Yukiko Iwai (singer)

, also known by the nickname , is a Japanese singer and actress born 26 May 1968 in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. 
Iwai was a member of the all-girl pop group Onyanko Club (from 21 June 1985 until 31 August 1987), and she was the shortest of all the members at 150 centimetres (4 ft 11 in). She was also half of the pop group Ushiroyubi Sasaregumi, a spin-off group of Onyanko Club. 
She graduated from Kaetsu Women's Junior High and High School (now Kaetsu Ariake Junior High and High School), but left Kaetsu Women's Junior College (now Kaetsu University Junior College) before she finished. She is the younger in a set of identical twins.
Biography.
She moved to Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture after her parents divorced when she was younger. She made her media debut in 1985 as a gravure model in "Model Graphix", a magazine for which her older sister was on the editorial committee.
On June 21, 1985, she became the 19th member of Onyanko Club after auditioning on the TV program "Yūyake Nyan Nyan", and she appeared on the cover of their first album, "Kick Off". Shortly afterward, she and Mamiko Takai, also a member of Onyanko Club, formed the group Ushiroyubi Sasaregumi. About this time, she acquired the nickname "Yūyu". Yukiko Iwai performed the lead vocals for Onyanko Club's fifth single, "Osaki ni Shitsurei", released in July 1986. From that point, she became the main vocalist for the majority of their albums, and was considered central to the success of the group.
She made her solo debut with the single on March 25, 1987. In April of that same year, Ushiroyubi Sasaregumi was disbanded because Takai graduated from Onyanko Club and moved on to other things. Onyanko Club itself disbanded in August later that year, and Iwai began working for Watanabe Productions (Nabe Pro) along with fellow Onyanko Club member Sonoko Kawai. She also began working under her nickname "Yūyu", turning it into a stage name.
Immediately after Yukiko Iwai turned solo, it became an "winter era of idols" in a reaction to the boom of Onyanko Club, and she retired from singer activity with issued in February 1989. Since then, she has appeared in variety shows such as "Quiz! Age Difference Doesn't Matter" and played an active role as an image character of the game software company Taito.
In 1994, she changed her stage name back to her real name "Yukiko Iwai", but by this time her activity was sluggish. And she retired from the entertainment world in 1997 when she married a young businessman. Even after she retired, she participated in the reunion event of the Onyanko Club.