[2009-05-28] - (21:54)
No title

Thank you for all of your postings.
I couldn't hold back my tears when reading all of your messages.
Thank you for your warm messages.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

All I can say right now is thank you,
but really, thank you very much.

All the power I received from you, well,
I'm going to give you back even more of that power.

Please wait for it.


Note:
Just clear things for those who missed the news a few days ago.
It's her first blog entry since the news of her father who had passed away.
The messages she is referring to are probably all from fans who expressed their sympathies.

-

[2009-05-30] - (17:49)
No title



I arrived at MTV~!!!
I can't wait ☆

Are you here, too???

Note:
MTV VMA Japan

-

[2009-05-30] - (21:24)
Finished~!!



I went to MTV!
I was nervous!!!!
Wah~
I suddenly started to sweat.

Another whole day is already over again.
The power of music is really amazing~
I had that feeling all over again.

It was the first time that I met with
Shimizu Shota from the same label, but his eyes are really beautiful!
In the car on my way home, I immediately listened to the CD I got from him ♪

Thanks to everyone!!

-

[2009-05-30] - (21:43)
By the way..



That's what my outfit looked like.
It isn't the same as wearing casual clothes,
but I still liked that style.

I'm starting to like showy, fun and bright clothes ♪

Pheew~!

It was quite a stimulating day.
It was a lot of fun.

---
Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Please don't post this translation anywhere else!

I'll post a few rankings from sites like Oricon that got published over the past few weeks. I won't go into too much details and simply post the rankings with maybe 1 short comment from one of the people who took the survey (if available). Enjoy! (or not..) ^^

-

By which celebrity would you like to get woken up?
[456 unmarried men and women between 20 and 40]

- 01 - Nakama Yukie
- 02 - Aragaki Yui
- 02 - Ueto Aya
- 02 - Ayase Haruka
- 02 - Horikita Maki (yes, they really all are on 2nd place)
- 06 - Wada Akiko
[Wada Akiko only got voted, because people would have no choice but to wake up.. she might even scream at you!]

-

Whose female celebrity hairdo would you like to copy?
[500 women from senior high school students to women in their 40's]

- 01 - Ueto Aya
["Medium-length hair is so pretty. I want the same one as her!"]
- 02 - Kimura Kaela
["It's always creative, stylish and pretty."]
- 03 - Horikita Maki
["Short hair suits her a lot, it's easy and pretty."]
- 04 - Amuro Namie
["It's always easy and not easy to copy, I'd really like to have the same hairdo as her."]
- 05 - Toda Erika
["It's casual and adult-like, fluffy and very pretty."]
- 06 - YOU
["Her hair is always fluffy and has this natural volume, it's simply beautiful."]
- 07 - Yonekura Ryoko
["It's adult-like and very elegant."]
- 08 - Miyazaki Aoi
["I want to have a fluffy and soft athmosphere like Aoi-chan!"]
- 09 - Shibasaki Kou
["Her suits everything! I personally like dyed hair."]
- 10 - Hamasaki Ayumi
["She's stylish and pretty! I want to have the same charisma as her."]

-

Top 10 of "black hair beauties"
[1000 men and women from senior high school students to people in their 40's]

- 01 - Nakama Yukie
["I'm envious of her always glossy and long black hair!"]
- 02 - Kuroki Meisa
["She looks so noble, black hair and a small face is a perfect match."]
- 03 - Koyuki
["She looks pretty with her snow-white skin and black hair."]
- 04 - Kuroki Hitomi
["Her deep black hair is so beautiful and she always looks so youthful."]
- 05 - Aragaki Yui
["She always looks so pretty when she waves her black hair."]
- 06 - Kuriyama Chiaki
["Her unique bangs and silky black hair suit her perfectly."]
- 07 - Kashii Yuu
["She seems like a woman who perfectly displays the feminine virtues of old Japan."]
- 08 - Miyazaki Aoi
["It's only my impression from 'Atsuhime', but black hair suits her a lot."]
- 09 - Aoi Yuu
["She's like the representative of the typical beautiful Japanese person."]
- 10 - Nakashima Mika
["Her black her is pretty and it supports her image."]

-

"Gold-Ratio Faces," the perfectly balanced faces
[1033 men and women who are in their 20's or 30's.]

