Ueto Aya

Aya Ueto (Ueto Aya, born September 14, 1985) is a Japanese actres singer, idol, and tarento. Born in Nerima, Tokyo, Ueto was discovered when she participated in the 7th All-Japan National Young Beauty Contest, where she won the Judges' Special Choice Prize. She made her acting debut at the age of thirteen in the film Satsujinsha Killer of Paraiso and in 1999, she and fellow participants of the Young Beauty Contest Mami Nejiki, Mai Fujiya, and Manami Nishiwaki formed the unsuccessful girl group Z-1. In 2002, after their disbandment, Ueto continued her music career as a solo singer under the label Pony Canyon, where she debuted with the single "Pureness". Ueto's breakthrough came when she was cast as a girl suffering from gender identity disorder in the sixth series of the TBS drama 3 nen B gumi Kinpachi-sensei. Her critically-acclaimed performance led to several leading roles in dramas and TV endorsements, eventually establishing her as one of Japan's most recognizable faces. She has also ventured onto the big screen in famed film director Ryuhei Kitamura's 2003 blockbuster Azumi and its sequel, Azumi 2: Death or Love in 2005. As one of Japan's most ubiquitous celebrity endorsers, Ueto constantly appears on billboards, shop windows and trains, advertising for companies such as Fujifilm, Lotte and SoftBank.

Present

In March 2008, Ueto won the 24th Asakusa Entertainment Newcomer Prize, which is awarded to the most prominent entertainers based in Tokyo. In April, she took on the role of Yōko Misaki for a third

time in the second special of Attention Please, shot in Sydney, Australia. She also starred in her first NTV drama, Hokaben. She was crowned CM Queen for a second time, raking in a significant 360 million yen for her 8 advertisement contracts. In June, she participated in the Japanese dub of Speed Racer, as the voice of Trixie. She became the first actress to ever appear on official postage stamps by releasing an original set with photos taken from her 2007 tour. In August, she made a secret guest

appearance at the 2008 Kobe Collection runway show, where she modeled for Emanuel Ungaro. In October, Ueto starred in her ninth TV drama leading role in the Fuji TV comedy Celeb to Binbō Taro, alongside Shuchishin member, Yusuke Kamiji. She was also chosen as poster girl for the new jury system. Ueto attended the premiere of Saki Fukuda's first feature film Sakura no Sono, in which she makes a guest appearance, at the 21st Tokyo International Film Festival. In December, Ueto hosted two of the year's biggest festivities: the M-1 GrandPrix and the 50th Japan Record Awards. After playing the part of a lawyer in January 2009, in collaboration with bridal shop Joyful Eli, Ueto launched her own wedding dress collection, entitled U Aya Ueto Dresses. While she has designed her own tour goods in the past, namely the t-shirt line Buddy in 2005, U marks her first official foray into fashion design. In February, it was announced Ueto would co-star with Hayato Ichihara in the Shunji Iwai produced CG film, Baton, created in commemoration of the Port of Yokohama's 150th anniversary. The film also reunites her with Azumi director, Ryuhei Kitamura. In March, Ueto held her first fashion show in support of her wedding dress collection.