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.
Queen of Hip-Pop is the seventh studio album by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro. It was released on July 13, 2005, by Avex Trax. The album's lyrical content, composing and arrangement was handled by multiple music collaborators, such as Nao'ymt, Sugi-V, Michico, Tricky Stewart, T.Kura, among many others. It is her second full-length urban contemporary record, and is made up of songs of various musical genres. Amuro uses the term "hip-pop" to describe the music on the album because it fuses pop music with other genres including R&B and hip-hop music. Three different formats were released to promote the album: a standalone CD, a limited edition Playbutton, and a digital download.
Sweet 19 Blues is the second studio album by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released through Avex Trax on July 22, 1996. It is Amuro's first release with the label since leaving Toshiba-EMI, as well as her first album free of material associated with her previous band, Super Monkey's. Sweet 19 Blues was executive produced by Tetsuya Komuro and features a diverse group of collaborators, including Cozy Kubo, Akio Togashi, Takahiro Maeda, M.c.A.T, and Randy Waldman.
"White Light" is a song by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released by Avex Trax in Japan on November 16, 2005, as a double A-single with "Violet Sauce". "White Light" was supposed to promote Amuro's eighth studio album Play (2007), but it was scrapped from the final track list. Instead, an alternative version of "Violet Sauce" appeared. A demo version of the song was sent to Amuro, who decided it needed a warmer tone and reworked it as a Christmas song. It was modified by Nao'ymt, the song's sole composer, producer, and writer. Musically, it's a midtempo Christmas song with lyrics about love and holiday festivities.
"Girl Talk" is a song by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. Avex Trax released it on digital and physical formats on October 14, 2004, and it is the third single from Amuro's seventh studio album, Queen of Hip-Pop (2005). It was also released as a double A-side with "The Speed Star", though the latter did not appear on the parent album. "Girl Talk" was written and produced by T.Kura and Michico, and is a dance song with R&B and pop influences that, like its parent album, transitions from Amuro's original dance sound to a more mature yet transatlantic sound.
"60s 70s 80s" is a triple A-side single by Japanese singer Namie Amuro from her third greatest hits album, Best Fiction (2008). It was released on March 12, 2008, through Avex Trax and consists of the songs "New Look," "Rock Steady" and "What a Feeling," each sampling from a specific decade in music, hence the title. "New Look" represents the 1960's and features a sample from The Supremes' "Baby Love." "Rock Steady" represents the 1970's and features a sample from Aretha Franklin's song "Rock Steady." The last song, "What a Feeling" represents the 1980's and features samples from Irene Cara's "Flashdance... What a Feeling," which was the theme for the 1983 film Flashdance.
Best Fiction is the third greatest hits album by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released on July 30, 2008, by Avex Trax and features seventeen singles released between 2002-2008, which included five new songs, three of which were released as a triple A-side single called "60s 70s 80s." Furthermore, the album tracks "Do Me More" and "Sexy Girl" were released as digital singles.
"Wild" is a song by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released by Avex Trax on March 16, 2009, and serves as the lead single for her ninth studio album, Past<Future (2009). Furthermore, all physical and digital formats included the A-side titled "Dr.," which appears on the parent album. Amuro intended to depart from her previous releases with "Wild" and "Dr.", her first forays into new material. Michico, T. Kura, and Nao'ymt created and produced "Wild," which was recorded at Tokyo's Azabu-O-Studio with Ryosuke Kataoka's assistance.
Past<Future is the ninth studio album by Japanese pop singer Namie Amuro. It was released on December 16, 2009, through Avex Trax. This was her first original album to be released in two and a half years. The record came after the release of her blockbuster greatest hits album Best Fiction (2008), which sold over a million copies. Unlike her previous studio albums, Queen of Hip-Pop (2005) and Play (2007), Past<Future features a more electropop and synth-pop sound that was prevalent in the Western music charts at the time.
Checkmate! is a collaboration album by Japanese singer Namie Amuro, featuring a collection of her collaborations with other musicians released between 2003 and 2011, as well as four new collaborations. The album was released on April 27, 2011, about one month after its original release date, due to 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.