---Overall (Men&Woman votes combined)
- 01 - Kashii Yuu
- 02 - Fujiwara Norika
- 03 - Matsushima Nanako
- 04 - Aragaki Yui
- 05 - Shibasaki Kou

---Men voters only
- 01 - Aragaki Yui
- 02 - Ueto Aya
- 03 - Fujiwara Norika
- 04 - Hirosue Ryoko
- 05 - Horikita Maki

---Women voters only
- 01 - Kashii Yuu
- 02 - Fujiwara Norika
- 03 - Shibasaki Kou
- 04 - Matsushima Nanako
- 05 - Miyazawa Rie

---
Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Source: Oricon.. and others
Please link back when posting those news anywhere else.

Actress Ueto Aya (23) attended the opening ceremony of a new shop of major menswear maker AOKI in Tokyo's Ginza district on Thursday and even had the privilege of cutting the ribbon. She's been working as the image character for AOKI for several years now and already appeared in a number of commercials for them.

It was a rainy day and so it was nice to see her brightening up the area with her smile, but Ueto herself even thought one step further by choosing a bright orange dress for the event. "It's raining and so I thought I should be like the sun." People get attracted by the sun and so it was no surprise to see a long queue in front of the shop. "Everyone, please come!!" She called out to the people in the queue. The first in the line didn't even only got to see Ueto's smile, she even personally gave them a little present from the shop. Can a day be even brighter?

Of course the fact that people only had to pay half the amount for all of their goods during the opening sale also contributed a bit to the 3000 people long line in front of the store since 6am, 3 hours before the opening, but I rather want to believe that it was all Ueto's doing. The opening sale will continue until June 11 (without Ueto, though).




---
Note:
Sorry for the biased article, usually I only translate the Japanese article and that's it.. but I felt like adding some own thoughts. :P

Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Source: Sanspo
Please link back when posting those news anywhere else.

Young NICOLA model Nikaido Fumi (14) is making her big screen debut in the movie called "Gama no Abura" (Toad's Oil), the directorial debut of Yakusho Koji (53). Cinema Today now had the chance make an interview with her.

NICOLA has already been the gateway to success for many young models who want to become actresses like Aragaki Yui, Aoi Yuu or Sawajiri Erika. Nikaido has the same desire and tried to audition for the role next to modeling for magazines and commercials. In the end her dazzling smile stood out of the 50 contestants and earned her the role of the heroine. Director Yakusho discovered and coached this gem himself and has been very pleased about her abilities. Despite her first genuine acting role, she had a very great natural perception, good acting skills and an overall very charming appearance. Even before the release of the movie, Nikaido already earned herself the title of "The next Miyazaki Aoi" among the movie staff due to her striking resemblance in both her looks and her character. Even all the authorized people who have already been able to see a preview screening had the same comment about her, "She's just like Miyazaki Aoi!"

"When I heard about the audition, I just told myself, 'Let's do it!' It was completely my own decision. About 2 months before the actual start of the filming I had a rehearsal with the director. He completely guided me through everything. There was a lot of laughter at the set, because in the beginning I still had a lot of problems. The director would always come to me and say, "You should do it like this" and exactly show me what I'm supposed to do. This has been very funny sometimes, so much that we spontaneously started to laugh."

The movie is a fantasy dorama about a father who has to climb over the tragic event of his son who got involved in a traffic accident and ended up in a coma. Nikaido plays the role of Hikari, the lover of the eldest son (Eita) of the married couple (Yakusho Koji himself and Kobayashi Satomi). It's a very important role, even if it isn't one of the starring roles, it was still enough for her as a newbie to feel the pressure. "I couldn't believe it at first, when I heard that I would be filming a movie together with Eita-san and was like, 'EH?'. Eita has been a very nice person and I'm really thankful for that. I think I wouldn't have been able to play the role of Hikari the way I did, if it wasn't Eita-san who played as Takuya."

It seems like Nikaido always wanted to become an actress. "I wanted to become an actress ever since I've been born. My mother loves movies and we often went to see movie together, so that might have had an influence on me."

Nikaido is 14 years old, lives in Okinawa and is a young literature girl who enjoys her student life. "I get up at 7, eat breakfast, put on my uniform and go to school. When I come back home, I relax in my room, read a book, study or talk with my mom, that's how I basically live every day at the moment. I really love reading books. Dazai Osamu (an author) and so on."

