1. Aya Ueto is a Japanese actress, singer and television personality.
58 Facts About Aya Ueto
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In 1997, Ueto participated in the seventh Japan Bishojo Contest, where she won the special jury prize.
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Soon thereafter, Aya Ueto joined the talent agency Oscar Promotion and began taking singing, dancing and acting lessons.
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The group disbanded in 2002 and later that year, Aya Ueto signed with Pony Canyon and released "Pureness", her debut single as a lead artist.
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Aya Ueto has since released five studio albums which have spawned ten Oricon top-ten singles.
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At the age of thirteen, Aya Ueto made her acting debut in the 1999 thriller Satsujinsha: Killer of Paraiso.
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In 2001, Aya Ueto appeared in the sixth season of the TBS drama 3-nen B-gumi Kinpachi-sensei.
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Since 2004, Aya Ueto has held the annual title of CM Queen five times.
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Aya Ueto subsequently starred in the remake of Attention Please, the banking drama Hanzawa Naoki and Hirugao: Love Affairs in the Afternoon.
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Aya Ueto ventured onto the big screen as the lead in Ryuhei Kitamura's 2003 blockbuster Azumi, which earned her a nomination for a Japan Academy Award for Best Actress.
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Aya Ueto went on to star in its sequel, Azumi 2: Death or Love, and Thermae Romae, the adaptation of Mari Yamazaki's manga series of the same name.
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In 2017, Aya Ueto starred in the feature film adaptation of the drama series Hirugao.
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Aya Ueto's father is from Suttsu, Hokkaido, while her mother is from Ishigaki Island, Okinawa.
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Aya Ueto is the middle of three children with an older brother, Shun, and younger brother Makoto.
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Aya Ueto originally had no ambitions to become an entertainer; she instead wanted to become a pre-school teacher.
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When she was twelve years old, Aya Ueto won the special jury prize at the contest.
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Aya Ueto revealed later on that her real motivation for doing well was to "win the two million yen cash prize to buy a house for her family," however because what she won was an ad hoc prize decided that day, there was no monetary reward.
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In 2000, Aya Ueto portrayed the supporting role of Momo Fuchigami in the Fuji TV drama Namida o Fuite, starring Yosuke Eguchi.
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In 2001, Aya Ueto appeared on the annual Victor Koshien poster, which, in the past, kick-started the careers of Noriko Sakai and Miho Kanno.
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In January 2002, it was announced that Aya Ueto would continue her music career as a solo artist under Pony Canyon subsidiary label, Flight Master.
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Aya Ueto released her first solo single, "Pureness," in August 2002.
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In between filming her first feature film, Azumi, Aya Ueto released her second single, "Kizuna," and launched Seventeen's Map, a radio show on Nippon Hoso.
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In early 2003, Aya Ueto starred in a remake of the 1993 drama Koko Kyoshi, alongside Naohito Fujiki.
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Aya Ueto released her third single, "Hello," followed by her first studio album, Ayaueto.
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Aya Ueto swooped the Newcomer of the Year category of the Elan d'Or Awards, Japan Movie Critic Awards, Japanese Academy Awards, and Golden Arrow Awards; becoming the only actress to win two consecutive Golden Arrows for Newcomer of the Year.
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Aya Ueto received a nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role at the Japanese Academy Awards and won the Popularity Award.
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In July 2003, Aya Ueto landed her first TV leading role in the TBS drama Hitonatsu no Papa e, for which her fifth single, Kansho, served as theme song.
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In December 2004, Aya Ueto released her third studio album, Re.
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In 2005, Aya Ueto appeared in the NHK taiga drama Yoshitsune, portrayed twin sisters in a remake of the drama Koto, and starred in the sequel to Azumi, Azumi 2: Death or Love.
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Aya Ueto next starred in two TV movies produced to commemorate TBS' 50th anniversary: Misora Hibari Tanjo Monogatar, a Misora Hibari biopic co-starring Izumi Pinko, and Nada Soso, Kono Ai ni Ikite, co-starring Hitomi Kuroki.
