Distance (Utada Hikaru album)

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Distance
Distance cover
Studio album by Utada Hikaru
Released March 28, 2001
Recorded 1999-2000
Genre J-Pop, R&B
Length 64:26
Label EMI Music Japan
Producer Utada Hikaru, Darkchild, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Akira Miyake, Teruzane Sking
Utada Hikaru chronology
First Love
(1999)		 Distance
(2001)		 Deep River
(2002)
Singles from Distance
  1. "Addicted To You"
    Released: November 10, 1999
  2. "Wait & See ~Risk~"
    Released: April 19, 2000
  3. "For You / Time Limit"
    Released: June 30, 2000
  4. "Can You Keep a Secret?"
    Released: February 16, 2001

Distance is the second album released by Japanese pop singer Utada Hikaru, released in 2001 in direct competition with A BEST by rival Ayumi Hamasaki (see 2001 in music). Distance is the 4th highest selling album in Japan with over 4.46 million copies sold. [1] Moreover, with over 3 million copies sold in its debut week, it's has world's highest first-week sales of all time.

Contents

[edit] Track listing

  1. Wait & See ~Risk~ (Wait & See ～リスク～ Wait & See ~Risuku~?) – 4:48
  2. Can You Keep a Secret? – 5:08
  3. Distance – 5:30
  4. Sunglasses (サングラス Sangurasu?) – 4:46
  5. Drama (ドラマ Dorama?) – 4:36
  6. Eternally – 4:45
  7. Addicted to You (Up-In-Heaven Mix) – 5:19
  8. For You – 5:22
  9. Kettobase! (蹴っ飛ばせ!? lit. "Kick It!") – 4:31
  10. Parody – 5:25
  11. Time Limit (タイム・リミット Taimu Rimitto?) – 4:55
  12. Kotoba ni Naranai Kimochi (言葉にならない気持ち? lit. "Feelings That Can't Be Put to Words") – 5:03
  13. Hayatochi-Remix (Bonus Track) – 4:10

[edit] Singles

The singles released from the "Distance" album would become the biggest hits of Utada's career in terms of physical sales. Every one sold at least a million units, earning a million certification from the "RIAJ" and making the Top 100 listing of best-selling singles in Japan, except "For You / Time Limit," which sold just under 900K (888,650 units).

Date Title Peak position Weeks Sales
November 10, 1999 "Addicted to You" #1 16 1,784,050
April 19, 2000 "Wait & See ~Risk~" #1 21 1,662,060
June 30, 2000 "For You / Time Limit" #1 13 909,000
February 16, 2001 "Can You Keep a Secret?" #1 11 1,485,000

[edit] Charts

Distance - Oricon Sales Chart (Japan)

Release Chart Peak Position Debut Sales Sales Total Chart Run
March 28, 2001 Oricon Daily Albums Chart #1
March 28, 2001 Oricon Weekly Albums Chart #1 (2 weeks) 3,002,720 4,469,135 45
March 28, 2001 Oricon Yearly Albums Chart #1

[edit] Miscellanea

  • All songs were written by Utada Hikaru.
  • "Distance" is unique in Utada's discography as her only album not to contain an interlude.
  • The song "Distance" was re-arranged into a new single called "Final Distance" in memory of a fan who died in a school stabbing rampage.
  • Rodney Jerkins, famed producer who's worked with R&B artists like Toni Braxton, produced and rapped on "Time Limit."
  • American R&B songwriters Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis produced both Wait & See ~Risk~ and the UP-IN-HEAVEN mix of Addicted to You.
  • "Kotoba ni Naranai Kimochi"'s melody was originally introduced in the track "Interlude" found on the First Love album. Due to time constraints, the song couldn't be finished on time.
  • The "ri" on the song "Hayatochiri" (from the *"Wait & See ~Risk~" single) was removed, instead "Re" was replaced for the song remix, "Hayatochi-Remix".

[edit] Rivalry and sales

Screencaps from the CM for "Distance". ("A BEST" shown)
Screencaps from the CM for "Distance". ("A BEST" shown)

In 2001, Utada Hikaru and Ayumi Hamasaki were the two biggest artists in the country.[citation needed] Each artists' record company began fabricating a "feud" between these extremely popular J-divas. This feud reached its apex when Avex Trax, Ayumi Hamasaki's record label intentionally put her first greatest hits album, A Best, in direct competition with Utada's highly anticipated second album, Distance. Both albums were set for a March 28th release, and quickly tabloids began to document the tension between both artists. Although Ayumi has publicly stated in interviews that she was saddened by this record company-fueled rivalry and Hikaru has never shown ill feelings toward Ayumi, this rivalry has been regarded as one of the biggest rivalries in Japanese music history. Distance recorded the highest first week sales for any album ever released in Japan (and possibly worldwide for a solo artist) with just over 3,002,720 copies sold. A Best debuted right behind it at #2 with 2,900,000 in first week sales, the second highest first-week sales for an album in Japan.[2] Although "A Best" was certainly more aggressively promoted than "Distance," this album was nonetheless the follow-up to the best-selling album in Japan's history, Utada's debut "First Love," and therefore expectations and anticipation may have been more concentrated on it having there been a 2 year hiatus for it. By years end, both albums had sold over 4,000,000 copies and landed at the #1 and #2 position on the Oricon Albums year-end charts. According to Oricon, Distance is the 4th highest-selling Japanese album of all time and the highest selling Japanese album of the 21st century.

[edit] Notes and references

  1. ^ List of million-selling CD albums in Japan
  2. ^ UKMIX - Forums - View topic - Japanese Charts-The Archives
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Hikaru Utada
Japanese studio albums
English studio albums
Compilations
Singles
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