Hamasaki started her musical career in 1994 and released her first album "NOTHING FROM NOTHING" in 1995; the album was not successful, and she was subsequently dropped by her record label. In 1998, Hamasaki released her first single, poker face, via the Avex Trax label, after being discovered by label head Masato "Max" Matsuura partying at the Avex-owned club, Velfarre. Hamasaki's debut album, "A Song for ××", was released in 1999, and won her a Gold Disk Award. She has since sold more than 50 million records in Japan alone with the releases of her 9 full-length studio albums, 1 mini-album, 4 compilation albums, 45 singles, and 17 remix albums, becoming the top selling solo and female artist and the 4th top selling Japanese artist in history. With the release of her 40th single "BLUE BIRD", Hamasaki's single sales passed the 20 million mark, making her the first solo and female singer to reach that milestone.
With the release of her 45th single "Rule/Sparkle", Hamasaki currently has 20 consecutive #1 singles (starting from "Free & Easy") and 32 #1 singles in the Japanese ORICON charts. In addition, she is the first Japanese artist to have her first original 8 studio albums top the charts.
Hamasaki released her ninth studio album, GUILTY on January 1, 2008. Shortly after the release, Ayumi revealed that she had become completely deaf in her left ear, and that it is inoperable. It is believed that she suffers from tinnitus, and Ayumi has known about the condition of her left ear since 2007 after an examination. She also stated that she would continue on with her career for her fans, explaining that "nevertheless, I would like to continue as a singer. That's why I would like to continue singing until I reach the limit with my remaining right ear".
In addition to serving as background music for television advertisements, some of Hamasaki's songs have been used as themes for video games and film productions such as television shows and motion pictures. "Depend on you" and its b-side "Two of us" were used as the opening and ending theme, respectively, of the video game Thousand Arms, while the video game Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams used "Startin'" and "rainy day" as its opening and ending theme, respectively. The dorama My Little Chef featured "Voyage" as its theme, while the anime InuYasha featured "Dearest." Finally, Hamasaki's songs "HEAVEN", "Secret", "fated", and "Rule" have been used as the themes for the movies Shinobi: Heart Under Blade, Confession of Pain, Kaidan, and DragonBall Evolution, respectively.
In January 2008, Hamasaki announced on her blog that an inoperable condition, possibly tinnitus or Ménière's disease, had caused complete deafness in her left ear. She had been diagnosed with the condition in 2006 and that the problem dated to 2000, when she developed an ear infection but continued to perform against the advice of doctors. Despite the setback, Hamasaki stated that she wished to continue singing, and that "as a professional", she wanted to "deliver the best performance for everyone". On May 20, 2017, she wrote that she is also losing hearing in her right ear, and had experienced dizziness and nausea. She vowed to continue performing, writing: "The stage is where I belong. It's the only place I really, truly exist. I don't know anything else."
Official site: http://avexnet.or.jp/ayu
appears
浜崎あゆみ Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Te wo tsunaide aruite iru kara ne
Maru de subete no koto ga Umaku
Itteru ka no you ni Mieru yo ne
HONTOU wa futari shika shiranai
Hajimete no denwa wa juwaki wo
Motsu te ga furuete ita
MESSEJI ga nokotte ita
Nanakaime no denwa de ima kara aou yo tte
Sonna futsuu no mainichi no naka hajimatta
Koibitotachi wa Totemo shiawasesou ni
Te wo tsunaide aruite iru kara ne
Maru de subete no koto ga Umaku
Itteru ka no you ni Mieru yo ne
HONTOU wa futari shika shiranai
Juukaime no denwa de futari
Tooku e dekaketa yo ne
Te wo tsunaide arukou to suru
Watashi ni terete ita yo ne
Sore kara nandome ka no yoru wo tobikoete
Kaeri no kuruma no naka de KISU wo shita yo ne
Shiroku kagayaku Yuki ga totemo daisuki de
Sore demo Kyonen wa hanarete ita yo
Kotoshi no fuyu wa futari shite mireru ka na
Sugoseru ka na Ieru ka na
Ienakatta MERII KURISUMASU wo
Kusuriyubi ni hikatta yubiwa wo ittai
Nano kurai hazusou to shita? watashi tachi
Koibitotachi wa Totemo shiawasesou ni
Te wo tsunaide aruite iru kara ne
Maru de subete ga Sou maru de nanimo ka mo
Subete no koto ga Umaku itte iru
Ka no you ni Mieru yo ne hontou no
Tokoro nante Dare ni mo wakaranai
The lyrics to 浜崎あゆみ's song "Appears" present a description of a seemingly happy couple walking hand in hand, creating the illusion of a picture-perfect relationship. The tone of the song is quite melancholic, however, as it is revealed that there is a lot more going on behind the scenes of this idyllic relationship. The couple's blissful appearance masks the fact that only they know the truth about their relationship. The first verse begins by describing how happy the couple appears, the way they walk hand in hand, and how everything seems to be going well. However, the next sentence, "HONTOU wa futari shika shiranai" - "Only they know the truth," - indicates an underlying sense of secrecy and mystery.
