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Flavor Of Life Utada Hikaru Free Mp3 Download

Flavor Of Life Utada Hikaru Free Mp3 Download 4,3/5 1912 reviews
'Flavor of Life'
Single by Hikaru Utada
from the album Heart Station
ReleasedFebruary 28, 2007
FormatCD, Digital Download
Recorded2006
GenreSynthpop(original version)
Pop, R&B(ballad version)
Length4:47
LabelEMI Music Japan
Songwriter(s)Hikaru Utada
Producer(s)Utada
Hikaru Utada singles chronology
'Boku wa Kuma'
(2006)		'Flavor of Life'
(2007)		'Kiss & Cry'
(2007)
  1. Flavor Of Life Utada Hikaru Free Mp3 Download Songs Free Music Downloads
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Download Hikaru Utada mp3. Hikaru Utada download high quality complete mp3 albums. The flavor of life The flavor of life: Lyrics from Animelyrics.com 'Thank you', when you say that to me, it's somehow painful 'See you', even after that, the magic is not broken, it's faintly bittersweet The Flavor Of Life, The Flavor Of Life: Lyrics from Animelyrics.com Tomodachi demo koibito demo nai chuukan chiitende.

'Flavor of Life' is Hikaru Utada's 18th Japanese single (25th single overall). The physical single was officially released on February 28, 2007.

Compared to the preceding singles following 'Colors', 'Flavor of Life' garnered far more success. This single is Utada's first single since 2003 to sell over 200,000 copies in its first week, the first single ever to sell over two million downloads before a physical format release, the first single to sell over five and a half million downloads total, the first single to top RIAJ downloads for three consecutive months, and the first song to be certified platinum for PC downloads in Japan. 'Flavor Of Life' has become the highest selling Japanese download single of all time, with over 5,580,000 downloads by April 2007.[1] On July 19, 2007, EMI disclosed 'Flavor Of Life' as a contender for most sold digital single of all time, with over 7.7 million downloads total.[2][3][4]

There were three versions of the 'Flavor Of Life' that were released: 'Flavor Of Life', 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' and 'Flavor Of Life -antidote mix-' (a CD-only exclusive). The ballad version of 'Flavor Of Life' was arranged by Utada as well as two other professionals; the original version was arranged by Utada, and the antidote mix of the song was arranged by Alexis Smith, who provided additional arrangement for Ultra Blue tracks such as 'Keep Tryin' and 'This is Love'.[5]

The ballad version of 'Flavor Of Life' was featured as the insert song for the popular drama or dorama, 'Hana Yori Dango 2,' which averaged over 21% viewership in its timeslot.[6] In early 2006, the production team of the drama contacted Utada about an image song that would sound similar to 'First Love'. When the director wanted to express the heroine's wavering feelings, he said that, 'First Love' came into my mind', and so, a request was made to Utada.[7]

This is Utada Hikaru's first drama tie-in since 'Sakura Drops' in 2002.[7] This is also her last physical single to be released under Toshiba EMI, before the British EMI Group purchased its remaining stake in the label from the Japanese Toshiba Corporation and was rebranded as EMI Music Japan.[8]

  • 1Mass reception
  • 4Chart rankings
  • 5TV promotional performances

Mass reception[edit]

Digital success[edit]

The 45 second download of the ballad version of 'Flavor Of Life' was released as a ring tone on January 6, 2007 on Chaku-Uta. The song debuted at number 14 the Chaku-Uta ring tone download chart, a great feat for one of the largest download stores in Japan. For reference, the main theme song from Hana Yori Dango 2, Arashi's 'Love So Sweet', debuted at number 7.

On its second day of sales, 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' jumped to the number five position on the download chart, where it quickly ascended to number one.[9] On the ringtone's success alone, 'Flavor of Life -ballad version-' was able to peak at number one on not only the ring tone chart, but also composite chaku-uta download chart.

