Best: First Things | ||||
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Greatest hits album by | ||||
Released | September 21, 2005 | |||
Recorded | 2000–2005 | |||
Genre | ||||
Label | Rhythm Zone | |||
Producer | Max Matsuura | |||
Koda Kumi chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
Singles from Best:First Things | ||||
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Best:First Things (stylised as Best ~first things~) is the debut greatest hits album by Japanese singer Koda Kumi. Rhythm Zone released it in a variety of formats on September 21,2005. The album is divided into two discs,each containing a single released by Koda between her 2000 debut with "Take Back" and her most recent single,"Hot Stuff" in 2005. The second disc contains four new singles:"Butterfly","Flower","Promise",and "Star",as well as a bonus track,the solo version of "The Meaning of Peace".
CDJournal,a Japanese music magazine,praised Best:First Things for highlighting Koda's musical repertoire and vocal performance. It debuted at number one on the Oricon Albums Chart and charted for more than 150 weeks. The Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) certified the album double million for exceeding two million units sold,and holds as Koda's best-selling album. Before embarking on her 2005 First Things concert tour in Japan,Koda hosted a special event at Shibuya Station in which fans recreated the dress she wore on the album's cover.
Best:First Things is Koda's first greatest hits album,including all of her singles from "Take Back" (2000) to her most recent single,"Hot Stuff" with KM-Markit. [1] The decision to release this album was made at the suggestion of the staff. [2] Koda herself said that the release of a best album was not in her mind at the time and that she did not realize that 18 singles had been released so far. [2] She said in an interview at the time of the release that she wanted people to enjoy listening to her old songs and to know the old Kumi Koda as well. [2] Looking back on her activities,Koda stated that this greatest hits album is not a milestone,but that the timing of its release was right. [2] Rena Koyanagi remastered each song on Best:First Things,which was executive produced by Max Matsuura. [1] The album is divided into two discs and has a total of 23 songs. The first disc includes a new song called "No Tricks," and the second disc includes four new singles:"Butterfly","Flower","Promise",and "Star",as well as a bonus track,the solo version of "The Meaning of Peace." [1]
Rhythm Zone released Best:First Things in a variety of formats on September 21,2005. [1] The standard release included two discs of material and came in a large jewel case. The DVD version included music videos for all of the album's songs except "No Tricks," "1000 no Kotoba," "Flower," and "Star." [1] First-press DVD editions included a promotional video for Best:First Things,while standard first-press editions included a slipcase and an additional booklet. [3] Rhythm Zone later distributed the album across Asia,including China,South Korea,and Taiwan. [4]
On the eve of the release of the best collection,a huge poster with Koda's cleavage exposed was displayed in front of the glass curtain wall of the Q-FRONT building in Tokyo's Shibuya Station. [5] A special event was held to find five of the 30 spots where Koda's signature posters were hidden in the neighborhood and enter a drawing for a chance to win specially made idol merchandise. [5] On September 21,2005,Koda held a cosplay event at Shibuya Station to promote the album,with fans replicating the dress she wore on the cover;winners received either a signed copy of the album or Kumi's debut concert DVD, Secret First Class Limited Live (2005). [6] Before the release of the album,Koda said she would be a club Mama-san for a day if the album could break the one million sales mark. [7] Later,after the album surpassed one million sales,a one-day “Club Koda”was held at a club in Ginza on November 25,2005,where Koda as a Mama-san entertained 100 guests,including three fans. [7] To support the album,Koda went on to tour throughout Japan with her First Things concert tour in 2005. The tour was recorded at Osaka-jōHall and released as a live DVD on September 13,2006. [8]
On June 22,2005,Rhythm Zone released the lead single "Butterfly" to promote the album. The single's physical and digital editions include the B-sides "Your Sunshine" and "Taisetsu na kimi e," as well as instrumental versions and a music video for "Butterfly". [9] The single was commercially successful,peaking at number two on the Oricon Singles Chart. [10] The Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) certified it in three categories:triple platinum for over 750,000 ringtone downloads,platinum for over 250,000 cellphone downloads,and gold for more than 100,000 units sold in Japan. [11] [12]
"Flower" was released as the album's second single on August 10,2005. The single's physical and digital versions contain both an acoustic and instrumental version of the song. [13] The single achieved commercial success,peaking at number four on the Oricon Singles Chart. [14] The RIAJ certified it twice:gold for 100,000 physical units and double platinum for 500,000 ringtone downloads. [15] [12]
