After 10 years, she became one of the best-selling artists of the decade and one of the most popular and influential artists in Japan.
Koda officially debuted with the single TAKE BACK in December 2000.
In 2002, after the release of several singles, she released her first studio album affection, which charted at #12.
Some success came her way when she was asked to do the main songs for the video game, "Final Fantasy X-2", with real Emotion/1000の言葉 (1000 words), Koda also provided the voice for the character Lenne in the Japanese version of the game as well as the character, "Yuna's", opening sequence dance via motion capture. The single proved to be a success, debuting at #3 and becoming Koda's first release to enter the top ten. It sold 282,734 copies and became the #24th highest-selling single of 2003. A few weeks later, Koda released her second studio album, grow into one, which debuting at #9.
In 2004, Koda released three more singles before the release of her 3rd studio album, feel my mind which again showed Koda's determinated progress, charting at #7.
From here on, Koda's success increased and her popularity rose with the release of her 11th single, a cover of 1970's anime opening, キューティーハニー, debuted at #4. This single also marked the start of Koda's to be trademark, new style: "ero-kakoii" (or "ero-Kawaii") which roughly translates as: "sexy-cool" or "sexy-cute". Koda's fourth album secret was released in February 2005. The album debuted #3 with 505,600 copie sold, making it the #22 album of 2005.
With Koda's popularity reaching new heights, she held her first live show, "secret ~FIRST CLASS LIMITED LIVE~", (later becoming one of the top 10 selling DVDs in Japan) and released her sixteenth single, Butterfly. Debuting at #2, it became her highest charting single of her career to date and was very well received by the Japanese public. Following this success, she released her first best-of compilation, BEST ~first things~. This is the album which is said to have skyrocketed her career, reaching #1 on the weekly charts and selling 1,207,793 copies, making it the #6 album of the year and the highest selling female album of 2005.
In December 2005, Koda Kumi began her 12 Singles Project in which she released one single each week for twelve consecutive weeks. The first single, you, became Koda's first ever #1 single. Each of the remaining singles from the project charted in the top five of the weekly singles chart. The success of the project was celebrated with the release of Koda's second best-of compilation album BEST ~second session~ which sold over a million copies in just over a week. It became the #2 album of 2006 with 1,768,628 copies sold. During this time, Kumi also won the 47th Nihon Record Taishō (best award prize in Japan) with Butterfly.
Her 30th single, 恋のつぼみ, the first single to be released since the 12 singles project, was released in May 2006 and debuted at #2 with 140,000 copies sold. The track became one of the most downloaded single of the year, with more than 2 millions legal downloads in just a few weeks. After the release of several successful singles, including 4 hot wave (a maxi summer single) and 夢のうた, which had become her #1 and #2 best selling singles with more than 300,000 copies sold, Koda released her fifth studio album, Black Cherry which remained at the #1 position for four weeks, selling more than 1 million copies. By the end of 2006, both BEST ~first things~ & BEST ~second session~ had nearly sold two million copies. Koda Kumi became the highest selling female artist of the year.
In 2007, Koda Kumi released several singles including 愛のうた, which became one of the most sung songs in Karaoke and one of the biggest hits from Koda’s discography. On the December 21st 2007, Koda Kumi became the seventh Japanese female artist to hold a solo concert at Tokyo Dome. During the concert, she celebrated the 7th year anniversary since her debut in front of 35,000 fans. By the end of the year, Kumi became, for the 2nd time running, the highest selling female artist of the year.
In January 2008, during the promotion of her 6th album, Kingdom, Kumi appeared as a guest on TBS radio show, "All Night Nippon". During which Koda mentioned her manager had recently got married and that she had asked her manager, "whether or not they would have children". When her manager replied that they wouldn't for the time being, Koda responded with her opinion that they ought to have children as soon as possible, as, "when women are around 35 years old their amniotic fluids go bad."
The comment was deemed so offensive that many radio shows and newspapers received angry complaints from women around the country. Koda's official website was shut down, along with endorser websites featuring her. Despite the public backlash, the album reached #1 on the Oricon charts for two weeks, selling over 600,000 copies.
4 months later, Koda made a return to the market with Moon Crying. Through the song, Koda expressed her real feelings and her apologies. The song quickly became a success and Koda was able to make a return to performing her songs on TV and radio. Shortly after the release of her 40th single, Koda released the upbeat single TABOO (to become one of the most popular song with her overseas fan-base) as well as the winter ballad single stay with me (which reached 2,000,000 downloads in few weeks) before the release of her 7th album : TRICK, which topped the Oricon Charts at #1 for 2 consecutive weeks.
