LOS ANGELES—You’d be hard-pressed to find a performer in the modern history of adult entertainment who had a better year than Asa Akira did in 2012. In the eyes of pretty much anyone with a pulse—or a hard-on—Akira was the hands-down favorite to win Female Performer of the Year at the AVN Awards.
In addition to winning that coveted award, the Japanese/American star also took home prizes for Best Double-Penetration Scene (three years in a row), Best Group Sex Scene (two years in a row), Best POV Sex Scene, Best Star Showcase and Best Three-way Sex Scene G/G/B (her third year in a row of winning one of the three-way awards). Domination, thy name is Asa Akira.
Not only did Akira win six trophies in 2013, she won six AVN Awards in 2012, and five in 2011, bringing her total haul to 17 in only the past three years. In addition to racking up an astounding number of AVN Awards, Akira hosted the show this year in its 30th anniversary.
"I feel like I really deserved to win Female Performer of the Year this year," Akira told AVN. "And that's not to say a lot of the other girls didn't deserve it as well. I worked a lot last year—I literally worked my ass off! I know I worked five to six days a week for most of the year. Not all of those were boy/girl scenes but I guess you can say I have that Asian work ethic."
And, not to put too fine a point on it, but Akira's win for Female Performer of the Year was historic. In an industry that still struggles with how different races and ethnicities are portrayed, Akira became only the second Asian woman to win the coveted award.
"I'd be lying if I said I didn't want that one so, so, so bad," Akira said. "I hate to bring race into things but I'm also proud of the fact that I'm only the second Asian girl to win it after Asia Carrera. There's something to be said about that. It's harder for an ethnic girl to rise to the top like that. It's nice to know that I've overcome some people's stereotypes of Asian women" as the quiet subservient type.
On the other side of that same coin, Akira has learned to accept certain aspects of the stereotype and turn it on its head. Clearly, after watching mostly any scene of hers, the viewer quickly realizes how in control Akira is of her sexuality.
"I've come to embrace the stereotype in a way because it does guarantee me a certain amount of work—there aren't that many Asian girls in the business—and I realize that's one of the reasons I have lots of fans, but it's also nice to know I have fans in other markets as well," Akira admitted. "I think I've turned a lot of men on to Asian women now."
Akira also made history as the first-ever winner of the Best Star Showcase award for Jules Jordan's Asa Akira to the Limit, a movie centered around one female performer by both incorporating her name into its title and featuring her in all of its sex scenes. Out of all the awards she was nominated for Star Showcase was the one Akira didn't think she'd win.
"That was a cool one to win because some of the other movies in that category were really deserving to win as well," Akira said. "I thought Dani Daniels: Dare or Lexi would take it. Alexis Ford Darkside too. There were a lot of really good ones in there. I think those types of movies really brings out the girls' best performance. There's something about shooting that type of movie that makes you work extra hard; you have more invested in it."
And of course, Akira also hosted the milestone 30th anniversary AVN Awards along with Digital Playground star Jesse Jane and comedian April Macie. The trio truly brought the house down and reveled in the opportunity to entertain the sold-out crowd.
"It really is such an honor to host the AVN Awards," Akira enthused. "For a lot of us, before we get into porn, the AVN Awards is the only thing we know about porn. It's the most mainstream, most publicized event we have. It's the one thing I tell my friends about and they know exactly what that is.
"Hosting was such a blast," Akira continued, "and it was really nice to host with Jesse because she's done it before. I was nervous so I thought if I could just follow her lead, I'll be okay. Walking out onto the stage and seeing the crowd was very intimidating."
Fresh off her big wins and monstrously successful year, Akira doesn't plan on slowing down one bit. In December she married AVN Hall of Fame performer/director Toni Ribas and started a podcast with the controversial and outspoken artist David Choe. The podcast, DVDASA (Double-Vag Double-Anal Sensitive Artist) is available on iTunes and has quickly blown up in popularity. Listen to the podcast at DVDASA.com.
Not to be outdone, Akira also has secured a book deal, and while the publishers don't want her to reveal anything just yet, she says, "it's not an autobiography, but it is autobiographical." The book is scheduled for release in spring 2014.
Suffice to say expect plenty more of Akira in 2013 and beyond.
“I'm still shooting. I'm not ready to quit at all," Akira said. "When I got in I thought I'd be done by now. I thought I'd get it out of my system. But right now I'm still enjoying myself way too much to even think about retiring, which is a funny word to even say at my age."
Photo of Asa Akira on stage at the AVN Awards Show by Chris King
