on the album had the ability to relate to everybody. Yanagisawa described the work as "blue introspection," and the album as a "jem that feels like a miracle." Yamada similarly likened all of the singles as "jewels."
Akira Kondō from Listen Japan felt the collection expressed an extremely personal world outlook, and believed the collection was an excellent way to experience the change in Utada's sound between Ultra Blue and Heart Station. Similarly, Hiroki Yokuyama of Rockin' On Japan remarked that the album was a rare pathway showing Utada's expression.
Many critics commented that all of the new songs were of high quality. Kondō described them as "perfect," and that they "rise and flood with a powerful energy." Yanagisawa singled out "Show Me Love (Not a Dream)" as the best of the new tracks. Hiraga felt her performance in the music video for "Goodbye Happiness" was thrilling, also called the song a "lovely masterpiece" that was "like a fight towards loneliness." Yokuyama had an appreciation of "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas," feeling that it was much more universal and original than most Christmas songs
Christmas music
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music normally performed or heard around the Christmas season, which tends to begin in the months leading up the actual holiday and end in the weeks shortly thereafter.-Early:...
.
Chart reception
The album debuted at number one on Japan's OriconOricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
daily albums chart, with 22,000 copies sold. It later debuted at number one on Oricon's weekly charts with 231,000 copies sold, her seventh successive Japanese language number one album. It outsold albums of Kara, Masaharu Fukuyama
Masaharu Fukuyama
is a Japanese singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, actor, radio personality, and photographer from Nagasaki, Nagasaki Prefecture. He is the best-selling male solo artist in Japan. He is a member of entertainment company Amuse, Inc. and is known for his low, deep voice. Among fans, he is...
and Ikimonogakari that week but the figure was less than half of that of the first week of her 2008 studio album, Heart Station, which had sold 480,000 copies. The album has been certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan
Recording Industry Association of Japan
The Recording Industry Association of Japan is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved the music industry...
for more than 500,000 physical copies shipped to music stores. According to Oricons sales data, the album was the 20th most sold album in Japanese CD stores in 2010. However, with 441,000 copies sold, it is currently Utada's lowest selling Japanese album. However, including her entire discography, it is her third worst selling album, after Universal
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
English-language albums This Is the One (2009) and Utada the Best
Utada the Best
Utada the Best is Japanese pop/R&B singer-songwriter Utada Hikaru's first English language compilation album, released on November 24, 2010, the same day as Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2...
(2010). In South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, the album debuted at the #1 spot in the Gaon International Albums Chart
Gaon Chart
The Gaon Chart is a national record chart of South Korea. It is complied by the Korea Music Content Industry Association and sponsored by South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism; with an aim to create a national chart for Korea similar to the Billboard charts and Oricon charts...
in the week of December 5–11, 2010, but the album only charted for a week. In Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, the album debuted at the sixth spot on the G-Music Combo album charts, having 1.54% of total album sales in the week of December 10–16, 2010 but it quickly dropped to the #19 spot, contributing to 0.81% of the total album sales for the week of December 17–23, 2010, charting for only two weeks, selling almost 8,000 copies in total, but behind other Asian acts which sold above the 8,000-mark in the said chart like Ayumi Hamasaki
Ayumi Hamasaki
is a Japanese singer-songwriter, record producer, model, lyricist, and actress. Also called "Ayu" by her fans, Hamasaki has been dubbed the "Empress of Pop" because of her popularity and widespread influence in Japan and throughout Asia. Born and raised in Fukuoka, she moved to Tokyo at fourteen to...
, Namie Amuro
Namie Amuro
is a Japanese R&B and pop singer, entertainer, and former actress who at the height of her popularity was referred to as the "Teen Queen" and the title "Queen of Japanese Pop Music". Born in Naha, Okinawa, Amuro debuted at the age of 14 as an idol in the girl group Super Monkey's...