Because of work she constantly had to commute between Okinawa and Tokyo. When asked about her favorite spot in Tokyo, she immediately replied "Asagusa!", which means that she must have a very good taste. "I love the Hanayashiki Amusement Park there. I love that free fall rollercoaster and the haunted house. The old feeling it has to it is great. You aren't able to go around the whole place at once, but no matter how many times I go there, I'd still love it."

That effortless charm of her is what makes her resemble Miyazaki Aoi the most and is also the reason why many people have such high expections in her. Nikaido herself also has very big goals.

"I wouldn't say it's a very big goal, but I'd like to become an actress as active in the entertainment world as Yakusho-san. Take the movie 'Babel' for example, I didn't even recognize him at all, that's how great he was able to get into his role. A person who is able to do that is amazing and it would be great to become like that. In order to spread my wings and becoming an actress, I have to experience various places and do various roles, and it would be great, if I could work together with Yakusho-san someday again."

Will it even be possible not to pick her as a candidate for Rookie of the Year?


Note:
I have a short profile about her over here.

---
Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Source: Cinema Today
Please link back when posting those news anywhere else.

[2009-05-26]

I haven't written here for a while.
How are you doing? Are you laughing?

I can't always immediately tell your about work related things and so there always will be a delay... Anyway, first of all we wrapped up the filming of "Kekkon"!!!! Already!? Some of you might think, but yes... it's all done already.
Every day I really learned a lot and the set was overflowing with great love. We've finished and I can say that I've never met anybody with as much power as Watari Papa...

Now to "Konkatsu!", it's still fun day after day~~~~!!!
Whenever I get teased by Kuni and it really looks like as if I was crying from the side, Shige starts to cheer "Ueto!!! Ueto!!!" and both Yuko-san and I always get immersed into our various woman talks. The staff laughs whenever they hear us. *laughs* Yasu has a really bright smile, Takumi-chan always brings along those childcare books and goods to the set... and with Kunio-chan I've been talking with since my teenage days, it's simply the best~~~~~!!!!!

I had lots of different conversations with Makoto-chan as well, the ward headman invited everyone in the studio to some Chinese tea... it tasted like my mother's.
I'm also grateful for Kuni's daily workmen's songs. He's a real mood-maker.
Jordan was intense, though *cries*. Was it serious..., or a joke...!?

I also went to see Yonekura-onesan's play called "Kuro Kawa no Techo" between the dorama!! My mother had the seat left to me. Right to me was the director who supported me in doramas before. It was really strange *laughs*.
Onesan was amazing. Her coolness increased like two-times since last time, she was simply too cool for words. When Onesan saw me clapping like crazy during the curtain call, she was overflowing with tears.
Only Onesan could have found me.
Aya also wants to become a senior you can walk behind without feeling ashamed. Without having to separate with Onesan, though...

Lately my head had to bear a lot of scripts and I wasn't able to enjoy myself. However, I was able to make an arrangement to meet a friend I haven't seen in a very long time and very soon we will go and eat together our long-awaited pot~~~!!!
I'm supper happy Ah~, I'm so happy~~~

I want to meet you all~~~
I want to say "Thank you" to all of you.
Right now I have to concentrate on the recording of the dorama.
It would be great, if I could meet you soon... please wait for that day to come

Ueto Aya


Notes:
She uses the dorama character names or professions instead of their real names, but I guess not everyone is watching Konkatsu or knows all the names. That's why I made a little key note for you.

Kuni = Nakai Masahiro
Shige = Sato Ryuta
Yuko = Shaku Yumiko
Yasu = Ueda Tatsuya
Takumi = Tanihara Shosuke
Kunio = Kohinata Fumiyo
Makoto = Ryo
Ward Headman = Fubuki Jun
(I have no clue about 'Jordan' or if I translated this one the right way.. anyone who knows?)

Oh and the Yonekura she's talking about is no other than Yonekura Ryoko.

---
Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Please don't post this translation anywhere else

[2009-05-25]
Entry 145

Music like a stabilizer.



airdrop/drops (10 songs in total)
I love this album.

Both the smell and the scenery,
hahh~ when I listen to this music I tend to remember those days back then,
as if all my memories are captured in my favorite music and all come out at once.

