Seiyuu Digest #67 – Shouta Aoi

An angel’s voice. A pioneer among male seiyuu. A fashion chameleon. A versatile actor. An example of fortitude and determination. This month’s Seiyuu Digest is dedicated to Shouta Aoi’s career.

Shouta Aoi

KANJI: 蒼井翔太

BORN: August 11, 1987

OCCUPATION: seiyuu, singer-songwriter, stage actor

HEIGHT: 174 cm

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Shouta Aoi was born on August 11, 1987, in Fukui, Japan.

Was originally represented by S Inc. but as of October 2022, he is freelance in his voice acting and stage acting activities and represented by KING RECORDS as a solo artist.

He has an older sister which he credits for being the reason he fell in love with Sailor Moon SuperS. It was due to Akira Ishida‘s performance as Fish Eye in that anime series that Aoi started to consider a voice actor career.

Since he was a little kid, Aoi loved dancing along to the songs of his favorite artists however, contrary to what many might think, he never attended dance school classes, and his dancing is all self-learned.

Despite now being loved and treasured by his fans, truth is that things weren’t always this warm for the gentle Aoi. As a child, he was the target of bullying due to him having a high voice and androgynous looks.

This is a sensitive topic that Aoi has addressed a couple of times in interviews for outlets such as Oricon News, or even in his songs.

For a time, Aoi had a complex over his voice. As a result, during elementary school, he closed himself at home. He didn’t attend school and spent his days listening to music nonstop. Eventually, Aoi was able to overcome his complex, regaining confidence when a friend of his heard him sing during a karaoke outing.

That changed his life for the better, giving him the strength and confidence to be himself and loving being himself.

Aoi’s message and songs serve as an inspiration and motivation for those that are suffering from bullying or that have suffered. He’s an example of fortitude and reinvention. For many, a role model.

Seiyuu

2011 –

Debut days

Shouta Aoi kicked off his career as a seiyuu in 2011.

His first role in anime was in the slice-of-life/comedy anime, Kimi to Boku. He voiced Ryunnosuke Yamashita, member of the Manga Society, in the series’ 2 seasons – Kimi to Boku. (2011) and Kimi to Boku. 2 (2012).

Kicking off his career as a seiyuu with a supporting role that is loved within the franchise and among fans is something that very few seiyuu have the luck to get.

This was a golden opportunity for Shouta Aoi to showcase his gentle voice in a character that is rather small – in height – but with a big heart.

2013 – 2014

The career opener

After a successful and praised portrayal of Ryunnosuke Yamashita in the Kimi to Boku. series, Shouta Aoi found himself auditioning for the hit music/romance/reverse harem series, Uta no Prince-Sama.

Little did he know that this role would propel him to different heights, putting him in the spotlight for both his acting and singing – the latter was going under the radar by this time.

He joined the franchise in 2013 – Uta no Prince-sama Maji Love 2000% – as QUARTET NIGHT‘s Ai Mikaze.

Calm and, on a first look, emotionless, Mikaze is, strangely enough, the mediator in fights within QUARTET NIGHT as well as a character that ends up developing strong bonds with those around him. For this role, Aoi had to tackle his performance in a completely different way from what seiyuu are instructed to: not give him emotion.

As result Mikaze sounds cold, detached, and rigid, perfectly fitting with the character’s background and serving as the perfect contrast to his passionate QUARTET NIGHT bandmates.

Although this is far from being a main role, it is certain to say that Shouta Aoi’s career as a seiyuu and solo artist took off with this role. All eyes – and ears – were on this talented man and his unique voice (both as a voice actor and singer).

As a result, 2014 kicked off and, instead of having only 1 role in the whole year like it had been a norm in his career since his debut, Aoi got 2 roles, one of his first main roles.

He was cast in Shounen Hollywood: Holly Stage for 49, hyped musical / slice-of-life anime that ended up not being as well received in the end by the lack of character depth and superficial plot.

He voiced Daiki Tomii, a passionate and easy-going young adult that joins Shounen Hollywood as a fan of the old group.

Although the anime ended up exploring interesting concepts – such as what entails being successful as an idol and how friendships can easily end once you make your big break, what goes behind the scenes on the lives of those idols that are perfect on camera, etc -, it ended up paling in contrast with dull voice acting by the whole cast and lackluster animation in general.

Still, the series ended up spawning 2 seasons with Shounen Hollywood: Holly Stage for 50 premiering in 2015.

Far from a perfect leading role, it was still the first-ever experience for Aoi with more than a couple of lines under his belt. The experience gained from this role carried over to all other leading roles he’s had in the last couple of years.

Still in the same year, he voiced Michael in the supernatural and adventure anime, Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis.

2015 – 2016

Building his repertoire

2015 was a fantastic year for Shouta Aoi as he got to reprise his role as Ai Mikaze in the 3rd season of Uta no Prince-Sama – Uta no Prince-sama Maji Love Revolutions – but also because he was taking on a different project.

He was cast in the sports anime Diamond no Ace as Hideaki Tojo. Now, for people following Aoi’s career as a voice actor up until this point, most were familiar with his gentle, higher-toned voice. Things changed for this role.

Hideaki Tojo was the very first role in which Aoi was showcasing his talents as a voice actor, tapping into a different part of his vocal range. He embraced a deeper and rougher tone befitting of Seido’s passionate center fielder and has been pretty consistent at that since the character made its first appearance in 2015.

This was such a breath of fresh air in his career, showing that there was and is more to Aoi’s voice than just that androgynous voice.

Aoi has voiced Tojo in its 3 seasons – Diamond no Ace (2015), Diamond no Ace: Second Season (2015), and Diamond no Ace: Act II (2019).

Still in the same year, Aoi voiced characters in DD Hokuto no Ken 2 Ichigo Aji+ and The Transformers: Mystery of Convoy.

2016 brought Aoi back to music anime.

He reprised his role as Procellarum‘s Rui Minaduki in the anime adaptation of the Tsukiuta franchise – TSUKIUTA. The Animation. With a cast as big as this series and having to encompass the light story into 12 episodes, Minaduki ended up not have the spotlight as much on him as his fans – and Aoi’s – wished.

The anime series followed the members of Six Gravity and Procellarum in their daily adventures.

Although this was a treat for fans of the franchise, the anime proved to be far from newcomer-friendly, not diving much into the lore of the franchise and, instead, coming from a place in which people had to be already familiar with it to understand the dynamics between characters and groups.

At the same time, Aoi was back with leading roles in anime.

He was cast as Itsuki Tachibana in the sci-fi and action anime, Phantasy Star Online 2 The Animation.

The anime ended up being a lackluster adaptation of the popular mobile game not picking up enough heat to highlight Aoi or any of the cast’s acting.

The anime is criticized for how many characters were clichéd and one-dimensional and that any plot points that appeared, proved to be pretty obvious in its development later on in the series.

Popular kids anime Future Card Buddyfight made its return for a 3rd season and with it, a new cast was announced.

Shouta Aoi was cast as Gaito Kurouzu in Future Card Buddyfight DDD, sharing the spotlight as leading actor with fellow seiyuu Marie Mizuno and Soma Saito.

Kurouzu is cold and pushes others away when they try to be nice to him. However, at his core, he’s got a heart of gold, protecting those he loves.

