–With “SWEET 19 BLUES” you had an elaborate promotion, like making more than one kind of jacket. Are such plans in the works this time?
TK: I want to keep it really standard. Last time, because it was a first-time solo, it needed fireworks. There was also a kind of “Amuromania.” Somehow, that fever grew so I wanted it to be festive last year. This year I think the contents are the main focus, so to avoid a warped interpretation, I want to develop a promotion that’s pretty standard, and I want people to say they love the songs of Namie Amuro; that’s why I’m thinking of keeping it simple, generally speaking. Not just a rumor or an image, I want to convey something of her real qualities; I’m focusing on that. Even if you don’t know they are her songs, I wanted to make an album that you feel is new and cool, the singing style is great, and the voice is great. And also, I had to prepare songs that shine on stage because a tour is in the offing.

–You mean you made songs with a live show in mind?
TK: That’s right. Like the dome tour, in her case, performance in future shows is an element that can’t be ignored, so I wanted to create songs that we can use on an ongoing basis.

–You produce lots of artists. Do you decide, “This one is for so-and-so” once a song is completed? Or when you begin, do you compose with a specific personality in mind?
TK: Of course. Before I begin, I think about things like there is an artist like this, this kind of location and situation, and then start. Meaning, I input all the requirements and then output a song. The circuit is in a black box, so I don’t understand it, too. It’s hard even for me to explain what’s inside. It’s like mixing the input information together with my sensitivity.

–Is it like the song is finished once you think it’s complete? Or is it something that builds up?
TK: It think it builds up. I think it’s similar to a carpenter building a house. I can say it’s steady construction, like construction of a foundation.

–When did you write the nine songs, excluding the three singles?
TK: After June 10.

–That means you started them after Amuro went to L.A.?
TK: That’s about the time. Actually, m.c.A-T. will write one song and Cozy Kubo will write one song.

–Even so, that must be more than one song per day.
TK: That’s right. My way is to spit them out quickly. If I spend a long time on one song, the idea changes and the original form doesn’t stick. Rapid fire suits me best.

–Recently, Amuro has also been doing well overseas. What kind of developments do you expect for her abroad?
TK: The first and most basic point, I think, is what she herself has in mind. It’s tough if she has to think about outside Japan as well. I suppose she could get confused, like, where am I and what am I doing now. For artists in North America and Europe, I think there’s a tendency to think it’s strange if they don’t go overseas, to do that is natural. That’s also true for teenaged artists. So it may be natural, but in the case of a country like Japan, everything here is self-contained; I still think you need physical strength. At the same time she is still getting a lot of attention; I think there might be many people who think it’s enough just to get a look at her. I won’t push it for a while, but I have lots of ideas, and when she feels like it, I’d like to cooperate with her if I can. Because I’m not the lead manager or anything. “Well, the next step is promotion overseas!” I can’t do it with as much emotion (laughs). If she has this hope, I may want to help her out.

–During the PAN-PACIFIC TOUR, I think you could see her incredible popularity in TAIWAN when you stood on stage with her. What do you think about AMURO fever in TAIWAN?
TK: This time I chose “Concentration 20” as the title of the album, and by the way, there is American staff around me who also visit the dressing room, and if Japanese, they never miss her even if she’s in T-shirts and jeans, because they must have seen her in photos or something, but staff in the U.S. don’t recognize her. Even when they pass by each other. But seeing her on stage, it becomes, “That was Namie Amuro.” That much, from the moment she steps on stage, she changes.

–Amuro magic?
TK: It is magic I suppose. I guess she doesn’t think anything of it (laughs). It must be a natural thing. She must have that talent. This I feel strongly. I don’t change so much. On stage and off, if I think about whether my image changes drastically or not, I’d say not so much. I’m unexpectedly as natural as it gets, and I think I don’t change so much inside (laughs). It’s totally different after all, in her case. Of course, I suppose she has her charms off stage as well. From a male point of view, they look at her as a woman who’s cute, and that she definitely is. But just because they don’t see the off-stage side of her, doesn’t mean they don’t also recognize those charms.

–It’s too early to ask this question because you’ll be making albums in the future, but do you have any ideas about the future direction of Amuro songs. For example, any key words or anything?
TK: Well…. I want to do progressive things in Amuro’s case. Not follow the rule of thumb, not a middle of the road thing, but progressive things. In the case of globe, I tried something alternative because I wanted to, but Amuro’s case doesn’t have that feeling of, what can I say (laughs), of being avant-garde or an advanced thing. I always want to try that kind of thing. For the time being, they trust me with the sound. I structured up to three or four songs in the album so that you can sort of get a sense of this. I made a reggae song, which I personally love. Or maybe I should say electric reggae or techno reggae.

Concentration 20 Notes

Amuro’s producer, Tetsuya Komuro, talks about how her new album and how things got started…
Namie Amuro’s new album will be released on July 24. It’s been 13 months since the last, “SWEET 19 BLUES,” a span of one year. There are 12 songs altogether this time, including the three singles, “CAN YOU CELEBRATE?”, “a walk in the park,” and “How to be a Girl,” plus nine new songs. I think it’s a showcase of quality for Namie Amuro as an artist because so much time was spent on recording. In a way, it’s half a “best of” album with the first single I made and songs like “SWEET 19 BLUES” from the last album, and in a way it’s really now, a meeting of her 19-year life stream to date. This time, the title is also somewhat complex, but the decision was made to go with “Concentration 20.” As in, the power of concentration, the focus of energy, since I’m always struck by her concentration at any given moment. The moment she takes the stage, the moment she enters the booth for recording, the moment of a dance, at these times she can concentrate and be enthusiastic; I used to think that was her greatest talent. I’ve felt that her ability to channel her power into the moment is her grace, so I wanted to express this kind of thing, for example, to highlight this power as something distinct from effort or disposition, and that’s why I suggested this title now. About the number 20, you may be inclined to think, “Well, last year was ‘SWEET 19 BLUES’ so now she’s turning 20, it’s 20.” It’s OK to think that, but personally, I’m convinced that the new records being set as the youngest solo artist in Japan probably won’t be broken in the 20th century, and that’s why I named it how I did. And, the studio where we recorded was on 20th Street, so it has lots of meanings. Plus, there’s a bit of a joke in the title, too. It includes reggae and clearly alternative songs, and of course ballads like “CAN YOU CELEBRATE?”, but her preferred songs after listening to the album will, I think, be different than mine; that aside, it’s her first original full album. Of course, the last one was original, too, but I think this album is finally a Namie Amuro original. It’s worth buying, but you don’t have to listen to all the songs before picking it up in stores; it’s already finished, so you can savor it at home and then discover how much it agrees with you.

Komuro Tetsuya