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Minori Chihara

Minori Chihara (茅原実里, Chihara Minori; born November 18, 1980) is a seiyū who has had roles in several anime series, and a J-pop singer. As a seiyū, she works under the agency Avex Planning & Development while in her musical career, she has been signed under King Records, Avex Trax, and is now currently with Lantis.[1] She was born in the city of Utsunomiya, Tochigi and was raised in Saitama. Her blood type is B, and is the middle child of three siblings consisting of an older sister and younger brother.[2]

She is affectionately referred to as "Minorin" (みのりん) by her fans.

Summary

Career

2003
  • From April to September, served as the assistant to Mariko Kōda's radio program "Kōda Mariko no GM" through an audition. Coupled with her winning first place at the "Seiyū Grand Prix Club," acquired the right to work in the avex artist academy.[3]
  • In October, was chosen as one of the top 4 finalists for Pony Canyon, Inc.'s "VOICE ARTIST&SINGER AUDITION「VSオーディション2003」" sponsorship contest, but did not win the grand prize. She expressed regret for not winning, but commented about further disciplining herself to reach her dream.[4]
2004
  • From April to September, debuted her seiyū career as Aya Natsume in Tenjho Tenge.
  • In December, begins her blog "minorhythm" and at the same time, releases her album HEROINE under King Records.
2005
2006
  • Her blog book "minorhythm" is published in March.
  • From April to September, plays the role of Yuki Nagato in The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. This proves to be a breakout role for her, and raises her popularity substantially.
  • In July, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya's ending theme single "Hare Hare Yukai" sung with Aya Hirano and Yūko Gotō reaches gold status.
  • In November, receives the Radio Kansai Award along with Yūko Gotō (Aya Hirano was not present during the ceremony due to illness)[5] for the Animation Kobe Theme Song Award during the 11th annual Animation Kobe for their single "Hare Hare Yukai."
2007
  • On January 24, releases the single Junpaku Sanctuary, ending a two-year hiatus from her personal singing career.
  • On March 18, performs in the Suzumiya Haruhi no Gekisou concert.[6]
  • In May, begins the radio program in conjunction to her blog called "radio minorhythm" on Wednesdays as part of the Lantis web radio lineup.
  • On June 6, releases the single Kimi ga Kureta Anohi, placing 20th on the Oricon charts.
  • From June 29 to July 2, appears at Anime Expo 2007 along with Aya Hirano and Yūko Gotō at Long Beach, California as a guest of honor.[7]
  • On July 7, performs in the "Animelo Summer Live 2007「Generation-A」" concert.[8]
  • On August 16, holds a press conference that is broadcast to 115 storefronts across Japan to announce three important news items: the release of her new album Contact on October 24, her tour Live starting its opening on November 18 as part of her birthday concert, and the release of her PV collection DVD slated for December 2007.[9]
  • In December, releases the PV DVD Message 01. With it, a follow-up track to the album Contact titled "Contact 13th" is bundled with the DVD as an extra CD.[10]
2008
  • On March 26, releases the single Melty tale storage.[11][12]
  • On April 1, her official fanclub "m.s.s. (minori smile seasons)" is opened.[13]
  • On August 6, releases the single Ameagari no Hana yo Sake, placing 17th on the Oricon charts.
  • On November 5, releases the single Paradise Lost, placing 15th on the Oricon charts.
  • On November 26, releases the album Parade, placing 16th on the Oricon charts.
  • On December 7, performs in the "Dream Stage" concert at the Fancy Frontier convention held in Taipei, Taiwan.[14]
2009
  • On June 3, releases the single Tomorrow's chance.
  • On July 12, performs in her first ever South East Asian concert in DaiCon 「DaiCon-大コン-」, Multimedia University, Cyberjaya in Malaysia.[15]

Personal

  • While auditioning for her role in Ikki Tousen: Dragon Destiny, she sought help from her guitar teacher to learn how to better speak the kansai dialect required for her character.
  • The release of Junpaku Sanctuary not only ended her singing hiatus (outside of anime) since the release of HEROINE, but also prompted the start of her "Re:Birth tour."[16]
  • Although her role as Yuki Nagato in The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya propelled her popularity, long-time fans have seen her perform with her guitar on the streets of Akihabara. According to her blog, the last time she performed this way was on April 9, 2006.[17]
  • One of her hobbies includes playing her acoustic guitar, which she named "Go-kun" (ゴー君).
  • She is good at playing catch, as her father was a baseball coach, and she was a center fielder for her junior high school team. She wanted to play as an outfielder by any means, because she feared the danger presented to infielders from high-velocity, low-batted balls. She was also attracted to the charm of being able to catch fly balls. Coincidentally, her character Yuki Nagato in The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya also played center in the episode "The Boredom of Haruhi Suzumiya."
  • She is a lover of Tirol-Choco candy (especially the kinako-covered mochi kind). Her favorite types of food include salmon, squash, avocados, and shrimp. She likes to post news items about shrimp-related cuisine on her blog.
  • She is a big fan of Yutaka Ozaki and collected many of his albums before his untimely death. She also enjoys the group B'z, as they have often become the topic of her blog. Additionally, she admits to having belonged to a fan club of Hiroshi Inaba. She is also a fan of Miyuki Nakajima.
  • Although admittedly not good at cooking, she is proud of her curry.

Performance

Leading roles in bold.

