With how undeniably handsome and charming he is, not to mention the impressive and well-rounded performer he is, we can say that it is definitely easy for Akira Morishita to capture anyone’s attention and maybe even admiration.
And through his foray as one of the celebrity performers in the highly anticipated return of the well-loved reality competition, “Your Face Sounds Familiar,” he is about to prove that he’s indeed “The Ace Idol.”
He may be best known as a promising singer and dancer, but there’s more to Akira than being a charismatic performer and stage charmer, as revealed in this feature.
He started out in showbiz as a child actor
Prior to shooting to stardom as one of the members of BGYO, which officially debuted on January 29, 2021, not a lot of people know that Akira has been in the local entertainment scene for more than a decade now. But instead of a singer or a dancer, he actually started as a child actor, appearing in various television commercials for huge brands and independent films.
The 2014 award-winning indie flick “Sundalong Kanin” served as his launchpad to the industry since it was his first-ever movie appearance. He then got cast in another indie film that same year, entitled “Alienasyon,” as well as in the 2019 flicks “’Tol” and “Kalel, 15,”
From 2015 to 2016, those who got to regularly watch the ABS-CBN Studios afternoon soap opera “All of Me” had perhaps caught sight of him there, as he played the role of Ringo Dimaculangan, the nephew of Yen Santos’ character, Lena, and the love interest of Barbie Imperial’s character, Apple.
In a past interview, he related that his half-Filipino, half-Japanese features actually provided him an advantage because those helped him become a child model and child actor. Just like some of the celebrities we know who also began in showbiz young, Akira saw being an artista as his way of helping his family with their financial struggles.
He is a talented, versatile artist
Aside from capturing our hearts with his mellifluous voice and exhilarating dance moves, not a lot of people know that Akira is a songwriter, too! In fact, he was the one who wrote their songs “Fly Away” and “Kundiman.” He is credited as well as one of the lyricists of their tracks “Runnin,” “The Baddest,” and their debut song “The Light,” alongside his fellow BGYO members and other composers.
He also gets to show his artistic side through his talents in playing the guitar, beatboxing, rapping in Filipino or Japanese, drawing, and painting.
If these aren’t still enough for him to win your heart, well, know that Akira is also into sports. He shared in a past interview that he used to be part of the basketball varsity team of his high school and that he knows how to play volleyball, badminton, tennis, and golf. He also loves to bike, as he actually owns a road bike and mountain bike.
He went back to acting while being in BGYO
Akira may have been busy with his commitments as a member of BGYO in recent years, yet he had never forgotten his first love, which is acting. In 2022, he starred in the iWant original series “Bola Bola” alongside Francine Diaz, Ashton Salvador, and KD Estrada, wherein he charmed not just Francine’s character, Thea, but also the viewers, as the campus heartthrob Lucas Benitez.
He was also among the Star Magic artists who were chosen to take part in the “Tabing Ilog: The Musical 2023,” the stage adaptation of the classic youth-oriented series of ABS-CBN, “Tabing Ilog,” which was a massive hit in the ‘90s. He portrayed the lead role of Rovic, which was originally by seasoned actor John Lloyd Cruz.
With an impressive talent and background in performance arts, as well as pleasing interest in music and visual arts, are these enough for Akira to ace the weekly showdowns in the brand new season of “Your Face Sounds Familiar”? Well, that’s for us to find out, so you better not miss an episode every Saturday and Sunday night on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live (KOL), A2Z, and TV5 starting this October 4 and 5!