Image and artistry Ayumi Hamasaki

— hamasaki on new lyrical directions in am....

hamasaki s lyrics, own, have resonated among fans, praise them being honest , heartfelt , expressing determination ; in 2 surveys conducted oricon, respondents voted hamasaki s lyrics favorite aspect of artistry. steve mcclure of japan times noted hamasaki has developed reputation thoughtful, introspective lyricist ; barry walters of village voice comments hamasaki s lyrics pack unlikely insights . having trouble voicing thoughts , hamasaki uses lyrics outlet; draws inspiration own (and friends ) experiences , emotions , tries put them words . has stated honesty essential lyrics, saying, if write when m low, dark song, don t care. want honest myself @ times. meant did not use english lyrics until album rainbow, felt best express herself in japanese. musical style, themes of lyrics have varied. debut album song ×× dealt themes of loneliness , confusion , did second album loveppears. duty likewise expressed feelings of disappointment , confusion. hamasaki began take on more global outlook following albums am... , rainbow, branching out wider themes such faith , peace. music critic tetsu misaki noted large change in lyrics style between debut album song ×× (1999), dealt personal problems, , following albums loveppears , duty. misaki believed hamasaki had begun thinking influence on society more, , began writing songs important messages wanted express listeners. signalled not using first person pronouns much, , instead using words bokura (僕ら, ) , tsutaeru (伝える, convey ) more often. hamasaki matured, lyrics began express more confidence; themes in later albums included love , struggles of women. guilty, hamasaki began compose lyrics not exposition of personal feelings encouragements listeners, outlook applied in next level well. in songs such talkin 2 myself , mirrorcle world , hamasaki deals awareness , fighting spirit of surviving in high-risk age encourage listeners; in rollin (from next level), hamasaki writes, age rolling around/at speed of heading toward end/beyond border/disappointment , hope fight each other . in addition personal experiences , feelings, hamasaki bases lyrics on sources such historical events. life of joan of arc inspiration free & easy , while story told friend saint named mary served basis m ; september 11 attacks inspired song born .

in addition writing own lyrics, hamasaki has involved herself in other aspects of production such artistic direction. though max matsuura officially credited producer of records, said of hamasaki, ayu meticulous worker behind scenes. lot of work herself more in producer s arena. think should produced [a]yumi [h]amasaki . until single m , however, hamasaki left task of composing staff; has explained, m not professional; lack basic knowledge writing music. however, started compose own melodies after staff had failed compose tune m appealed her. wanting produce works faithful visions, hamasaki took control of aspects of artistry. am... representative of stage in hamasaki s career; directed production of songs, videos, , artwork. began compose less after am...: whereas of am... work, 9 of rainbow s fifteen tracks composed her. less involved in composition of subsequent albums, composing 2 tracks on memorial address, 3 on story, , 1 on (miss)understood; since secret, none of songs on studio albums have listed composer. later albums, hamasaki began delegate staff tasks had once handled herself. hamasaki cites madonna, soul musicians babyface , en vogue, , rock bands led zeppelin , deep purple influences , states admires michelle branch, kid rock, joan osborne, seiko matsuda, rie miyazawa, , keiko yamada; these diverse influences have led variety of own music. hamasaki began commissioning remixes of songs in career, , practice influenced diversity of music. found on many of records, these remixes span different genres of electronic dance music including eurobeat, house, , trance, acoustic genres such classical , traditional chinese music. has employed western japanese musicians; among has worked above & beyond, lamoureux orchestra of france, , traditional chinese music ensemble princess china music orchestra. hamasaki has released more hundred original songs; through them, has covered wide range of musical styles, such dance, metal, r&b, progressive rock, pop, , classical. uses different instruments , techniques including piano, orchestra, gospel choirs, guitars, traditional japanese strings, music boxes, , effects such yells, claps, , scratching.

hamasaki s live performances lavish productions use grand-scale props . performances of mirrorcle world in 2008 tour of asia used floating ship.

hamasaki involved in artistic direction of music videos. artistic productions through hamasaki tries convey meaning or feeling of respective songs. themes of videos varied; has made sad , fragile or emotional videos ( momentum , endless sorrow ), refreshing summer videos ( blue bird , fairyland ), surreal or scary videos ( 1 love , marionette ), , humorous videos ( evolution , angel s song , beautiful fighters ). additionally, many of videos contain short storylines, of use symbolism convey respective messages. video of voyage depicts hamasaki woman in mental hospital previous incarnation woman in feudal japan sacrificed moon; video of endless sorrow features young boy living in society speaking forbidden law. in video free & easy , hamasaki portrayed twenty-first-century joan of arc convey message freedom cannot obtained; there price pay , express opposition marrying @ time; video ourselves featured masked people destroying effigies of [hamasaki s] past such photographs , album covers symbolize destruction , rebirth. additionally, videos of fairyland , name s women , jewel , green , , virgin road among top twenty or expensive music videos, making hamasaki non-american artist hold such distinction. hamasaki involved in production , artistic direction of live performances; they, videos, lavish productions , use variety of props, extravagant costumes, , choreographed dances. has used large video screens, fireworks, simulated rain drops, trick stage floors, , suspended devices.

public image

hamasaki s influence goes beyond music; considered fashion icon , trend-setter, status attributed tight control on image. besides frequent appearances in fashion magazines, such vivi, popteen, , cawaii!, hamasaki has been lauded trendy choices in apparels , accessories; oricon has repeatedly named fashionable female artist . many aspects of japan s fashions—including clothing, hair, nails, , accessories—have in way been influenced her. music, trends hamasaki started have spread asian countries taiwan, china, , singapore. among trends hamasaki has started hime-kei (a inspired fashions of 18th century french aristocracy); has heavily influenced kogal subculture. hamasaki s changing image apparent not in fashion photo shoots , commercial endorsements in record covers, element considers essential in conveying message. has portrayed herself vine-clad peace muse or greek goddess (on album am...), twenty-first-century joan of arc (for single free & easy ), , funky lolita . though hamasaki has portrayed herself in earlier releases girl next door , has adopted more sexualized image since release of loveppears. covers records including loveppears, am..., rainbow, , party queen feature hamasaki in states of partial nudity, has generated controversy. hamasaki garnered criticism after modeled bra lingerie manufacturer wacoal, though of criticism alleged hamasaki trying play catch-up kumi koda, gained popularity overtly sexual image.

hamasaki has accepted offers numerous brands endorse products. throughout career under avex, has promoted products ranged electronics (tu-ka cell phones , panasonic) various snack foods. among products has advertised on television honda crea scooter, kosÉ cosmetics, mister donut donuts, , boss coffee. serving background music television advertisements, of hamasaki s songs have been used themes video games, television shows , motion pictures, such onimusha: dawn of dreams, inuyasha, shinobi: heart under blade , tales of xillia. although hamasaki supported exploitation of popularity commercial purposes, saying necessary [she is] viewed product , opposed avex s decision market product rather person .

cite error: there <ref group=fn> tags on page, references not show without {{reflist|group=fn}} template (see page).