"Sit! Stay! Wait! Down! / Love Story" is an extended play by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro from her tenth studio album and debut bilingual album Uncontrolled (2012). The EP contains the songs "Sit! Stay! Wait! Down!" and "Love Story" from the parent album and two new tracks "Higher" and "Arigatou". The EP was produced by Michico, T. Kura, Miriam Nervo, Olivia Nervo, T-SK, Tesung Kim, and Nao'ymt, and is divided into two dance-pop songs and two pop ballads.
Uncontrolled is the tenth studio album by Japanese pop and R&B musician Namie Amuro, released on June 27, 2012. This marks Amuro's first original album in two and a half years since her last album Past<Future (2009) and her first original album for her 20th anniversary of her debut. It was released in three formats: CD+DVD, CD and Playbutton. Uncontrolled consists mostly of songs sung in Japanese, however this was the first album of Amuro's to feature several songs sung entirely in English. "Go Round" and "Yeah-Oh" are songs with entirely English lyrics, and are included under the titles "Go Round " and "Singing "Yeah-Oh!"" respectively. The new songs "In The Spotlight (Tokyo)," "Hot Girls" and "Only You" are also include entirely English lyrics.
Ballada is the sixth compilation by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro. It was released by Dimension Point on June 4, 2014 in three physical formats, and for digital consumption. It works as a concept album that compiles ballads released during her time with Avex Trax, including three re-worked tracks. Additionally, the album features its only single "Tsuki". Upon its release, Ballada received positive reviews from music critics, most whom praised Amuro's maturity and vocals, alongside the re-worked tracks.
Genic is the twelfth studio album by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released on various physical and digital formats on June 10, 2015 by Amuro’s label Dimension Point, and serves as the singers final studio album before her retirement in September 2018. Amuro began working on the album in 2014 and received over 200 demo recordings from her team, which included a diverse group of collaborators. Finally, she chose tracks based on their introductions and what was trending in music at the time.
"Brighter Day" is a song by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro. Released as a single on November 12, 2014 by Amuro's label Dimension Point through Avex Trax, the release contained the B-sides "Sweet Kisses", and "Still Lovin' You". It received mixed reviews from music critics; many commended Amuro's vocal abilities while some criticized the song's composition and production. Charted as a single on the Japanese Oricon Singles Chart, it reached number eight, becoming her lowest chart single since "Alarm" which peaked at eleven. The title track was certified platinum by Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for digital sales of 250,000 and all three tracks charted on the Japan Hot 100.
"Dear Diary" is a song by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. Dimension Point released it as a double A-side single with "Fighter" on October 26, 2016. Furthermore, it serves as the fourth single from Amuro's seventh greatest hits album and final music release, Finally (2017). Both served as themes songs for the 2016 Japanese live-action film Death Note: Light Up the New World, which was inspired by the manga series Death Note. Takahiro Sato, the film's co-producer, approached Amuro about providing theme songs to help her music gain international exposure. "Dear Diary" was written by Matthew Tishler, Felicia Barton, Aaron Benward, and Tiger, and produced by Tishler. Frequent collaborator Emyli provided backing vocals to the track.
Finally is the seventh greatest hits album by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released in a variety of formats by her label Dimension Point on November 8, 2017, and was later distributed to other markets in Asia. It is the singer's final music release upon announcing her retirement from the entertainment industry in September 2018.
MiSaMo is the first sub-unit of the South Korean girl group Twice formed by JYP Entertainment. The group consists of Twice's Japanese members, Momo, Sana, and Mina. They debuted in 2023 with the extended play Masterpiece.
Masterpiece is the debut extended play by MiSaMo, a sub unit of girl group Twice. It was released by Warner Music Japan on July 26, 2023. The EP contains seven tracks, including the lead single "Do Not Touch" and pre-released single "Marshmallow".
Namie Amuro 5 Major Domes Tour was a concert tour by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro, held in celebration of her 20th anniversary of debut with the Super Monkey's. It spanned eight shows at five domes across Japan from November to December 2012, and attracted around 340,000 people.
