Huma-rhythm

Huma-rhythm
Studio album by
Hitomi
ReleasedJanuary 30, 2002
GenreJ-pop
Length65:58
Labelavex trax
Hitomi chronology
Love Life
(2000) 		Huma-rhythm
(2002) 		Self Portrait
(2002)
Singles from Huma-rhythm
  1. "Inner Child"
    Released: April 18, 2001
  2. "Is it You?"
    Released: August 22, 2001
  3. "I Am" and "Innocence"
    Released: October 24, 2001
  4. "Samurai Drive"
    Released: January 9, 2002

Huma-rhythm is the sixth studio album by Japanese singer Hitomi. It was released on January 30, 2002, through Avex Trax.[1] Following the highly successful Love Life (2000), Hitomi began to notice a "disconnection" between her perception as a public figure and her true self in private. She sought to pursue the core of her being; articulating "our dissatisfaction with society" yet wanting to "live happily as [herself]".

Huma-rhythm is lyrically centered on themes of love and individuality, and Hitomi challenged herself to expand her vocal expression during its recording. Longtime collaborator Zentaro Watanabe returned as the album's predominant arranger, programmer and instrumentalist, while a much more varied cast of composers contributed to Huma-rhythm compared to her previous releases. The album features contributions from indie rock band Cune [ja] and Dai Nagano from Do As Infinity.

The album was preceded by four singles: "Inner Child", "Is it You?", "I Am/Innocence" and "Samurai Drive", with the latter three reaching the top ten of the Oricon chart. "Samurai Drive", promoted as Huma-rhythm's lead single, became Hitomi's highest-peaking entry at number three and is considered to be one of her signature songs. She later performed it at the 52nd Kōhaku Uta Gassen. At the 43rd Japan Record Awards, Hitomi received an Excellent Work accolade for "Is it You?".[2]

Huma-rhythm was a commercial success, peaking at the top of the Oricon charts and charting for eight consecutive weeks, selling over 521,000 copies in total.[3][4] The album was supported by the nationwide Hitomi Live Tour 2002 Huma-Rhythm, which visited twenty-one cities and closed out at the Nippon Budokan.[5] At the time of the album's release, Hitomi viewed it as a "culminative work" which would allow her to pursue "different possibilities", a sentiment she would repeat in developing her second greatest hits album Self Portrait released later that year.

  1. ^ "avextrax album information for huma-rhythm". Archived from the original on 2009-12-27. Retrieved 2010-03-29.
  2. ^ "ｈｉｔｏｍｉのプロフィール・ヒストリーならオリコン芸能人事典". Oricon Style (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 14 November 2012. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  3. ^ "ｈｉｔｏｍｉのCDアルバムランキング". Oricon Style (in Japanese). 20 June 2013. Archived from the original on 30 June 2013. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  4. ^ "2002年 年間CDシングル/アルバム/トータルセールス/DVD/カラオケ/作詞家・作曲家・編曲家 ランキング" [2002 Yearly CD Single/Album/Total Sales/DVD/Karaoke Lyricist · Composer · Arranger Ranking]. Music TV Program (in Japanese). Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  5. ^ "Hitomi Official Website". Avex Network. Archived from the original on 12 June 2002. Retrieved 19 November 2017.