At first, I wasn't sure how I felt about Ken Hirai's music. I liked the pop stuff but the bluesy songs that he's really known for never really interested me. Then I decided to sit down and truly listen to what he was singing. That is when I realized how amazingly talented the man is. "Hitomi wo Tojite" is one example of how well he can handle a ballad. A lot of the time, ballads come out contrived and boring. Yet Hirai manages to express that feeling of love without making it feel forced. I have to admit that nowadays, he's one of my favorite artists.