Best: Third Universe

In early January 2010, Japanese recording artist Kumi Koda announced plans of releasing a double album.[7] The double album was to promote both her third greatest hits album entitled Best: Third Universe, and a new studio album that consisted of unreleased material from recording sessions for her 2008 album, Trick.[7] However, new material arose after completing her concert tours: The 2009 Trick Tour and her first Taiwanese concert tour.[8][9] Best: Third Universe is Koda's first double album since her 2005 greatest hits album Best: First Things, which included single between her December 2000 debut "Take Back" and her May 2004 single "Cutie Honey", with a bonus disc with newly recorded material.[10] Third Universe is also Koda's first double album to consist of a greatest hits and full-length studio album.

The material from Best: Third Universe includes singles between May 2006 "Koi no Tsubomi" and her December 2008 single "Stay with Me", with a bonus disc with newly recorded material.[11] The recordings are sung in both English and Japanese language; "That Ain't Cool", a duet with American recording artist Fergie, is recorded in full English, while "Lady Go!" and "Taboo" are both bilingual tracks.[upper-alpha 2][upper-alpha 3] Each song is co-written by Koda, including the English and Japanese tracks.[11] Both Best: Third Universe and Universe have been described as a J-pop album with numerous elements of dance-pop, rock, R&B, electropop, and pop ballad.[12][13][14]

Best: Third Universe was released as a double album with Koda's eighth studio album Universe on February 3, 2010 by Rhythm Zone in four different formats. The double CD featured the sixteen greatest hits tracks and fourteen original tracks on two separate compact discs.[11] The second first press issues featured a bonus track, the live version to "Moon Crying", and a bonus poster.[11] The double CD and DVD bundle featured the sixteen greatest hits tracks and fourteen original tracks on two separate compact discs, and a bonus DVD, including the music videos for the lead singles from the greatest hits and all featured singles from Universe.[15] This format also included the live version of "Moon Crying" and a bonus poster.[15] The final format is the digital release, which was released worldwide. This format featured the sixteen greatest hits tracks and fourteen original tracks.[6] A fifth format was released to promote both Best: Third Universe and Universe, but only included the greatest hits CD. However, a bonus booklet featured a website code to download short ringtones of all Universe tracks.[16]

The six Best: Third Universe and Universe cover sleeves feature different images all photographed by Leslie Kee.[6][11][15][16] The double album format has Koda looking towards the camera, holding up the booklet to her second greatest hits compilation Best: Second Session (2006).[11] The double album and bonus DVD format has Koda drinking from a coffee mug, while sitting on a kitchen bench reading the booklet.[15] Despite not being included on the compilation only format, the text "8th Al. Universe" is featured on the front cover, and has Koda holding up a strawberry.[16] The digital release uses the double album as its front cover.[6] Apart from the digital and compilation only release, each physical format features two booklets. The booklet front for Best: Third Universe has a close-up of Koda with long brown hair and minimal make-up. The Universe booklet was also issued, featuring a close-up of Koda with dark eye shadow, feathered jewellery and long false nails.[11][15] The booklets and photo shoots were designed by members of United Lounge Tokyo, and the theme is immolating Koda's Best: Second Session photo shoot.[6][11][15][16]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic (first review)	[14]
AllMusic (second review)	[13]
Hot Express	(positive)[17]

Best: Third Universe received favourable reviews from most music critics. Adam Greenberg from AllMusic awarded the album three-and-a-half stars out of five. He commented "Kumi Koda has enough hits on her hands to fuel a whole series of greatest-hits compilations. Proving this, Best: Third Universe is actually a companion pair of albums. Best Third contains the various Oricon chart hits (and a few others) released since her last compilation – Best Second. The songs are well-produced, well-performed, perfectly in the realm of Koda's forte. She can slink, she can croon, she can run a massive dance tune with a heavy beat, and all are shown off with great effect on Best Third.[14]

Ian Martin from the same publication awarded it three-and-a-half stars, opening by saying "Kumi Koda is a performer who divides opinion in her homeland, mocked and hated openly by many in Japan, and with many of her fans reluctant to admit to liking her." Martin later commented "Delving beneath Koda's image also reveals a generally high standard of music, albeit one that, for all the genre-hopping on display, never really strays too far from the blueprint of archetypal Avex Trax pop."[13]

Despite selling over 372,000 units, Universe was only the fifth best selling album by a female artist. Lady Gaga's The Fame Monster (left) and Namie Amuro's Past Future (right) had beaten Koda's sales.[18]

Charting together as a double album, Best: Third Universe and Universe debuted at number one on the Japanese Oricon Daily Albums Chart with 76,056 units sold, but slipped two number two for the rest of the week days.[19] Despite this, Best: Third Universe and Universe debuted at number one on the Japanese Oricon Daily Weekly Chart with an estimated 221,887 first week sales.[19][20] Both albums became Koda's third and fourth number one compilation and studio album to reach the top spot on the Oricon Albums Chart respectively.[19] Despite this, Best: Third Universe and Universe became Koda's lowest selling greatest hits and studio album since Best: Second Session and Trick in first week sales; the former sold over 950,000, and the later sold over 250,000 units in its first week.[20] It fell to three in its second week, shifting over 60,552 units.[20] The album stayed inside the top ten for four weeks, selling over 325,000 units in its course.[19] It spent fifteen weeks inside the top 100 chart, and 32 weeks in the top 300 chart.[19] By the end of 2010, Best: Third Universe and Universe sold over 371,590 units and was ranked 18 on the Annual Oricon Yearly Albums Chart; this made Koda the fifth female artist on the chart, behind Lady Gaga, Kaela Kimura, Namie Amuro, and Kana Nishino.[18] To date, Oricon's database has ranked Best: Third Universe and Universe as Koda's seventh best-selling album.[21]

Best: Third Universe and Universe entered at number two on Japan's Billboard Top Albums Sales.[22] Unable to reach the top spot, it slipped to number three the following week, and eventually stayed in the top 100 chart for 16 weeks; its final position was at 89.[23][24] Best: Third Universe and Universe was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for shipments of 250,000 units.[25] To date, the album has sold over 372,002 units in Japan.[20] Best: Third Universe and Universe also reached number 18 on the Taiwanese Albums Chart, and 4 their East Asian Albums Chart.[26][upper-alpha 4][upper-alpha 5][27][upper-alpha 6][upper-alpha 7]

To promote Universe and Best: Third Universe', Koda went on her 2010 Universe tour. The concert tour went throughout Japan, and the recurring theme was outer space and the shuttle used for the voyage (on all concert merchandise) was labelled Koda Airlines.[28] The concert tour was released in two formats; a double-DVD bundle, and a Blu-ray release.[29][30] The DVD reached number one on the Oricon DVD Chart, with over 67,078 units sold by 2010 and was ranked 27 on the Annual Oricon Yearly DVD Chart.[31] Koda further promoted the album on her 10th Anniversary Tour. The concert tour was released in two formats; a double-DVD bundle, and a Blu-ray release.[32][33] The DVD reached number one on the Oricon DVD Chart, with over 40,141 units sold by 2010 and was ranked 36 on the Annual Oricon Yearly DVD Chart.[34]

• List of Oricon number-one albums of 2010

• Best: Third Universe & 8th Al. Universe – Kumi Koda's Official website.