Aya Hirano

Aya Hirano (平野 綾) from Aichi Prefecture, Japan, is a seiyū and J-pop singer who has had roles in several anime, visual novels, and TV commercials in Japan. She is contracted to Space Craft Produce, a branch of Space Craft Group for her seiyū career. For her singing career, she is signed under Lantis.

Career
Aya 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 Space Craft Group company. Eventually, she began to appear in commercials and got her first role as a seiyū in Tenshi no Shippo. From 2002-2003 she was a member of the short-lived girl band "SpringS."

After graduating from high school, she began seriously pursuing her seiyū 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 show's public success has greatly enhanced her popularity and career in Japan. Her CD single Bōken Desho Desho? containing the opening song of the show sold out in Japan the very day it was released. This success was followed by her voicing two lead characters in anime based on popular manga (Reira in Nana and Misa in Death Note). Her popularity was confirmed at the first Seiyū Awards, where she won "Best Newcomer (female)", for her role as Haruhi Suzumiya; the same role also won her a nomination as "Best Main Character (female)". At the same awards, she was also nominated for "Best Supporting Character (female)", and earned two nominations for "Best Single" (One of which is a solo, Bōken Desho Desho?; the other was a group nomination for the single Hare Hare Yukai). In 2008, she won the "Best Main Character (female)" award at the second Seiyu Awards.

She performed at the "Animelo Summer Live" concerts between 2006 and 2008, as well as the Suzumiya Haruhi no Gekisō concert on March 18, 2007.

Aya Hirano was a guest at Anime Expo 2007, along with other cast members from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Minori Chihara and Yuko Goto. In 2007, she continues to enjoy great success in her career, landing the role of Konata Izumi in the anime version of Lucky Star and launching three separate single albums back-to-back monthly at year's end.

Personal

 * Her popularity was increased significantly thanks to her breakout role as Haruhi Suzumiya in The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.
 * She began her seiyū career during her junior high school years. Many of her roles demanded someone who could portray "maturity with a young voice" in roles such as Lumière in Kiddy Grade and later, as Yoko Sasakura in School Rumble (2nd Season) since there were many teacher roles to be filled.
 * She was able to utilize a very mature and adult-sounding voice by the age of 10. However, as her appearance and the aforementioned mature voice did not match, opportunities for roles were often given to others instead.
 * She attended the same junior high school as fellow seiyū Erika.
 * Her profile has sometimes been mistaken with fellow seiyū Mei Shimizu's, as they have both debuted with roles in Tenshi no Shippo.
 * Her personal hobbies include learning to play the guitar and reading novels. Her favorite novel is Gamou-tei Jiken, by Miyuki Miyabe.
 * Her favorite quote is "Existence is about creating the self." (存在するということは、自分を創造することだ).
 * Some of her talents include playing the piano and precognition. She was said to have had accurate dreams, and that her mother seemed to have been able to do the same before. Her piano skills were developed under the Suzuki method, and she played the organ during high school. She is also skilled at calligraphy.
 * Her parents did not allow her to handle a kitchen knife for cooking from elementary school through high school.
 * The cat-men motif sometimes seen throughout The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya was originally drawn by Aya on the backside of scripts. Staff members discovered the sketches and incorporated them into the anime. Various variations of the cat-men illustrations could be seen throughout Haruhi Suzumiya merchandise (namely CDs and DVDs).
 * She is interested in Egyptian-related things.
 * In 2007, she won "Best Voice Actress" at the Tokyo International Anime Fair.
 * According to her website, her favourite movies are Disney's Sleeping Beauty, as well as Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas and Edward Scissorhands.
 * She owns a pet dog named Chibi-chan (ちびちゃん).
 * She owns a pet dog named Chibi-chan (ちびちゃん).

Performance
Leading roles in bold.

Anime

 * 2001
 * Tenshi no Shippo (Saru no Momo)


 * 2002
 * Kiddy Grade (Lumière)


 * 2003
 * Tenshi no Shippo Chu! (Saru no Momo)
 * Bakuten Shoot Beyblade G Revolution (MingMing)


 * 2004
 * Battle B-Daman (Charat)


 * 2005
 * Battle B-Daman: Fire Spirits (Pheles)
 * Canvas 2: Niji Iro no Sketch (Sumire Misaki)
 * Eyeshield 21 (Mamori Anezaki)