Still in 2016, Aoi joined the main cast of the music and magic anime, Maji Kyun! Renaissance.

He voiced Monet Tsukushi, confident and cheeky teen with a passion for painting. Initially, Tsukushi is tight-lipped, with basically none of the cast knowing much about him however, as the series progresses, he opens up to both the heroine and the rest of the cast.

Other roles during this period of time include:

• Renren in Hatsukoi Monster
• Toya Natsunagi in Prince of Stride: Alternative
• Sousuke Kojika in Handa Kun
• Akane in Kiss Him, Not Me
• Louis Kisaragi in King of Prism by Pretty Rhythm

2017

A year of hiccups

Looking at Shouta Aoi’s career up until 2017, he’s had consistency and his roles weren’t particularly overshadowed by other voice actors or by weak, uninspired anime productions – although he voices characters in a few of those.

2017 however, was not a good year for Aoi. He was landing leading roles but none really got the spotlight they should have gotten and that was mostly due to reasons completely out of his control.

To kick off the year, Aoi reprised his role as Tsubasa Shindo in the anime adaptation of the Marginal #4 franchise – Marginal#4: Kiss kara Tsukuru Big Bang. Although not a leading role, this was a supporting role with quite the importance and spotlight within the Marginal #4 franchise.

Tsubasa Shindo is Unicorn Jr.‘s leader.

He’s pretty cheeky and often clashes with Marginal #4’s Atom due to how similar they are in personality – both are oresama-types.

Unfortunately, an uninspired adaptation of the franchise and the lackluster plot ended up making Marginal#4: Kiss kara Tsukuru Big Bang an average anime.

In the same season, Aoi joined the leading cast in the short comedy anime, Chiruran: Nibun no Ichi, as the legendary spear-wielding Shinsengumi official, Sanosuke Harada.

The anime’s take on the overly done Shinsengumi story took on a comedic turn and gathered a cast filled with popular male seiyuu – Tatsuhisa Suzuki, Makoto Furukawa, Ryohei Kimura, Yuichiro Umehara, etc – as its selling point but it ended up not attracting attention.

There are few overseas fans that are aware of the anime, even fewer that have watched it which is unfortunate, as the series didn’t take itself seriously and had quite the fun daily life shenanigans that were made just for viewers to have fun.

Aoi then reprised his role as Takayuki Konparu in the otome game, Kenka Bancho Otome in its anime adaptation, Kenka Bancho Otome -Girl Beats Boys-.

Takayuki Konparu is a member of Shishiku Academy, an all-boys school for delinquents. Despite his size, Konparu is considered to be the strongest in the school.

Despite his cold exterior, he quickly bonds with the heroine – unknowingly of the fact that she is a woman and not a man as she is trying to pass herself for -, as well as other characters in the series.

Aoi’s performance wasn’t particularly noteworthy, with his acting being pretty much on par with what he’d done in the game – nothing too impressive or memorable, just passable.

Kenka Banchou Otome: Girl Beats Boys was considered an average anime adaptation, with its nonsensical plot being called out as one of the reasons why most people tried to watch it but ended up dropping the anime just a couple of episodes in.

Still, in the same year, Aoi surprised everyone by not taking a cute or androgynous role. He voiced his first-ever female character in anime.

He was cast as Cagliostro in the sci-fi and music anime, Senki Zesshou Symphogear AXZ.

Making great use of his insanely high range, Aoi put on some feminine charms and completely aced his role, making a lot of people confused with the obvious trap here – a hot voice in an attractive female but when people went searching for the name of the female seiyuu behind that voice… they found out that she was, actually, voiced by none other than Shouta Aoi.

Aoi’s talent made heads turn his way and people started to see how versatile his voice actually is, as he can tackle both male and female roles and do both with the same quality and almost no difficulty adjusting his pitch.

Perhaps one of the worst ever made anime of 2017 was DYNAMIC CHORD.

Adapting the successful and incredibly popular visual novel franchise wasn’t going to be an easy thing to pull off. 4 different bands star in the franchise’s 4 games. 4 different stories. 4 different heroines.

So, it was up to Honeybee to come up with a way all 4 bands could be in the same place. So, they decided that a heroine would not matter for the story thus, stripped the adaptation of any romance elements – the visual novel’s selling point.

The anime was a complete trainwreck of bad animation – if there ever is any animation beyond characters opening their mouths -, a completely different art style, a ridiculous plot that takes place after the events of all 4 games that, for those that played the games, didn’t make any sense, lackluster acting much due to poor voice directing and even poorer PR led to the anime to literally turn into a dumpster fire.

The anime adaptation received criticism for the lazy work that had been done, especially when players/fans of the franchise knew that if the anime was to adapt the story in some way, we could have had a really interesting anime in our hands.

Instead, we got one anime adaptation that we want to forget it ever happened.

Shouta Aoi reprised his role as apple-polisher‘s vocal, Narumi (NaL).

His performance wasn’t particularly good – especially in comparison with his acting in the games, something that takes us once again to the criticism on the voice acting direction for this anime.

On a positive note in 2017 was Aoi’s role as the womanizer Licht von Grannzreich in the slice-of-life / comedy anime, The Royal Tutor.

The anime was praised for its gorgeous art, good music, and solid voice acting on top of a highly entertaining plot that, despite not seeming like it was going to take any direction in the first couple of episodes, quickly followed an interesting path and ended up being well received by domestic and overseas fans.

Still in the same year, Aoi voiced Tsuji Toshihiko in the sports anime, Dive!!.

2018 –

Constantly improving

Things changed around in 2018 and Aoi was back on track, leaving hiccups and lackluster productions behind. 2018 was the year Shouta Aoi went viral in Japan.

Interestingly enough, Aoi’s biggest role of the year was as himself in the popular parody anime, POP TEAM EPIC.

This was a pretty meta feature as he did not lend his voice to a character with his likeness. He was in the anime. 2D with 3D at the same time leading to a hilarious outcome.

Although not a leading role, Yuto Ito in the romance anime 3D Kanojo: Real Girl played an important role in the story. For this anime, Aoi was back on his gentle, androgynous voice tone befitting Ito’s cute and easy to mistake feminine looks.

Aoi reprised his role in the anime’s 2nd season that aired in 2019. Also in 2019, Aoi reprised his role as Hideaki Tojo in the 3rd season of Diamond no Ace – Diamond no Ace Act II.

Aoi was back to voicing monotone characters in the drama/romance anime, Kono Oto Tomare!. He voiced Mio Kanzaki a quiet, monotone yet passionate teen with an amazing talent to play the koto.

KING OF PRISM got its anime adaptation in 2019 – after its movie iterations – and Aoi reprised his role as the enigmatic Louis Kisaragi.

2020 kicked off with a couple of roles under his belt. Shouta Aoi counted with roles in Gal to Kyouryuu and Princess Connect! Re:Dive.

His first leading role of the year is Gerald Stuart in the comedy anime, My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!.

Great with intimidation tactics and a twisted personality contrast with his refreshing looks, which leads to quite an interesting unveil of the character within the series. Aoi delivers quite the entertaining performance in as Stuart, showing how twisted his voice can sound, even with all that gentleness underneath.