Within five days of release, it was confirmed that 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' had been downloaded as a ring tone over 100,000 times. These rapid and large sales figures only served to foreshadow the download success of the song.[10]

Indeed, the song gained a great deal of momentum. Just two weeks later on January 25, 2007, figures were released that confirmed that the 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' had sold in excess of 500,000 ring tones. 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' had spent over a week at number two, as well as a week at number one on the real tone chart by this point.[11]

On January 26, 2007, three more versions of the 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' ring tone were released.[12] These were the '2nd Chorus Version,' 'Bridge Version,' and 'Last Chorus Version.' With the release of these new ring tones came the 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-'s re-emergence at number one on the Chaku-Uta ring tone download chart.

'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' was certified three times platinum for the month of January for sales of over 750,000, and peaked at number one on RIAJ's monthly ring tone download chart for January 2007.[13]

By February 5, 2007, over a million ring tones had been downloaded, and it was forecasted that the number of downloads would in fact increase as the single's release date approached.[14] This prediction was soon confirmed as within the span of two weeks as 'Flavor of Life -Ballad Version-' was downloaded an additional 500,000 times, bringing its total downloads to 1.5 million.[15]

On the eve of 'Flavor Of Life's release as a physical single came the revelation that 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' had sold over 2,000,000 ring tones before its release date, a first for any song or single in Japan and worldwide.[16]

Full song downloads of 'Flavor Of Life' on Chaku-Uta, iTunes Japan and other online dealers became available on February 28, 2007. 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' debuted at number four on iTunes, but peaked at number 2 due to the original version's stay at number one.

On March 7, 2007, approximately one week after news of 2,000,000 downloads, it was confirmed that 'Flavor Of Life' had sold over a million more downloads, totaling three million downloads.[17]

On March 8, 2007, the 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' fell to number two on Chaku-Uta's composite chart to the original version. It remained at number one on ring tones and number two for full song downloads. However, by March 11, the ballad version ringtone fell to number four on ringtones, while staying at number two on the composite charts. The descent of the Ballad Version continued throughout March, as new singles were released and rose past 'Flavor of Life -ballad version-'. Still, a month after release, 'Flavor of Life -ballad version-' remained in the top ten for composite downloads on Chaku-Uta and iTunes.

In 2008, it was reported that 'Flavor of Life' had become the #2 downloaded song of 2007, surpassing Rihanna's 'Umbrella', but beaten by Avril Lavigne's 'Girlfriend'.[4]

On May 13, 2008, according to Barks.jp, digital sales for 'Flavor of Life' had reached 8 million copies, accounting for over half of the 15 million downloads for Utada's current album, 'HEART STATION'.[18]

Original version's digital emergence[edit]

On February 19, 2007, the original version of 'Flavor Of Life' was released as a ring tone as well.[citation needed] It debuted at number 45 on the Chaku-Uta download chart and rose to the top five within a week.[citation needed] As of February 27, 2007, the original version ring tone has peaked at number four.[citation needed]

Despite being overshadowed in ring tone sales, the original version outshined the ballad version in full song downloads, debuting at number three on iTunes Japan whereas the ballad version debuted at number four.[citation needed] The second day, it rose to number one, snatching the spot from the popular single by Namie Amuro, 'Baby Don't Cry'.[citation needed] 'Flavor Of Life' also rose to number one on Chaku-Uta's full song download chart, and by March 8, 2007, it had finally reached number one on Chaku-Uta's composite chart, as well.[citation needed]

Although the Ballad Version fell out of the top five on both Chaku-Uta and iTunes a month after release, the full version has stayed at number one on iTunes and in the top five on Chaku-Uta full song downloads. The Original Version went on to stay at number one at iTunes Japan until April 20, 2007, when Spitz's Lookin' For took the position.[citation needed]

Airplay[edit]

'The 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' aired on radio in Japan on January 15, 2007, the same day as the release of the PV. The song has since reached the top ten airplay rankings of various FM Japanese radio charts. On MUSIC LOUNGE radio in Japan 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-' reached the number one ranking.[19][20][21][22]

On February 19, 2007, the original version of 'Flavor Of Life' was aired on the radio. For the first week of airplay, 'Flavor Of Life' faced lower airplay than Ayaka and Kobukuro's 'WINDING ROAD', peaking at number 2 for composite FM airplay. However, 'Flavor of Life' overtook WINDING ROAD on FM airplay the next week.

