Moving Forward & Making Dreams Come True: An Interview with Akane Kumada

Akane Kuada is a voice actress and singer who had her major debut in 2020 with the song "Sunny Sunny Girl◎" which was used for the anime Oda Cinnamon Nobunaga, which she also appeared in. Following this debut, she would release her second single "Brand New Diary / Mahou no Kaze" and appeared in more anime, the most recent being Healer Girl. Recently she hit two major milestones with the release of her first full-length album, "Sekai ga Haretara", and her first solo live. We were lucky enough to interview her to discuss her work in anime, her music, the new album, and where she plans to go from here! If you're already a fan, or if you're just learning about her for the first time, read on and be sure to check out her music too!

A-to-J: Hello and thank you for the interview. Can you tell us a bit about yourself and a brief history of your time as both a voice actress and a music artist?
A-to-J: インタビューにお応え頂き、ありがとうございます。声優・歌手としての経歴も含め、簡単な自己紹介をお願いします。
熊田 茜音: 声優、歌手として活動している熊田茜音です！2020年1月に、TVアニメ『織田シナモン信長』オープニング主題歌「Sunny Sunny Girl◎」でソロデビューをして、その後、TVアニメ『転生したらスライムだった件 転スラ日記』、TVアニメ『スーパーカブ』、TVアニメ『チート薬師のスローライフ～異世界に作ろうドラッグストア～』のオープニング主題歌などを担当しました。
Akane Kumada: I’m Akane Kumada, a voice actress and music artist! I had my solo debut in January 2020 when I sang “Sunny Sunny Girl◎”, which is the opening theme song of the TV anime series Oda Cinnamon Nobunaga. After that, I sang opening theme songs to many other TV anime series including The Slime Diaries: That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, Super Cub, and Drugstore in Another World: The Slow Life of a Cheat Pharmacist.

熊田 茜音: 歌うことと食べることが大好きです！イメージカラーは黄色です！
Akane Kumada: I love to sing and eat! My signature color is yellow!

A-to-J: Could you tell us how and why you decided to become a voice actress?
A-to-J: 声優になろうと思ったきっかけを教えてください。
熊田 茜音: お芝居をすることと見ることが大好きで、声のみで人を惹きつけるお芝居をする声優という職業に興味を持ち、やってみたいと思ったからです！
Akane Kumada: I love acting and watching plays and dramas. Voice actresses are able to captivate the audience with just their voice, which I find fascinating, so I figured I would give it a shot!

A-to-J: You’ve had several interesting roles in your time as a voice actress but do you have any that you think you’d be really suited for? Perhaps from shows you're a fan of?
A-to-J: 声優として様々な役柄に挑戦してきたと思いますが、茜音さんが好きな作品の登場人物の中とかで自分に向いてそうだと感じる役はありますか？
熊田 茜音: HUNTER × HUNTERがとても好きで、主人公のゴンのような男の子に挑戦してみたいです！私は何事にも恐れず突き進むタイプの性格で、地声がハスキーなので、そんなところを活かして男の子を演じてみたいです！
Akane Kumada: I really like HUNTER × HUNTER, so I’d like to try doing a boy’s voice, similar to the main character Gon. I’m the type of person who fearlessly charges ahead, and since I have a naturally husky voice, I want to use that to my advantage and try voicing a young boy.

"Sunny Sunny Girl◎" (Live)

"Mahou no Kaze" MV

​A-to-J: Can you tell us a bit about how you got into music as well as any difficulties you've encountered as a music artist that you haven't as a voice actress?
A-to-J: 歌手業に進出した経緯についてお聞かせください。また、声優業では直面しなかった困難などはありましたか？
熊田 茜音: 高校1年生の時に見に行った歌手のLiSAさんのライブで感銘を受け、自分が感じたこの幸せを自分発信で届けられる人間になりたいと思い歌手を目指し始めました！声優面では演じさせていただくキャラクターや、作品のことを1番に考えているので、歌う時に自分に向き合う時間は楽しくもあり苦しい時間でもあります。でもそうして向き合った先に、私の歌を聴いてくれた方に届く想いが生まれるとおもっているので、私にとってとても大切な時間です！
Akane Kumada: When I was in 10th grade, I went to a LiSA concert and was deeply impressed by her. That’s when I knew I wanted to be someone who could deliver this happiness that I felt to others, and set my sights on becoming a singer! When I’m doing voice acting work, I put the character I’m voicing and the anime or work itself first. On the other hand, when I’m singing, I have to be true to myself and feelings. While sometimes that can be fun, it can also be difficult. But I believe that this allows me to create feelings that will reach the people who listen to my songs. So it's a very important time for me!