Other anime he’s voiced characters in include:

• Devils Line
• Caligula
• Senjuushi
• Meiji Tokyo Renka
• Hataraku Onii-san! no 2!
• Karakuri Circus
• Dimension High School
• Kyou mo Tsuno ga Aru
• ACTORS -Songs Connection-
• Watashi, Nouryoku wa Heikinchi de tte Itta yo ne!
• Carole & Tuesday
• Uta no☆Prince-sama♪ Maji Love Kingdom Movie

With almost a decade in the seiyuu industry, there is still so much for Aoi to do and showcase his talents.

The difference for many other seiyuu in the industry – and a big reason as to why he does not have more roles under his belt – is because he is not focusing solely on being a voice actor, he is branching out – with a major focus on his solo career – and trying to show his fans just how talented he is in a wide variety of fields.

Radio

Since way before Shouta Aoi was a voice actor, he was already hosting his radio shows. His journey on radio started when he was still promoting as a solo artist – SHOWTA..

His first radio shows were SHOWTA. no Bangumi nandesho? (2008), SHOWTA. no BE AMBITIOUS (2008), Iza! SHOWTA.Imu (2009).

After that, and since making his debut as a voice actor, Aoi has managed to have a good share of his personality radio shows as well as got to participate and co-host on others. Among male seiyuu, Aoi is a rare case.

While many seiyuu yearn for hosting their own radio show, he has already done that plenty of times, having several flagship shows of his own under his belt.

He’s really polite and professional for the most part however, if need be, he’ll go all bonkers and any episode can make you cry from laughter. His nice and welcoming demeanor makes all his radio work pleasing to listen to, not to mention entertaining.

Let’s check some of his most popular radio shows (hosting and or co-hosting) over the years:

One of Aoi’s longest running radio show hosting gigs was Radio Shingeki no Bahamut Baharaji. He co-hosted the radio show alongside fellow seiyuu, Ayumi Tsuji, from 2013 until 2018.

The radio show was a tie-in for the game to which both seiyuu lent their voices.

Animate Onrakukan (2014 -)

Shouta Aoi’s longest-running radio gig – this one is viewable – is Animate‘s Onrakukan.

He is the sole host and interviewer for this radio show, been doing it since 2014! Aside from seiyuu guests, the radio show also counts with interviews made to J-Pop, J-rock, idols, and more.

Future Radio Buddyfight SSS (2016 – 2018)

In 2016, Shouta Aoi joined fellow male seiyuu Soma Saito and Shuuta Morishima to co-host (with a special corner of his) the radio show, Future Radio Buddyfight SSS. The show ran for 2 whole years, spanning more than 100 episodes.

Aoi Shouta Hungry night (2017 – 2020)

Aoi’s most recent radio endeavor was Aoi Shouta Hungry night. The radio show ran from 2017 up until this year, wrapping in early 2020.

This was not only Aoi’s first-ever FM radio hosting gig (all other radio shows mentioned in this section were/are internet radio shows), but it was Aoi’s most popular radio show.

Other radio shows he’s hosted and or was a guest in include:

• Hiromi Sato’s Hiroraji (2013 – 2015 as assistant)
• Aoi Shouta no Aozora Sanshin with JOYMAX (2014 and 2015 – guest)
• Gekkan shin Otokomae Tsushin 〜 Gekkan Aoi Shouta (2014 – personality)
• Aoi Shouta no Iyasare Night (2015 – personality)
• Daiya no A 〜 Netto Koshien 〜 (2015 – 2016 – co-host)
• Hatsukoi Monster radio (2016 – host)
• Aoi Shouta’s 3・2・1! (2017 – personality)
• Aoi Shouta no Aitai Hito o Yonde Mita! (2018)

Between many more.

Games

When it comes to games, Aoi sure does have a vast repertoire. He’s most commonly found voicing characters in Otome games but he has also picked up a couple of credits in RPG and tower defense games over the years.

His characters are often quiet, soft-spoken, and polite, something that, in some way, mirrors Aoi’s usual demeanor.

Aoi’s first-ever role in games was in 2011. He voiced a minor character in the otome game, Black Robinia.

Some of his most iconic roles are:

Ai Mikaze in Uta no Prince-Sama franchise (2011 -)

The character that started all for Aoi in the seiyuu industry.

Ai Mikaze is a member of QUARTET NIGHT, veteran and rival unit to Uta no Prince-Sama‘s main unit, STARISH.

Quiet, professional, and without any displays of emotion, Mikaze is the perfect professional however, something about him is different from all characters in the Utapri universe.

Since that might be a spoiler for those that haven’t played the games, I welcome you to play those.

Mikaze’s first appearance in the Utapri games was in 2011’s Uta no☆Prince-Sama ♪ Repeat. He then went on to reprise his roles in 5 other games, including the smartphone game, Uta no☆Prince-Sama ♪ Shining Live.

Narumi Amagiri in DYNAMIC CHORD feat.apple-polisher (2016)

Aoi reprised his role as Narumi Amagiri in DYNAMIC CHORD feat.apple-polisher.

Narumi or NaL is apple-polisher‘s frontman and, at times, the band’s lyricist and youngest band member. At the same time, Narumi is regarded as a nice and sweet guy. He’s also the protagonist’s childhood friend and first love.

He has a troubled love life that leads to his route being quite frustrating at first for players of this game. However, as you play the game, you come to understand his issues and why he does not even regard your character as a romance prospect until long into the game.

This is a rather interesting role, as Aoi had to tackle a different tone of voice and a completely different personality from what he was known for. His role as Narumi in DYNAMIC CHORD feat.apple-polisher is one of his best roles.

Tsubasa Shindo in MARGINAL#4 ROAD TO GALAXY (2017)

In 2017, Aoi reprised his role as Tsubasa Shindo, Unicorn Jr.‘s cheeky leader, in the franchise’s first-ever game, MARGINAL#4 ROAD TO GALAXY. The game wasn’t necessarily a hit but his performance is still regarded as pretty good, leading to exciting and interesting moments during the game.

Since this is an Otome game with dating elements, I leave the judging of his route to you, otherwise, I would be spoiling it.

Band Yarouze! (2016 – 2019)

Band Yarouze! was one of those amazing projects that, unfortunately, suffered from a troubled release and was abruptly discontinued.

The game launched on October 12, 2016, after some hiccups that delayed its release, and easily turned into one of the most exciting rhythm games in the industry. Band Yarouze! counted with an attention gripping story that followed the dealings and shenanigans of 4 different rock bands trying to make their break.

The game’s band lineup counted with not only the main 4 bands – OSIRIS, BLAST, Fairy April, Cure2tron – but also the legends DesTIRARE and the rival bands CrystalCross and Freezing.

Aoi voiced the refreshing Asahi Ohtori, Fairy April‘s vocal.

Despite the announcements of new bands joining the lineup and a new storyline kicking off in 2018, the reality was that Sony and Aniplex ended up putting Band Yarouze! in a weird “alive-but-not-really” situation.

Updates ceased to be delivered to the game, before the game’s end of distribution was announced in 2019.

Mikekado Shion in DREAM!ing (2018 -)

In 2018, Aoi joined the cast of DREAM!ing, smartphone that features music as one of its selling points.