 * 2006
 * Busō Renkin (Mahiro Muto)
 * Death Note (Misa Amane)
 * Doraemon: Zeusdesu Naida (Tarance Claw)
 * Galaxy Angel-Rune (Kahlua/Tequila Marjoram)
 * Himawari! (Shikimi)
 * NANA (Reira Serizawa)
 * Renkin 3-kyū Magical ? Pokān (Pachira)
 * School Rumble (2nd Season) (Yoko Sasakura)
 * Sumomomo Momomo (Sanae Nakajima)
 * The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (Haruhi Suzumiya)


 * 2007
 * Dragonaut: The Resonance (Garnet McLane)
 * Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! (Mei Etoh)
 * Lucky Star (Konata Izumi, herself in episode 15, Haruhi Suzumiya in episode 20)
 * ''Hello Kitty: Apple Forest and the Parallel Town (Emily)
 * Himawari!! (Shikimi)
 * Soreike! Anpanman (Tanpopochiyan, Kokinchiyan)


 * 2008
 * Akaneiro ni Somaru Saka (Minato Nagase)
 * Kemeko Deluxe! (Nakamura)
 * Hyakko (Ayumi Nonomura)
 * Linebarrels of Iron (Kujō Miu)
 * Mokke (Reiko Nagasawa)
 * Moegaku 5 (Megamisama)
 * Macross Frontier (Mina Roshan, Nene Rora)
 * Nijū Mensō no Musume (Chizuko Mikamo)
 * Zettai Karen Children (Kaoru Akashi)


 * 2009
 * Bakemonogatari (Shinobu Oshino)
 * Dragon Ball Kai (Dende)
 * Fairy Tail (Lucy Heartfilia)
 * Fight Ippatsu! Jūden-chan!! (Rona Elmo, News reporter)
 * Jewelpet (Garnet)
 * Kiddy Girl-and (Lumière)
 * Kimi ni Todoke (Ume Kurumizawa)
 * Maria Holic (Shizu Shidō)
 * Queen's Blade (Nanael)
 * The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (Haruhi Suzumiya)
 * White Album (Yuki Morikawa)


 * 2010
 * Black Butler 2 (Hannah)
 * Blood Jewel (Kazuko Yoshizumi)
 * Jewelpet Tinkle (Garnet)
 * Nurarihyon no Mago (Ienaga Kana)
 * Seikon no Qwaser (Katja)

OVA

 * Amuri in Star Ocean (Femina Novum)
 * Fist of the North Star: The Legend of Toki (Sara)
 * Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! (Mei Etoh)
 * Itsudatte My Santa! (Mai)
 * Kawa no Hikari (Wanko)
 * Lucky Star OVA (Konata Izumi)
 * Lupin the Third: GREEN vs. RED (Yukiko)
 * School Rumble Sangakki (Yoko Sasakura)
 * Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas (Sasha/Athena)
 * To (Ariina)

Web anime

 * The Melancholy of Haruhi-chan Suzumiya (Haruhi Suzumiya)
 * Nyoro~n Churuya-san (Haruhi Suzumiya)

Games

 * Eternal Sonata (Polka)
 * Eyeshield 21 MAX DEVILPOWER! (Mamori Anezaki)
 * Eyeshield 21 Playing American Football! Ya! Ha! (Mamori Anezaki)
 * Eyeshield 21 Portable Edition (Mamori Anezaki)
 * Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon (Shirma)
 * Finalist (Honoka Serizawa)
 * Galaxy Angel II (Kahlua/Tequila Marjoram)
 * Haruhi Suzumiya series as Haruhi Suzumiya:
 * The Promise of Haruhi Suzumiya (PSP)
 * The Perplexity of Haruhi Suzumiya (PS2)
 * The Excitement of Haruhi Suzumiya (Wii)
 * The Parallel of Haruhi Suzumiya (Wii)
 * The Series of Haruhi Suzumiya (NDS)
 * Himekishi Monogatari -Princess Blue- (Yuna Ekuberuto Ōjo)
 * Lucky Star no Mori (Konata Izumi)
 * Lucky Star: Ryōō Gakuen Ōtōsai (Konata Izumi)
 * Luminous Arc (Lucia)
 * Magna Carta II (Zephie)
 * Memories Off 6: T-wave (Chisa Hakosaki)
 * Nana: Subete wa Daimaou no Omichibiki!? (Reira Serizawa)
 * Ryū ga Gotoku 4 (Hana)
 * Sigma Harmonics (Neon Tsukiyomi)
 * Sumomomo Momomo: The Strongest Bride on Earth (Sanae Nakajima)
 * Sunday VS Magazine: Shuuketsu! Choujou Daikessen! (Kaoru Akashi)
 * Tenshi no Shippo (Saru no Momo)
 * Assassin's Creed 2 (Japanese localization)