When listening to that sort of music,
it becomes painful,
it becomes sad,
I start to miss those days,
it gives me push to work harder,
it increases my tension,
and it puts me into the mode to work.

Each time I listen to it,
my feelings barometer starts to tremble,
so much that I even get a bit worn out.

I love it, though.
I really love this music,
but I really have to plan the right timing for listening to it.

However, this album is an exception,
I could listen to it anytime as long as I want.
It's a very important album for me.

Do you also have music that calms down your mind?

I do as you can tell.
I do have such a music, but for some reason I only recently realized how powerful it is for me.

◇◇◇

Lately I've been living my life at ease for a little while. (^-^)v

I went to a nail salon for the first time in half a year again (hands and feet in adult pink gold ♪)
I'm also reading books unrelated to work (bought all the magazines and books at once ♪)



7 of us from our student days also gathered again for the first time in 3 years ♪



All of them became working adults and it was a strange feeling when they handed over their business cards. *laughs* Everyone was really relieved as usual, but everyone also became an adult... It was clearly visible that each and everyone of them puts a lot of effort into the new world and society they live in now.

I also would like to tackle every single day with a sharp mind while letting my body be at ease ☆

---
Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Please don't post this translation anywhere else

Model and actress Anne (23) will be taking on her first heroine role in a television series this summer. She has been cast as the female lead in NTV's spy comedy that stars Tomoya Nagase.

Still lacking an official title, the show was first revealed last week. Nagase plays a convicted swindler who is recruited by the government to serve as a spy against terrorists. His role is being loosely labeled as a James Bond-type character, which means Anne will play the equivalent of a Bond girl.

Anne's character is a reporter for an evening newspaper, who is also the daughter of a family that runs a restaurant in Nagase's neighborhood. She becomes part of the spy team under the name Dorothy. Because Anne has an international modeling career, the show's producer felt that she would be a good choice for the "Bond girl" role.

The drama series is scheduled to start in July.

---
Copied from Tokyograph~
All credits to them!

It often has been reported that singer/actor Nagase Tomoyo (30) and actress Aibu Saki (24) seem to be really good friends. In January he had been spotted doing the first shrine visit of New Year together with Aibu at her home area and he even already visited her at her home. Now those 2 are also said to have been visiting a certain video rental shop during Golden Week.

"He went to the shop with comfortable clothes and a cap. At first it looked like any tall man, but at second glimpse there was no doubt that it is indeed Nagase of the band TOKIO who is walking together with a slender woman wearing skinny jeans and a jacket. She really looked like Aibu Saki!" (The report of an eye-witness at the rental shop.)

The supposed date of Nagase and Aibu at the rental shop in Tokyo is said to have happened late at night, right in the midst of Golden Week at May 4th.

"First they looked around here and there and couldn't really decide on anything, maybe there were looking for their own works? Eventually they arrived at the corner for Japanese films and you could hear both of them laughing. They both flirted with each other and Nagase said something like, 'Let's take that one this time~', while Aibu answered, 'No way~'." (Still the same eye-witness.)

Both of them have actually been spotted at the same shop in April already and it seems to be one of Nagase favorite shops. "It's been his favorite shop in the neighborhood for a while now, he already came here with his ex-girlfriend Hamasaki Ayumi. There's also a shabu-shabu shop near here that he often visits incognito." A reporter explains.

All the stuff reported above could still be a story of only good friends, if there wasn't another small detail that didn't get mentioned so far.

"They've been holding hands and Aibu even had a ring put on the ring finger of her left hand." (A different eye-witness.)

-

Maybe Nagase gave her the ring as a present? ..or maybe not?
One thing is for sure, they both seem to be on very good terms.
Look at the color photo that surfaced on the web and decide for yourself. ^^

---
Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Source: Josei Seven, Japanese Gossip Boards
Please link back when posting those news anywhere else.

Today the press has been informed about the sudden death of the father of actress Kuroki Meisa (20) earlier this month. The acute leukemia of her 59 years-old father suddenly took his life in the morning of May 11. He died at their home in Okinawa.

At the same day Kuroki appeared on TV Asahi in the show "Tetsuko no Heya" and pulled through the interview without letting the viewers know about her grief. Right after the show she flew to Okinawa to see her late father. The next morning she already had to head back to Tokyo for a PR-Event, but she is said to have returned home right after that again.