The game counts with a fantastic cast that includes:

• Natsuki Hanae,
• Makoto Furukawa,
• Nobunaga Shimazaki,
• Shouta Aoi,
• Toshiyuki Toyonaga,
• Yuma Uchida,
• Shunichi Toki,
• Toshinari Fukamachi,
• Shinnosuke Tachibana,
• Tetsuya Kakihara,
• Yusuke Kobayashi,
• Yoshiki Nakajima,
• Yoshiki Nakajima,
• Shunsuke Takeuchi,
• Naru Hamano,
• Yuto Suzuki, and
• Tomohiro Yamaguchi.

Aoi voices Mikekado Shion, the resident “diva” in the game.

Despite the fact that the character dresses up as a woman – with no problems at all with that – there is a gap. Shion is insanely sadistic and moody, which is a departure from the soft-spoken characters that Aoi usually voices.

Other games Shouta Aoi has voiced characters in include:

• BinaryStar (2014)
• Shingeki no Bahamut (2014)
• Cafe Cuillere (2015)
• Genji koe Maki (2015)
• Taisho × Taisho Alice (2015)
• BELIEVER! (2015)
• Boyfriend (Kari) (2015)
• Collar×Malice (2016)
• Caligula (2016)
• Bravery Chronicle (2016)
• Magic-kyun Renaissance (2016)
• GARM STRUGGLE (2017)
• Side Kicks! (2017)
• Blackish House ←sideZ (2017)
• KING OF PRISM Prism Rush! LIVE (2017)
• Ikemen Sengoku (2018)
• The Thousand Musketeers (2018)
• Symphogear XD Unlimited (2018)
• Starry Palette (2019)
• Kenka Bancho Otome 2nd Rumble!! (2019)
• Disney: Twisted-Wonderland (2020)

Many more credits could have been added to this Seiyuu Digest but I’ll save you the trouble of having to scroll endlessly.

Make sure to check out his Wikipedia page in Japanese to have a better grasp of how Aoi is a dominant presence in the otome game industry.

Drama CDs

Shouta Aoi has been branching out in the seiyuu industry and that has translated into him voicing characters in Drama CDs.

Although, for the most part, Aoi only reprises his roles from games, anime or music franchises, it is still noteworthy how much of an effort he makes on all his characters seem believable and relatable.

Rejet are quite fond of Aoi’s voice, having him in not only the Marginal #4 CDs but also their soft and sweet CD series, √HAPPY+SUGAR DARLIN’.

Some of the Drama CDs in which he voiced characters include:

• √HAPPY+SUGAR DARLIN’ series
• Magic-Kyun!SHOW-TIME!!CD
• DYNAMIC CHORD love U kiss series vol.16 〜NaL〜
• Z/X -Zillions of enemy X- NC DramaCD 1
• ACTORS – Drama Edition -［EAST］
• FRESH KISS 100% 3rd Twinkle
• Tsukiuta。DRAMA! Sono3
• MANSHIN
• Sengoku Soine
• Blackish House

Between many more drama CD series and franchises.

Acting

Shouta Aoi has always managed to vary his work, being a voice actor, solo artist and also an actor.

He has a solid career as a musical actor – mainly due to how impressive his technique and range are but also how versatile his looks are, giving him the opportunity to portray both male and female roles with the same quality.

Aoi’s first endeavor as an actor was in 2006.

He was cast in the Fruits Basket musical adaptation as Tohru’s quiet, psychic friend, Saki Hanajima. This is a rather interesting first role for Aoi, especially knowing how much he loves the manga. For this musical, Aoi was credited as SHOWTA..

In 2010, and after leaving KING RECORDS, Aoi returned for another set of plays. This time around he was credited as Noboru Ryugaki (a moniker) in Shibuya × Akiba and Moon War: Tsuki ga Kiiro ka, Shiro, Kuro ka….

It took Aoi 3 years to return to the stage as a musical and theater actor.

His first role in 2013 was in The Ascenscion of K, or His Death by Drowning.

Persona 3: The Weird Masquerade (2014 – 2015)

One of his most iconic roles in stage plays and musicals, in general, is his role as Sakuma Shiomi (the story’s male protagonist) in the critically acclaimed musical, Persona 3: The Weird Masquerade.

Based on the events of the extremely popular game, Persona 3, this was a play that was so well received that it sold out sessions, and was split into 3 different story arcs. Eventually, and due to its popularity, Persona 3: The Weird Masquerade aired on TV and was released on DVD.

For this musical, Aoi was alongside fellow stage actors and male seiyuu, Genki Okawa and Yuki Fujiwara.

Phantasy Star Online 2: On Stage (2014)

In 2014, Shouta Aoi was cast in the musical adaptation of Phantasy Star Online 2.

Phantasy Star Online 2: On Stage counted with Aoi as Takuya. An interesting fact: Aoi was cast for this musical in 2014. A year later, he was cast in the anime series as Itsuki Tachibana.

PRINCE KAGUYA (2015)

In 2014, Aoi was cast as the protagonist in the musical, PRINCE KAGUYA.

The musical counted with dance and singing performances and was really popular to the point that DVDs of it were released – a note that stage plays or musicals getting a DVD or BD release is a rare feat.

Relic: Tale of the Last Ninja (2016)

Shouta Aoi continued in a streak of being cast in historical-inspired plays. He was cast in Relic: Tale of the Last Ninja alongside fellow male seiyuu Kazuhiko Inoue and Yuichi Nakamura.

Retsu! Bakafuki! (2016)

In 2016, Aoi joined the cast of Retsu! Bakafuki! alongside fellow male seiyuu and stage actors, Genki Okawa, Yuki Fujiwara, Toshiyuki Toyonaga and seiyuu, Yuto Suzuki.

The Little Prince (2017)

In a change of setting, Aoi joined the cast of the recitation x orchestra play, The Little Prince.

He was cast alongside fellow male seiyuu Toshiki Masuda, Toshiyuki Toyonaga, Chiharu Sawashiro, Haruki Ishiya, Yuichiro Umehara, Shun Horie, and Tomoaki Maeno.

AD-LIVE 2017 / 2018

Surprising everyone, Shouta Aoi joined the cast of AD-LIVE, yearly stand-up/unscripted theater show created in 2008 by fellow male seiyuu, Kenichi Suzumura.

Aoi participated in the 2017 and 2018 editions, leading to pretty hilarious footage that was later released on DVD.

The Royal Tutor (2017 and 2019)

Shouta Aoi reprised his role as Licht von Grannzreich in The Royal Tutor musical.

The series inspired 2 musicals, with the voice cast of the anime reprising their roles, something pretty unusual but, at the same time, cool. Aoi reprised his role in both musicals.

Dimension (2019)

Shouta Aoi’s first-ever live-action role on TV was as Shiro Oide in Dimension High School. Aoi also did narration for this show.

WEST SIDE STORY (2019)

In 2019, Aoi was cast as Tony in the world-renowned musical – getting its very first Japanese musical adaptation -, WEST SIDE STORY.

His role as Tony was double cast, with him splitting acting duties with fellow male seiyuu and KING RECORDS solo artist, Mamoru Miyano.

REAL⇔FAKE (2019)

In 2019, Shouta Aoi was cast in the original TV drama, REAL⇔FAKE.

