Aya Hirano
Aya Hirano is a Japanese actress, voice actress, and singer. Beginning in the entertainment industry as a child actor performing in television commercials, she played her first voice acting role in 2001 in the anime television series Angel Tales. She released her first single "Breakthrough" in 2006, and she released her first album Riot Girl in 2008. She was formerly contracted to Space Craft Produce, a branch of the Space Craft Group, before moving to the talent agency Grick in August 2011. Her label was Lantis until 2011, when she moved to Universal Sigma.
Hirano is known for her roles as Haruhi Suzumiya in the Haruhi Suzumiya franchise, Misa Amane in Death Note, Konata Izumi in Lucky Star, and Lucy Heartfilia in Fairy Tail. She won the Voice Acting Award at the 2007 Tokyo Anime Awards for her breakthrough role as Haruhi Suzumiya, the Best Newcomer Award at the 1st Seiyu Awards in 2007, and won the Best Lead Actress award at the 2nd Seiyu Awards in 2008. Hirano also pioneered the "idol voice actor" crossover that became popular beginning in the late 2000s.
In 2011, she temporarily ceased accepting new roles to recover from a pituitary gland tumor that had been affecting her health. She resumed voice acting activities later that year. In 2016, after appearing at a stage play in Tokyo, she went to New York to study abroad for four months.
Biography
Early life and childhood
Hirano was born in Nagoya on October 8, 1987. She spent a few of her very early years of life in America before returning to Japan. In 1998, she joined the Tokyo Child Theatrical Group division of the :ja:スペースクラフト|Space Craft Group company.Acting career
After starting her acting career, Hirano began to appear in commercials and received her first role as a voice actress at 14 years old in the 2001 anime series Angel Tales. In 2002, when she was 15, she voiced co-lead character Lumiere in Kiddy Grade.After graduating from high school, Hirano began seriously pursuing her voice acting and solo singing career. Her big break came in 2006, when she was cast as the voice of Haruhi Suzumiya, the title character of the anime series The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. The series' public success has greatly enhanced her popularity and career in Japan. Hirano's portrayal of the character both in the anime and on live television made her one of the earliest examples of the "idol voice actor" trend that gained popularity in the late 2000s.
This success was followed by her voicing lead characters in anime based on popular manga; Reira Serizawa in Nana and Misa Amane in Death Note. Her popularity was confirmed at the first Seiyu Awards, where she won "Best Newcomer ", for her role as Haruhi Suzumiya; the same role also won her a nomination as "Best Main Character ". At the same awards, she was also nominated for "Best Supporting Character ", and earned two nominations for "Best Single". She also won in the Voice Acting category at the 2007 Tokyo Anime Awards for her role as the lead character in The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. Hirano was named No. 36 in Daitan Map's "Top 50 Voice Actors of Popular Characters" in 2007.
Hirano performed at the Animelo Summer Live concerts between 2006 and 2008, as well as the Suzumiya Haruhi no Gekisō concert on March 18, 2007. She was a guest at Anime Expo 2007, along with other cast members from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Minori Chihara and Yūko Gotō. In 2007, she continued to enjoy great success in her career, landing the role of Konata Izumi in the anime version of Lucky Star. In 2008, at the second Seiyu Awards, she won for Best Lead Actress, and also for Best Singing along with cast members of Lucky Star for the series' opening theme "Motteke! Sailor Fuku".
In November 2010, Hirano posted a message on her Twitter account that she has had a pituitary gland tumor since junior high school. While not malignant, the tumor exerts pressure on certain motor functions, resulting in temporary memory loss, loss of vision and slurring of speech. She decided against elective surgery because the surgery would alter her nasal cavity and permanently modify her voice. To facilitate her care, she announced in April 2011 that she had been prohibited from taking on new voice acting roles since the previous year. She still continued voicing characters for anime that received additional seasons or extended runs. Citing a need for a new agency that was more ideal for her career wishes, she announced on August 12, 2011, that she had left Space Craft Entertainment. On August 21, Hirano moved to the voice acting agency Grick. Days later, on August 27, she posted a message on her Twitter account, confirming that she had resumed new voice acting roles in anime.
In 2016, after a stint in the musical The Mystery of Edwin Drood in Tokyo, Hirano spent four months studying English and voice in New York.
Music career
Hirano's music career began as part of the band SpringS, which was active from 2002 to 2003. She then released two character image songs in 2005: "Kimi Kara Onegai My Saint", which was used as an ending theme to the original video animation Itsudatte My Santa!, and "Futari no Imi", which was an image song for her character Mamori Anezaki in the anime series Eyeshield 21.Hirano's first solo single under the record label Lantis was "Breakthrough", which was released on March 8, 2006; the title track was used as the opening theme of the visual novel Finalist. Her next single was "List of Haruhi Suzumiya albums#Bōken Desho Desho?, which was released on April 26, 2006; the title track is used as the opening theme of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. The CD sold out in Japan the very day it was released. This was followed by the release of an image song single for her character Haruhi Suzumiya on July 5, 2006, which contained the songs "Parallel Days" and "SOS nara Daijōbu". Her third single "Ashita no Prism" was released on September 6, 2006.
