Akiko Wada
Encyclopedia
is a female Japan
ese singer and television performer of Korea
n ancestry, originally hailing from , Ikuno-ku
, Osaka
. Born Kim Bok-Ja (Korean
: 김 복자, Hanja
: 金 福子, Kim is the family name), like many Zainichi Korean
s, she also had a name for everyday use, which was Japanicized . On her selection of Japanese citizenship, her name became , which upon marriage became . Due to her above-average height (174 cm or 5'8.5"), she is nicknamed "jotei" (女帝), meaning "empress".
She is signed to the Horipuro entertainment agency.
She played the voice of as Bowser in Super Mario Bros.: Peach-Hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen!. She has also voiced Marge Simpson in the Japanese version of The Simpsons Movie
.
She also performed with the music group M-Flo
on the song "Hey!" on their 2005 album Beat Space Nine
.
Along with fellow Japanese entertainers Takeshi Kitano
, Ken Shimura
, and Nobuyoshi Kuwano
, she severely criticized TV star Masashi Tashiro
after his arrest for voyeurism
.
Wada became the first Asian to perform at the famous Apollo Theater
in Harlem
, New York
, when she performed there in September 2008 as part of her 40th debut anniversary tour.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese singer and television performer of Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
n ancestry, originally hailing from , Ikuno-ku
Ikuno-ku, Osaka
right|thumb|300px|A typical residential area of Ikuno-ku is one of 24 wards of Osaka, Japan.The area of Ikuno-ku is well-known for the large number of Korean-Japanese citizens living there, as well as for its large number of yakiniku restaurants...
, Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
. Born Kim Bok-Ja (Korean
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
: 김 복자, Hanja
Hanja
Hanja is the Korean name for the Chinese characters hanzi. More specifically, it refers to those Chinese characters borrowed from Chinese and incorporated into the Korean language with Korean pronunciation...
: 金 福子, Kim is the family name), like many Zainichi Korean
Zainichi Korean
Koreans in Japan are the ethnic Korean residents of Japan. They currently constitute the second largest ethnic minority group in Japan. The majority of Koreans in Japan are Zainichi Koreans, also often known as Zainichi for short, who are the permanent ethnic Korean residents of Japan...
s, she also had a name for everyday use, which was Japanicized . On her selection of Japanese citizenship, her name became , which upon marriage became . Due to her above-average height (174 cm or 5'8.5"), she is nicknamed "jotei" (女帝), meaning "empress".
She is signed to the Horipuro entertainment agency.
She played the voice of as Bowser in Super Mario Bros.: Peach-Hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen!. She has also voiced Marge Simpson in the Japanese version of The Simpsons Movie
The Simpsons Movie
The Simpsons Movie is a 2007 American animated comedy film based on the animated television series The Simpsons. The film was directed by David Silverman, and stars the regular television cast of Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer, Tress...
.
She also performed with the music group M-Flo
M-flo
is a Japanese hip hop group consisting of producer and DJ Taku Takahashi and emcee Verbal.Former member Lisa left the group in 2002 to pursue a solo career, and the remaining members then started the M-Flo Loves... project working different vocalists for each song over three albums, including the...
on the song "Hey!" on their 2005 album Beat Space Nine
BEAT SPACE NINE
Beat Space Nine is the fourth studio album released by the Japanese group M-Flo. This album is the group's first #1 studio album....
.
Along with fellow Japanese entertainers Takeshi Kitano
Takeshi Kitano
is a Japanese filmmaker, comedian, singer, actor, film editor, presenter, screenwriter, author, poet, painter, and one-time video game designer who has received critical acclaim, both in his native Japan and abroad, for his highly idiosyncratic cinematic work. The famed Japanese film critic...
, Ken Shimura
Ken Shimura
, is a Japanese comedian and actor. He co-starred with Masashi Tashiro, Nobuyoshi Kuwano in the Japanese variety show "Ken Shimura no Bakatono-sama"....
, and Nobuyoshi Kuwano
Nobuyoshi Kuwano
Nobuyoshi Kuwano is a Japanese television performer, former member of Rats & Star. His nickname is "Kuwa-man" . In Rats & Star, he took charge of the trumpet and vocal...
, she severely criticized TV star Masashi Tashiro
Masashi Tashiro
is a former Japanese television performer and the founding member of the band Rats & Star. Tashiro was a tenor vocalist for Rats & Star, and later on made himself a name as a TV entertainer in Japan...
after his arrest for voyeurism
Voyeurism
In clinical psychology, voyeurism is the sexual interest in or practice of spying on people engaged in intimate behaviors, such as undressing, sexual activity, or other activity usually considered to be of a private nature....
.
Wada became the first Asian to perform at the famous Apollo Theater
Apollo Theater
The Apollo Theater in New York City is one of the most famous, and older, music halls in the United States, and the most famous club associated almost exclusively with Black performers...
in Harlem
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, when she performed there in September 2008 as part of her 40th debut anniversary tour.