On September 7,2005,"Promise" and "Star" were released as a double A-side,becoming the third and final single from the album. Each track and its instrumental version are available in physical and digital formats,along with a DVD containing music videos for both songs. [16] The single achieved commercial success,peaking at number four on the Oricon Singles Chart. [17] The single was certified gold by the RIAJ,and "Promise" sold over 500,000 ringtone and 100,000 cellphone downloads. [18] [12]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
CDJournal | (positive) [19] |
CDJournal,a Japanese music publication,praised Best:First Things for highlighting Koda's music catalogue and vocal performance,calling the album "gorgeous". [19] The album and its content have received numerous accolades since its release;Koda won her first award at the 47th Japan Record Awards for "Butterfly" on December 31,2005,and was awarded the Triple Crown at the Japan Gold Disc Awards on March 10,2006,for winning three awards:Pop Artist of the Year,Pop Album of the Year for Best:First Things,and Music Video of the Year for "Butterfly". [20] [21] She won Best Female Video and Video of the Year for "Butterfly" at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards Japan. [22]
Best:First Things achieved commercial success in Japan. The album debuted at number two on the Oricon Albums Chart,selling 558,916 copies in its first week,being blocked from number one by Mr. Children's I ♥U . [23] The album topped the chart the following week,selling 195,290 copies on its second charting week,making it her first number-one album. [24] [25] It became the sixth best-selling album in Japan in 2005,selling over 1.207 million copies,and was the highest-selling album of the year for a female artist. [26] The album went on to sell an additional 642,842 copies in 2006 making it the seventeenth best-selling album of that year. [27] The Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) certified the album double million for sales exceeding two million units in April 2006,making it her highest-selling album to date. [28] According to Oricon,Best:First Things has sold 1,916,661 copies across Japan. [29]
Koda revealed in her lifestyle book Koda Reki (2011) that the Best:First Things era,as well as her experiences throughout 2005,were her career highlights,thanking her family and fans for emphasising Koda's Ero-Kawaii aesthetic,which was noted in various Japanese publications at the time. [30]
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
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1. | "No Tricks" |
| Daisuke Imai | 4:31 |
2. | "Take Back" | Koda | Kazuhito Kikuchi | 4:55 |
3. | "Trust Your Love" | Koda | Kikuchi | 4:27 |
4. | "Color of Soul" | Natsumi Watanabe | Miki Watanabe | 4:28 |
5. | "So Into You" | Koda | Yasuhiro Abe | 4:32 |
6. | "Love Across the Ocean" | Koda | Tsukasa | 3:37 |
7. | "Maze" | Kenn Kato | Hiroo Yamaguchi | 4:04 |
8. | "Real Emotion" | Kenn Kato | Kazuhiro Hara | 3:59 |
9. | "1000 no Kotoba" | Kazushige Nojima |
| 5:58 |
10. | "Come With Me" | Koda | h-wonder | 4:46 |
11. | "Gentle Words" | Kenn Kato | D.A.I | 3:44 |
12. | "Crazy 4 U" | Miki Watanabe | Miki Watanabe | 4:06 |
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Cutie Honey" | Kurodo Q. | Takeo Watanabe | 3:06 |
2. | "Chase" |
| Hara | 4:58 |
3. | "Kiseki" |
| Morimoto | 4:58 |
4. | "Selfish" | Miki Watanabe | Watanabe | 3:53 |
5. | "Hands" | Koda | Katsumi Ohnishi | 4:25 |
6. | "Hot Stuff feat. KM-MARKIT" |
| Daisuke Imai | 4:06 |
7. | "Butterfly" | Koda | Watanabe | 4:18 |
8. | "Flower" | Yoshi | Yasuo Ohtani | 4:38 |
9. | "Promise" | Koda | Daisuke Imai | 4:47 |
10. | "Star" | Koda | Kosuke Morimoto | 4:05 |
11. | "The Meaning of Peace" | Tetsuya Komuro | Komuro | 5:16 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Take Back" (Music Video) | |
2. | "Trust Your Love" (Music Video) | |
3. | "Color Of Soul" (Music Video) | |
4. | "So Into You" (Music Video) | |
5. | "Love Across the Ocean" (Music Video) | |
6. | "Maze" (Music Video) | |
7. | "Real Emotion" (Music Video) | |
8. | "Come With Me" (Music Video) | |
9. | "Gentle Words" (Music Video) | |
10. | "Crazy 4 U" (Music Video) | |
11. | "Cutie Honey" (Music Video) | |
12. | "Chase" (Music Video) | |
13. | "Kiseki" (Music Video) | |
14. | "Selfish" (Music Video) | |
15. | "Hands" (Single Version) (Music Video) | |
16. | "Hot Stuff feat. KM-Markit" (Music Video) | |
17. | "Butterfly" (Music Video) | |
18. | "Promise" (Music Video) | |
19. | "Special Mix Video from Best: First Things" (First Press Edition Bonus Clip) |
Weekly charts
Monthly charts
| Year-end charts
Decade-end charts
All-time chart
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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Japan (RIAJ) [34] | 2× Million | 1,916,661 [29] |
Region | Date | Format(s) | Label | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | September 21, 2005 | Rhythm Zone | [1] | |
China | October–November, 2005 | [4] | ||
South Korea | [4] | |||
Taiwan | [4] | |||
Various | N/A | [35] [36] | ||
"You" is a song by Japanese singer Koda Kumi, serving as her 19th single and the first to be released as part of her 12 Singles Collection. It became her first single to achieve the number one position on the weekly Oricon Singles Chart. As of April 2011, "You" is certified platinum for digital cellphone downloads by the RIAJ.
