Originally Posted by kuro_neko
wow, ringo's album launches the same day as Tomosaka Rie's comeback album. Sorry Rie, it doesn't matter if you had Ringo and Jihen and some other famous chick work for you, you just lost BIG TIME lol. I feel bad for anyone eyeing that day, Ringo's second coming is going to be billed like the second coming of Jesus Christ, you know, if Japan was mostly Christian and all...
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I don't think it's intended to be a contest. No matter which album 'loses' on the sales chart - EMI still wins. They've played this game before, and it's a more calculated business move (something a little beyond a hedged bet) than the anniversary recyclings. Based on the outcome, EMI is probably going to decide whether or not to reissue any of Tomosaka Rie's old CDs (they're all currently out-of-print). After all, nobody had any reason to believe Stem (the single) would ever make a comeback. It was gone for years. Shoujo Robot could presumably get reissued too, if the Tomosaka Rie album sells enough.
I can foresee these two 2009.06.24 products being displayed alongside each other in Japanese retail stores even more blatantly than Black Bone Muscien Label alongside Just Can't Help It (anybody remember that?) - which weren't even under the same record label. That was some pure coat-tail riding. I don't think that's what Tomosaka Rie is trying to do. She's just being prepped up by Team Variety because EMI knows they can make some extra money on the side during the the buzz of the second coming of Shiina Ringo.
Tomosaka Rie's album probably has a much better chance of success from being sold on the same day (because it can be officially cross-promoted), rather than like... being released in the beginning of 2008. In her defense (and I am by no means a fanboy), I'm sure she didn't push for any of this. EMI probably approached her and asked:
"How would you like to make some more money? We've got a couple of the most trendy songwriters to succeed under us in awhile, and all you'd have to do is just sing, and... take most of your clothes off again".