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My Story (Ayumi Hamasaki album)

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My Story
Ayumi Hamasaki lying down, looking into the camera, with her arms behind her head. On the bottom left is written "MY STORY" in pink text.
Studio album by
ReleasedDecember 15, 2004 (2004-12-15)
Recorded2004
GenrePop, pop rock
Length74:37
LabelAvex Trax
ProducerMax Matsuura
Ayumi Hamasaki chronology
Memorial Address
(2003)
My Story
(2004)
(Miss)understood
(2006)
Singles from My Story
  1. "Moments"
    Released: March 31, 2004
  2. "Inspire"
    Released: July 28, 2004
  3. "Carols"
    Released: September 29, 2004
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Stylus MagazineB+[2]

My Story (Stylized in all caps) is the sixth studio album by Japanese singer-songwriter Ayumi Hamasaki, released on December 15, 2004, by Avex Trax. The album's lyrics were written in their entirety by Hamasaki herself, with composition on the album handled by a team of composers including Kazuhito Kikuchi, Bounceback, Tetsuya Yukumi, and, on some songs, Hamasaki, under the pen name Crea.

Lead single "Moments" was released on March 31, 2004, to positive reviews from critics, who praised its rock influences. It was a commercial success too, debuting at number one, selling over 300,000 copies, and receiving a platinum certification. The second single, "Inspire", was successful as well, reaching number one and being certified platinum; it sold over 329,000 units, becoming the highest-selling single from My Story. Similarly, "Carols" topped the charts in Japan and was certified Platinum.

My Story was positively received by critics, who appreciated its aggressive style compared to Western pop music at the time and its alternative sound. A commercial success, it became Hamasaki's sixth consecutive number-one album in Japan, debuting at the top spot with first week sales of 574,321 copies. In its 43-week chart run, My Story sold 1,132,444 copies and became the seventh best-selling album of the year in Japan. Combined with the sales of its three singles, My Story sold 2,073,640 copies which makes it the 222nd best-selling album in Japan of all time.

Background

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By the end of her 2004 arena tour, Hamasaki became dissatisfied with her position at Avex. She felt that the company was treating her as a product rather than a human being and artist. After her two previous efforts, I Am… and Rainbow, which she felt had been rushed, Hamasaki decided that on her next record she would not write to "give people hope" or write "something good"; instead, she simply wrote "freely and honestly" with no set theme. These writing sessions resulted in autobiographical lyrics, exploring Hamasaki's own emotions and reminisces about her career. The music of My Story reflects the free theme of the lyrics; its noticeable rock overtones expressed Hamasaki's liking for rock music. Pleased with its sound, Hamasaki declared that My Story was the first album of her career with which she felt truly satisfied.

Promotion

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The album includes the three singles: "Moments", "Inspire", and "Carols". During its first release, four different limited edition covers were released for fans to choose from. There were also two versions released, the first that included the CD only and a second that included a DVD that contained music videos to some (including the singles) of the tracks from the album. For promotional purposes, Ayumi Hamasaki Arena Tour 2005 A: My Story was scheduled from January to April. During the concert tour, My Story was released again in two more formats, SACD and in DVD Audio. All of the lyrics on the album were written by Hamasaki and three of the tracks, "Wonderland", "Winding Road" and "Humming 7/4", were composed by her under the pen name "Crea". It topped the Oricon charts for several weeks (the Japanese equivalent of Billboard). It is currently certified four times platinum in Japan. My Story is the 222nd best-selling album in Japan to date.[3]

Since the single "Moments", her singles have been released in at least two versions, CD and CD+DVD format. "Carols" featured four versions of the single: CD, CD+DVD, SACD, and DVD Audio.

Track listing

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All lyrics are written by Ayumi Hamasaki

CD
No.TitleMusicArranger(s)Length
1."Catcher in the Light"CMJKCMJK2:44
2."About You"Kazuhito Kikuchitasuku3:58
3."Game"BouncebackHΛL4:11
4."My Name's Women"BouncebackHΛL5:38
5."Wonderland" (instrumental)CREA[Note 1]Ayumi Hamasaki1:34
6."Liar"Raita IkemotoCMJK+Takahiro Izutani4:58
7."Hope or Pain"Tetsuya YukumiCMJK4:19
8."Happy Ending"Tetsuya YukumiCMJK4:42
9."Moments"Tetsuya YukumiHikari5:29
10."Walking Proud"Tetsuya YukumiHikari5:14
11."Carols"Tomoya KinoshitaCMJK5:29
12."Kaleidoscope" (instrumental)HΛLHΛL1:49
13."Inspire"Tetsuya YukumiHΛL4:31
14."Honey"Tetsuya YukumiHΛL5:10
15."Replace"Kazuhito KikuchiHΛL5:05
16."Winding Road"Ayumi HamasakiHikari5:02
17."Humming 7/4"Ayumi HamasakiKotaro Kubota4:25
DVD
No.TitleDirectorLength
1."Moments" (Video Clip)Tetsuo Inoue5:38
2."Inspire" (Video Clip)Tetsuo Inoue5:37
3."Game" (Video Clip)Hideaki Sunaga4:23
4."Carols" (Video Clip)Masashi Muto6:15
5."About You" (Video Clip)Hideaki Sunaga4:02
6."Walking Proud" (Video Clip)Ken Sueda5:41
7."Humming 7/4" (Video Clip)Wataru Takeishi4:40
8."Moments" (Making Off-Shot)Tetsuo Inoue5:33
9."Inspire" (Making Off-Shot)Tetsuo Inoue5:01
10."Game" (Making Off-Shot)Hideaki Sunaga4:19
11."Carols" (Making Off-Shot)Masashi Muto5:49
Total length:56:58

My Story Classical

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My Story Classical is a compilation with classical versions of the songs from Ayumi Hamasaki's album My Story. My Story Classical was released on March 24, 2005. Most of the tracks were recorded with the Lamoureux Orchestra of France.

Charts

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Sales and certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ)[7] Million 1,200,000[6]

Singles

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Date Title Peak position Weeks Sales
March 21, 2004 "Moments" 1 21 weeks 370,000
July 8, 2004 "Inspire" 1 15 weeks 390,000
September 29, 2004 "Carols" 1 14 weeks 375,000

Release history

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Region Date Format Catalogue number
Japan December 15, 2004 CD+DVD AVCD-17610/B
CD AVCD-17611
SACD AVGD-17676
DVD Audio AVAD-91300
Taiwan December 17, 2004
Hong Kong December 30, 2004
China February 6, 2005 CD+DVD
CD AVTCD-95793C
  • AVJCD-10220C
  • SCD-771
South Korea August 4, 2005

Notes

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  1. ^ Crea is the pseudonym of Ayumi Hamasaki.

References

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  1. ^ Yeung, Neil Z. "My Story – Ayumi Hamasaki". AllMusic. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  2. ^ Love, Josh (January 21, 2005). "Hamasaki Ayumi – My Story". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on February 13, 2005. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
  3. ^ 歴代アルバムランキング
  4. ^ a b 浜崎あゆみのリリース一覧 [List of Ayumi Hamasaki's Releases]. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved August 17, 2014.
  5. ^ "RIAS Regional Album Rankings". RIAS. Archived from the original on February 6, 2005. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  6. ^ "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」" [Oricon Ranking Information Service 'You Big Tree']. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  7. ^ "Japanese album certifications – Ayumi Hamasaki – Secret" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Select 2004年12月 on the drop-down menu