"Fairyland"
cover art
One of artwork variants
Single by Ayumi Hamasaki
from the album (Miss)understood
B-side"Alterna"
ReleasedAugust 3, 2005
GenreJ-pop, electronic
Length31:21
LabelAvex Trax
Songwriter(s)Ayumi Hamasaki (lyrics)
tasuku (music)
Shintarou Hagiwara + Sousaku Sasaki (music)
Producer(s)Max Matsuura
Ayumi Hamasaki singles chronology
"Step You/Is This Love?"
(2005)		 "Fairyland"
(2005)		 "Heaven"
(2005)
Official Music Video
"Fairyland" on YouTube
Official Music Video
"Alterna" on YouTube

"Fairyland" is the 36th single released by Ayumi Hamasaki. It was released on August 3, 2005. It instantly shot to #1 on the Oricon charts where it stayed for the entire week.[1][2] After one week of sales, "Fairyland" sold over 172,000 copies, the most any of Hamasaki's singles sold in one week in 2005. "Fairyland" is also Hamasaki's first single that featured different covers for both the CD and the CD+DVD.

Music videos

The PV of Fairyland was shot in Hawaii and is one of the most expensive music videos in the world, as well as being Japan's most expensive music video in terms of production costs. The PV cost 240 million Yen (2 million in U.S. dollars), making it the most expensive music video for a non-English language song.[3] It depicts Hamasaki with her companions (dance team) on a lush tropical island, with some scenes showing a timber house with a deck. Eventually, a fallen oil lamp causes the entire structure to burn. Images from earlier sequences showing the group having fun are interspersed through the burning of the house. The video ends with the camera moving away from Hamasaki singing solemnly as she watches the house burn.

The PV of Alterna depicts Ayumi as an up-and-coming star who is chased by clowns.[4] The video also depicts her as a singing machine; this aspect of the music video (as well as the lyrics of "alterna") may be Hamasaki's response to either tabloid articles or to her record label's oppressive treatment of her at the time.[5]

Track listing

  1. "Fairyland" – 5:17
  2. "Alterna" – 5:28
  3. "Step You" (DJ Taki-Shit More Step Up Remix) – 4:16
  4. "Fairyland" (Bright Field Remix) – 5:30
  5. "Fairyland" (Instrumental) – 5:17
  6. "Alterna" (Instrumental) – 5:28

DVD track listing

  1. "Fairyland" (PV)
  2. "Alterna" (PV)
  3. "Fairyland" ("making of" photo gallery)

Live performances

  • June 27, 2005 – Hey! Hey! Hey! Music Champ
  • July 15, 2005 – Music Station
  • July 30, 2005 – CDTV
  • August 1, 2005 – Hey! Hey! Hey! Music Champ
  • August 5, 2005 – Music Station
  • August 5, 2005 – Music Fighter
  • December 31, 2005 – 56th Kouhaku Utagassen

Charts

Oricon Sales Chart (Japan)

Release Chart Peak Position First Week Sales Sales Total Chart Run
August 3, 2005 Oricon Daily Singles Chart 1
Oricon Weekly Singles Chart 1 172,221 370,000 13 weeks
Oricon Monthly Singles Chart 4
Oricon Yearly Singles Chart 25
  • Total Sales : 370,000 (Japan)
  • Total Sales : 388,000 (Avex)
  • RIAJ certification: Platinum

See also

References

  1. ↑ "23作目の首位に向け、あゆが好発進!". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. August 3, 2005. Retrieved July 15, 2018.
  2. ↑ "来週(9/14)発売の注目シングルは!?". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. September 9, 2005. Retrieved July 15, 2018.
  3. ↑ "制作費2億4千万のPV『fairyland』歌姫浜崎あゆみ" [PV “fairyland” diva Ayumi Hamasaki with a production cost of 240 yen]. Matome (in Japanese). November 8, 2013. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  4. ↑ Ayumi Hamasaki – alterna
  5. ↑ Ayumi-Hamasaki.Net • View topic - Alterna
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