The second verse describes how the couple communicates with each other. The first phonecall shows that one partner was initially hesitant, while the other was nervous, both indicating the awkwardness of the beginning of a new relationship. The second phonecall has a message left on an answering machine, and the next one is an invitation to meet again, which paves the way for more open communication, and the gradual building of their relationship.
In the third verse, the couple is shown to be walking in the snow, the white snow representing purity and innocence. Despite the snow symbolizing their love, it also acts as a metaphor for the distance between them. They parted ways this holiday season with the hope of seeing each other again. The bridge at the end of the song adds complexity to the picture-perfect relationship portrayed earlier, indicating that appearances can be deceiving.
Line by Line Meaning
Koibitotachi wa Totemo shiawasesou ni
Couples look very happy
Te wo tsunaide aruite iru kara ne
They are holding hands and walking together
Maru de subete no koto ga Umaku
Everything seems to be going smoothly
Itteru ka no you ni Mieru yo ne
They seem to be saying everything is okay
HONTOU wa futari shika shiranai
The truth is only known by the two of them
Hajimete no denwa wa juwaki wo
The first phone call made the hand holding the phone shake
Motsu te ga furuete ita
The hand holding the phone was trembling
Nikaime no denwa wa RUSUDEN ni
The second phone call left a message on the answering machine
MESSEJI ga nokotte ita
There was a message left
Nanakaime no denwa de ima kara aou yo tte
On the seventh phone call, they made plans to meet
Sonna futsuu no mainichi no naka hajimatta
In the midst of an ordinary day, something started
Juukaime no denwa de futari
On the tenth phone call, the two of them
Tooku e dekaketa yo ne
Went far away together
Te wo tsunaide arukou to suru
They walked holding hands
Watashi ni terete ita yo ne
I was shy about it
Sore kara nandome ka no yoru wo tobikoete
From then on, we jumped over several nights
Kaeri no kuruma no naka de KISU wo shita yo ne
We kissed inside the car on the way back
Shiroku kagayaku Yuki ga totemo daisuki de
I love the pure, sparkling snow very much
Sore demo Kyonen wa hanarete ita yo
But we parted ways last year
Kotoshi no fuyu wa futari shite mireru ka na
I wonder if we can spend this winter together
Sugoseru ka na Ieru ka na
Can we spend it and say it?
Ienakatta MERII KURISUMASU wo
The Merry Christmas we couldn't say
Kusuriyubi ni hikatta yubiwa wo ittai
That engagement ring shining on your finger
Nano kurai hazusou to shita? watashi tachi
How many times have we tried to take it off?
Maru de subete ga Sou maru de nanimo ka mo
Everything is just right, or rather, everything
Subete no koto ga Umaku itte iru
Everything seems to be going well
Ka no you ni Mieru yo ne hontou no
It seems perfect, but the truth is
Tokoro nante Dare ni mo wakaranai
Nobody really knows the truth
Contributed by Jonathan L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.