"Take Back" is a song recorded by Japanese singer-songwriter Kumi Koda, taken as her debut and lead single from her first studio album Affection (2002). It was released on December 6, 2000 via Rhythm Zone in two physical editions; a CD single and 12" vinyl. Additionally, Sounday and Orpheus Records distributed the song in North America in May 2001 with four more formats, but was remixed as a dance number by Jonathan Peters. The track was written by Koda herself, composed by Kazuhito Kikuchi and produced by Max Matsuura. The result was finalized after she had won a competition to find another artist for the Avex Trax company, which later published Rhythm Zone under Matsuura's guidance.
"Koi no Tsubomi" is a song recorded by Japanese singer Koda Kumi, serving as her 31st solo under Rhythm Zone. It was the first single to bring in the new era after Best: Second Session. The single was released in CD and CD+DVD and charted at number two on Oricon, selling over 140,000 copies in its first week and staying on the charts for 21 weeks. It became the highest selling song debut for a female artist, until Ayumi Hamasaki surpassed it with her single "Blue Bird", which came out a month later on June 21.
The discography of Japanese pop singer Koda Kumi includes 18 studio albums, 2 cover albums, 10 compilation albums, 10 remix albums, 9 live albums and 57 singles. All of her Japanese musical releases have been with Rhythm Zone, a sub-label of Avex Group.
BUT / Aishou(愛証 / Love Proof) is singer-songwriter Koda Kumi's 35th single and was released on March 14, 2007. It was her first single of 2007 and first to bring her new era, Kingdom. The single was a limited purchase, only being sold from March 2007 to May 2007. It charted No. 2 on Oricon and stayed on the charts for fourteen weeks. The single was released the same day as her third compilation album, Best ~Bounce & Lovers~, which was also of limited release.
"Freaky" is the 36th single by Japanese singer Koda Kumi, released on June 27, 2007. The single took the #1 spot on the Oricon charts, making it her fourth #1 single, and charted for fifteen weeks.
Ai no Uta(愛のうた / Song of Love) is the 37th single released by Japanese pop singer-songwriter Kumi Koda. The single was released in CD and CD+DVD, with limited editions carrying the "Urban Kiss Version" of Ai no Uta. The single was released on September 12, 2007, and followed the theme of Yume no Uta/Futari de... as an autumn/winter-time love ballad. It charted at No. 2 on Oricon and stayed on the charts for twenty-two weeks.
"Taboo" is a song by Japanese recording artist Kumi Koda, taken from her seventh studio album Trick (2009). It was written by Koda, and co-written and produced by Hiro. "Taboo" is a dance-pop song that lyrically discusses several taboo subjects including sex and homosexuality. It contains numerous elements including electropop and hip-hop, and employs use of vocoder. It was released as the second single from the album on October 8, 2008 by Rhythm Zone.
3 Splash is an EP by Japanese recording artist and songwriter Kumi Koda. It was released on 8 July 2009, by Kumi's record label, Rhythm Zone. Her fourth extended play consists of three recordings; "Lick Me", "Ecstasy" and "Hashire!", with three additional interludes. It was released in two different formats: stand-alone CD, and a CD+DVD bundle - the latter bundle was re-released with a pink-transparent CD holder. The three artworks for the EP depicts Kumi posing with the title of the work superimposed over her. The CD+DVD bundle artwork features her holding a basketball, this artwork was also used for the digital release of the EP.
Best: Third Universe is the third greatest hits album by Japanese recording artist Kumi Koda. It was released as a double album with her eighth studio album Universe on February 3, 2010 by Rhythm Zone. The greatest hits album includes singles between May 2006 "Koi no Tsubomi" and her December 2008 single "Stay with Me", with a bonus disc with newly recorded material. As a double album, it was released in four different formats; a two album bundle, a two album and DVD bundle, a two album first pressing bundle, and a two album digital release. A fifth format was released, but only featured the compilation.
Gossip Candy is an extended play by Japanese recording artist and songwriter Kumi Koda. It was released on July 7, 2010, by Koda's record label, Rhythm Zone. Koda's fifth extended play, Gossip Candy consists of five recordings; Lollipop, Inside Fishbowl, Outside Fishbowl, For You, and a cover of Got to Be Real, originally performed by Cheryl Lynn. It was released in three different formats: Digital EP, CD and CD+DVD. The CD only version was re-released as the "Dream Music Park" edition with a bonus baseball cap. The Dream Music Park concert was later released on the CD+2DVD edition of Dejavu.
