YouTubin' With The Stars: Utada

We've had a crush on this Japanese pop superstar for years, so we spent the afternoon watching video clips together.

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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To a certain demographic—Japan-lovers, video game otakus and general Asia-philes—the singer Hikaru Utada is a goddess of cool. In fact, Utada is the only woman to be name-dropped in two separate issues of Complex as a reader's "dream date" on our Street Detail page. With her ever-changing style, sexy bilingualism and Tetris fetish, Utada is clearly our type of gal.

In 2004, after years of doing Beyoncé numbers in Japan, Utada released her first U.S. album, Exodus on Def Jam. Though it had some good songs, it ultimately failed to make her an American star. Five years later, Utada is back with the follow-up This is the One, out now on iTunes and dropping officially on May 12. Whereas Exodus was what Utada now calls an "uncomfortable, bold and experimental" project, This is the One is more of a focused, concerted effort at breaking the U.S. charts with production from Stargate ("So Sick," Ne-Yo; "Irreplaceable," Beyoncé) and Tricky Stewart ("Rockin' That Shit," The-Dream, "Umbrella," Rihanna). It seems to be working: The new LP debuted at #2 on the iTunes Pop Album chart. In anticipation of its official release, we sat with Utada and got her commentary on 7 YouTube clips related to her career...

CLIP #1: "EASY BREEZY" MUSIC VIDEO FROM EXODUS (2004)

Utada Hikaru_Come Back To Me
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