User blog:WonderBuono!/Featured Member (March 2015): Umeda Erika

This month's randomly selected member is:

Umeda Erika



Umeda Erika (梅田えりか), born on May 24, 1991, in Kanagawa prefecture, is a former member of ℃-ute.

Umeda first joined Hello! Project as part of the Hello! Project Kids in 2002. At age 11, she was the oldest of the Kids. Her debut release came in the group ZYX who released their first single in 2003. The group, however, was temporary, and she would not see her true debut until ℃-ute was formed in 2005.

Umeda was not given many solo opportunities during her time in H!P, but she did record a solo song, "Do Don Ga Don Ondo", for ℃-ute's third album, 3rd ~LOVE Escalation!~.

In 2009, Umeda graduated from ℃-ute and Hello! Project to pursue her dream of becoming a model. After her departure, she made many appearances as a model, and also starred in commercials and music videos.

In 2013, she announced her return to music, and the following year she released her debut solo album, erika.

Erika's member color in ℃-ute was yellow. Some of her nicknames include Ume-san and Eri-chan. Her hobbies include collecting stickers and cooking, and she considers her friendly personality to be her strong point.

To learn more about Umeda Erika, please read her full article here.