Hikaru Utada 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 an interview for MTV's, You Hear It First, Hikaru 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."
Hikaru 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. 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", Hikaru 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, 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 units), becoming the highest-selling album in Japan's history.
After a two-year break, Hikaru released her follow up album "Distance", garnering first-week sales of 3 million units sold. Backed by her singles — "Addicted to You", "Wait & See ~リスク~", "For You / タイム・リミット" and "Can You Keep a Secret?" — Distance became the best-selling album of the year, with almost 5 million copies sold in Japan alone. Additionally, "Addicted to You" became Hikaru's best-selling single, selling one million in its first week. Hikaru went on to release a single which was dedicated to the female victim of a murder case in Ikeda, Osaka, titled "Final Distance".
Leading up to the third album, "Deep River", Hikaru released "traveling", "光", and "SAKURAドロップス"; all the songs reached the top of the charts. Deep River sold 2.35 million copies in its first week. Oricon reported that sales eventually surpassed 3.6 million, making Utada the only act in Japanese music history to have three consecutive albums surpass the three million mark. The album was cited by many fans and critics as Hikaru's most acclaimed work, as well as achieving the Triple Crown at the 17th Golden Disc Awards in Japan. Later, she attempted to break into the US market under her stage name Utada with her album Exodus.
A year after the release of Exodus, Hikaru moved back to Tokyo and started work on her next album. Leading up to the release of her fourth album, "Ultra Blue", Hikaru released a string of successful hit singles: "COLORS" (no. 1), "誰かの願いが叶うころ" (no. 1), "Be My Last", (no. 1), "Passion" (no. 4), and "Keep Tryin'" (no. 2). The digital single "This Is Love" was released to promote the album, netting around one million 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 albums of the past year.
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 Hikaru Utada's performances at Yoyogi. Ticket sales started on May 28th, 2006, with the majority of venues selling out in less than two hours.
Hikaru Utada 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".
On February 20th, 2008, she 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. Hikaru intended to go for a "simpler" approach for the album; she stated, "From the beginning, I had always intended to make this album easier to listen to so anyone can enjoy it. I always aimed for a simple melody, simple lyrics and a simple message rather than over-complicating it all. But overall, I had a lot of fun making this album." Utada then returned to the US market, releasing This Is the One. She also went on tour with 'Utada: In the Flesh', playing in cities around the world, such as Los Angeles, New York, and London.
On August 9, 2010, Hikaru 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. It was unclear as for how long this break would last and if she would ever return to the music scene. Before the hiatus began, she said that she would go "full throttle" on her artistic activities, and soon after her site was updated, 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 "誰かの願いが叶うころ" to "Prisoner of Love" on disc one, as well as an extra EP, featuring five new tracks.
From November 24, 2010, first-week sales for Utada Hikaru Single Collection Vol. 2 were 231,000 units according to Oricon album daily charting. 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. An announcement was made that Utada would perform a two-night concert titled Wild Life at Yokohama Arena to promote the album, her first Japanese concert since 2006's Utada United.
On August 8, 2016, her sixth Japanese album's title was released: "Fantôme", French for "ghost". Following its release on September 28, Fantôme was commercially and critically successful. It debuted atop the Oricon Albums Chart and stayed there for four consecutive weeks, the most of any Utada studio album since First Love. It was awarded Album of the Year at the Japan Record Awards and received positive reviews from media outlets. Musically, Fantôme is a collection of tracks that emphasize acoustic and stripped-down instrumentation, alongside influences of pop, electronic, and R&B music. The lyrical content delves into themes of grief, sadness, love, and death, mostly influenced by the death of her mother, her second marriage, and the birth of her son in 2015.
Hikaru's seventh album, "初恋", was released on June 27, 2018. The release coincided with the commemoration of her 20th anniversary as an artist in Japan. A national tour was announced to support the album in November 2018, "Laughter in the Dark 2018", her first Japan concert tour in 12 years. It is currently available on iTunes for digital download and Netflix for streaming.
Hikaru released her eighth album, "BADモード" on January 19, 2022. It features production from musicians such as Skrillex and A. G. Cook.
Official sites:
www.emimusic.jp/hikki
http://www.u3music.com/
光
宇多田ヒカル Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
たった一人で
運命忘れて
生きてきたのに
突然の光の中、目が覚める
真夜中に
静かに出口に立って
今時約束なんて不安にさせるだけかな
願いを口にしたいだけさ
家族にも紹介するよ
きっとうまくいくよ
どんな時だって
ずっと二人で
どんな時だって
側にいるから
君という光が私を見つける
真夜中に
うるさい通りに入って
運命の仮面をとれ
先読みのし過ぎなんて
意味の無いことは止めて
今日はおいしい物を食べようよ
未来はずっと先だよ
僕にも分からない
完成させないで
もっと良くして
ワンシーンずつ撮って
いけばいいから
君という光が私のシナリオ
映し出す
もっと話そうよ
目前の明日の事も
テレビ消して
私の事だけを見ていてよ
どんなに良くったって
信じきれないね
そんな時だって
側にいるから
君という光が私を見つける
真夜中に
もっと話そうよ
目前の明日の事も
テレビ消して
私の事だけを見ていてよ
The lyrics of 宇多田ヒカル's song 光 describe the sudden awakening of the singer in the middle of the night to a bright light. Despite having lived life alone and forgetting about destiny, the light that speaks of the singer, in the form of a companion, leads them to a newfound understanding of life. As a result, the singer promises to make the light proud by successfully introducing their wish and achieving their ideal future alongside this newfound companion.
