Queen of Hip-Pop


Queen of Hip-Pop is Namie Amuro's seventh original studio album. It was released on July 13, 2005 after four singles and was her most commercially successful effort in five years before Play was released.

Background and development

While planning the album, Amuro decided she wanted to create music that would have its most profound effect live. The result is an album that is her most uptempo containing 11 R&B and hip hop songs and only one pop ballad. The term "Hip-Pop" has been coined to the describe the music on the album because of her image as a pop music icon and her transition to R&B/Hip-Hop music.

Packaging

The album art theme is that of the Pink Panther. Amuro happened to be a big fan of the Pink Panther cartoon character and wanted to include its image. A licensing deal was struck with MGM studios allowing Amuro to freely use the character in her album artwork and promotion. A special character "Namie Panther" based on Amuro herself was also created as a counterpart to the Pink Panther. Because of the Pink Panther deal, all of the material released for the album has been pink. First pressing packaging of the album included Pink Panther stickers and a Pink Panther styled newspaper containing lyrics for the album.

Tie-ups and theme songs

"ALARM", "GIRL TALK", and "WoWa" were used in TV commercials for the LUCIDO-L hair products. Amuro appeared in the three ad campaigns.
"ALL FOR YOU" was the theme song of the popular Japanese drama "Kimi Ga Omoide Ni Naru Mae Ni"
"No" was later used to promote the "Space of Hip-Pop -namie amuro tour 2005-" DVD
In the Hindi film "Darling", in the song "Aa Khushi Se Khud Khushi Kar Le", not only it had the same sitar sample, the first few opening lines and chorus parts are from the song "WANT ME, WANT ME" as well. The sitar sample from the song was also featured in the background music to the cycle 8 premiere episode of America's Next Top Model.
Before the announcement of the album, the title track, "Queen of Hip-Pop" was used as a commercial jingle for Chevrolet Suzuki Cruze automobiles.

Singles

Four singles were released before Queen of Hip-Hop. The first, "ALARM", released in early 2004, is her first single to miss the top ten. Despite the low sales, "ALARM" became a popular hit in Japan and she performed the song at the 2004 MTV Video Awards Japan.
Four months later she released "ALL FOR YOU", her first ballad since "I WILL" in 2002. The single was a great success and became the first of three consecutive singles to sell over 100,000 copies. She performed the song at the MTV Buzz Asia Concert.
In October, the double A-side single "GIRL TALK / the SPEED STAR" was released. However, only "GIRL TALK" was included on the album. Both songs were major hits. Amuro performed "GIRL TALK" at the MTV Asia Aid Concert in February 2005.
The last single of the album, "WANT ME, WANT ME", was her first single of 2005. The song was performed at the 2005 Kobe Collection before its release. "WANT ME, WANT ME" is an up-tempo track similar to reggaeton music and it's her first song to feature sexually aggressive lyrics. Despite this, the single was a smash hit and opened at #2 with her largest first week sales since "Say the word". Two months later she performed the song at the 2005 MTV Video Awards Japan.
Another track off the album, "WoWa" was released as a video and radio single but was not retailed.

Sales

Upon release, the album charted at number one in Japan for two days ultimately debuting at number two for the week. It has sold over 475,600 copies and is the 27th best selling album of 2005. Queen of Hip-Pop debuted at #1 on the Taiwanese J-Pop chart and #2 on the Combo Chart.
In the second quarter of 2006, Avex reported that Queen of Hip-Pop sold 494,000 copies in Japan.

Album information

After "No", there is a hidden track which has no official title but is known to fans as "No Pt.2" or "Yes". At 4:06, the listener begins to hear the subtle sounds of the hidden track beginning. The song is a slower version of "No" with new lyrics and vocals. It also features lyrics from her song "WoWa" with variations of "I'ma make ya mine" and "I'ma read ya mind." The version posted on sites such as Imeem clocks in at about 2:35.

Track listing

Credits and personnel

  1. Queen of Hip-Pop
  2. * Produced by Nao'ymt
  3. * All instruments performed by Nao'ymt
  4. * Mixed by D.O.I.
  5. WANT ME, WANT ME
  6. * Produced by SUGI-V
  7. * Co-Produced by Michico
  8. * Vocal Produced by Michico
  9. * All instruments performed by SUGI-V
  10. * Mixed by D.O.I.
  11. WoWa
  12. * Produced by Nao'ymt
  13. * All instruments performed by Nao'ymt
  14. * Mixed by D.O.I.
  15. I Wanna Show You My Love
  16. * Produced by T.Kura
  17. * Vocal Produced by Michico
  18. * All instruments performed by T.Kura
  19. * Mixed by T.Kura
  20. GIRL TALK
  21. * Produced by T.Kura
  22. * Vocal Produced by Michico
  23. * All instruments performed by T.Kura
  24. * Mixed by T.Kura
  25. Free
  26. * Produced by Nao'ymt
  27. * All instruments performed by Nao'ymt
  28. * Mixed by Yoshiaki Onishi
  29. My Darling
  30. * Produced by T.Kura
  31. * Vocal Produced by Michico
  32. * Additional Vocals by L.L.BROTHERS
  33. * All instruments performed by T.Kura
  34. * Mixed by T.Kura
  35. Ups & Downs duet with Nao'ymt
  36. * Produced by Nao'ymt
  37. * All instruments performed by Nao'ymt
  38. * Mixed by Yoshiaki Onishi
  39. I Love You
  40. * Produced by C."Tricky" Stewart
  41. * Japanese Lyrics by Shoko Fujibayashi
  42. * All instruments performed by C."Tricky" Stewart
  43. * Track Recorded by Brian"B-Luv"Thomas
  44. * Mixed by Carlton Lynn
  45. ALL FOR YOU
  46. * Arranged by Jun Abe & Ryoki Matsumoto
  47. * Chorus arranged by Ryoki Matsumoto
  48. * Programmed by Jun Abe
  49. * Chorus: Ryoki Matsumoto
  50. * Piano & Keyboard: Jun Abe
  51. * Guitar: Kenji Suzuki
  52. * Strings: Rush by Takashi Katou
  53. * Mixed by Junya Endo
  54. ALARM
  55. * All instruments performed by MONK
  56. * Mixed by Yoshiaki Onishi
  57. No
  58. * Produced by Nao'ymt
  59. * All instruments performed by Nao'ymt
  60. * Mixed by D.O.I.
Oricon Sales Chart
ReleaseChartPeak positionFirst week salesSales total
13 July 2005Oricon Daily Charts1
13 July 2005Oricon Weekly Charts2220,000494,000
13 July 2005Oricon Monthly Charts2
13 July 2005Oricon Yearly Charts27

Singles - Oricon Sales Chart
ReleaseSingleChartPeak Position
17 March 2004"Alarm"Oricon Daily Singles Chart6
17 March 2004"Alarm"Oricon Weekly Singles Chart11
22 July 2004"All for You"Oricon Daily Singles Chart4
22 July 2004"All for You"Oricon Weekly Singles Chart6
14 October 2004"Girl Talk / The Speed Star"Oricon Daily Singles Chart1
14 October 2004"Girl Talk / The Speed Star"Oricon Weekly Singles Chart2
6 April 2005"Want Me, Want Me"Oricon Daily Singles Chart2
6 April 2005"Want Me, Want Me"Oricon Weekly Singles Chart2

Total Single Sales: 371,880
Total Album and Single Sales: 827,308

RIAJ Certification

As of January, 2006 "Queen of Hip-Pop" has been certified double platinum for shipments of over 500,000 by the RIAJ.