Did Matsuura retire from singing?

[eri]

So, Matsuura and all of the old guard graduated from Hello! Project on March 31, 2009. Aya started her own blog a few days ago here: http://blog.oricon.co.jp/ayablog/3



She basically said that she's been rehearsing for an upcoming live tour and...

今年でデビューしてから９年目になるんですが、今回

のLIVEは９年間のまとめ！ベストアルバムならぬベス

トLIVEみたいな☆



This year, it will have been 9 years since my debut, but this time

this live concludes those 9 years! If this was a "best album" it would be like a "best of live"



詳しくは

LIVEでお話ししたいなと思っていますが、

しばらく「LIVEツアー」はやらないつもりです。

少なくても２、３年は、と考えています。

Specifically speaking,

I want to talk about live concerts...

I plan to quit doing "live tours" for a while

(I'm not sure how to translate this part but...) . I'm thinking about this, even if it is just a bit -2 or 3 years.



ここ３年くらいのんびりと音楽活動をしてきました

が、今年の冬からはできるだけたくさんの歌を、曲を

作品として皆さんに届けられるように、レコーディン

グなど製作することに集中したいんです☆



The last 3 years, I've been doing musical work in a relaxed way but

starting from this year's winter as much as I possible can

I want to focus on recording and producing

in order to send off my songs to everyone

So this is her last singing tour for a few years and she readily admits that she's been ignoring her singing work for a few years now. I guess she's still got a pretty good media presence (with tv shows and cms) but this made me quite sad. I love Chocolate Damashii (even though it tanked in the charts) and have always hoped for a great Ayaya come back.

[Geof]

[quote name='mEri' post='68062' date='Aug 28 2009, 08:34 PM']she readily admits that she's been ignoring her singing work for a few years now.[/quote]

Ok, I'll say it...





ALONG WITH THE REST OF H!P FANDOM?





Aaaahahaha, oh Aya, how you've sucked for so long now.

[Prinny Squad]

The last paragraph is the important part. She said she's gonna be recording and producing albums, so she's gonna keep releasing work. She's just taking a break from touring to refocus.



[quote name='Geof' post='68069' date='Aug 28 2009, 11:42 PM'][quote name='mEri' post='68062' date='Aug 28 2009, 08:34 PM']she readily admits that she's been ignoring her singing work for a few years now.[/quote]

Ok, I'll say it...





ALONG WITH THE REST OF H!P FANDOM?





Aaaahahaha, oh Aya, how you've sucked for so long now.

[/quote]



If I hear you as so much speak a foul word of Kizuna ><img src='http://mm-bbs.org/public/style_emoticon ... #>/sad.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':(' />

[Special Needs Tricycle]

I don't think she's really quitting moreso than admitting her coma-like state. Same that Nacchi has. Thing is, though, is that she has her own fanclub now, and the H!P graduation was not too long ago, AND she just started this new blog, so I don't think she would be dropping out of UFA at least anytime soon.



Then again, it says "live tours", so maybe she'll just juggle along her relaxed variety/TV career along with her music career instead of going head-on at either of them.



Or maybe she wants to quit. Who knows.

[neshcom]

Hey, if she records more, she has a better chance of getting good songs. <img src='http://mm-bbs.org/public/style_emoticon ... >/w00t.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':(' />

[Shoujo Q]

She's obviously trying to shed the idol image and by stopping the tours and focusing on music so she become a real musician is what she's after and I wish her the best of luck. <img src='http://mm-bbs.org/public/style_emoticon ... /lmfao.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':(' /> I mean <img src='http://mm-bbs.org/public/style_emoticon ... /dance.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':whip:' />

[Madara]

Y'know what I want from Aya? Another album. And then, after a decent interval, another. And then...another, etc. Preferably with better songs than her last one. (Although I DO like "Kizuna.")



And a sequel to YO YO GIRL COP. Is that too much to ask?

[tsukinobyouin]

I think some of the confusion comes from mistranslation. Of course someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I think this should read more like:

今年でデビューしてから９年目になるんですが、今回

のLIVEは９年間のまとめ！ベストアルバムならぬベス

トLIVEみたいな☆



As of this year, it will have been 9 years since I debuted,

so this concert will be a summary of those 9 years!