Hirano released her fourth single "Love Gun" on October 10, 2007. This was followed by her fifth single "Neophilia" which was released on November 7, 2007, and her sixth single "MonStAR" which was released on December 5, 2007.
Hirano released her seventh single "Unnamed World" on April 23, 2008; the title track was used as the ending theme to the anime series Nijū Mensō no Musume. This was followed by the release of her first solo album Riot Girl on July 16, 2008. She then released the song "Namida" on October 8, 2008, which was used as the ending theme to the anime series Hyakko.
Hirano released her eighth single "Set me free / Sing a song!" on April 29, 2009. She then released her ninth single "Super Driver" on July 22, 2009; the title track is used as the opening theme of the second season of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. Her second album Speed Star was released on November 18, 2009. Her tenth single "Hysteric Barbie" was released on June 23, 2010. To promote the single, she created a Twitter account which was originally intended to be only used for one day; however, she would continue to use the account after the promotion had ended.
In May 2011, Hirano released a compilation album titled Aya Museum. Later that month, she announced via Twitter that she was no longer performing music for Lantis and had discontinued her music career until further notice. On August 2, 2011, Japanese magazine Bubka confirmed that she was dismissed by Lantis due to a sex scandal involving her sleeping with several band members. She then returned to music in 2012 and was signed to the record label Universal Sigma. Her first release on the label was the mini album Fragments on May 23, 2012. This was followed by the song "Zutto Kitto" which was released on August 15, 2012; the title track is used as the ending theme to the anime film .
In 2013, Hirano released two singles: "TOxxxIC" which was released on February 20, and "Promise" which was released on October 9; "Promise" was used as an insert song in the documentary film Kitakitsune Monogatari: Ashita e. She released her fourth album Vivid on February 19, 2014.
Filmography
Anime
Drama CDs
Film
Theatre
Dubbing roles
Hirano has had dubbing roles in localized versions of a number of foreign television series and films.| Title | Role | Notes | Source |
| Can You Hear My Heart | Bong Woo-ri | Hwang Jung-eum | |
| Cao Cao | Diaochan | Han Xue | |
| City Hunter | Kim Na-na | Park Min-young | |
| Haley Jones | Taylor Swift, Season 9 | ||
| Dragonball Evolution | Bulma | Emmy Rossum | |
| Giant | Lee Mi-joo | Hwang Jung-eum | |
| The Mermaid | Shan | Lin Yun | |
| Renaissance | Ilona Tasuiev | Romola Garai | |
| Shazam! | Mary | Grace Fulton / Michelle Borth | |
| The Thieves | Yenicall | Jun Ji-hyun | |
| Zathura | Lisa | Kristen Stewart |
Video games
Discography
Studio albums
Compilation albums
Singles
Character albums and singles
| Year | Title | Oricon peak position | Album |
| 21.10.2005 | Itsudatte My Santa! Character Song Vol. 1 Mai | – | |
| 05.07.2006 | The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Character Song Vol.1 Haruhi Suzumiya Haruhi Suzumiya | 11 | |
| 22.11.2006 | Galaxy Angel Character Single Vol.4 Kahlua Marjoram Kahlua Marjoram | 108 | |
| 27.06.2007 | Tetsudo Musume Character Song Vol.1 Minami Kurihara Minami Kurihara | 85 | |
| 05.09.2007 | Lucky ☆ Star Character Song Vol.001 featuring Konata Izumi Konata | 8 | |
| 23.07.2008 | Zettai Karen Children Character CD 1st Session Kaoru Akashi starring Aya Hirano | 68 | |
| 24.09.2008 | Memories Off 6 Personal Collection 2 Chisa Hakosaki | 160 | |
| 08.10.2008 | "Namida Namida Namida" | 17 | |
| 25.12.2008 | "Mezame nai Wish" Minato Nagase Akane Iro ni Somaru Saka ending theme | 79 | |
| 30.09.2009 | The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya New Character Song Vol.1 Haruhi Suzumiya Haruhi Suzumiya | 16 | |
| 01.04.2009 | White Album Character Song 1 Morikawa Yuki Yuki Morikawa | 23 | |
| 22.07.2009 | "Super Driver" | 3 | Speed Star |
| 25.08.2009 | Queen's Blade Character Song + Short Drama: Nanael Nanael | 167 | |
| 28.10.2009 | "EleC☆TriCk" Rona | 122 | |
| 01.01.2010 | "Koiiro Sora" Yuki Morikawa | 38 | |
| 15.08.2012 | "Zutto Kitto" Lucy | 146 | |
| 22.07.2015 | Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu Character Song Case 5 Haruhi Suzumiya | 97 | |
| 14.12.2018 | Pride ～Granblue Fantasy～ Beatrix |
Video albums
| Title | Video information | Oricon peak position |
| Animelo Summer Live 2007: Generation-A |
| |
| Aya Hirano 1st Live 2008 Riot Tour Live | ||
| Aya Hirano Music Clip Collection Vol. 1 | ||
| Aya Hirano 2nd Live Tour 2009 "Speed Star Tours" Live DVD | ||
| Aya Hirano Fragments Live Tour 2012 Live DVD |