In 2010, Koda celebrated the 10th anniversary of career beginnings, making it know that she wished to make the year special for her fans, the first project of the year was the release of her 8th album, UNIVERSE, coupled with a best album containing the biggest hits from her 2006~2008 works. During the year, she released several singles, including Lollipop & 好きで、好きで、好きで。, the later became her biggest digital success since 2008. She later released her first cover album, ETERNITY ~Love & Songs~, and held her first Stadium Tour in Summer 2010. In December, 2010, Koda Kumi hold a special concert in Tokyo Dome, for the 2nd time, in order to close the first chapter of her career with her fans.
Koda released her ninth studio album named Dejavu in March 2011. Shortly after its release, the singer started her national tour. Although Koda decided to perform in hall in order to be closer to her fans, this live tour is so far her longest tour to date with 72 dates from April to October.
Koda's 50th single was released August 2011 titled 4 TIMES. It included 4 songs as well as 4 music videos (first time since Summer 2006). The main song of the single is Poppin' love cocktail feat.TEEDA, a summer song produced by the pop rock band BACK-ON. The same year, she released 2 more singles where Koda shows the sexiest image of herself. In November 2011, Koda performed in Singapore for Mnet Asian Music Awards. She was the only Japanese star to perform and won the "Hottest Asian Artist" award. Koda's tenth album album was announced on December for a release in the beginning of 2012. Entitled , JAPONESQUE, the album includes a music video for each song, 17 in total. In the same time, Koda surprised everyone by writing on her official site that she is engaged to Kenji03 from BACK-ON. She announced her wedding by the end of the year. Few days after, Koda also confessed that she was 8 weeks pregnant.
Wanderin' Destiny
倖田來未 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
息をひそめて見守ってる
二人の体
かすかに揺れて思いだしたよ
しあわせになりたくて
子供のころの夢
気づいてくれなかった
あなた以外 誰も
どこまでも歩いて
友達なんかいらない
あなた以外 誰も
Just try,
Just dream a little bit tonight
We'll be far away
Together forever
So don't cry
あなたのしあわせ
見つけてほしかった
君が微笑んで
おやすみを言って
眠ってほしかった
あきらめるときは
足あと消して行く
わたしを忘れて
かけらさえ何も 残らないように
Et ce voyage
Commence sans bagage
What's going on
What's going on
What's going on
What's going on
What's going on
What's going on
What's going on
何処までもあてもなく
And then
いくつもの忘れ物
思い出まで捨てるつもりで
おかしくなっても
やさしい言葉かけてくれていたね
いつまでも
心にしまっておけない事に
気がついて
静かに夢の国
そろそろ雪がそっと降りだしている
わたり歩いて
いるようでいない
気持ちだけ先ばしっている
花が咲くころ きっと静かに暗闇を
また二人で寝転がって
ながめていたいよ
そして星空の下
いつか口づけかわしたいよね
So I cry 静かに
So I cry 見せずに
So I fight 見つけに
Don't give up
何もないなんて 思えない
気づかないふりなんて出来ない
そばにいたい
しょうがないそれしかない
いつまでも
あなたのしあわせ
見つけてほしかった
君が微笑んで
おやすみを言って
眠ってほしかった
あきらめるときは
足あと消して行く
わたしを忘れて
かけらさえ何も 残らないように
あなたを 信じたら
あなたと 死ねたら
あなたと 静かな
運命の絆 永遠の愛情
あなたと 感じたら
あなたと 誓えたら
静かに始まる
運命の絆 永遠の友情
I'll be with you all my life
You'll be with me all your life
会わずにいられない
Wanderin' destiny,
Wanderin' fantasy
I'll be with you all my life
You'll be with me all your life
会わずにいられない
Wanderin' destiny,
Wanderin' fantasy
And then something change
Every time you talk
L'oiseau bleu
In your soul
The lyrics to "Wanderin' Destiny" by Koda Kumi convey a longing for happiness and a deep connection with someone special. The song starts with the imagery of stars silently watching over the two bodies, invoking a sense of wonder and nostalgia. The singer remembers their childhood dreams of wanting to be happy and realizing that no one else matters except for the person they are walking with. They proclaim that they don't need friends as long as they have that person by their side.