Physical sales[edit]

February 28, 2007 brought the release of the single, garnering buzz on Mixi for purchases. However, some bloggers reported the single was out of stock when they checked the store. Later it was confirmed that some sellers had already begun running out of the 400,000 initially shipped singles, just before 'Flavor of Life' took number one on the Oricon dailies for February 27.[23]

Despite tough competition from break out artists Ayaka and Kobukuro, Utada was confirmed to have taken the number one position on the Oricon with only the first day sales. Oricon reportedly stated that she 'checkmated' her competition.[24]

On the second day of Flavor of Life's sales, the Oricon updated their daily charts to include indices for each day. Only a log of one week of these numbers was created, but for the known days, Utada has exceeded Arashi's 'Love So Sweet' every day. Altogether, her index total for three days came to 87,898; the actual sales for these three days was much higher. Livedoor published an article using a factor of 1.81 to determine a suitable estimate for sales; if this was true, 'Flavor Of Life' sold about 160,000 copies in just three days, outselling 'Be My Last's total sales of 150,000, which made this single her best selling since 'Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro' in only 72 hours. On the fourth day of sales, the index rebounded from 18,161 to 19,669. This single's sales rise continued for the rest of the week, once more peaking at a sales index of 23,821. The final estimate for the sales for the week was 278,930 copies sold; later on March 5, 2007, Oricon confirmed that final sales figures for the first week totaled 271,000.[25] This figure is the highest first week sales for a single from a female artist since 2003's '&' by Ayumi Hamasaki.

On the second week of physical sales, Utada's daily index sum remained ahead of the competition for every day of the week. Despite falling to number three on the day of new releases, 'Flavor Of Life' rebounded to number one on the next day and gained an increasing lead on its competition with each passing day. Utada's sales indices hovered around 10,000 each day, leading to scaled sales estimation of around 80,000 for the week by Thursday. Utada remained at number one for the rest of the week, selling a total of 140,000 for the week, and beating Yui's Cherry, Yui's best first week sales ever, for number one.

On the third week of physical sales, Utada's daily ranking was knocked down by Kumi Koda's But/Aishō and another single. Utada eventually gained the 2nd spot by the third day, and eventually reached number one, daily and weekly, outselling Koda's first week with her third week on the charts. This was the first time in four years and five months that a female artist had three consecutive weeks as number one- the last female single was Ayumi Hamasaki's Voyage. Flavor of Life became Utada's second single to have three consecutive weeks at the top of the Oricon Charts, with 光 (Hikari) being her first. On March 31, 2008, this single would also equal 2003's COLORS as her longest charting single ever, with 45 weeks to date.[26]

Promotional efforts[edit]

Utada originally alluded to this new single on December 20, 2006 through a blog entry's title.[27] This release was accompanied with a website update that revealed a February release date for this new single as well as the release of the track list.[19]The 'Flavor Of Life -ballad version-'s PV was released on January 15, 2007. The PV of the ballad version featured in-studio footage of Utada recording the song alongside a guitarist, a pianist, a cellist and various violinists.[19]

On February 1, 2007, the television performance dates of 'Flavor of Life' were released through Utada's official site.[19] The first performance aired on CDTV on February 24, 2007 and the final performance aired on Utaban on March 8, 2007. Probably due to its tie-in with Hana Yori Dango 2, the Ballad Version was performed one time more than the Original (for a total of five). There was also another official update on February 1, 2007 that revealed other media Utada would be appearing in, including radio and magazines. Her promotional schedule for these efforts would last from early February to late March.

