Namie Amuro is a retired Japanese singer. She rose to prominence as a teen idol, and transitioned into a leading pop artist due to her versatility across music styles and visual presentation. Due to her career reinventions and longevity, she is known as an icon across Japan and Asia. She has been referred to as the "Queen of Japanese Pop", and her influence domestically has drawn equivalent comparisons to artists such as Janet Jackson and Madonna in Western pop culture.
Tetsuya Komuro is a Japanese musician, songwriter and record producer. He is recognized as the most successful producer in Japanese music history and has introduced contemporary electronic dance music to the Japanese mainstream. He was also a former owner of the disco Velfarre located in Roppongi, Tokyo.
Globe was a dance-oriented Japanese pop band, formed in 1995 by the producer and songwriter Tetsuya Komuro. Originally consisting of Komuro, Keiko Yamada and Marc Panther, the group's singles consistently entered the charts. In late 2002, Yoshiki, the drummer and pianist оf X Japan, joined the group, but he left the band about a year later.
Love Enhanced Single Collection is the second greatest hits album by Japanese singer Namie Amuro under the Avex Trax label. The album covers 11 of the 12 singles she released after returning from a one-year maternity leave in 1998. The album excludes the single "Toi et Moi" which can only be found on its retailed single. The single was also excluded from her Genius 2000 album.
Break the Rules is the fifth studio album by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro, released on December 20, 2000, through Avex Trax. It was released only 11 months after her previous album Genius 2000 (2000), and was her final album to date with her long-time producer Tetsuya Komuro, the album generally receive positive reviews by the critics, it was the shortlisted the Asia Association Music Prize Award.
Genius 2000 is the fourth studio album by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro, released on January 26, 2000, through Avex Trax. The album was released three years after her last album, Concentration 20 (1997), and was produced by Tetsuya Komuro and Dallas Austin, marking her first collaboration with an American producer, the album spawned four singles: "I Have Never Seen", "Respect the Power of Love", "Something 'bout the Kiss" and "Love 2000".
Concentration 20 is the third studio album by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released July 24, 1997, by Avex Trax. The album's genre is a fusion of styles including pop, dance, rock, reggae and ska. Unlike Amuro's previous effort, Sweet 19 Blues, which primarily had lyrics written by Tetsuya Komuro, Concentration 20's lyrics were mostly written by Marc Panther. Komuro did, however, compose and arrange most of the album's songs and wrote the lyrics to three of them. It was Namie's second solo album since splitting up with Super Monkey's.
Sweet 19 Blues is the second studio album by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro. The album was released in four different slipcases, with the first three cases limited to 1,000,000 copies each—were put on sale on July 20, 1996, throughout Japan, and were distributed two days later to the rest of Asia by Avex Trax. The album was primarily handled by Japanese producer Tetsuya Komuro, with the assistance of Cozy Kubo, Akio Togashi, Takahiro Maeda, M.C.A.T. and Randy Waldman. Sweet 19 Blues is considered her debut solo album since it was released after her spilt with Super Monkey's.
"Can You Celebrate?" is the ninth single by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro. Serving as the second single from her third studio album Concentration 20, it was released on February 19, 1997, by Avex Trax. Its lyrics and composition was handled solely by Tetsuya Komuro. Musically, "Can You Celebrate?" is a power ballad with influences of gospel and classical music. "Can You Celebrate" is history's best-selling single by a female Japanese soloist, with sales of 2,296,200 copies. Additionally, it is ranked as the 14th best selling single of all time in the history of the Oricon Singles Chart.
"A Walk in the Park" is the eighth single by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro from her third studio album Concentration 20 (1997). The song was released as the album's lead single on November 27, 1996. It was written, composed and produced by Tetsuya Komuro. The song is a dance track, which features instrumentation from guitars, synthesizers, organs, keyboards and drums. "A Walk in the Park" and "Can You Celebrate?" were both theme songs for Maxell UD commercials and Whisper was used as the background music for the Maxell MD74 commercial.
"You're My Sunshine" is the sixth single by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released on June 5, 1996, by Avex Trax and was produced by Tetsuya Komuro. The song was the image song for the Bristol-Myers Squibb "Sea Breeze '96" commercial in which she appeared. The version used in the initial commercial had a different tempo and tune from the CD package version. The following year, 1997, she was used for the second consecutive year in a "Sea Breeze" commercial, this time using her hit song "How to Be a Girl".
"Body Feels Exit" is Namie Amuro's debut solo single on the Avex Trax label. Released nine days after her only album with former label, Toshiba-EMI, "Body Feels Exit" debuted in the top three on the Oricon chart and would be her first of 24 consecutive top-ten solo singles.
"Chase the Chance" is the fourth single by Japanese singer Namie Amuro from her second studio album, Sweet 19 Blues (1996). It was released as the album's second single on December 4, 1995, through Avex Trax.
"Dreaming I was Dreaming" is Namie Amuro's eleventh single on the Avex Trax label. Released after the announcement of her pregnancy and marriage to SAM of the group, TRF, it debuted at #1 on December 8, 1997. The single does not appear on any of Amuro's original albums but does appear on her first compilation album, 181920 (1998). The song samples the T. Rex song "Liquid Generation". It was her last original single before taking a year leave in 1998. The single was certified double platinum by the RIAJ for 800,000 copies shipped to stores.
"I Have Never Seen" is the 12th single by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released by Avex Trax on December 23, 1998, as the lead single to her fourth studio album Genius 2000 (2000). The song was written and composed solely by Tetsuya Komuro. It was the first single released after Amuro's return from her yearlong maternity leave, and was released approximately one week before her well-publicized official comeback at the 49th NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen.
"Love 2000" is Namie Amuro's 15th single on the Avex Trax label. First pressing privileges came with a bonus remix of the title track. The same remix was later included on a vinyl single released two months after the CD version, as their fourth and final single Genius 2000, Released in Japan on New Year's Day, the single debuted at #4 becoming her 15th consecutive top 10 solo single. The single was certified platinum for 400,000 copies shipped.
Never End is the 17th single by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro, released on July 12, 2000, as the lead single from her 5th studio album Break the Rules. The track was made specifically for the G8 Summit that took place in Amuro's home prefecture Okinawa during July of that year. The single reached #2 on the Oricon Singles Chart and charted for 14 weeks, becoming Amuro's 16th consecutive top 10 solo single. "Never End" was Amuro's last CD single to premiere with over 100,000 copies in sales until "60s 70s 80s" in 2008.
"Please Smile Again" is Namie Amuro's 17th solo single on the Avex Trax label. Although the single "Think of Me / No More Tears" (2001) was slated to be released in December, it was pushed back until the next year making "Please Smile Again" the last single to precede her 4th studio album, Break the Rules (2000). It was certified gold for 200,000 copies shipped to stores.
The 38th Annual Japan Record Awards took place on December 31, 1996, starting at 6:30PM JST. The primary ceremonies were televised in Japan on TBS.
Finally is the seventh and final compilation album by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released on November 8, 2017, by Dimension Point in three physical formats, alongside limited edition goods. Additionally, Finally is also Amuro's final musical release before she retired from the music industry on September 16, 2018.
