ZENRA Exclusive Interview: Ai Uehara

ZENRA had the pleasure of asking Ai Uehara some questions about herself. A former superstar from the 2010’s who needs little introduction. We asked her about her time in JAV and what she’s been up to since leaving. You can find Ai online on Twitter here and on OnlyFans here.

ZENRA: You had one of the most amazing retirements in JAV that was comprised of several videos. Not only that but the videos were quite memorable, including guys chasing after you to get a chance. What made you decide to have such a grandiose retirement?

Ai Uehara: For my retirement video, I requested to the producer that we go all out: the biggest cast, the biggest theme, something that has never been done! This came into being in her three parter retirement special (hnds-045, hnds-046, hnds-048). Out of all the movies I have performed in, this one left the biggest impact on me.

Z: Do you watch JAV if so what kinds of videos and do you follow any actresses?

A: Normally, almost never. However, early on after debuting I did watch lewd women and lesbian movies in order to help hone my craft. These movies—especially the dialog used in the former—helped craft my arsenal of go-to words and phrases when I began taking on these roles.

Z: You’ve worked a bunch of times with director Nao Masaki and even had her as guest on your channel. She is one of our writers’ favorite directors and one of your videos with her is a favorite among all western fans. What is it that Nao Masaki does that made your work with her so special?

A: Nao Masaki doesn’t just bring out the most beautiful parts of an actress, but the dirtiest and most honest parts as well. That due to this, there are times when heads may butt, but it’s also easy to show her my true self.

Z: Do you have any funny stories from your time in JAV?

A: I was able to go all the way to Africa for one of my videos and even had sex with a local. What’s more, while there I also encountered the types of wild animals you never would see in Japan. Even though I have a phobia of them, it was still a great experience.

Z: Were you competitive during your career? Would you compare yourself to how others did?

A: I’m more focused on myself that I did not really compare myself to other actress, but that was sometimes thrown to the wayside if award season was approaching as I did not want to lose to anyone!  I wanted fame and wanted to be #1 and thus worked incredibly hard and made an effort to appear in as many films as possible. This—give me as much work as possible!--I even told my agent. My intense drive had its negatives: I almost came close to quitting as the physical demands of all that work were beginning to take a toll on my body. That there were times I was shooting in upwards of 25 titles a month made it hard to specifically recall intimate details about each and every one of them years after filming concluded.

Z: What is one misconception about JAV that you want people to know about?

A: People seem to assume that what they see in JAV movies is entirely the real deal; that it’s all happening as is and is not a work of art when in reality it is all fiction. Sometimes it may appear extreme, but everyone has given their full, informed consent.

Z: What advice would you give to women looking to get into JAV?

A: Compared to the past, being a JAV star shares more and more similarities to that of an idol: late-night TV appearances and maintaining bustling SNS presences. Thus, with more exposure comes more risk. After retiring I did not see myself transitioning to become a regular office employee. Doing JAV requires a great deal of fortitude and long-term resolution tied in with an equal amount of risk. Women have confided in me that they want to do JAV because they “want to get rich” or “want to be famous” but these should be second in line to simply having the readiness to take on such a craft.

Z: Was it a surprise to find out that you had a lot of foreign fans? Is there anything you would like to say to them?

A: While active, I did do some events outside of Japan in Asia so I knew I had popularity there. However, beyond that I did not know until recently and now that I do, I’m quite happy. Now I am focusing mostly on AI endeavors and hope my fans abroad will support me with it.

Z: You have a lot of content on your YouTube channel but only a few videos have English subtitles. Have you ever considered translating more of it for your foreign fans?

A: Early on we were added English subtitles to my YouTube videos, but the work was just too much for our staff (ZENRA note: trust us, professional quality subtitles takes a TON of time to get right). Now we’re hoping for extra help to step forward...hehe.

Z: You might not realize this but a lot of foreign fans think you have one of the best asses in all of JAV history. Have you still been able to maintain your ass?

A: I’m happy to hear. Now that I am training seriously, my butt appears rounder and higher up. I’ve never had much of a chest, but still can take pride in my butt.

Z: Have you encountered any foreign fans of your career? If so, how did the encounter go?

A: Yes, I’ve met fans when I did events in Asia. I’ve even heard my name shouted when walking around streets in Taiwan and Korea. Outside of that part of the world such as when doing something in USA, I was totally focused on work and do not recall any such encounters. What I’d love to do sometime in the future is have foreign fan meet-and-greets.

Z: What made you decide to create NFTs?

A: NFTs and AI are cutting-edge technology that few of my rivals are making use of yet. I’d like to maintain a first-mover advantage in order it to master it before any of them get started. To all my fans abroad: if there is anything else like this on the horizon, feel free to reach out to my team.

Z: We recently saw you release an AI photobook, what was the experience like?

A: To help increase communicate to my fans abroad, I felt it was best to focus on a new type of challenge that already was attracting lots of worldwide attention. My AI book was made via learning and creating new material based on previous work.

Z: What made you decide to start an OnlyFans?

A: I wanted a way to easily connect with fans around the globe and OnlyFans seems like an ideal way to do it.

Z: Are there any possibilities of collaboration with others? Perhaps one of your best friends Anri Okita?

A: I’m down to work with Anri-chan if she’s down for it!

Z: The most successful OF performers are ones who actively engage with their fans. How do you plan to go about this?

A: Ideally I will get fans who will help me devise good ideas to help spread the word even more about my activities. I hope the content and outreach I do on OnlyFans achieves this.

Z: For a good portion of your fans, their first exposure to you was through the hit Sega game, Ryu Ga Gotoku 0. How did you get involved in it and how do you feel it helped your popularity in Japan and worldwide?

A: Wow, games still seem to be the best way to reach audiences worldwide. When I did it, idol elections to gauge popularity were still a thing.  Ryu Ga Gotoku 0 did something similar with JAV stars: 100 were selected and among them I ranked #3 thus landed a role as a hostess (and yes, even recorded my own lines!). On one hand, I don’t feel the game really increased my exposure but it did open the door to appearing in events specifically for it in Taiwan and Shanghai. After retiring, I was able to do work in both games and commercials in Taiwan. I was happy I was given proper respect even though I may have been a former adult film star.