The fuss seems out of proportion to the pretty, petite Hamasaki, who appears with bleached blonde hair tied back, her eyes masked with huge, white-framed sunglasses. White is a theme; Hama-saki draws gasps with a style-conscious white coat, three-quarter- length denim trousers and four-inch-heeled white sandals.

She gamely battles her way into a dark green Rolls-Royce but the crowd immediately boxes the limousine in: she's not going to get away that easily. As her handlers attempt to shovel them out of the way for the short drive around the corner to Canton Road, fans still screech for a glimpse of the 23-year-old pop sensation. The car is more for her protection than convenience.

'She is my only idol. This is such a precious chance to be so close to her,' says a fawning Stephen Chan Kam-man, chairman of the Ayumi Hamasaki A Best HK Fan Club. 'I went to see her concert in Tokyo last year and it was superb. Not even the fans in Japan can be this close to her. She's so pretty. Her lyrics about her personal feelings touch my heart.'

Last year, the J-pop princess was the best-selling artist in Japan. Her latest album, I Am . . . , has sold two million copies in her homeland since its release just two months ago. Hamasaki is hot and is in Hong Kong for the first time to shoot a series of photos for a glossy promotional album. But not before a bout of shopping. Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci and Louis Vuitton all get a look-in, and Hamasaki buys a few bits and pieces, but the rivalry between security guards and fans derails any plans for an extended retail binge. Hamasaki retreats to the hotel for sanctuary.

She is no stranger to negotiating the demands of celebrity. She started modelling at the tender age of seven, but her music career dates from 1998, when she was spotted by a talent agency. Almost overnight she was being touted as the new hope of J-pop with her debut single Poker Face, and the following year her breakthrough album A Song For XX - for which she wrote all the lyrics - went straight to No 1 in Japan and remained there for five weeks. Keith Lau Ka-wa, assistant international marketing manager of Hamasaki's record company, Avex Trax, sees two reasons for her phenomenal popularity. 'First, she is a fashion icon. All the young Japanese girls look to her because her image changes a lot. She is also famous for writing her own lyrics, which are about her personal feelings, and many young girls can identify themselves with her songs.'

And young boys. And old boys, too. Of the crowd that trailed her around Hong Kong a fortnight ago, there was a mix of both sexes, from teens up to late 30s. 'I immediately came down here when I heard of the news on the radio,' says Chan, 37. 'I wait for almost 20 hours a day. Twenty of us also spent about $2,000 to hire a minivan for one day to chase her car.'

Cheng Ka-fai, host of Japanese music programme Cheng-panese Boy on Commercial Radio, says Hamasaki's fanbase is broad. 'She is a fashion leader, even those who don't listen to her music still pay attention to her because she is a trendsetter. Her musical style is very diverse. There are remixes of her songs into club music for disco, Euro-beat, parapara dance and even acoustic versions.'

But music critic Fung Lai-chi has reservations about all the hype surrounding Hamasaki. He says one of the reasons why the fans are so wild is because they haven't found their own goals in life, and thus Hamasaki is just a vicarious route to happiness. 'They just need to find their own hero to worship and identify with. This kind of irrational act is a reflection of their affection to their idol. They can't even explain it to themselves.'

For a queen bee of the J-pop scene she's also exceptionally pleasant and polite, says Cheng. 'Japanese stars are known for being snobbish and hard to get close to, but Ayumi is willing to get close to the fans and media.'

But not that close. During her week-long stay in The Peninsula's Presidential Suite ($40,000-plus a night), she gave no interviews or press conferences. She used the hotel's restricted areas and back doors for her exits and entrances and eating in her room. The hotel was only too happy, as the arrangements helped to keep any disturbance to a minimum and prevent annoyance for other guests.

But then Hamasaki's visit was always supposed to be a low-profile trip - even the Hong Kong arm of her record company was only informed of her trip as she was about to board her plane.

'Because she's only coming here for a photo-shoot and nothing to do with music, the record company is not involved in the whole procedure,' says Lau. 'We only got a phone call from Japan an hour before she took off. We don't even know about her routine because a local production house takes care of it.'

The photoshoot was organised by local company CMF Production. Gary Cheung Man-fat, chief co-ordinator of the project, says he only had days to prepare for Hamasaki's arrival. 'We only got the job less than two weeks before she came here so we didn't have much time to set up things for her. All we do is to arrange shooting locations for her and hire enough security guards to protect her.'

And protection she needs. An over-eager press pack was waiting even as she touched down at Chek Lap Kok. She and her entourage of seven stepped out of arrivals geared up for a week in the spotlight.

'Though we never inform any outsiders about our schedule, they still find out everything,' Cheung says. 'The craziness of the fans and the media is totally beyond expectation. Ayumi wants to meet the fans and the media but at the same time we have to ensure her safety. We were worried that there could be accidents when her fans chased after the cars.'

His concerns were justified. Initially, only five security guards were hired, but as the week wore on, numbers steadily increased and Hamasaki had two cars travelling in convoy for protection. During the week, she visited Repulse Bay, Stanley, Temple Street and Tsim Sha Tsui, appearing in exotic outfits and outrageous hairstyles at each location. For each appearance she had at least 50 people tailing her, often ignoring red lights and 'no entry' signs. At each stop a bunch of guards stood shoulder to shoulder holding up huge white Peninsula bedsheets, shielding the pseudo-royal while her photographer snapped away. In what became a post-shoot ritual Hamasaki eventually emerged from the wraps to greet, in Japanese, fans and the media. She accepted gifts and posed for journalists to take pictures.

Most fans followed her in taxis. Often leading the pack were Chan and Charles Lim Ngai-chi, vice-chairman of the A Best HK Fan Club. Lim says: 'We wanted to give her a musical Happy Chinese New Year card signed by me and other Ayumi fans.' They managed it at one of the after-shoot meet-and-greets, the pair add. 'She looked happy about it. She was very nice.'

The climax to the frenzy naturally came at that tearful moment for fans when Hamasaki had to go home. More than 200 turned up at the airport to wave her off. Despite her having four times as many minders as on arrival, there was one last melee. Her hat was dislodged and she nearly lost it in the tide of people before she made it to the safety of the gate and an eerie calm descended.

Hamasaki's next visit to Hong Kong - to promote her latest album - is scheduled for early next month, and a concert in August is also being planned. The faithful members of her reception committee are already making their plans.

' I immediately came down here when I heard of the news . . . I wait for almost 20 hours a day'

Fan club chairman Stephen Chan Kam-man