, Wonder Girls
Wonder Girls
Wonder Girls is a South Korean girl group. Its producer and manager is singer-songwriter Park Jin-Young and the Wonder Girls is signed to his talent agency, JYP Entertainment. Each of the five original members were selected through auditions...
and Super Junior
Super Junior
Super Junior is a South Korean boy band. Formed in 2005 by producer Lee Soo-man of SM Entertainment, the group comprised a total of thirteen members at its peak, and was once claimed to be the world's largest boy band...
.
During the album's release, the leading track "Goodbye Happiness" reached number one on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
s Japan Hot 100
Japan Hot 100
The Japan Hot 100 is a music singles chart in Japan. It is compiled by Billboard and Hanshin Contents Link ever since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at billboard-japan.com and every Thursday at billboard.com ....
chart, after charting for four weeks. "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas" charted at number 85 in this week, due to paid downloads on provider iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
. On the Recording Industry Association of Japan
Recording Industry Association of Japan
The Recording Industry Association of Japan is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved the music industry...
's digital track chart
RIAJ Digital Track Chart
The is chart ranks the best selling digital singles in Japan, provided by the Recording Industry Association of Japan since April 2009. The chart measures cellphone downloads ....
for full-length cellphone downloads, "Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
Show Me Love (Not a Dream)
"Show Me Love " is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released digitally as the third single from Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol...
" charted at number 21 a week before the album's release. During the week of release, "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas" reached number 59, "Arashi no Megami" number 62 and "Prisoner of Love" number 90.
Since the release of the album, "Can't Wait 'Til Christmas
Can't Wait 'Til Christmas
"Can't Wait 'Til Christmas" is a song by Japanese singer-songwriter Hikaru Utada. It was released on Utada's second Japanese compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, on November 24, 2010.- Composition and inspiration :...
" has reached number one on the Recording Industry Association of Japan's digital track chart, and number 2 on the Japan Hot 100.
Track listing
All songs written and composed by Hikaru Utada, except "Hymne à l'amour (Ai no Anthem)" lyrics by Édith PiafÉdith Piaf
Édith Piaf , born Édith Giovanna Gassion, was a French singer and cultural icon who became widely regarded as France's greatest popular singer. Her singing reflected her life, with her specialty being ballads...
and music by Marguerite Monnot
Marguerite Monnot
Marguerite Monnot was a French songwriter and composer best known for having written many of the songs performed by Édith Piaf and for the music in the stage musical Irma La Douce....
, with Japanese translation by Utada.
Chart rankings
| Chart (2010) |
Peak position |
|---|---|
| Oricon Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc... daily albums |
1 |
| Oricon weekly albums | 1 |
| Oricon monthly albums | 3 |
| Oricon yearly albums | 20 |
| Gaon Gaon Chart The Gaon Chart is a national record chart of South Korea. It is complied by the Korea Music Content Industry Association and sponsored by South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism; with an aim to create a national chart for Korea similar to the Billboard charts and Oricon charts... Albums Chart (South Korea) |
12 |
| Gaon International Albums Chart (South Korea) | 1 |
| G-Music Combo albums chart (Taiwan) | 6 |
| G-Music Combo International albums chart (Taiwan) | 2 |
| Japan/Asia albums chart (Hong Kong) | 1 |
Sales and certifications
| Chart | Amount |
|---|---|
| Oricon physical sales | 441,000 |
| RIAJ physical shipping certification | 2x platinum (500,000+) |
| G Music physical sales (Taiwan) | 8,000 |
Chart procession and succession
Release history
| Region | Date | Format | Distributing Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | CD, digital download | EMI Music Japan | |
| France | Digital download | EMI EMI The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major... |
|
| Germany | |||
| United Kingdom | |||
| South Korea | CD | Warner Music Korea Warner Music Group Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies... |
|
| Taiwan | CD | Gold Typhoon | |
| Philippines | CD | PolyEast Records PolyEast Records PolyEast Records is a record label in the Philippines. It is the international licensee of EMI Internationa and is a member of the Philippine Association of the Record Industry.-History:... |
|
| Japan | Rental CD | EMI Music Japan | |
| Thailand | CD | Warner Music Thailand | |
| United States | CD | EMI | |
| Canada | CD | EMI Music Canada |