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Aya Ueto was appointed mascot girl for the 2005 FIFA Club World Championship and covered the tournament as a special presenter for NTV.
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In 2006, Aya Ueto attended her Coming of Age ceremony, acted as special presenter for NTV's coverage of the 2006 Winter Olympics and made a guest appearance as herself in the anime Meitantei Conan, for which she was chosen as special supporter.
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Aya Ueto released her thirteenth single, "Egao no Mama de," followed by her fourth studio album, License.
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Aya Ueto starred in Celeb, the first episode of the drama adaption of the cell phone novel Tsubasa no Oreta Tenshitachi.
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Aya Ueto's episode was the highest rated of the series.
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Aya Ueto starred alongside Ryo Nishikido in a modern-day remake of the 1970 drama, Attention Please, which became her most successful drama to date.
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Aya Ueto next starred in the Yukihiko Tsutsumi-directed comedy, Shimokita Sundays.
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In September 2006, Ueto released her first compilation album, Best of Uetoaya: Single Collection, which peaked at number 5.
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In 2007, Aya Ueto starred in the two-part Yoshiko Otaka biopic, Ri Kouran.
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In March 2007, Aya Ueto released "Way to Heaven," her first single in over a year, and made a guest appearance in the eighth-season finale of the TBS drama Wataru Seken wa Oni Bakari.
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Aya Ueto next starred alongside Hideaki Ito in the TBS period piece Wachigaiya Itosato, and alongside Yo Oizumi in the Fuji TV drama, Abarenbo Mama, which was well received by critics and audiences alike.
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In 2008, Aya Ueto won the Asakusa Entertainment Newcomer Prize, which is awarded to the most prominent entertainers based in Tokyo.
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Aya Ueto made a secret guest appearance at the 2008 Kobe Collection runway show, where she modeled for Emanuel Ungaro.
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In October 2008, Aya Ueto next starred in her ninth TV drama leading role in the Fuji TV comedy Celeb to Binbo Taro, alongside Shuchishin member, Yusuke Kamiji.
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Aya Ueto attended the premiere of Saki Fukuda's first feature film Sakura no Sono, in which she makes a supporting appearance, at the 21st Tokyo International Film Festival.
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In December 2008, Aya Ueto hosted two of the year's biggest festivities: the M-1 Grand Prix and 50th Japan Record Awards.
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Aya Ueto hosted the former for the third consecutive year.
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In November 2009, Aya Ueto co-starred with Tetsuya Watari in the Sugako Hashida-written and Fukuko Ishii-produced TV movie, Kekkon.
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In 2010, Aya Ueto launched her third and fourth wedding dress collections, starred alongside Kin'ya Kitaoji in the Fuji TV drama Zettai Reido, and made a cameo appearance in Shun Oguri's directorial debut, Surely Someday.
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In September 2010, Aya Ueto portrayed blind singer-songwriter Satoko Tatemichi in the TV movie Ai wa Mieru.
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Aya Ueto next co-starred with Yutaka Takenouchi in her second Getsuku drama, Nagareboshi.
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Aya Ueto was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix and won the Television Drama Academy Award for her role in Nagareboshi.
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In February 2011, Aya Ueto launched her fifth wedding dress collection.
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In July 2011, Aya Ueto reprised the role of detective Izumi Sakuragi for a second season of Zettai Reido.
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Aya Ueto was confirmed to appear in the series finale of the long-running drama Wataru Seken wa Oni Bakari, scheduled to air in September 2011.
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Aya Ueto dated Japanese singer and actor Go Morita of the boy band V6 for eight years before splitting in April 2010.
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In September 2012, Aya Ueto announced via a handwritten letter posted on her official website that she and Hiro had registered their marriage on Aya Ueto's 27th birthday.
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Aya Ueto gave birth to their third child and second son on June 22,2023.