A PV blog web page was created for 'Flavor of Life -ballad version-' on February 9, 2007.[19] 'Flavor of Life -ballad version-'s PV peaked at the number one spot on the Oricon Chart web for most searched, played, and featured PV. Utada also was the most searched artist at the time.[28] It also peaked at number one on Spaceshower TV, and for over a week, was the most downloaded PV on Chaku-Uta. The PV came in at #3 on Space Shower TV's Hot 100 Videos Year-End Rankings.[29]

There was never a PV made besides the in studio footage accompanying 'Flavor of Life -ballad version-.'

Covers[edit]

In 2014, Hanaregumi recorded the song for Utada Hikaru no Uta, a tribute album celebrating 15 years since Utada's debut.[30]

Track list[edit]

No.TitleLength
1.'Flavor of Life'4:47
2.'Flavor of Life -ballad version-'5:25
3.'Flavor of Life (original karaoke)'4:49
4.'Flavor of Life -ballad version- (original karaoke)'5:25
5.'Flavor of Life -antidote mix-'5:19

Flavor of Life -antidote mix- is a CD-only bonus track.

Chart rankings[edit]

Charts (2007)Peak
position
Oricon weekly singles[31]1
Oricon yearly singles[32]2
RIAJReco-kyō ringtones Top 100[33]
  • Ballad version
1
RIAJ Reco-kyō ringtones Top 100[34]1

Certifications and sales[edit]

ChartAmount
Oricon physical sales[35]651,000
RIAJ physical certification[36]500,000+
RIAJ ringtone downloads[37]1,000,000+
RIAJ ringtone downloads[38]
  • Ballad Version
2,000,000+
RIAJ full-length cellphone downloads[39]1,000,000+
RIAJ full-length cellphone downloads[40]
  • Ballad version
750,000+
RIAJ PC downloads[41]250,000+
RIAJ PC downloads[37]
  • Ballad version
100,000+

TV promotional performances[edit]

  • Flavor Of Life -ballad version- performances:

Flavor Of Life Utada Hikaru Free Mp3 Download Songs Free Music Downloads

  1. 02.26 – Hey! Hey! Hey! Music Champ
  2. 03.02 – Music Station
  3. 03.08 – Utaban
Flavor of life utada hikaru free mp3 download songs
  • Flavor Of Life performances:
  1. 02.24 – CDTV
  2. 03.02 – Music Fighter

See also[edit]

References[edit]