---
Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Source: Sanspo
Please link back when posting those news anywhere else.

[2009-05-23] - (18:19)
Having Lunch ☆

Kitano is in Chiba today, filming since noon (^O^)

When I got there, everyone was in the middle of eating their lunch, because they had been filming since the early morning (￣∀￣)

Today our catering was done by Komizu again and he once again made our meal at the set !(^^)!
The meals he makes are extremely delicious (^^)

It's impossible to put the aroma and the flavor of the green curry or the coconuts he made for us the other day in words!!

Of course I'm not the only one who likes it, everyone from the staff praises him as well and there are a lot of people in the movie industry who are his fans ♪

The meals Komizu Touta can make at the sets of movies is simply superb! Kitano even received the book he made, "Oonabe dakara Umai no da!" (If there's a cauldron, it will be delicious!) as a present ☆

Now Kitano will also try her best at making meals!!!

Everyone can do their best thanks to the meals he makes for us every day o(^-^)o

Thank you very much m(_ _)m

Note:
Kitano isn't overpraising him at all! Komizu already did the food during the production of popular movies like "Umizaru", "Battle Royale", "Always: Sunset on Third Street" and many many more.

-

[2009-05-23] - (21:40)
My lovely friend ♪

Yesterday singer Shiraki Anna and I did Toraji-Rhythm *laughs*

☆Anna☆ is an honest, kind and really cute girl (*^_^*)
She also understands a lot about me and I can talk with her about really anything.

I really like her straightforwardness a lot.
I also love all her written songs.

Her voice is amazing too and another thing I also love about her, is her vigorous doing-things-at-her-own-pace character ♪

It would be way to embarrassed to say such things right to her face, though *laughs*

Anna and I have been friends for about 4 years now, we've been together in senior high school for 3 years. She was my seat neighbor and we happened to make friends with each other.

Her character is so great, really.

All the friends around me have a great character and I'm really happy to have such wonderful friends (^_^)v

Today we'll be filming until midnight again (」゜□゜)」

I'll hang in there!!


I made everyone buy the tutuanna* bag, huh? (≧∇≦)

We have the same now~ ★☆ I'm happy to have the same bag as you guys (-^〇^-)

You also better put in a mask, okay! (・o・)ノ


Everyone _(._.)_
Kitano herself is okay,
but you please
be careful and not
get an influenza!!

Vitamin C is good, no doubt (^w^)

When you feel tired, don't strain yourself and go out too much, okay? p(´⌒｀q)


The weather is great today again~ ☆

Annaa~ did you get the May blues!!!?

Yesterday you still have been so vigorous!!? *laughs*

It looks like Anna is also having things like a blog. Please check it out ε=ε=┏( ・_・)┛

http://ameblo.jp/anna-shiraki/

-

[2009-05-25] - (13:40)
Pokémon Movie ☆★


I guess some of you might already know about it, but Kitano got the privilege of doing the role of "Sheena" in the Pokémon movie!!

It's my first time as a voice actress in an anime movie (*^_^*)
The movie is called "Arceus: To the Conquering of Space-Time"

There are a lot of things I don't know yet, so I think it will be really difficult to the play the role of Sheena (^_^)v

The script is really thick (=゜-゜)(=。_。)

Now I have to carry 3 scripts in my bag (‘o‘)ノ

Pokemon, Bushido and another one I can't talk about yet, but today I have to film for Bushido, so I won't be able to read the other scripts at all ┏( ・_・)┛

I have to read them inside the car and at home p(´⌒｀q)

While I'm really grateful for getting all these roles, I really lack some self-confidence. I'm overflowing with anxiety and nervousness, but I really would like to blow off those feelings and overflow with dreams and hope instead ☆★☆★


Alright!!!!!

Let's do it!!!!!

With the help of everyone~

Ready, go!


Today is another day with a love-fight (^з^)-☆Chu!!

Yaaay (^∀^)v


P.S:
About the "Toraji-Rhythm" yesterday, Toraji is the name of the person from that one yakiniku shop and rhythm doesn't really have a meaning (∋_∈)

Sorry for the confusion this one caused |(￣3￣)|

I have to hurry now~ ”(ノ゜-゜)ノ


---
Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Please don't post this translation anywhere else!

