Utada Hikaru is possibly the biggest pop idol in Japan today. With an estimated 50 million chart-topping albums sold worldwide, she certainly has the numbers to prove it.
Born in America to Japanese parents who were themselves steeped in music, Utada has a multifaceted appeal. While her American album releases have been a relative flop (Exodus selling only 55,000 albums and This is the One failing to chart well for the first time in 11 years) her Japanese fan base has remained rock solid. She isn't as traditionally Japanese sounding as some other R'n'B and pop acts. Her singing style, while not overly adventurous, has a deeper and more mature diva-like quality than, say, some of the more cutesy, pre-teen idols.
Her music contains much of the usual cardboard-box production heard in the pop world. (Is there really any reason that the biggest artist in Japan has to use fake strings and factory pre-set beats?) While her albums may disregard musical sophistication, they do a good job of focusing almost entirely on her stronger vocal skills. Her early releases have an R'n'B feel to them, but much of that seems to have changed as time went by. Today her production seems to conform to more traditional J-pop standards, leaning toward a darker, almost trip-hop feel at times, countered with dance beats, pretty twinkles and electro flourishes. Utada has occasionally experimented with slightly heavier rock sounds, but they feel a bit lifeless when compared to more experienced pop-rockers like Ayumi Hamasaki or even Mika Nakashima.
Despite struggling for an audience overseas, Utada Hikaru is an undeniable force. Still in her 20s, she has a lifetime to evolve as an artist and she's already well on her way in developing her own voice, both literally and figuratively. Whether or not she chooses to continue following that path, you can be sure she will have a million people in step close behind her.
"Come Back to Me"
Official Site
Albums:
Precious (1998)
First Love (1999)
Distance (2001)
Deep River (2002)
Exodus (2004)
Ultra Blue (2006)
Heart Station (2008)
This Is the One (2009)
"Easy Breezy"
"You Make Me Want To Be A Man"
"Beautiful World" (Live)
"Traveling" (Live)
2 comments:
great! finally a new post about an artist after what feels like an eternity and then it is utada hikaru of all things?
meh
Heh, sorry about that, anon. Gotta cover the big names every now and then for balance. Don't worry, the next one should make up for it. :D
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