Hikaru Utada

  1. ^'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 2012-09-07. Retrieved 2015-04-18.Cite uses deprecated parameter deadurl= (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. ^IFPI:『Flavor of Life' contender for best-selling digital single
  3. ^IFPI Digital Music Report 2008
  4. ^ abAFP: Online music sales grow 40 percent in 2007: IFPIArchived April 19, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^(in Japanese)Flavor Of Life 宇多田ヒカル TOCT-40095 EMIミュージック・ジャパン CD・DVD 販売 通販 ジョーシン ディスクピアArchived January 17, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^Article on Flavor Of Life and info on Hana Yori Dango 2Archived February 7, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ ab'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 2007-01-07. Retrieved 2007-01-07.Cite uses deprecated parameter deadurl= (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. ^https://web.archive.org/web/20070929095500/http://www.emimusic.jp/company/pdf/emi20070629.pdf
  9. ^http://www.utada-online.net/forums/showthread.php?t=7972[permanent dead link]
  10. ^宇多田ヒカル、新曲が早くも大ヒットの予感！ / BARKS NEWS
  11. ^http://www.utada-online.net/forums/showthread.php?t=7972&page=6[permanent dead link]
  12. ^(in Japanese)「着うたフル」・「着うた」なら「レコ直♪」 - 楽曲検索
  13. ^(in Japanese)社団法人 日本レコード協会｜新着情報
  14. ^livedoor ニュース - 宇多田ヒカル、新曲着うたが100万件突破
  15. ^livedoor ニュース - 宇多田ヒカル、発売前に150万ダウンロード突破
  16. ^'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 2007-03-02. Retrieved 2007-02-28.Cite uses deprecated parameter deadurl= (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  17. ^http://news.livedoor.com/article/detail/3061397
  18. ^Barks.jpArchived August 29, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
  19. ^ abcde'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 2007-01-06. Retrieved 2007-01-05.Cite uses deprecated parameter deadurl= (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  20. ^(in Japanese)fmosaka.net〜FM大阪〜Archived February 10, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  21. ^(in Japanese)ヒットチャート [ソバイル..? fm fukuoka]
  22. ^(in Japanese)Music Lounge リクエストチャート
  23. ^CDが売り切れ!? 宇多田ヒカル、新曲が異常なセールス / BARKS NEWS
  24. ^(in Japanese)『花より男子2』大人気！関連シングル2週連続首位濃厚！ ニュース-ORICON STYLE
  25. ^(in Japanese)宇多田、1年5ヵ月ぶりの1位！初動売上は自身4年ぶりの20万超え！ ニュース-ORICON STYLE
  26. ^Flavor of Life - Wiki.theppnArchived February 25, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  27. ^(in Japanese)U3MUSIC INCArchived January 3, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  28. ^http://utada-online.net/forums/showthread.php?p=227870#post227870[permanent dead link]
  29. ^SPACE SHOWER TV｜スペースシャワーTV｜2007 年間 ORIGINAL CHARTArchived March 18, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  30. ^『宇多田ヒカルのうた』全貌明らかに。井上陽水、椎名林檎、浜崎あゆみ、吉井和哉ら参加アーティストコメント [All details revealed for Utada Hikar no Uta, comments from contributing artists such as Yosui Inoue, Ringo Sheena, Ayumi Hamasaki and Kazuya Yoshii.] (in Japanese). Barks. December 3, 2014. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
  31. ^'Ｆｌａｖｏｒ　Ｏｆ　Ｌｉｆｅ - 宇多田ヒカル／ オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」' (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  32. ^シングル 年間ランキング (in Japanese). Oricon. December 2007. Archived from the original on December 29, 2007. Retrieved September 18, 2010.
  33. ^'レコード協会調べ　1月度有料音楽配信チャート（「着うた（R）」）＜略称：1月度レコ協チャート（「着うた（R）」）＞' (in Japanese). RIAJ. 2007-02-20. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  34. ^'レコード協会調べ　3月度有料音楽配信チャート（「着うた（R）」）＜略称：3月度レコ協チャート（「着うた（R）」）＞' (in Japanese). RIAJ. 2007-04-20. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  35. ^'オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」'. Oricon. Retrieved 2010-09-18. (subscription only)
  36. ^ゴールド等認定作品一覧　2007年3月. RIAJ (in Japanese). 2007-04-10. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  37. ^ abレコード協会調べ　6月度有料音楽配信認定 ＜略称：6月度認定＞. RIAJ (in Japanese). 2007-05-20. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  38. ^レコード協会調べ　3月度有料音楽配信認定 ＜略称：3月度認定＞. RIAJ (in Japanese). 2007-03-20. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  39. ^レコード協会調べ　3月度有料音楽配信認定 ＜略称：3月度認定＞. RIAJ (in Japanese). 2009-04-20. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  40. ^レコード協会調べ　10月度有料音楽配信認定 ＜略称：10月度認定＞. RIAJ (in Japanese). 2008-11-20. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  41. ^レコード協会調べ　7月度有料音楽配信認定 ＜略称：7月度認定＞. RIAJ (in Japanese). 2007-08-20. Retrieved 2010-09-18.

External links[edit]

Free
  • Hikki Official Website – News about Flavor Of Life
  • Sanspo – Article on Flavor of Life
  • Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Flavor_of_Life&oldid=907132426'