The story follows the sudden disappearance of a utahime/diva and the suspicion of it being a suicide. The members of a unit project called Stellar CROWNS, that features actors, idols and singers are part of the same agency as the utahime/diva.

A suspicious document arrives at the talent agency’s office mentioning that “the criminal is among the project members“. Then, the president of the talent agency decides to put all members of Stellar CROWNS living under the same roof, under the pretext of shooting a documentary on the group, in order to find the culprit.

The cast of the TV drama counted with Yoshihiko Aramaki, Keisuke Ueda, Ren Ozawa, Ryuji Sato,Ryuunosuke Matsumura, Masanari Wada, Toshiyuki Someya and Shouta Aoi.

Music

Shouta Aoi has a pretty long solo career, however, under different stage names and music labels. His path into being a singer is quite the unique one. For starters, Aoi was not initially interested in being a singer. He was aiming at being a tennis player.

He mentioned that, while in junior high, he was invited by his friends to karaoke and it was then that, when singing So Into You by Koda Kumi, people complimented his voice and performance, which helped him regain his confidence.

That confidence took Aoi to various singing competitions.

He participated in the Yamaha Teens’ Music Festival in 2004 (under the moniker, Noboru Yanagawa) and ended up winning the Grand Prix in the Ibaraki prefecture, Grand Prix he auditioned for mistakenly thinking that it was just an amateur karaoke competition.

He ended up competing in the National Grand Prix however, he did not win but music labels noticed him. KING RECORDS ended up snatching Shouta Aoi, leading to a long partnership that has taken Aoi to the sub-labels and back to the major label.

SHOWTA. (2006 – 2011)

Shouta Aoi ended up making his solo debut as SHOUTA. in 2006.

He was labeled from the get-go as a unique singer that has “(…) a beautiful singing voice that transcends age and gender, a voice that comes from the heart to wash away negative emotions. An angel’s voice.“

SHOWTA.‘s debut single was released in 2006 with the sweet R&B ballad, Negaiboshi (you can find a snippet of the song in the highlight medley below).

Still in the same year, SHOWTA. released his best song: Trans-winter – Fuyu no Mukogawa –. This was yet another iteration in R&B with great results as the single climbed the charts, giving him his first-ever top 50 release on Oricon (#32).

Much of the success of this highly addictive tune – with one of the best R&B choruses I’ve heard – was due to it being featured as the theme song to the live-action TV adaptation of Damens Walker.

In 2007, SHOWTA. was back and now, with a powerful ballad, Hito Shizuku. This release was also met with much excitement, with it being SHOWTA.’s highest-ranking release on Oricon Weekly – #31.

Still in the same year, he released the single, Kimi ni, Kaze ga Fukimasu You ni.

In 2008, SHOWTA. released the singles, Haru na no ni and Hikaru no Gen-chan – this one being his weakest performing release on charts (#140 on Oricon). It was also featured on NHK’s Minna no Uta for the months of April and May 2008.

In the same year he released his 1st and only original full-length album, EVE.

After the album release, it took 2 years for SHOWTA., now as Noboru Ryugaki, to announce his departure from KING RECORDS, citing in his personal blog that he was aiming at being a seiyuu and singing anime songs. SHOWTA. was no more.

A year later, in 2011, Shouta Aoi made his debut as a seiyuu under S Inc., company that still represents him at the time this Seiyuu Digest was written.

Shouta Aoi: the new beginning (2013 -)

This was the new beginning Aoi wanted.

After being cast in the Uta no Prince-Sama franchise as Mikaze Ai and his singing skills were, once again, in the spotlight, B-Green (Broccoli music label behind the Utapri franchise) signed with the talented Shouta Aoi. And thus, a great partnership was starting.

Shouta Aoi‘s debut release was the EP, BLUE BIRD in 2013. Uptempo pop with a pinch of electronica was the greeting card for this textbook release.

But that was no all from him in that year. Aoi was going all out in his debut as a solo artist and more music was going to follow.

He released Virginal, single that brought electronica into the mix, blending a rather refreshing way with his flawless vocals.

It was followed by TRUE HEARTS and Himitsu no Kuchizuke.

TRUE HEARTS didn’t slip from that initial synth-led sound that was present in his first 2 releases.

This wasn’t a brilliant release. Dubstep – a trend back then – was a feature in this track as peppy melodies were as well.

Vocally, Aoi continued to showcase his consistency and control but the songs in this release were far from being the best outlet to show everyone what he’s worth.

Himitsu no Kuchizuke tried to change things around. Aoi brought with this single rock music.

The title track has a full rock band sound, being edgy and catchy enough to really stand out.

This is a single that I believe was a turning point for him in this new adventure as a solo artist. Still, it felt like the label was trying too much to tie Aoi to that Anisong-type of song, instead of letting him fly and excel as a solo artist.

Up until 2015, Aoi had been playing nice and simple with his image. Things changed a bit with Himitsu no Kuchizuke but it wasn’t until 2015’s MURASAKI that we’d find Aoi being bolder with both his image and sound.

The addition of traditional Japanese instruments – following a traditional Japanese concept in the music video and cover art – was a breath of fresh air. At the same time, Aoi was killing it with those visuals (also kudos to the color palette for this music video, it is awesome). MURASAKI was the theme song for the stage play, PRINCE KAGUYA.

To this date, MURASAKI is Aoi’s highest ranking single on Oricon Weekly (#6).

In the same year, Shouta Aoi released his first ever full-length album, Unlimited. This release brought several uptempo electro-pop tunes to the table including the title track, UNLIMITED.

Unlimited had the potential to be better but, as it is, it’s a solid first album with plenty of highlights on it, and it gets better the more far away is electro-pop and dubstep.

2016 was a strong year for Shouta Aoi, releasing 3 singles.

Zessei Stargate was Aoi’s first release to drop in that year. The title track was featured as the theme song for the anime series, Phantasy Star Online 2: The Animation.

Looking back, this is a fantastic release. Both tracks on it had the energy and quality on them. Not to mention that Aoi was on fire on the vocal end.

His high notes and falsetto in the title track continue to impress after all these years.

Mid-way through 2016, Aoi left B-Green only to rejoin KING RECORDS. However, before releasing original music under the new label, 2 best off albums were released. SHOWTA. BEST and S.

S featured the best tracks released as Shouta Aoi up until 2016. Whereas SHOWTA. BEST featured the best tracks as SHOWTA..

His first release under KING RECORDS was innocent.

Powerful vocals, a better production and an exciting rock sound were enough to let people know that the best was yet to come. With the support of KING RECORDS – the most important music label for anisong performers -, Aoi was going to shine.

Still in the same year, Aoi impressed by completely changing his sound and looks. He released the electrifying DDD, single that nods quite a lot at Japan’s pop chameleon, T.M.Revolution.

This was a stellar release, fully tapping into Aoi’s talent to deliver one hell of an amazing sonic experience. DDD was featured as the theme song to Future Card Buddyfight DDD.

In 2017, Aoi released the single, Flower. The title track was featured as the ending for the Japanese variety show, King’s Brunch.

Flower has its ups and downs but, at its core, it is a strong single with a memorable title track.

The slower tempo and the pounding beat brought back that electronica-driven pop sound he used to have in back in his BLUE BIRD days, however this upgraded, matured version was all the more enjoyable to listen to.