Young and beautiful talent Natsumi Elena (14) has been appointed as the first supporter girl for the "Senko Riot 2009" teenage lock festival that will happen at Tokyo Big Sight on August 8. That rock festival is powered by Tokyo FM's SCHOOL OF LOCK! and features several teenage rock bands that made it through nationwide preliminaries. Last year's festival was a huge success and so they decided to repeat it this year again and this time even with the help of an image girl.

Right now Natsumi herself is an exclusive model for the popular magazine "Hana★chu→" and also already had several appearances in doramas and commercials. She can definitely be described as one of the very promising young actresses in the industry.

Her appointment as the image girl for a rock festival didn't just happen by chance. Natsumi is really big rock fan and even already appeared in a rock commercial. She seems very mature, even though she's still just a junior high school student. When she has some time off from work, she often goes to summer festival or other typical places to listen to some live music. Her love and knowledge about music reaches from major to independent artists and she really doesn't have to hide from people who work in the music industry. Moreover she even has experience with playing the guitar, the bass and the drums. Natsumi simply is a little "Lock Girl"!

"I'm really happy to be able to participate in Senko Riot! I'll put in all my energy!" She's going to appear on posters that will be hung up in schools and metro stations all over the country and also make PR for it in magazines and so on. "While talking with everyone about the festival, my job will be to enthusiastically showcase the power of the teenage generation."

The shojo manga "Otomen" by Aya Kanno is being turned into a live-action drama series this summer. The show, starring Masaki Okada (19), will occupy Fuji TV's Saturday night time slot.

Okada is having a big year in terms of movies, with major roles in "Harufuwei," "Honokaa Boy," "Juryoku Pierrot," and "Boku no Hatsukoi wo Kimi ni Sasagu." However, "Otomen" will be his first starring role in a TV series.

The original manga started in 2006 and is still being serialized in the magazine Bessatsu Hana to Yume. The tankoubon editions have sold more than 2.50 million copies total. Classified as a romantic comedy, "Otomen" centers around the popular high school boy Asuka Masamune (Okada), the top kendo fighter in the nation. However, beneath his cool exterior, he is actually fond of sweets and shojo manga, and is skilled in sewing and cooking. When he instantly falls for the transfer student Ryo Miyakozuka, his secret is in danger of being exposed.

The female lead of Ryo will be played by Kaho (17), who previously worked with Okada in the 2007 movie "Tennen Kokekko" ("A Gentle Breeze in the Village").

The "Otomen" drama will start on August 1, airing every Saturday at 11:10pm.

Copied from Tokyograph.
All credits to them!

Director Isao Yukisada is working on a screen adaptation of author Shuichi Yoshida's first full-length novel, "Parade," which won the Yamamoto Shugoro Prize in 2002.

Yukisada has apparently been hoping to make a movie out of the book ever since it was published in 2002. The story revolves around an unusual group of five young adults living together in a 2LDK apartment (two bedrooms, living room, dining room, and kitchen). Despite sharing such a small space, it turns out in the end that they really don't know much about each other.

Yukisada has assembled a talented young cast for the movie. Tatsuya Fujiwara stars as Naoki, an employee of a film distribution company. Karina plays the illustrator Miki, while Shihori Kanjiya is the unemployed Kotomi and Keisuke Koide is the college student Ryosuke. Around the same time that a string of disturbing incidents occurs in their neighborhood, Miki meets a male prostitute named Satoru (Kento Hayashi), who ends up also living in the apartment.

In addition to directing, Yukisada wrote the screenplay for the adaptation. Filming started on May 15 and will continue until mid-June. The movie is currently scheduled for release in 2010.

Copied from Tokyograph.
All credits to them!

On Monday, actress Fukada Kyoko (26) attended the award ceremony for "The 2nd Gold Make-Up Awards". She won the award in the fashion category and appeared in a gorgeous pink dress that once more underlined her "doll like" image.

In April there have been articles about her having been on a yakiniku-date together with college pitcher Yuki Saito (20) who is widely known as The Handkerchief Prince, but Fukada denied any kind of on-going romance. "Right now I don't have any particular prince."





---
Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Source: Sanspo
Please link back when posting those news anywhere else.

Two months ago I already wrote about Ueto's upcoming 16th single called "Smile for...". Since then it also got already announced that she's planning to bring a new album sometime this year and today they finally released some more details. The new album is going to be called "Happy Magic ~Smile Project~" and will get released on July 15th.