The lyrics are filled with metaphors that vividly describe how the singer is lost in life and undergoes an awakening. The sudden light represents a spark that ignites the singer's life and leads to a newfound hope. The use of words like "unmei" and "hikari" further emphasizes the idea of destiny and how the light speaks of a beneficial future. The singer's desire to "make the light proud" shows that this light is more than just a flicker but a person who has brought meaning to the singer's life. Lastly, the singer's insistence that they will achieve success with the light emphasizes the idea of the light being a genuine companion and motivator.
Overall, the song beautifully captures the idea of how a person's destiny can drastically change through an awakening or a sudden event. One can find hope and meaning even in the darkest of times, and all it takes is a single spark.
Line by Line Meaning
どんな時だって
No matter what time,
たった一人で
Alone,
運命忘れて
Forgetting destiny,
生きてきたのに
I've lived my life,
突然の光の中、目が覚める
Suddenly waking up to the light in the middle of the night,
静かに出口に立って
Standing quietly at the exit,
暗闇に光を撃て
Shoot the light in the darkness,
今時約束なんて不安にさせるだけかな
I wonder if promises nowadays just make me anxious,
願いを口にしたいだけさ
I just want to speak my desires,
家族にも紹介するよ
I'll introduce you to my family,
きっとうまくいくよ
I'm sure it'll work out,
ずっと二人で
Always together,
側にいるから
Because I'm by your side,
君という光が私を見つける
Your light finds me,
うるさい通りに入って
Entering the noisy streets,
運命の仮面をとれ
Take off the mask of fate,
先読みのし過ぎなんて
Stop thinking too much about the future,
意味の無いことは止めて
Stop doing pointless things,
今日はおいしい物を食べようよ
Let's eat something delicious today,
未来はずっと先だよ
The future is far away,
僕にも分からない
I don't even understand,
完成させないで
Don't finish it,
もっと良くして
Make it better,
ワンシーンずつ撮って
Take it scene by scene,
いけばいいから
It'll be fine,
君という光が私のシナリオ
Your light is my scenario,
映し出す
Reflecting it,
もっと話そうよ
Let's talk more,
目前の明日の事も
About what's in front of us tomorrow,
テレビ消して
Turn off the TV,
私の事だけを見ていてよ
Only look at me,
どんなに良くったって
No matter how good it is,
信じきれないね
I can't believe it,
君という光が私を見つける
Your light finds me,
真夜中に
In the middle of the night
Contributed by Harper S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@user-jc8vq7oq9n
どんな時だって
たった一人で
運命忘れて
生きてきたのに
突然の光の中、目が覚める
真夜中に
静かに出口に立って
暗闇に光を撃て
今時約束なんて不安にさせるだけかな
願いを口にしたいだけさ
家族にも紹介するよ
きっとうまくいくよ
どんな時だって
ずっと二人で
どんな時だって
側にいるから
君という光が私を見つける
真夜中に
うるさい通りに入って
運命の仮面をとれ
先読みのし過ぎなんて意味の無いことは止めて
今日はおいしい物を食べようよ
未来はずっと先だよ
僕にも分からない
完成させないで
もっと良くして
ワンシーンずつ撮って
いけばいいから
君という光が私のシナリオ
映し出す
もっと話そうよ
目前の明日の事も
テレビ消して
私の事だけを見ていてよ
どんなに良くったって
信じきれないね
そんな時だって
側にいるから
君という光が私を見つける
真夜中に
もっと話そうよ
目前の明日の事も
テレビ消して
私の事だけを見ていてよ
@kkkmmm3233
宇多田さんの曲って、傷ついた人とか社会で孤独感や不安を感じてるような人に対して、肯定も否定もせずそっと寄り添ってくれるような歌詞が多くて、弱ってる時に聴くと本当に励まされる
@sadazumi1996
確かに。肯定も否定もないのに励まされるって、考えてみたら物凄いよな
@matuya12345
姉感
@grilled-shiitake
まさに！
パイセン感
@user-mw6js5gi3t
藤圭子の娘やからね
@user-hw4vu2td7s
「先読みのしすぎなんて
意味のない事はやめて
今日はおいしいものを食べようよ」
とか「もっと話そうよ」って歌詞とか
落ち着くし、元気でるよね
@user-yw3fq5fk9s
いきなり始まる感じがめちゃくちゃ良い…
@sugarbage
19年も前の曲なんだなぁ…
宇多田さんの作る曲を聴くと、どれもその完成度に圧倒されてしまう。
@user-lg2wl1hb2n
全然古さ感じないし。凄い。
@ponderion3mimu
よく聞いた。懐かしい