Now, in the same year, Aoi released what is, hands down, his best full-length album.

In Zero, Shouta Aoi was at his best. Not only did the album manage to feature some of the best singles he’d released since UNLIMITED, but it also featured new tracks such as SMILE SMILE SMILE that are an absolute bliss to listen to.

The balance in this album was unreal and what we got was an impressive display of Aoi’s masterful technique on top of tasteful tunes that ranged from rock to pop and ballads. Zero ended up claiming #7 at Oricon Weekly Album’s chart.

Riding on a lot of momentum, Shouta Aoi was bound to release another great single when time came for it.

2018 arrived. With came the announcement that he was going to perform the opening theme for the psychological / supernatural anime, Devils’ Line.

Eclipse could have been another great single by Aoi. However it was so much more.

Aside from the daring rock sound of the title track, it was I am that impressed me the most. With lyrics by Aoi, this song speaks to the listener’s heart. Some of you might view yourselves in these lyrics.Others might not see themselves but, instead, feel Aoi’s struggles.

This song speaks to you. And it is bound to leave a mark. That is the power of Aoi’s vocals and his songwriting.

If there is a definitive all-time best song by Shouta Aoi, it’s this one. Few songs connect in this way with the listener.

Few songs connected with me on such a deep level. Tears literally streamed as I reviewed it. Thank you Aoi for this beautiful song and for screaming from the heart for people to be happy to be who they are.

Arriving in 2019, Aoi decided to change things around a little bit.

Tone brought electro-pop but with some tropical-house touches on it. It ended up being a tasteful release that got better as went down and listened to it all. The title track was featured as the opening theme for the anime series, Kono Oto Tomare!.

The single featured Bet On You, song that is rather unusual in tone – even by Aoi’s standards as a solo artist. It ended up being the best song in the release, one that is thoroughly entertaining to listen to.

Later in the same year, Aoi was back with new music.

Harmony changed things around yet again, this time around exploring pop-rock and funk.

Eclectic and unique, Harmony is one of those singles that, on a first look, go unnoticed, but it such a gem. Once again, Aoi was riding on a lot of momentum and he was able to deliver yet another impressive single.

In 2020, Aoi released a new single, BAD END. Rock and pop blend to create a unique tune with a fancy progression in the chorus.

It is delicate and powerful at the same time, a cool mix of Aoi’s strengths as a solo artist.

On a live setting, Shouta Aoi is the perfect performer. He goes as far as designing his own stage outfits and pitch in ideas on how the live show should work or what should be added visually to his live shows.

When it comes to singing and dancing, Aoi sure knows how to deliver flawless performances that leave newcomers asking themselves if he eats CDs for lunch. You often have to expect a whole lot of entertainment and creativity from his live performances.

Shouta Aoi’s very first live tour was in 2016 at Nippon Budokan. Since then, Aoi has gone on 4 electrifying tours filled with fantastic performances and unique moments.

For reference, these are the 4 live tours:

• LIVE 2016 WONDER lab. 〜Bokutachi no sign〜
• LIVE 2017 WONDER lab. 〜prism〜
• LIVE 2017 WONDER lab. Ø
• LIVE 2019 WONDER lab. I

Procellarum (2012 -)

In 2012, Aoi was announced alongside Ryohei Kimura, Wataru Hatano, Tetsuya Kakihara, Takashi Kondo, Kensho Ono, as part of Tsukino Production’s pop unit, Procellarum.

So far the group has released 2 singles:

• ONE CHANCE? (2015)
• LOLV -Lots of Love- (included in the Tsukiuta. THE ANIMATION Theme Song CD)

The best of albums Shirotsuki (2016) and Kuro Mochizuki (2019) featured group and solo songs.

Procellarum released a new single in June 2020 titled White Sparks.

As Minaduki Rui, the male representative for the month of June within Procellarum, Aoi got to 4 solo songs:

• Rainy moment (2013)
• Goodbye seasons (2014)
• Duty (2015)
• pluvia~Uso to Nukumori~ (2016)

QUARTET★NIGHT (2011 -)

QUARTET★NIGHT is the most successful 2D idol unit in the industry. They have paved the way for other 2D units to top charts and actually compete toe-to-toe with other music acts, even those completely outside of the seiyuu industry.

QUARTET★NIGHT is an idol group from the Shining Entertainment group and they consist of Showtaro Morikubo (as Reiji Otori, the leader) Tatsuhisa Suzuki (as Ranmaru Kurosaki), Tomoaki Maeno (as Camus) and Shouta Aoi (as Mikaze Ai).

Aoi’s high notes and crystal clear singing tone make him an invaluable member of the group, able to contrast with QUARTET★NIGHT firepower on the low and mid-tone range.

With his voice, the group’s song’s have a unique, delicate twist that fits perfectly with this group and what they represent.

The group’s first appearance in-game was in 2011’s Uta no☆Prince-Sama ♪ Repeat and their first appearance on anime was on 2013’s Uta no☆Prince-sama♪ Maji Love 2000%. Their debut track was the self-titled, Quartet Night, song featured on 2012’s Shining All Star CD.

QUARTET★NIGHT then participated in the Unit Drama CDs in 2011, this being the first glimpse everyone was getting at how the group sounded – even if they were not performing together but split into 4 groups.

Over the years, the group has participated in several shuffle and duet series, and has even performed solo on 2 occasions: All Star After Secret Idol Song & Quartet Idol Song (2014) and Maji LOVE Revolutions Idol Song (2015).

Now, when it comes to group songs, it is was Poison KISS (released in 2013), one of the most electrifying and catchy songs in the whole Utapri franchise, that made many fans of the franchise question their loyalties.

The song was featured in the anime series Uta no☆Prince-sama♪ Maji Love 2000% and has been a fan favorite since then.

But up until 2016, the group was popular within its franchise and fandom. It wasn’t until then that the group would explode in popularity and turn into the most successful 2D idol group in the industry.

The release of God’s S.T.A.R. shook the industry. Up until then, 2D idol music barely sold beyond their fanbase and, at times, it barely charted on Oricon and Billboard’s charts.

God’s S.T.A.R. came out of nowhere and, in 1 week, was awarded a Gold Record Certification by RIAJ.

The single sold 108,000 physical copies and caught the long-coveted #1 spot on Oricon Weekly, being the first group to achieve it. Since then, the group has been a chart-topper, having several releases within the top 10.

QUARTET★NIGHT made their stage performance at Uta no Prince-Sama Maji LOVE LIVE 4th STAGE (2015) and since then they have attended all of the franchise’s lives, delivering electrifying performances on top of impressive chemistry between members.

The group’s popularity skyrocketed in 2016 and, in 2017, QUARTET★NIGHT turned into the first-ever 2D unit to actually promote themselves in a solo live, taking the 2D into 3D.

QUARTET NIGHT LIVE EVOLUTION 2017 was the group’s first-ever solo live show and it was a massive hit. It counted with group, solo, and duet performances, all for an impressive show that made their fans begging for more.

A year later, QUARTET★NIGHT was back on the road for their 2nd live show, QUARTET NIGHT LIVE FUTURE 2018.

This wasn’t an ordinary live show. This was a full-fledged idol performance, counting with cinematic intro VTRs and a big production behind them. This was yet another successful live for the talented quartet.