Like instead of doing a best of album, I'm doing a best of concert ☆



詳しくは

LIVEでお話ししたいなと思っていますが、

しばらく「LIVEツアー」はやらないつもりです。

少なくても２、３年は、と考えています。

I'd like to explain this in more detail at the concert,

but I don't think I'll do concerts that much anymore.

I'm thinking at least about once every 2 or 3 years.

(I'm also a little iffy on that last sentence but I think that's the gist?)





ここ３年くらいのんびりと音楽活動をしてきました

が、今年の冬からはできるだけたくさんの歌を、曲を

作品として皆さんに届けられるように、レコーディン

グなど製作することに集中したいんです☆



For the last 3 years or so I've been carrying out my music activities at a relaxed pace,

but starting this winter, I'm going to concentrate on recording as many songs as I can to give to all of you. ☆

It sounds more like she's saying she's going to focus more on recording than touring from now on so that she can get lots of new material out, rather than touring around constantly and not having time to really work on music. She uses the word "作品" which makes me think she wants them to be "pieces" she can share with the fans (i.e. more srs music) rather than just any old song H!P used to throw at her. That's reading a lot into it though XD

[eri]

[quote name='TnB' post='68094' date='Aug 29 2009, 11:18 AM']I think some of the confusion comes from mistranslation. Of course someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I think this should read more like...

It sounds more like she's saying she's going to focus more on recording than touring from now on so that she can get lots of new material out, rather than touring around constantly and not having time to really work on music. She uses the word "作品" which makes me think she wants them to be "pieces" she can share with the fans (i.e. more srs music) rather than just any old song H!P used to throw at her. That's reading a lot into it though XD[/quote]



OOH that makes so much more sense, thank you! <img src='http://mm-bbs.org/public/style_emoticon ... #>/wub.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /> My Japanese is pretty weak and I'm embarrassed at my freak out now haha.



In the end, I guess her announcement surprised me. Musicians sometimes take years and years off to produce new albums. I guess the idol factory works on a different system and keeps making the performers go out and sing? Given her weak output in the last few years, I wasn't even aware that she was even touring whatsoever. At least this is a much nicer farewell than the "mini break" messages other idols give (like BoA for exhaustion and whatnot).

[tsukinobyouin]

[quote name='mEri' post='68124' date='Aug 30 2009, 03:48 AM'][quote name='TnB' post='68094' date='Aug 29 2009, 11:18 AM']I think some of the confusion comes from mistranslation. Of course someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I think this should read more like...

It sounds more like she's saying she's going to focus more on recording than touring from now on so that she can get lots of new material out, rather than touring around constantly and not having time to really work on music. She uses the word "作品" which makes me think she wants them to be "pieces" she can share with the fans (i.e. more srs music) rather than just any old song H!P used to throw at her. That's reading a lot into it though XD[/quote]



OOH that makes so much more sense, thank you! <img src='http://mm-bbs.org/public/style_emoticon ... #>/wub.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /> My Japanese is pretty weak and I'm embarrassed at my freak out now haha.



In the end, I guess her announcement surprised me. Musicians sometimes take years and years off to produce new albums. I guess the idol factory works on a different system and keeps making the performers go out and sing?

[/quote]



I think since most idols don't write their own songs (and if they do, they write very little in comparison to their total body of work), they can do tour after tour while still releasing a fair amount of singles and albums. Maybe Aya wants to start doing some writing of her own? If her songs are still bland and boring as hell we can truly blame it on her instead of UFA! <img src='http://mm-bbs.org/public/style_emoticon ... /laugh.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':sick:' />

[BeForJess]

^ yeah, but they probably would still be boring... She has been talking for years about how she is maturing and all that, and I really think the days of fun Aya have been over for a few years now. I wonder if any of them realizes that, if someone started liking her for upbeat silly pop, that they might not still be a fan if the style changed to mature boring ballads... <img src='http://mm-bbs.org/public/style_emoticon ... /noway.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' />



I do like *some* of her more mature stuff, but most of it is so bland and has no "hook" to it. I don't know if Aya writing instead of UFA would change that.