In 2008 , Hamasaki commemorated her 10th career anniversary by promoting two projects : the first was her career retrospective compilation , '' A Complete : All Singles '' . Not long after , she conducted her first concert tour outside of Japan , holding shows in Hong Kong , China , and Taiwan . While she was on tour , Hamasaki begun writing songs for her upcoming studio album . After the tour was complete , she spent most of her time composing various demos in Hawaii , alongside various musicians and composers including Dai Nagao , CMJK , Kazuhiro Hara , HΛL , amongst others . This marks a return for these collaborators , having composed majority of her work on previous albums . Recording sessions for '' Next Level '' started once Hamasaki return to Japan , having been assisted by John Paterno , Satoshi Sasamoto , Yuichi Nagayama , and frequent collaborator Koji Morimoto . The content was recorded at Avex Studios , Prime Sound Studios , LAB Recordings , and Azabu Studios in Shibuya , Tokyo ; Hamasaki had also stayed in London , England to record vocals with Dom Morley and Phill Brown . According to the singer , most of the songs were completed in one-to-two takes ; she told an interviewer from '' ViVi Magazine '' that " I used to have a bad habit of recording my songs before totally memorizing the lyrics and melodies ... But this time , a lot of tracks were successfully recorded after only two attempts ! " After the album 's material was complete , it was mastered by Shigeo Miyamoto . Additionally , the album was solely produced by Avex Trax owner Max Matsuura , becoming their 10th studio collaboration since her debut
first concert tour outside of Japan
Ayumi Hamasaki Asia Tour 2008: 10th Anniversary
Next Level (Ayumi Hamasaki album)