QUARTET★NIGHT is the most successful 2D unit and the most popular in the Utapri franchise. Their music continues to evolve with the group and their live performances are always something to anticipate due to the quality that this group can deliver on the vocal end.

apple-polisher (2015 -)

Aoi was cast in DYNAMIC CHORD as Narumi, apple-polisher’s vocal.

apple-polisher consists of Shouta Aoi (vocals), Yuichiro Umehara, Yoshiki Nakajima, and Takahiro Sakurai.

The band dons a groovy mix of R&B, rock, and electronica that is addictive and fresh.

The band has released 4 singles – Against the Rules (2015), real sensation / this song is dedicated to you. (2016), BACK 2 SQUARE 1 (2017) and beat goes on/what have you done for… (2017) – and 1 mini-album everytime i see your face (2018).

ArtiSTARs (2016 -)

In 2016, Aoi joined the cast of the musical anime, Magic Kyun. Alongside Yuichiro Umehara, KENN, Yuki Ono, Wataru Hatano, and Takuya Eguchi, he’s part of ArtiSTARs, pop outfit with a regal vibe.

They’ve performed live in 2017 for a special live event and so far have released 3 singles: Please kiss my heart (2016), Magic-kyun! No.1☆ (2016) and Sleeping Beauty (2017).

Wonder Corona! (2016 -)

Rejet/Pythagoras Production announced their first shuffle units back in 2016. Wonder Corona! was the first shuffle unit to debut back in April 2016.

The lineup was one of the strongest yet one of the oddest in the middle of the shuffle series.

Alongside Okawa were Toshiki Masuda (Marginal #4) and Shouta Aoi (Unicorn Jr.).

This group had everything to be a good one but no one really knew if their contrasting tones would work together. Okawa was still improving his vocals, Masuda had completely changed his singing style – much due to his musical theater experience -, Aoi was an intimidating, complete performer, but interesting enough, every single one of them was known for being versatile singers in their own respective groups.

Wonder Corona! released two singles, Viva La Chu and Samajera.

The group showed consistency, Viva La Chu was a strong release, one of the best from the first wave of releases from the shuffle series, Samajera, although a bit odd at times, was one of the best releases, this time from the second wave.

Aoi easily stood out within this group. His unique singing tone and top-tier vocal technique set him apart from his group mates.

In 2020, WONDER CORONA made their long-awaited comeback with the digital single, Wake Up Jamaica!?.

Fairy April (2017 – 2019)

2016 welcomed an ambitious rock rhythm game, Band Yarouze!. The franchise introduced 4 main bands: OSIRIS, BLAST, Fairy April and Cure2tron.

Fairy April‘s lineup counts with Shouta Aoi (vocals), Kaito Ishikawa, Yusuke Kobayashi, and Shouma Yamamoto.

The band has a youthful and bright on pop-rock, making them a good middle group between the punk-rockers BLAST and the powerpop band Cure2Tron.

Since their debut, Fairy April released a couple of insert songs for the game – that were later released in Duel Gig albums. The band was represented by Shouta Aoi once in a live setting.

stirRhythm (2018)

stirRhythm was the main unit in Starry Palette, mixed media project developed by DMM GAMES.

The project was announced early in 2017 but due to technical issues production was halted, only to be, months later, announced that production had resumed and the project was still alive.

Starry Palette planed to have music releases, a smartphone game, live performances, radio show (Toshiki Masuda and Yuto Suzuki are the hosts), manga, novels, among other things before distribution ended in 2019 and the whole project never got to see the light of day.

stirRhythm consisted of Toshiki Masuda, Yuto Suzuki, Junya Enoki, Shouta Aoi, Keisuke Komoto, Subaru Kimura, Sho Kiriake, Ihara Shin, Yuki Ono.

The group had 15 in-game songs, with some of those having been previously released as bonus content for Dengeki Girls among other otome magazines in Japan.

DREAM!ing (2018 -)

Aoi joined the DREAM!ing franchise in 2018. He performed alongside the game’s main cast in the franchise’s first single, TAKE A DREAM!!.

He also performed in BLACK OUT／HAPPY ENTERTAINER Yume Live CD Kuro Ryo VS Shiro Ryo, and in the stellar release that is Secret Scarlet – Yume Live CD Toji & Shion (featuring Toshiyuki Toyonaga) in 2019.

Catharsistage! (2018)

In 2018, Shouta Aoi joined the cast of DMM games’ new mixed media project, Catharsistage!. He was a member of jolly-doggy, group that consisted of Yoshiki Nakajima, Yuma Uchida, Yuma Uchida, Yuki Ono, and Kousuke Toriumi.

Unfortunately, the project went down the drain before even launching, DMM games ended up shelving the game.

GHOST CONCERT (2018 -)

In 2018, Aoi joined the cast of GHOST CONCERT, music project created by Elements Garden’s Noriyasu Agematsu (who worked closely with the Utapri franchise and Mamoru Miyano) that pities ghosts of historical or fictional characters against each other in a singing battle.

The project counts with a mixed cast. Male and female seiyuu are part of it. The cast currently includes Shouta Aoi, Yoshiki Nakajima, Kouhei Amasaki, Megu Sakuragawa, Azusa Tadokoro and Yuiko Tatsumi.

Aoi voices Mitsuhide Akechi. The first single GHOST SONG 01. was released in August 2018.

Hounds (2018 -)

Hounds consists of KENN, KISHOW, Shouta Aoi, and Yuki Kaji. The group is part of Ikemen Live, a dating sim game for iOS and Android launched in 2018.

The game focuses on the interactions of the heroine (player) and the members of two in-game bands. This is the latest game from the “Ikemen Series” by game developer Cybird. satoi (Diabolik Lovers) is in charge of character illustrations for this series.

Since their debut, Hounds have released 2 singles: HORIZON (2018) and ONE SONG (2019).

The band has participated in several event songs over the years however, since 2019, music coming from any of the bands in this franchise has halted with no explanation.

The album Own The Night 〜 Ikemen Live Koi no Uta o Kimi ni was the last release fans got from the franchise.

As Ginnami Ritsu, Shouta Aoi performed 雨が終わる場所 (Ame ga owaru basho).

Stellar CROWNS with Akane (2019 -)

Stellar CROWNS, consisting of Yoshihiko Aramaki, Keisuke Ueda, Ren Ozawa, Ryuji Sato, Ryuunosuke Matsumura, Masanari Wada, teamed up with Akane (portrayed by Shouta Aoi) as Stellar CROWNS with Akane.

The first album, Cheers, Big Ears!, was released in 2019.

Photobooks

Shouta Aoi is no stranger when it comes to releasing photobooks.

Since his debut, Aoi has released 2 photobooks: Aoi Shouta PHOTO COLLECTION TRICK OR MAGIC in 2015 and Ikiteiku in 2019.

In 2019, Aoi released the hauntingly beautiful photobook, Ikiteiku. The photos were taken in scenic Iceland, following a “pure” concept.

Variety

When it comes to variety, Shouta Aoi sure delivers. Whether he is pitied against other male seiyuu in a witty game of Cops and Robbers or if he guests on relaxing, travel variety shows, you can count on him to be extremely entertaining in a rather endearing way.

