Love (Destiny)

"Love (Destiny)" (stylized as "LOVE ~Destiny~") is a song recorded by Japanese recording artist Ayumi Hamasaki, serving as the second single for her second studio album, Loveppears (1999). It was released by Avex Trax in Japan and Taiwan on April 14, 1999, and through Avex Entertainment Inc. worldwide in September 2008. The track was written by Hamasaki herself, while production was handled by long-time collaborator Max Matsuura. Three versions of the recording have been made available—a ballad version arranged by Tsunku, an edited version with vocals by Tsunku, and a dance-influenced version included on Loveppears. Upon its release, "Love (Destiny)" received near universal acclaim from music critics, praising her vocal performance, with some highlighting the single as one of Hamasaki's best work. Commercially, the recording experienced success in Japan, reaching number one on the Oricon Singles Chart and TBS' Count Down TV chart, her first song to do so on either charts. It also became Hamasaki's first single to sell over 500,000 units, and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for shipments of 400,000 copies. Due to the single's success, it was re-released as a CD single and re-entered both charts. An accompanying music video was directed by Wataru Takeishi, and featured Hamasaki in a large skyscraper while singing to the song in different areas. In order to promote the single, it appeared on several remix and greatest hits compilation albums, and live concert torus conducted by Hamasaki. It was also used as the theme song for Japanese television show SemiDouble (1999). To date, the recording remains one of her highest-selling singles according to Oricon Style.