Checkmate! (Namie Amuro album)
| Checkmate! | ||||
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CD only edition cover
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| Compilation album by Namie Amuro | ||||
| Released | April 27, 2011 | |||
| Recorded | 2003–2011 Ambush Studio, Avex Azabu, Avex Studio, Azabu-O Studio, Bay Bridge Studio, Bazooka Studio, BX Studio, Maruni Studio, RMI Studios (Los Angeles, California), Sound City, Studio Form, Studio MSR, Warner Music Recording Studio, W Sound (Seoul, South Korea) |
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| Genre | R&B, dance-pop, hip hop, electronica, pop rock | |||
| Length | 58:04 | |||
| Language | Japanese, English | |||
| Label | Avex Trax | |||
| Producer | Takashi Kasuga (exec.), Shinji Hayashi (exec.), Shintaro Higuchi, Hisahiko Iida, Rui Maeda | |||
| Namie Amuro chronology | ||||
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| Digital singles from Checkmate! | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Hot Express | (favorable) |
| Listen Japan | (favorable) |
| What's In? | (favorable) |
Checkmate! is a collaboration album by Japanese popsinger Namie Amuro, featuring a collection of her collaborations with other musicians released between 2003 and 2011, as well as four new collaborations. The album was released on April 27, 2011, about one month after its original release date, due to 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.
Two songs were released as digital downloads prior to the album, "Wonder Woman" in early March prior to the album's postponement, as well as "Make It Happen" on April 20, a week before the album's release.
The album was first conceived after Amuro had finished her tour for her 2009 album Past<Future.
Many of the collaborators on the album worked on multiple tracks. Amuro collaborated with Verbal on five songs: "Wet'N Wild" (producer), "Black Out", "Luvotomy" (rapper, songwriter), "Rock U" (lyricist) and on the hidden track, which is a remix of Amuro's single "Want Me, Want Me" (2005) with additional rapping by Verbal. Ai collaborated with Amuro "Do What U Gotta Do," "Fake" and one of the new songs, "Wonder Woman." Two songs are from Zeebra albums, "After Party" (2003) and "Do What U Gotta Do" (2006). Taku Takahashi contributed on "Luvotomy" (trackmaker) and "Rock U" (co-trackmaker). Double, other than the duet "Black Diamond," wrote the Japanese lyrics to "Make It Happen."
For "Wonder Woman," Amuro asked Ai and Tsuchiya to collaborate with her, as she wanted to create a strong song with a chorus of female vocalists. Amuro felt that she had worked with Ai so many times in the past that a collaboration with her could not go wrong.
"Make It Happen" is South Korean group After School's first Japanese release. Amuro stated that she had taken notice of the K-pop scene for some time. For the project, Amuro's staff gave her a list of possible Korean collaborators. Due to her enjoying After School member Uee's performance in the Korean drama You're Beautiful, she decided on the group. The song was written by Swedish and North American writers Jörgen Elofsson, Erik Lidbom and Bonnie McKee, and was originally titled "Shallow."
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