His banter with other seiyuu, his own slips while talking that lead to him being embarrassed, even his occasional sassy moments, all make him a nice guest on variety shows and an even better host.

Below are some of Aoi’s best variety show/variety appearances.

Tokimeki Recipe (2014)

Shouta Aoi joined Kensho Ono for Tokimeki Recipe’s DVD back in 2014.

Tokimeki Recipe was a variety show in which two seiyuu would be paired up and work together to cook several dishes with available ingredients.

Between cooking, game corners to earn ingredients or hints, and challenges, the duo was cracking jokes and getting along in an entertaining way.

Jinro Battle ~ Jinro VS tantei ~ (2015)

In 2015, Aoi participated on Marine Entertainment’s popular Jinro Battle variety show. On Jinro Battle ~ Jinro VS tantei ~ (人狼バトル～人狼VS探偵～) he surprised many with his strategy and insights.

The cast included Toshiki Masuda, Tetsuya Kakihara, Hiro Shimono, Kenichi Suzumura, Kousuke Toriumi, Kenji Nojima, Hirofumi Nojima, Ayumu Murase, and Hiroki Takahashi.

Lady Borden Icecream theme song (2017)

In 2017, Shouta Aoi lent his vocals for Lotte‘s Lady Borden ice cream theme song alongside Yuki Kaji and Kensho Ono.

Jinro Battle – Jinro VS Ouji – (2017)

In 2017, Aoi participated in another edition of Jinro Battle, this time against the show’s best contestants to date. Jinro Battle – Jinro VS Ouji – was an exciting battle of wits in which Aoi gave his all to triumph.

Shouta-sama to shitsuji Nishiyama no otawamure (2018)

In 2018, Shouta Aoi co-hosted the TV show Shouta-sama to shitsuji Nishiyama no otawamure alongside fellow seiyuu, Koutaro Nishiyama.

The duo would conduct interviews with popular 2.5D stage actors, actors, seiyuu, and more.

Saito Soma no Wagokoro wo Kimi ni 2 (2019 as guest)

In 2019, Shouta Aoi guested on Saito Soma no Wagokoro wo Kimi ni 2, a healing variety TV show hosted by fellow seiyuu and friend, Soma Saito.

Oreya (guest)

Also in 2018, Aoi guested on Oreya, a healing variety show hosted by fellow seiyuu, Takuya Eguchi, and counting with his assistant, Koutaro Nishiyama.

Tabitomo (2018)

In 2018, Shouta Aoi joined Daiki Yamashita and guested on Kensho Ono‘s traveling variety show, Tabitomo.

Kensho Ono, Shouta Aoi, and Daiki Yamashita went to the Yatsugatake, an area spanning Yamanashi and Nagano’s prefectures. The three went paragliding and fishing on a journey to become a “wild man”.

REAL⇔FAKE SPECIAL EVENT Cheers, Big ears！2.12-2.13 (2020)

In 2020, Shouta Aoi participated in the special event for the 2019 TV drama, REAL⇔FAKE.

REAL⇔FAKE SPECIAL EVENT Cheers, Big ears！2.12-2.13 was held at Kanagawa Kenmin Hall on 12/02/2020 and 13/02/2020 and counted with live performances from the main cast as well as talk corners.

Facts

Talented singer-songwriter and more

Although Aoi mentioned that he still lacks the skills and confidence to play and compose music, he has been showing his skills since the release of his hit album, 0 (Zero).

He learned to play piano for a live performance, to dedicate a song to his mother that was in the audience, starting there, Aoi has composed and or written lyrics to some of the most emotional tracks on his repertoire, including the heartwrenching, I am.

At the same time, Aoi is part of the creative process of his live shows.

He designs his stage outfits and helps out with the stage production and planning the live setlist as well as other performance details.

Loves headphones

Aoi has a well-known love for head and earphones.

He mentioned on several occasions – interviews and event sponsored videos – that he wears headphones at home (because they leak sound) to listen to music full-on blasting and earphones (because of isolating sound) when he is outside home.

On top of this, Aoi has a large collection of earphones because he loves listening to music and does so at almost every time.

In 2017, Aoi partnered with Denon for a set of exclusive earphones.

Often forgets his things

Aoi has mentioned several times before that he tends to forget his things in the studios in goes do recording at.

As many of you might not know, when seiyuu are recording, they are not allowed to have any jewelry or accessories on them. This is something that might affect the recording, adding unnecessary noises or simply hindering the performance of the voice actor himself.

As we all know, Aoi sure loves his accessories. However, to abide by the rules, he takes those off when he goes recording. The problem is… he seldom reminds himself of picking those up and taking them with him.

King of the Court

Many of his fans might already know this but Shouta Aoi played tennis for years.

He was influenced by his parents and, by the time he was in the 3rd year of elementary school, he was on a high enough level to compete on the Nationals – tennis competition featuring the best tennis players in Japan by age, which is then split into different competitions depending on age groups.

He ended up winning several tennis trophies and was aiming at being a tennis player before he fell in love with music.

Passionate about manga, anime and games

Shouta Aoi is a bona fide nerd.

Aside from the fact that it was due to Sailor Moon that he wanted to be a voice actor, Aoi has mentioned that he is quite the manga, anime, and games fan.

He mentioned that his all-time favorite manga is Fruits Basket. This is a manga that has marked his life and, no matter how many times he re-reads it, he always ends up crying.

Other manga he enjoys includes horror and supernatural titles such as TOKYO GHOUL, Tenkuu Shinpan, and Kurenai Ouji.

When it comes to gaming he’s a fan of Otome games as well as classic JRPGs. He often carries around a portable console with himself and he can, at times, spend entire off days playing games non-stop.

Makes any fashion trend his own thing

Shouta Aoi, time and time again, bends traditional rules. He is known among male seiyuu for being the go-to man when it comes to makeup tips – and especially nail work tips – and is often mentioned by fellow male seiyuu as a man that rocks any kind of outfit.

His androgynous looks and his genderless fashion style have often made people turn their heads in surprise and the truth is, Aoi sure does rock any kind of outfit. He does not bother with clothes or accessories being labeled for “women” or for “men”. He wears what he likes and wishes his fans can do so with confidence.

Be yourself and be proud is the big message behind Aoi’s style.

His official Twitter account has a fair amount of photos with him rocking completely different styles – both hair and fashion-wise. Usually, with each CD he releases, he does an overhaul to his style and comes up with something different.

So go ahead, name any style. Chances are, he’s probably rocked it before and if he hasn’t, you know that he loves trying new things fashion-wise, so he’d go for it.

In love with K-dramas, K-Pop and Korean food

Aoi mentioned a couple of years ago that he does love his fair share of Korean food and loves spicy food – something which Korean food is best known for.

At the same time, he mentioned that he used to watch Korean Dramas with his mother and he enjoys several K-Pop acts, some of those currently inactive or disbanded. Infinite, Boyfriend and T-ARA are often the names Aoi brings up when he mentions his love for K-Pop music.

National Meme

After POP TEAM EPIC stopped wrapped up airing, there was barely anyone that didn’t know who he was. His appearance in the anime series turned into a national meme.

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And that’s a wrap of Shouta Aoi’s Seiyuu Digest.

In the meantime, don’t forget to check past Seiyuu Digests (many were recently updated).