He inherited the proprietorship of the Ichimura-za theater because his mother was an elder sister of Uzaemon ICHIMURA, and he later became an actor and adopted the name Uzaemon ICHIMURA (VIII).
母が市村羽左衛門の姉だった縁で市村座の座元（所有権）を継承、のちに役者にも転じて八代目市村宇左衛門を襲名した。