Member Profile: Ueda, Tatsuya

PROFILE:
Name: Ueda Tatsuya (上田竜也)
Nicknames: Tat-chan, Ueda, Uebo, Uepi
Birthdate: October 4, 1983
Birthplace: Kanagawa, Japan
Blood Type: B
Height: 172 cm
Weight: 53 kg
B/W/H: 79/69/85 cm
Eyesight: 0.3
Family: Parents & 1 older sister
Pets: 4 dogs (Golden Retrievers), Earo, Tia, Eri and one more.
Talents: Basketball, guitar, piano, boxing
Entered Johnny's: June 1998
Reason to enter Johnny's: Likes Imai Tsubasa
Admired senpais: Domoto Tsuyoshi & Imai Tsubasa
Favorite colors: black, red
Favorite season: winter
Favorite Part of Body: hands
Favorite Animal: dolphin
Favorite Food: spaghetti, steak, sashimi, caesar's salad
Favorite Things to Do: read comics in the bathtub, play basketball & guitar
Favorite School Subject: history
Favorite Flower: rose

INFORMATION:

Apart from the various plays, musicals, CMs, and TV shows KAT-TUN appears in, he hasn't done much individual work compared to the other members. In 2008 he held a series of solo concerts entitled "Mouse Peace" (the concert symbol is a mouse making the peace sign with its fingers). He had a role in the 2009 drama Konkatsu!, alongside SMAP's Nakai Masahiro.

As a hobby he enjoys boxing. When he was younger, he claimed to see a fairy, until he turned 20 and he couldn't see the "so-called" fairy anymore.

Along with fellow band-mates Akanishi Jin & Nakamaru Yuichi, he used to be in the Johnny's Jr. group M.A.D.

TRIVIA:

• Group Participation:
• B.B.A.
• M.A.D.
• B.B.D.
• KAT-TUN
• Toshi Otoko Unit
• MOUSE PEACE (Solo concert's band)
• Joined Johnny & Associates after the audition on June 22, 1998.
• In 2001, he was grouped up as KAT-TUN for an NHK program "Pop Jam" to backdance for Kinki Kid's Koichi Domoto. On March 22, 2006, he debuted as KAT-TUN by releasing "Real Face" single.
• On September 8 - 21, 2008, he held his first solo concert tour called "MOUSE PEACE".
• In 2009, he first starred as Romeo in a stageplay "Romeo and Juliet," at Tokyo Globe Theatre (March 04-29, 2009) and Sankei Hall Breeze (April 2-5, 2009). In addition, in April, he debuted in a Fuji TV drama series "Konkatsu!".
• On August 4 - 3 October, 2010, he held his solo concert, "MOUSE PEACE uniting with FiVe TATSUYA UEDA LIVE 2010".
• In October 2011, Ueda announced his second drama series, "Runaway~Aisuru Kimi no Tame ni" on TBS. He was reported to shave his head during a scene in the drama.
• In May 2012, Ueda announced his third drama series, "Boys on the Run" on TV Asahi.
• His long-term ambition: to direct classical music. (His former ambition was to become a teacher, but he decided against it after realising that he might be assigned to an all-girls' school. He says he would be too nervous then. ^-^) 
• When he was little, he witnessed a man being killed.
• He went to an all-boys' school.
• Ueda writes a lot of KAT-TUN's songs, often under several pen names.
• He joined Johnny's Entertainment because of his admiration for Tsubasa Imai.
• He's a sensitive person, and therefore is easily hurt by what others say about him.
• He was once talent-scouted by another talent agency.
• He wants to name his future daughter "Elizabeth", but because Japanese people will have difficulties pronouncing the name, he'd shorten it to "Eri/Eli".
• He used to wear blue contact lenses (just like Gackt).
• Speaks English and French.
• When J-Rock star Gackt found out that Ueda was a huge fan of him, he gave him his special Gackt necklace. Ueda wears it often.
• Witnessed a man being killed when he was child.
• Nishikido Ryo, from NEWS and Kanjani8, is sometimes cruel to Ueda. After Ueda's band-mate, Kamenashi Kazuya, asked Ryo not to question Ueda about his ambitions, telling him that Ueda gets upset that he isn't sure about it, Ryo publicly questioned him again. Then, early this year, Ryo announced that he hates Ueda most of all the Johnny's.
• Went to an all-boy's school.
• Is a very sensitive person, and is easily hurt by what others say.
• Likes older women.
• Likes to look cool whatever he does.
• Ueda & Jin: Akanishi Jin (who joined Johnny's Entertainment 6 months after Ueda) thought at first that Ueda was a sempai of the same level as Takizawa Hideaki. They are now said to be close friends.
• Ueda & Kame: Kamenashi Kazuya befriended him when KAT-TUN was formed in 2001 and always looks out for him. They did have one big fight though (before the 2002 Concert), and that's why Ueda cried during that performance. When Kamenashi came back on stage, he hugged Ueda ^^) 
• Ueda & Gackt: Ueda used to be a big fan of Gackt (he even wore blue contact lenses and dyed his hair blonde to look like him). When J-rock star Gackt found out that Ueda was a big fan of him, he gave him his necklace. Ueda used to wear it often (as can be seen on numerous photos).
• Ueda & Nishikido Ryo: Nishikido Ryo (from other Johnny's groups NewS and Kanjani8) is sometimes cruel to him. After Kamenashi asked Ryo not to question Ueda about him ambitions, because Ueda gets upset about it because he isn't sure about them yet, Ryo publicly questioned him again.
  Then, somewhere in 2005, Ryo announced that he hates Ueda most of all the Johnny's members.
  Recently however, it has come to light that this rivalry was actually started by Shounen Club (a JE variety show). Despite the fact that the rivalrt was mostly scripted, Ryo (famous for his sharp tongue) has admitted that he might have taken the incident too far by not thinking properly before speaking.
  The rivalry between Ryo and Ueda all started in an episode of Johnny's variety show "Shounen Club", when Ryo asked Ueda publicly "What are you trying to be, Ueda?".
  Some time later, he explained this question in an interview, saying that Ueda always wore spikes and chains and bleached his hair blonde as if he was trying too hard to be someone else. This question was meant to bring Ueda down in front of everyone.
  In that same interview, Kame was with Ryo, and told him that he didn't want Ryo to say things like that to Ueda, because he's a fragile boy and it hurts his feelings, especially since Ueda didn't know back then what he wanted to become, or the image he wanted to have. But even after Kame said that to him, Nishikido continued to target Ueda with cruel comments and questions.
  In 2005, during a NewS interview for a magazine, he was asked which Jr he disliked the most. He literally said "I hate Ueda."
  This rivalry continued for a while (although Ueda never said or did anything mean back to him), until they both came onto a Shounen Club "Letter Corner" to address each other in front of everyone. Nishikido said in his speech that he's sorry his "poison tongue sometimes hurts Ueda's weak and fragile heart" (this is probably meant in a sarcastic way). That was their public "make-up" scene, but it seems that it didn't improve the situation much.