Flavor Of Life Utada Hikaru Free Mp3 Download Sites

Utada Hikaru (Japanese: 宇多田ヒカル), born January 19, 1983 in New York City, United States, also known by her fan-nickname 'ヒッキー' (Hikki), is a third culture singer, composer, arranger, and record producer in Japan and the United States.Utada Hikaru was born to Japanese parents who both had roots in the Japanese music industry; her father, Teruzane Utada, was a producer, while her mother, Junko Utada, was an enka singer (she performed under the stage name Keiko Fuji (藤圭子). Utada Hikaru has been recording since 1993. She made her first professional recording at the age of twelve, and recorded her first album, Precious, in 1996 under the pseudonym Cubic U. This album led to her career overseas. In a recent MTV interview (MTV's You Hear It First, October 2004), Utada said: 'Someone in Japan heard it, at a Japanese record company, and he said, 'Oh, can't you write in Japanese? You speak Japanese.' And I didn't want to say no, so I had to try it.'Utada Hikaru was married to Kazuaki Kiriya, a photographer and movie director. He directed several of her music videos, including 'Final Distance', 'Traveling', 'Hikari'/'光', 'Sakura Drops', 'Deep River', 'Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro'/'誰かの願いが叶うころ', 'You Make Me Want to Be a Man', 'Be My Last', 'Passion', and 'Keep Tryin'. Also, 'Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro'/'誰かの願いが叶うころ' was played during the credits of Kiriya's directorial debut, Casshern. Their 4 1/2-year marriage was drawn to a close on March 2nd, 2007 as both Kazuaki Kiriya and Utada Hikaru filed divorce papers.Utada Hikaru may be most known in some cultures for her contribution to the Square-Enix & Disney video game series 'Kingdom Hearts' where she performed the song 'Hikari'/'光' (or mostly known as 'Simple and Clean' in the English version) for the first game. She also performed 'Sanctuary' and 'Passion' (English and Japanese versions of the same song, respectively) for the second game.Utada moved to Tokyo in late 1997 and attended Seisen International School, and later the American School in Japan while continuing to record on a new contract with Toshiba-EMI. Her movement originally came from Japanese FM radio. Unlike other pop-stars at the time, she was more focused on becoming a singer and songwriter while other Japanese female singers were attempting to become idols. Leading up to the release of her Japanese debut album First Love, Utada released two successful million-selling singles: 'Automatic/Time Will Tell' and 'Movin' on Without You'. 'Automatic/Time Will Tell' sold over two million copies. Backed by her singles, her debut album First Love went on to sell over 7 million units in Japan alone (with an additional 3 million overseas, bringing it to a sum of at least 10 million unit), becoming the highest selling album in Japan's history. The album yielded the single 'First Love', which peaked at the number-two spot. By the end of the year, Utada was rank number 5 on a Japanese radio station Tokio Hot 100 Airplay's Top 100 Artists of the 20th Century by the station and its listeners.After a two years' break, Utada released her follow up album Distance, garnering first-week sales of 3 million units sold. Ayumi Hamasaki's first greatest hits compilation album was released the same week with the aim to make a positive duel by Hamasaki's label, Avex Trax. This duel helped the two albums to break the record of the fastest selling album worldwide, with Utada's album reaching the first position by less than 150,000 copies. Backed by her singles — 'Addicted to You', 'Wait & See: Risk', 'For You/Time Limit' and 'Can You Keep a Secret?' — Distance became the best-selling album of the year, with 4.469 million copies sold in Japan alone. Additionally, 'Addicted To You' became Utada's best-selling single, selling one-million in its first week which became the highest first-week sales for a female solo artist and staying on top of the chart for two consecutive weeks. 'Wait & See: Risk' and 'Can You Keep A Secret' also were later ranked at number 6 and number 10 respectively on Oricon's list of 10 Best-Selling Singles from January 1, 1999 to April 24, 2006. Utada also went on to release a single which was dedicated to the female victim of a murder case in Ikeda, Osaka, titled 'Final Distance'. Between 2005-2005, she attempted to break into the US market under her stage name Utada which her album Exodus.A year after the release of Exodus, Utada moved back to Tokyo and started work on her next album. Leading up the release of her fourth album, Ultra Blue, Utada released a string of successful hit singles: 'Colors' (number 1), 'Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro' (number 1), 'Be My Last', (number 1), 'Passion' (number 4), and 'Keep Tryin' (number 2). The digital single 'This Is Love' was released to promote the album, netting 