"That CBTM ultimately never did take off is a testament to the immense difficulty in becoming a superstar. You can do everything 'right'--- great talent, a major label, agressive marketing, radio-friendly produced songs--- but when you get right down to it it's all a matter of luck. Lightning struck for Utada in Japan; she's trying to get it to strike her again."


--- It's not just about luck... the entertainment and media industry of the U.S. is more than luck, especially when it comes to race politics and Asian American visibility. The same troupes of race politics and Asian American non-visibility and consumption caused CBTM to not take off. Like many Asian American artist, Utada fell trap to these troupes. The U.S. is still not ready for mainstream Asian American talent to surface, this is seen in major film, video, media, and the lack of Asian Americans in them.
In any case, Utada has done miles, and we'll await her next single. But these days, it seems like "popular names" .. artist getting guest features from already high consumed artist, is what it takes to get on the map and "take off".