The chorus expresses the desire to find happiness for the other person, wanting to see them smile and have a peaceful sleep. The singer is determined not to give up, even if it means erasing their own presence completely. The lyrics then transition to a journey without direction, where the singer is willing to discard memories and belongings, including cherished ones, in an attempt to move forward. Despite the hardships, they hold on to the person's kind words and a hope to someday share a kiss under the starry sky.
Throughout the song, there is a theme of fighting, not giving up, and the belief in a deep and eternal bond. The lyrics speak of trust, sacrificing everything for that person's sake, and a sense of destiny and fate that binds them together. The final lines emphasize that their connection is not just about romantic love, but also about profound friendship.
Line by Line Meaning
遠くで星達
The stars are watching from afar
息をひそめて見守ってる
They quietly watch over
二人の体
The bodies of the two
かすかに揺れて思いだしたよ
Gently swaying, it reminds me
しあわせになりたくて
Wanting to become happy
子供のころの夢
Dreams from childhood
気づいてくれなかった
You never noticed
あなた以外 誰も
Apart from you, no one else
二人で歩いて
Walking together
どこまでも歩いて
Walking endlessly
友達なんかいらない
I don't need friends
あなた以外 誰も
Apart from you, no one else
Just try,
Just try
Just dream a little bit tonight
Just dream a little bit tonight
We'll be far away
We'll be far away
Together forever
Together forever
So don't cry
So don't cry
あなたのしあわせ
Your happiness
見つけてほしかった
I wanted to find it
君が微笑んで
With you smiling
おやすみを言って
Saying goodnight
眠ってほしかった
I wanted you to sleep
あきらめるときは
When it's time to give up
足あと消して行く
Leaving no traces behind
わたしを忘れて
Forgetting about me
かけらさえ何も 残らないように
So that not even fragments remain
Et ce voyage
And this journey
Commence sans bagage
Begins without baggage
What's going on
What's going on
何処までもあてもなく
Endlessly without direction
And then
And then
いくつもの忘れ物
Numerous forgotten things
思い出まで捨てるつもりで
Intending to even discard memories
おかしくなっても
Even if it becomes strange
やさしい言葉かけてくれていたね
You were giving kind words
いつまでも
Forever
心にしまっておけない事に
Things that can't be kept in the heart
気がついて
I realized
静かに夢の国
Quietly in the dreamland
そろそろ雪がそっと降りだしている
The snow is gently falling
わたり歩いて
Walking across
いるようでいない
Seeming to be there, but not
気持ちだけ先ばしっている
Only the feelings advance
花が咲くころ きっと静かに暗闇を
When the flowers bloom, surely quietly in the darkness
また二人で寝転がって
Once again lying down together
ながめていたいよ
I want to keep looking
そして星空の下
And beneath the starry sky
いつか口づけかわしたいよね
Someday I want to exchange kisses
So I cry 静かに
So I cry silently
So I cry 見せずに
So I cry without showing
So I fight 見つけに
So I fight to find
Don't give up
Don't give up
何もないなんて 思えない
I can't think there's nothing
気づかないふりなんて出来ない
I can't pretend not to notice
そばにいたい
I want to be by your side
しょうがないそれしかない
There's no other way, that's the only choice
I'll be with you all my life
I'll be with you all my life
You'll be with me all your life
You'll be with me all your life
会わずにいられない
I can't be without seeing you
Wanderin' destiny,
Wanderin' destiny
Wanderin' fantasy
Wanderin' fantasy
And then something change
And then something changes
Every time you talk
Every time you talk
L'oiseau bleu
The blue bird
In your soul
In your soul
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Marc, Tetsuya Komuro
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
赤い部屋のシアタールームRed room
どこかの戦いへ出かける時のBGMみたいな雰囲気がかっこいい
Hawaii You? xD
Beautiful cover! This is one of my all time favorite songs.❤️
Wint Thandar
God! this cover is just perfect!! <3
Gustavo Castanho
Gosh, this is AMAZING!
Ricardo Berbetz
+Gustavo Castanho perfection
Jud's Aoki
Gosh, this is AMAZING!
SV L&
倖田來未が、歌うとかなり神泉で鳥肌がヤバすぎ
love eden
このアルバムで個人的には一番好きです
Te Ka
she's a brilliant of japenese music stage <3 Queen of Live 👍
choppers doger
原曲とは異なる重低音と歌手の歌い方がとてもあってる。フルで聴きたい。