1,000,000 digital downloads. Ultra Blue sold 500,317 copies in the first week, lower than that of the previous album, although it still topped the Oricon Daily, Weekly, and Monthly charts. Ultra Blue gave the artist her fifth consecutive chart-topping Japanese album (excluding her English album) to sell in excess of 500,000 copies for first-week sales. On July 13, Toshiba EMI published a report stating that Ultra Blue had sold over one million copies worldwide and four million digital ringtones already making it one of EMI's 10th best-selling album of the past year. The album, which did not contain much pop music, was met with indifference and did not boost sales, although the album was certified Million by RIAJ for one million shipments. Additionally, it was the highest-selling original studio album by a Japanese female artist in 2006.A tour of Japan, 'Utada United 2006,' commenced on June 30th, 2006 (Two weeks after Ultra Blue's release) and ended on September 12th, 2006 after Utada Hikaru's performances at Yoyogi. Aside from her Japanese work, the tour's set list featured songs from her debut English-language album Exodus. The dates were all cumulatively announced, and ticket sales started on May 28th, 2006 with the majority of venues selling out in less than two hours.Utada Hikaru released the single 'Flavor of Life' on February 28th, 2007. Her next single, 'Beautiful World / Kiss & Cry', was released in Japan on August 29th, 2007 - A track which also doubled as the theme song to the anime movie 'Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone', which opened in theaters in Japan on September 1st.On the 20th of February, 2008, Utada Hikaru released her 20th Japanese single, HEART STATION/Stay Gold which reached #1 on Japan’s weekly radio charts, which was followed shortly after by her 6th Japanese studio album, HEART STATION released on the 19th of March, 2008. On October 20th, 2008 her song Eternally from Hikki's 'Distance' Album was used as the theme of the drama ~ Innocent Love. By the end of the year, Hikki was voted 'Number 1 Favorite Artist of 2008' by Oricon's reader poll making it three times she had won the award. Utada then returned to the US market, releasing This Is The One. She also went on tour, 'Utada: In The Flesh', playing in cities around the world, such as LA, New York and London.On August 9, 2010, Utada announced on her personal blog that beginning in 2011, she would go on an indefinite hiatus, citing fatigue since her debut 12 years previously. She also stated a need for rest, to study new things and learn more about the world, as well as see to some personal matters. She said the hiatus would last anywhere from two to five years.Before her hiatus began, she said that she would go 'full throttle' on her artistic activities, and soon after her site was updated, and a new compilation album, Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2, was announced, with a release date of November 24, 2010. This new album would include all her Japanese singles from Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro to Prisoner of Love on disc one, as well as an extra EP, featuring five new tracks. Later it was announced a DVD containing the promotional video for Goodbye Happiness would be included in all first-press edition pre-orders.From November 24, 2010, first-week sales for Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2 were 231,000 units according to Oricon album daily charting. Although replacing Heart Station as her lowest first week sales of any Utada Hikaru album to date, this release marked Utada's seventh consecutive number 1 album (5 original and two best-ofs) since her debut, surpassing Kinki Kids' previous record of six and making her the artist with the most successive consecutive number 1 albums in Oricon chart and Japanese music history (the latter according to her label EMI) since premiering. On April 10, 2011, Utada won the award for 'Best Conceptual Video' in the SpaceShowerTV Music Video Awards for the PV for 'Goodbye Happiness', which also marked her directorial debut. On December 7, 2011, Recochoku updated their yearly download and awards chart, with Utada's Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 1 being the second most downloaded album of 2011.An announcement was made that Utada would perform a short concert tour titled Wild Life (December 8 and 9 2010 only) at Yokohama Arena, Yokohama to promote the album, her first Japanese concert since 2006's Utada United.On 8 November 2010, EMI Japan announced on its Web site that the company had made a new global recording deal with Utada, also stating that all of her future works regardless of language would be released under one name: Hikaru Utada.Official sites:www.emimusic.jp/hikkihttp://www.u3music.com/ Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.

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