Anime

2004
  • Samurai Gun (Ohana)
  • Tenjho Tenge (Aya Natsume)
2005
  • The Law of Ueki (Memory, Tamako Hanamura in Ep. 3)
  • Major (2nd Season) (Ayane)
2006
2007
  • Claymore (Awakened Being in Ep. 12)
  • D.C. II: Da Capo II (Shirakawa Nanaka)
  • Dragonaut -The Resonance- (Toa)
  • Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! (Band leader in Ep. 11)
  • Ikki Tousen: Dragon Destiny (Chouhi Ekitoku)
  • Lucky Star (Minami Iwasaki, Herself in Ep. 12, Waitress Yuki Nagato in Ep. 16)
  • Major (3rd Season) (Ayane)
  • Minami-ke (Chiaki Minami)
  • Over Drive (Takeshi Yamato's little sister)
  • Saint October (Seiran in Ep. 6)
  • Shinkyoku Sōkai Polyphonica (Matia Machiya)
  • Venus Versus Virus (Sumire Takahana)
  • Wellber no Monogatari: Sisters of Wellber (Rio)
2008
2009
2014

Web Anime

2009

OVA

Game

Drama CD

  • B Gata H Kei (Kyouka Kanejyou)
  • Lovedol: Lovely Idol (Hina Hōjō)
  • The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya: Sound Around (Yuki Nagato)
  • My-HiME Destiny (Mayo Kagura)
  • Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor (Tanikawa Yuzu)

Radio

Television

Drama

Live Events

  • Debut 1st Anniversary Commemoration Event ~minorin★Spring Celebration 2005~ (April 10, 2005)
  • Birthday Event ~minorin★Birthday Celebration 2005~ (November 20, 2005)
  • Debut 2nd Anniversary Commemoration Event ~minorin★Spring Celebration 2006~ (April 22, 2006)
  • LOVE LIVE 2006 ~Minori Chihara Birthday~ (November 18, 2006)
  • i melody 〜Minori Chihara Birthday Live 2007〜 (November 18, 2007)
  • STARCHILD Presents ~Starchild Collection~[18]
  • Minori Chihara 1st Live Tour 2008 ~Contact~ (March 9, March 16, March 22, March 23)[19]
  • Minori Chihara's radio minorhythm Sound Recording Release (September 13, 2008)
  • Minori Chihara Live Tour 2009 〜Parade〜 (February-March 2009)[20]
  • Minori Chihara Live at DaiCon (Malaysia) 「DaiCon-大コン-」 (July 11-12, 2009)[21]
  • Minori Chihara Live 2009 "SUMMER CAMP" (August 1-2, 2009)[22]

Additional Work

  • Blister Pack V♀ices
  • TRUE LOVE ~WINTER BEST SONGS~ (Commercial narration)
  • TRUE LOVE ~SPRING MEMORIAL SONGS~ (Commercial narration)
  • Natsu Monogatari ~SUMMER BEST SONGS~ (Commercial narration)

Discography

Singles

Date Released Single Name
January 13, 2005 Zutto...Isshou/Makenai: Ichizu Version

(ずっと...一緒/負けない〜一途バージョン〜)

January 24, 2007 Junpaku Sanctuary (純白サンクチュアリィ)
June 6, 2007 Kimi ga Kureta Anohi (君がくれたあの日)
March 26, 2008 Melty tale storage
August 6, 2008 Ameagari no Hana yo Sake (雨上がりの花よ咲け)
November 5, 2008 Paradise Lost
June 3, 2009 Tomorrow's chance

Albums

Date Released Album Name
December 22, 2004 HEROINE
October 24, 2007 Contact
November 26, 2008 Parade

Character Singles

Date Released Single Name
September 29, 2004 Tenjho Tenge GREAT DISC. 1 (天上天下 GREAT DISC. 1)
January 25, 2006 Angel addict
February 22, 2006 Smile means love
May 10, 2006 Hare Hare Yukai (ハレ晴レユカイ)
July 5, 2006 Nagato Yuki Character Song (Vol. 2 長門 有希)
November 1, 2006 LoveLoveLove no Sei na no yo! (LoveLoveLoveのせいなのよ!)
November 22, 2006 Saikyo Pare Parade (最強パレパレード)
December 6, 2006 Candy (bitter&sweet)
March 21, 2007 Seioh Gakuen Kōka Band (聖桜学園校歌バンド)
March 21, 2007 Only Lonely Rain
July 25, 2007 Fragment: Shooting star of the origin
September 26, 2007 Iwasaki Minami Character Song (Vol.006 岩崎みなみ)
October 24, 2007 Keikenchi Joshochu☆ (経験値上昇中☆)
October 31, 2007 Mune Pettan Girls Character Song (Vol.010 胸ぺったんガールズ)
November 21, 2007 Colorful DAYS (カラフルDAYS)
December 26, 2007 Lucky ☆ Star Re-Mix002
December 26, 2007 D.C. II: Da Capo II Vol.0
January 23, 2008 Kokoro no Tsubasa (ココロノツバサ)
January 23, 2008 Sekai ga Yume miru YUME NO NAKA/Saishuu Mirai o Misete!

(世界が夢見るユメノナカ/最終未来を見せて!)

February 6, 2008 Sono Koe ga Kiki Takute (その声が聞きたくて)
February 27, 2008 D.C. II: Da Capo II Character Song Vol. 3
April 23, 2008 Minami-ke Biyori (みなみけ びより)
January 23, 2009 『Suzumiya Haruhi no Gekidō』 Vocal Mini-album

(『涼宮ハルヒの激動』ボーカルミニアルバム)

DVD

  • Message 01, released December 26, 2007.
  • Minori Chihara 1st Live Tour 2008 ~Contact~ DVD, released June 25, 2008.
  • Message 02, released February 4, 2009.
  • Minori Chihara Live Tour 2009 ~Parade~ DVD, released June 24, 2009.

Book

  • minorhythm, published March 30, 2006.

References

External links


This article uses Creative Commons licensed content from Wikipedia's Minori Chihara article.

The list of authors can be seen in the page history there.

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