It's been 2 years since the single "Namida no Niji" and her announcement to take a break from her music career. She debuted with the song "Pureness" back in 2002 and since then her music career spawned 15 singles and 4 albums. The reason for the break was to focus more on her acting career, but since then her fans didn't stop flooding her record company and agency with wishes for her to resume singing. Backed by those wishes, Ueto secretly started to work on a very big project.

When speaking of Ueto Aya, there's only one thing that comes to mind first, her smile as bright as the sun. Thus they named it the "Smile Project 2009" and repeatedly started to have meetings since last summer. This year she then started working on her concept album and personally started to ask several musicians to write songs for her.

She got together an amazing bunch of talented songwriters to help her with the album. Tortoise Matsumoto of guitar group Ulfus, Hirose Koumi, RYOUJI of the group Ketsumeishi, Kiroro, Yaita Hitomi, BEGIN and Tokita Shintaro of Sukima Switch are on board. Ueto is said to have received a letter of encouragement for the recording from Hirosue and Yaita even let her to contribute her own thoughts to the lyrics.

The upcoming single is going to be a double A-side single, containing the songs "Smile for...", written and composed by Hirose, as well as "Mou Ichido Dake" written and composed by RYOUJI. The release date for the single got delayed a bit and will now come out on June 24th.

"After a long time I'm finally doing some music again and moreover with the very clear theme, 'Smile!'. The album will completely go a long with the theme. You will be able to listen to it every day and it will boost up your spirit. I myself would give it full 100 points. Please give it 100 points, too. *laughs* "

Recession and hysteria about that new flu, maybe Ueto's voice will really be able to cheer up the Japanese a bit.

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Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Source: Sanspo
Please link back when posting those news anywhere else.

Today it has been announced that actress Sakuraba Nanami (16) is going to become a regular personality on Tokyo FM's "GIRLS LOCKS!". It's a very popular corner of their "SCHOOL OF LOCK!" and will be her first ever regular appearance on a radio program.

You can listen to GIRLS LOCKS! every day from Monday to Thursday at 10:16pm and on Fridays at 11:30pm. The regular cast only consists of young actresses like Eikura Nana, Aragaki Yui, Kitano Kie, Narumi Riko and Kuriyama Chiaki who take turns every week (Chiaki does it every Friday instead of a whole week in a row).

The popularity of that corner is very high, especially among middle and high-school students. Sakuraba is going to be in charge for the 2nd week every month and will have her first show on June 8. Horikita used to be the girl for the 2nd week, but she graduated this month after being on the show for over 3 years.

"I'm really happy to become a member on the same program as so many of my seniors I'm looking up to, but on the other hand I'm also very anxious about whether I'm going to fumble with my own words or whether they won't come out at all." She said. "I'd like to make a lot of people get to know me and I also would like to exert myself, knowing that my family and friends in my hometown Kagoshima are going to listen to it and cheer me on."

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Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Source: Sanspo
Please link back when posting those news anywhere else.

[2009-05-23]
"Boku no Hatsukoi wo Kimi ni Sasagu"

Excuse me for the very slow updates...
She safely finished shooting "Boku no Hatsukoi wo Kimi ni Sasagu" on May 2nd!



Up until now Mao-chan has often been the junior at the set,
but this time she was the senior and therefore very nervous in the beginning.
However, by the end of the filming she became really good friends with Okada-kun,
so good that they've almost looked like childhood friends!
In between the filming or when switching locations with the bus,
the two of them always battled each other in "Tetris" on the DS!
Victory or defeat, has Mao-chan been victorious? It seems that way. *laughs*

She's been undergoing training since before the filming, there's even an archery scene!
In archery it requires much more strength to draw a bow than you might think,
her palms became bright red, but she still hung in there.



And might this here be the farewell look??
Mao-chan with a junior high school and senior high school 2 pattern uniform ♪
By the way, yesterday she did the pictures for the movie poster.



Toho will release "Boku no Hatsukoi wo Kimi ni Sasagu" country-wide on October 24.
It turned out to be a really beautiful movie, so you all should definitely look forward to it!

~P.S.~
A magazine with a big article from behind-the-scenes will go out on sale on June 6.
Don't forget to check this one out as well!!

