Pureness

This page is about the Aya Ueto song. For other uses, see Pure and Purity (disambiguation).
"Pureness"
Single by Aya Ueto
from the album Ayaueto
Released August 28, 2002
Format CD single
Recorded 2002
Genre Pop, pop rock
Length 4:03
Label Flight Master
Writer(s) T2ya
Producer(s) T2ya
Aya Ueto singles chronology
"Pureness"
(2002)		 "Kizuna"
(2002)
Alternative cover
Cover artwork for the limited edition

"Pureness" is the first solo single by Japanese recording artist Aya Ueto. It was released on August 28, 2002 as the first single from Ueto's debut studio album Ayaueto.

Background

"Pureness"
A 30-second sample of "Pureness."
Problems playing this file? See media help.

After the disbandment of Z-1, Ueto was signed under the Pony Canyon sublabel, Flight Master.[1] Ueto initially declined the offer but was eventually persuaded by her talent agency. Her debut single was scheduled for a May release, however, with Seiko Matsuda's daughter, Sayaka Kanda, also debuting around the same time, her management team decided to push back Ueto's single and "Pureness" was subsequently postponed to August. Out of the 600 songs they received, three were chosen for the single by Ueto and her team.[1] "Pureness" was written and produced by T2ya. The look for the cover artwork and music video was based on Nao Tsurumoto, Ueto's breakthrough role on the TBS drama 3-nen B-gumi Kinpachi-sensei.[2]

"Pureness" was released in two formats: the limited edition, which includes a DVD featuring the music video for "Pureness" and a special video message from Ueto, and standard CD-only edition. The cover art for the limited edition represents doubt, while the cover for the standard edition represents hope.[3]

Live performances

On August 28, 2002, Ueto held a special event to commemorate the release. The promotional event, held at Zepp Tokyo, attracted over 2,000 fans. Due to overwhelming fan demand, a second event took place at Zepp Osaka on September 15, 2002. Ueto performed "Pureness" for the first time on NHK's Pop Jam Summer Special. She also appeared on Utaban and Hey! Hey! Hey! Music Champ. She performed the song for the first time on live television on Music Station and was invited to perform at their televised year-end concert Music Station Super Live 2002.

Chart performance

"Pureness" debuted on the Oricon Daily Singles chart at number 5 on August 27, 2002 and climbed to number 1 on August 31, 2002.[4][5] It peaked at number 4 on the Oricon Weekly Singles chart, with 46,140 copies sold in its first week.[6] "Pureness" became the first debut single with no commercial tie-in by a female artist to enter the top five in three years, since Kyoko Fukada's "Saigo no Kajitsu" (1999), which was coincidentally released under the same record label and also debuted at number 4.[7][8] The single charted for eight weeks and has sold a total of 96,350 copies.[9][10]

Track listing

No. TitleLyricsMusicArranger(s) Length
1. "Pureness"  T2yaT2yaT2ya 4:03
2. "Breath of My Heart"  Yōji KubotaMiki WatabeChokkaku 3:56
3. "Puzzle"  Natsumi KobayashiShinichirō MurayamaMurayama 3:39
4. "Pureness (Instrumental)"   T2yaT2ya 4:02
Total length:
 15:52

Charts

Chart (2002) Peak
position
Oricon Daily Singles[4] 1
Oricon Weekly Singles[6] 4
Oricon Monthly Singles[11] 10
SoundScan Japan Weekly Singles[12] (limited edition) 7
SoundScan Japan Weekly Singles[12] (standard edition) 15

Release history

Region Date Format Label
Japan[13][14] August 28, 2002 CD, CD+DVD Pony Canyon
Taiwan[15] January 17, 2003 CD

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "大ブレークの予感、上戸彩がCDソロデビュー". Sankei Sports (in Japanese). 2002-02-01. Archived from the original on 2002-04-11. Retrieved 2009-06-27.
  2. ↑ 2ヶ月連続シングルリリース記念「上戸彩年鑑 2002～2004」. Barks (in Japanese) (ITmedia). 2004-06-14. Retrieved 2009-06-27.
  3. ↑ "上戸彩、CD発売日に限定イベント". Zakzak (in Japanese). 2002-07-27. Retrieved 2009-06-28.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "【音楽･速報】 CDﾁｬｰﾄ売上速報/予想･議論スレッド 【9/1】" (in Japanese). 2006-09-01. Retrieved 2011-01-26.
  5. ↑ "☆彡　帰ってきた、これがヒットよ！2.5　☆彡" (in Japanese). 2002-08-28. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 2002年09月第2週の邦楽シングルランキング情報 (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
  7. ↑ "上戸彩、デビュー曲タイアップなしで４位に　深田恭子以来". Sankei Sports. 2002-09-03. Archived from the original on 2002-09-14. Retrieved 2011-01-26.
  8. ↑ 最後の果実（初回限定盤）. Oricon (in Japanese). Oricon Research. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
  9. ↑ Ｐｕｒｅｎｅｓｓ. Oricon (in Japanese). Oricon Research. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
  10. ↑ ポニーキャニオン＠売上データ補完スレ (in Japanese). 2011-01-21. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
  11. ↑ 2002年9月オリコンシングルランキング (in Japanese). Retrieved 2011-07-26.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "週間 CDソフト TOP20" (in Japanese). SoundScan Japan. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
  13. ↑ Ｐｕｒｅｎｅｓｓ (in Japanese). JBooks Corporation. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
  14. ↑ Ｐｕｒｅｎｅｓｓ (in Japanese). JBooks Corporation. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
  15. ↑ "上戶彩/ Pureness" (in Chinese). G-Music. Retrieved 2011-07-26.