Dubbing roles

 * Doctor Who (Astrid Peth)
 * Renaissance (Ilona Tasuiev) (DVD version)
 * Dragon Ball Evolution (Bulma)
 * Henry VIII (Catherine Parr)

Television

 * AniGiga (NHK BS2) (2nd time guest)
 * Brave MAP Special: We will show you the faces behind the people who do popular Anime characters' voices!! Best 50
 * AniPara Music-place (Guest)
 * Hey! Hey! Hey! Music Champ - Rank-In Corner (Fuji Television | July 3, 2006)
 * Kaitai-Shin Show (NHK General | April 2007)
 * Mario School (TV Tokyo | October 2000 - March 2001)
 * Moegaku (Host)
 * Radical (Commentary)
 * Super Advancement Broadcast BONZO! (Tokyo MX | August 24, 2007)
 * Tenshi no Voice (SKY PerfecTV! ch.371 | 9th Broadcast)


 * Just Aya Hirano TV (平野綾だけTV) (Fuji TV 2 | April 2009) (Host)

Drama

 * Multiple Personality Detective Psycho - Kazuhiko Amamiya Returns (Lolita ℃)

DVD

 * Suzumiya Haruhi no Gekisō (2007)
 * Love Letter (ラブレター) (November 21, 2007)
 * Love Story (ラブストーリー) (April 25, 2008)
 * 1st Live 2008 Riot Tour Live (February 25, 2009)
 * I Love You (March 18, 2009)

Films

 * Bleach: Fade to Black, I Call Your Name (Homura)
 * Honjitsu no Neko-jijo
 * The Asylum Session (Hiyoko) (2009)
 * The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (Haruhi Suzumiya) (2010)

Radio

 * Galaxy Angel Radio (Ended)
 * Radio Anime Romakkisu (October 6, 2007)
 * SOS Dan Radio Shibu (Ended)
 * Sumomo Radio (Ended)
 * Tenshi no Shippo: Home Party (Ended)


 * Anime Workshop (アニコボー) (Nippon Broadcasting | April 2009) (Guest)

Drama CDs

 * ''B.Ichi (Lin Kinpar)
 * Barajō no Kiss (Anís Yamamoto)
 * Kiddy Grade Sound Layer (Lumière)
 * Maria Holic (Kanako Miyamae)
 * The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya: Sound Around (Haruhi Suzumiya)
 * Nurarihyon no Mago (Ienaga Kana)

Books

 * 1/19 Bpm, published 2007. ISBN 978-4-07-258106-3
 * Hirano Aya Hajimete Story, published 2007. ISBN 978-4-07-258101-8
 * Hirano Aya Photo Collection H 〜STAIRWAY to 20〜, published 2007. ISBN 978-4-04-854096-4
 * Lolita no Ondo ISBN 4-04-853272-3

Singles

 * 1) "Breakthrough" (March 8, 2006)
 * 2) "Bōken Desho Desho?" (April 26, 2006) (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya opening theme)
 * 3) "Ashita no Prism" (September 6, 2006)
 * 4) "LOVE★GUN" (October 10, 2007)
 * 5) "Neophilia" (November 7, 2007)
 * 6) "MonStAR" (December 5, 2007)
 * 7) "Unnamed World" (April 23, 2008) (Nijū Mensō no Musume ending theme)
 * 8) "Namida Namida Namida" (October 8, 2008) (Hyakko ending theme)
 * 9) "Set me Free/Sing A Song!" (April 29, 2009)
 * 10) "Super Driver" (July 22, 2009) (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya opening theme)
 * 11) "Hysteric Barbie" (June 23, 2010)

Albums

 * 1) Riot Girl (2008)
 * 2) Speed Star (2009)

Others

 * "Hare Hare Yukai" (2006)
 * "Suzumiya Haruhi no Tsumeawase" (2006)
 * "Haruhi Suzumiya Character Song" (2006)
 * "Saikyo Pare Parade" (2006)
 * "Mei Etō Character Song" (2006)
 * "Sanae Nakajima Character Song" (2006)
 * "Motteke! Sailor Fuku" (2007)
 * "Konata Izumi Character Song" (2007)
 * "Mune Pettan Girls Character Song" (2007)
 * "Seikon no Qwaser Character Song" (2010)