Flying over the bubble era

Chapter 1571, Section 1572: Visually Examining Diamonds
In today's booming record market, nearly 500 new artists debut every year, most of whom are just like a ten-dollar lottery ticket that a record company casually scratches off, with a casual "thank you for your patronage".

The remaining small group basically uses the same promotional formula. Whether they become popular depends on the quality of the song, their appearance, the intensity of the promotion, and some mysterious luck.

To stand out in such a rocky mountain is just the beginning.

Being chosen by the audience simply means having the right to face more and more dazzling diamonds.

In an era reliant on publicity, a newcomer with a memorable appearance, a distinctive voice, the full support of a record company, and high-quality albums will undoubtedly capture the audience's attention.

With this setup, it was no surprise that Ayumi Hamasaki became a hot topic upon her debut.

Therefore, the focus of the publicity is on how to achieve the leap from a controversial figure to the focus of public attention.

Currently, 8cm singles are all the rage. However, for Ayumi Hamasaki's debut single, Shinichi Iwahashi went against the current trend of "light and short" and used a 12cm record sleeve, with the aim of fitting in a beautiful lyric booklet.

The album's contents have also increased from the standard two songs (one main track and one C/W track) to three songs.

In this era of an explosion of new talent, eye-catching newcomers receive attention, but newcomers with substantial albums also deserve attention. Listeners without a specific goal, if they have a "don't lose out" mentality, might spend the same amount of money on a more substantial album among a bunch of new singles.

However, these are just some practical promotional tactics. The truly extravagant promotion was that Shinichi Iwahashi filmed music videos for all three of Ayumi Hamasaki's songs, with a budget enough to make a movie.

Then, the content of the PV was used as an advertisement for the release of this single and broadcast on television.

Such a masterpiece would amaze anyone who sees it.

When you're going to spare no expense in creating a star, you must spend the money where everyone can clearly see it. The more you do this, the more the public will realize just how expensive that diamond is.

The more expensive the diamond, the more beautiful it is.

When the lavish and exquisite PV commercial clips played on TV, there was no star more precious than this young girl.

For Ayumi Hamasaki, her rivals have never been the newcomers of her generation. She was launched as a diamond that shone brighter than any other existing gem—

GENZO's debut plan for her was designed to achieve this.

……

With the single released and promotions rolled out, the entire record company was on high alert.

Newcomers launched with such fanfare can only rely on a burst of energy, not a gradual process. If they don't achieve perfection, they are considered unqualified. Therefore, no one can draw any conclusions before the first promotional period ends.

Including Shinichi Iwahashi.

This week, his focus was entirely on Ayumi Hamasaki. The young girl was being dragged around promoting her work and visiting various places, keeping her incredibly busy every day.

Shinichi Iwahashi had never met her since her debut. However, his desk was piled high with information related to her every day.

How many magazines wrote articles about Ayumi Hamasaki? How many phone calls did the TV station receive from viewers? What was the attitude of record retailers towards Hamasaki's new single? What was the probability that shopping streets would use Hamasaki's new single as background music?

Every aspect has clear data, ensuring a complete grasp of her debut progress. The more developed the record market, the more detailed the related statistical work becomes.

By accumulating the information gathered and observing the daily increase in the topic's popularity, the answer will become clear.

The internal phone rang, and the clerk announced that Masato Matsuura was coming to visit. Matsuura had been involved in the entire production process of Ayumi Hamasaki's debut. He was adept at social maneuvering, easily appeasing a stubborn young girl. His presence in the recording studio facilitated much of the conflict between producers and singers.

Shinichi Iwahashi even joked with Akina Nakamori in private: "Back then, Warner's recording studio was missing a Matsuura-san."

It is therefore very regrettable that we did not get to see the scene of Ayumi Hamasaki being choked.

Matsuura Masato arrived beaming with joy, a stark contrast to the tense atmosphere in the company. As soon as he entered, he announced the good news to Iwahashi Shinichi: "I just came from Shibuya, and every young person I met was buying Ayu's singles."

In a sense, Masato Matsuura wanted Ayumi Hamasaki to soar to great heights more than anyone else.

Masato Matsuura started talking, eagerly saying, "Seeing Ayu's PV on TV was truly moving. She's more suited to be on screen than anyone else..."

Can a screen be considered a shop window?

Shinichi Iwahashi smiled. "That's right, screens make those who shine even brighter." Not just television screens, but also advertising screens.

The image of Ayumi Hamasaki's billboard that he had seen in Fukuoka that year flashed through his mind.

From this perspective, Ayumi Hamasaki is a born star.

"Does Iwahashi-san receive single sales reports every day?" Matsuura Masato tried to confirm with him. "How far can this single go? Number one is a given. 300,000 copies, 500,000 copies, or..."

A light flickered in Matsuura Masato's eyes.

Strive for a diamond, and when you look at it, your own eyes will sparkle.

"No rush." ​​Shinichi Iwahashi avoided the question, as if it were a superstition in the face of a momentous event.

Matsuura Masato, however, sensed his ease and confidence, and let out a soft sigh of relief. Remembering something, he suddenly asked, "Iwahashi-san, how do you plan to start the showdown between Ayu and that Amuro-chan?"

Shinichi Iwahashi countered, "Did Matsuura-san hear anyone comparing the two of them?"

“Well…” Matsuura Masato said ambiguously, “In any case, the two are about the same age and their debut time is not too different.”

Masato Matsuura was more eager than anyone for Ayumi Hamasaki to face Namie Amuro. This was because Tetsuya Komuro was a supporter of Namie Amuro.

Now that things have come to this, Shinichi Iwahashi feels that the subtle emotions between Masato Matsuura and Tetsuya Komuro are absolutely wonderful as part of the battle.

He smiled. "So, not yet."

“You seem to care a lot about that.” Matsuura Masato observed his expression. Although the company president was much younger than him, Matsuura Masato was very obsequious.

Shinichi Iwahashi remained noncommittal, saying, "Just like you said, Amuro is the closest to the image of 'Ayu's enemy'."

The television advertising campaign was highly effective, generating significant buzz around Ayumi Hamasaki, which began to translate into sales. With the first step taken smoothly, the next step is to consider new topics of discussion.

To get the public's attention, you need to direct their focus to that specific area. In today's record market, the competition is no longer simply about quality.

“In any case,” Shinichi Iwahashi decided, “let’s prepare for Ayu’s first live television debut.”