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Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Please don't post this translation anywhere else!

[2009-05-16] - (16:01)
Hello ( ・∀・)

I'm full of energy!
I've rested a while, took care of cleaning my room a bit, went shopping and so on ♪
I'm really full of energy!

I'm happy that a lot of people went to see the movie.
Also thanks for all of your impressions m(__)m
I'm reading them every day.

It has already been 1 week since it opened in cinemas.

Please support me from now on as well m(__)m

-

[2009-05-16] - (20:23)
Eh? ( ・∀・)
I am resembling balloonfish Kondo Haruna-san? Me?
I was watching Mecha-Ike and was surprised, when suddenly my name came up~ （☆o☆）

It made me happy~ (ノ∀^*)

Sure it was strange timing, but for them to even know my name made me feel like that my work actually has a bigger influence than I thought.

Hm..hm.. φ(．． )

Note:
Kondo Haruna is comedienne and widely known as 'balloonfish' (because of her face, obviously).
Mecha-Ike (short for Mecha-Mecha Iketeru!) is a TV-Variety Show with popular duo Ninety-Nine as part of the regulars. Quite funny and also spawned various spin-offs.

-

[2009-05-22] - (11:35)
THE NEWS
Eita-kun and I had the privilege of appearing on today's THE NEWS.
It's been a while since I have been on TV (・∀・)
I'm a bit nervous, but I'd still like to watch it m(__)m

Right now I'm waiting for another filming to begin.
Free time (・∀・)

I'm still healthy (・∀・)
Still, thank you for your concern m(__)m

Ah, looks like it's my turn, but I'll update again (・∀・)

Note:
If you wonder why she always talks about her health and energy, whenever she doesn't update her blog for 1 or even more days (6 days this time), people immediately start to worry about her in the comments.. kinda sweet and maybe a little bit too much... ^^

-

[2009-05-23] - (17:13)
Handy little thing
It can boil water really, really fast~ ♪
It's great for me who is sensitive to cold and often drinks hot water (・∀・)
I got this from the staff for my birthday (・∀・)
I can only recommend it ☆

I'm sorry for all the commotion my update caused yesterday m(__)m

Tomorrow will be an event to thank for the huge success.
This will mark the end of promoting the movie and so on.
I'm really touched.
It makes me so incredibly happy that so many people went to see the movie.
After this it will stay in theaters for a while, so definitely try to go and watch it m(__)m

Speaking of which, I saw the interview on the site of HMV!
It even still has photos of me with my missed bobbed hair style (・∀・)
Please go there to check it out as well m(__)m

Note:
I guess that with 'commotion' she meant all the comments that expressed their delight about her finally updating her blog again. Six days must be a really long time...
Click here for the HMV interview. Maybe I can translate it in the near future.. ;)

-

[2009-05-24] - (18:02)
LEGO
My previous bobbed hair style seems to have resembled LEGO.
That's what I got told when got this as a gift today...

This..
..is a boy, though!? (・∀・)

Whatever (・∀・)

Thanks a lot m(__)m

Today was the stage greeting event to thank for the big success of "April Bride".
I'm very happy that so many people went to see it.

It's a very important and valuable movie that contains a lot of people's feelings and I hope that after this, it will still continue to reach a lot more people's hearts.

To everyone who watched it already, thank you very much m(__)m

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Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Please don't post this translation anywhere else!

[2009-05-19]





Flowers the mama of my older brother's girlfriend sent me
This florist, he really did it beautifully~!!









It's like this at the set of "Kekkon" day after day!!
Every day it's so difficult to keep my body weight *cries*
But, it's sooooooooo delicious.
Everyone here gets such a happy face when they see this...
Therefore it's a set with overflowing happiness~~~




-

[2009-05-22]


I bought this via mail order
An omelet frying pan with marble coating
I'd like to skillfully make my beloved omelets by myself
It's marble, so it might be healthy too, since I won't have to use that much oil~~
I'm going to bring it to various homes and investigate the various flavors~~~~







My lunch one day
After a long time finally a luxury one again







Note:
I know that you usually say "mom" instead of "mama" in this context, but I still like to keep the Japanese "mama" untranslated, because of its cuteness factor.. ^^

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Written by: jyoyu.blogspot.com
Please don't post this translation anywhere else!