Kana Ueda

Kana Ueda (植田 佳奈, Ueda Kana, born June 9, 1980 in Ikoma, Nara) is a Japanese voice actor and singer affiliated with I'm Enterprise. Formerly an associate of Arts Vision, she graduated from Kobe College as a culture major.

Raised in Osaka, Ueda was an active child who attended a preparatory school run by the Takarazuka Revue. While working with a children's theater company to accumulate more acting experience, she became enamored by the cosplaying craze going on at the time; the fad happened to coincide with her dream of one day performing in full costume as a Takarazuka stage actor. Unfortunately, the stringent height standards of the revue meant that she would never be able to join them.

Ueda moved on by focusing her attention towards the broadcasting and light music clubs in her high school. During her college years, she won an audition held by Voice Animage which led to her concurrent admission to the Japan Narration Acting Institute. Despite making her voice acting debut in 2001, Ueda recounts how transportation fares would often eat up her expenses, forcing her to work part-time for a while. She later signed under the Avex label as a full-fledged singer to further complement her primary career.

Being a passionate gamer herself, Ueda is frequently involved in promotional events for several titles. She specifically enjoys Halo 3 and plays it with other voice actors. In 2016 and 2017, she even participated in EVO tournaments. Ueda's other interest is mahjong, having been taught to play by manga author Satoru Akahori. She is also a cat lover, having owned multiple feline pets at home. Some of her close friends are fellow voice actors Kaori Shimizu and Shizuka Itō.

Ueda's high vocal pitch makes her suited for upbeat and enthusiastic characters, but she can adapt to a wide range of roles whether they happen to be tsundere or stoic. A few of her roles include Rin Tohsaka in the Fate series, Chikage Izumi in Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero, and Cyda Afrarn in Summon Night 5.

Works

 * Yukimaru, Asagi - Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories
 * Erika - Super Swing Golf Season 2
 * IF - Hyperdimension Neptunia
 * Marion Quinn - Atelier series
 * Arjun Mk-1, Challenger 1, Helmi Angel, M551 Sheridan - Rick ☆ G's