Dejavu is the ninth studio album by Japanese singer-songwriter Koda Kumi. It was released on March 2, 2011, one month after her single "Pop Diva". Just like her previous albums, beginning with Best ~first things~ (2005), Dejavu topped the Oricon charts at No. 1 and remained on the charts for twenty-four weeks.
"Pop Diva" is a song recorded by Japanese musician Kumi Koda, taken as the fourth and final single from her ninth studio album Dejavu (2011). It premiered on February 2, 2011 by Rhythm Zone and Avex Music Creative Inc. in two physical formats and for digital consumption. The song was written, composed, arranged and produced by musical artist Lil' Showy, making it one of few tracks from Dejavu to not be written by Koda.
Japonesque is the tenth studio album by Japanese recording artist Kumi Koda. It was released on January 25, 2012 by Rhythm Zone. It was also released just a little under a year after her 2011 album, Dejavu. Japonesque marks Koda's tenth consecutive studio album to be produced by Japanese producer and manager Max Matsuura, amongst many other producers, while she contributes to the album as the lead vocalist, background vocalist, and songwriter to majority of the songs. Recorded in Japanese with minor phrases in English language, Japonesque is a Japanese pop album with numerous musical elements such as dance music, R&B, electronica, and rock music.
"Go to the Top" is a song recorded by Japanese recording artist Kumi Koda for her eleventh studio album, Bon Voyage (2012). It premiered on October 24, 2012 as the lead single from the album. The song was written by Kumi, while production was handled by Clarabell. It was used as the opening theme song for the Âge–developed anime series Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse. Musically, the track was described as an electronic dance song with elements of 8-bit music, dance-pop, and dubstep.
Bon Voyage is the eleventh studio album by Japanese recording artist Kumi Koda. It was released on February 26, 2014, by Rhythm Zone. Bon Voyage is Koda's first album since her 2012 Japonesque, and her longest album in production since her 2008 studio album Kingdom. The album's production was handled by several music producers, such as Joseph Lawrence, Toby Gad, T-Sk, Mats Lie Skare, Figge Bosstrom, Tommy Henriksen, Badur Haberg, and Clarabell. It also features guest appearances from Sean Paul and OVDS. Five different formats were released to promote the album: a standalone CD, a CD and DVD bundle, a CD and Blu-ray bundle, a fan package featuring a live DVD, and a digital release in Japan.
"Trust Your Love" is a song recorded by Japanese singer-songwriter Koda Kumi and was used as the second single from her debut album Affection (2002). It was released on May 9, 2001 via Rhythm Zone in two physical editions: a CD single and 12" vinyl. Additionally, Sounday and Orpheus Records distributed the song in North America with the same formats, but was remixed as a dance number by Hex Hector. The song was written by Kumi herself, whilst composing and production was handled by Kikuchi Kazuhito and Max Matsuura respectively. Musically, it is an R&B song that incorporates synthesizers and keyboards, and describes two lovers believing in each other.
Summer of Love is the sixth greatest hits album by Japanese singer-songwriter Kumi Koda, released on July 22, 2015 through Rhythm Zone. It follows her five previous greatest hits albums, Best: First Things (2005), Best: Second Session (2006), Best: Bounce & Lovers (2007), Out Works & Collaboration Best (2009), and Best: Third Universe/Universe (2010). The compilation was released in many different formats including a one-disc standard edition, and a two-disc CD and DVD package. The album includes three new tracks; "Ex Tape", the album's lead promotional single, "Hurricane", and "No One Else but You".
Universe is the eighth studio album by Japanese recording artist Kumi Koda. It was released as a double album with her third greatest its album Best: Third Universe on February 3, 2010, by Rhythm Zone. Beginning in early 2009 after completing two mini-concert tours, the album's production was handled by several music producers, such as Andy Dodd, Adam Watts, Figge, Tim Larsson, Tommy Henriksen, U-Key Zone, Thomas Gustafsson, and H-Wonder. It also features a guest appearance from Koda's sister and Japanese recording artist Misono. Koda contributed towards the album as the executive producer and songwriter. Universe is primarily a J-pop album with numerous elements of dance-pop, rock, R&B, electropop, and pop ballads.
E.G. Crazy is a double album by Japanese girl group E-girls. Rhythm Zone released it in various formats on January 3, 2017. Prior to the album's release, the group's management team, LDH, released a new line-up system that removed several members from E-girls; as a result, it is the first album without members Chiharu Muto and Kyoka Ichiki due to their personal departures, as well as minimal appearances by Erie Abe, who appeared as the group's DJ. Additionally, LDH president Exile Hiro produced the entire album.