A-to-J: You released your first album, “Sekai ga Haretara”, earlier this year, can you tell us about it and some of your personal favorite songs fans can find there?
A-to-J: 今年、ファーストアルバム「世界が晴れたら」をリリースしましたね！収録曲の中で、特に気に入ってるものがあれば教えてください！
熊田 茜音: 1曲目に収録されている「いいんだよ」です！作詞・作曲をしてくださった園田健太郎さんに今自分が感じていること、想っていることを包み隠さずお話ししました。まだまだ自分に自信が持てなくてもやもやする気持ち、アーティストとしてかっこよく生きたいけど迷ってしまうときがある、そんな自分にいいんだよと声をかけてあげたい。この歌を聴いてくれた人がいつも頑張っている自分を認めて、許してあげることができますように。そんな願いを込めました！今自分が何をしたらいいのか分からない！頑張れてないかも！って不安になっちゃう時が私にはあります。もし同じ想いをしている方がいたら、ぜひ「いいんだよ」を聴いてほしいです。少しでも前に進むきっかけになれたら幸せです。
Akane Kumada: My favorite would be the first song, “Ii n da yo”! The song and its lyrics were written by Kentaro Sonoda, who I spoke with openly about what I was feeling and thinking at the time. I still didn’t have much confidence and was carrying some mixed emotions inside. As an artist, I want to live in a way that is seen as cool, but there’s times when I lose my way. I want to tell myself that it’s OK (Ii n da yo). I hope the people who listen to this song will be able to acknowledge that they’re doing their best and cut themselves some slack. These are the hopes I put into the song! I have times when I feel anxious and think to myself, “I don’t know what I should do now!” or “Maybe I’m not giving it my all!” If there’s someone else out there who has these same feelings, I want them to listen to “Ii n da yo”. Even if it’s just a little, I will be happy if the song helps them get through something and move forward.

“Ii n da yo” MV

A-to-J: You recently held your first solo live. Can you tell us about what it was like reaching this milestone?
A-to-J: 先日、初のソロライブを開催されましたが、歌手なら誰しもが夢見る目標を達成できたときの気持ちはどういったものでしたか？
熊田 茜音: 本当に幸せで楽しくて、本気でこの時間が一生続いて欲しいと願いました。大好きなファンのみんなの顔を見ながら歌えて、同じ空間で大好きな音楽で遊べて·····言葉でどんなに表しても足りないくらいの幸せとみんなへの大好き！という想いが溢れました。これからも成長し続けてもっともっとたくさんライブをして、みんなに会いたいです！
Akane Kumada: I was really happy and had so much fun. I honestly wished that the solo live would never end. Being able to sing while looking at my beloved fans and enjoying music that everyone loves in the same space... My emotions were overflowing and no matter how hard I try to put them into words, I can’t express how happy I was and how much I love everyone! I want to keep growing as an artist and hold many more concerts where I can see everyone!

A-to-J: What are some of your plans for the second half of 2022 both in music and voice acting? Do you have any upcoming news, or even just personal goals, that you can share with us?
A-to-J: 声優として、また歌手として、２０２２年後半期はどういった活動を控えていますか？
熊田 茜音: 今後の活動や個人的な目標について、話せる範囲内でぜひお聞かせください！ライブイベントが多数決まっています！！本当に感謝の気持ちでいっぱいです！みんなと一緒に音楽で遊ぶことが私にとって1番の幸せです！出会えたみんなが笑顔になれるように精一杯頑張るのでぜひ楽しみにしていてください！今後の目標としては、やっぱりLIVEが沢山したいです！夢を叶え続ける為に頑張りますっっっ！！！
Akane Kumada: There are a lot of live events planned!! I am truly grateful! Nothing makes me happier than enjoying music with everyone! I’m going to work extremely hard to make everyone I meet smile, so please look forward to what’s planned! Going forward, my goal is to put on a lot of live concerts! I’m going to do my best to continue making my dreams come true!!!

A-to-J: Is there any message you’d like to give your fans, especially those overseas?
A-to-J: 海外にいるファンの方々に一言お願いします！
熊田 茜音: 海外でも活躍できるような世界中に笑顔を届けられるアーティストを目指しています！今の時代、なかなか気軽に人に会えないですが、どんな時も幸せを届けられるよう邁進します！いつか、このインタビューを読んでくださった方に会いたいです！歌いに行けるように頑張ります！！！
Akane Kumada: I’m aspiring to be an artist who can perform overseas and bring smiles to everyone around the world! In these current times, we can’t easily meet people, but I will strive to bring happiness to others no matter what the circumstances may be! To all of you who are reading this interview, I want to meet you someday! I’ll do my best to make that happen!!!

We'd like to thank Akane Kumada for the interview and we strongly encourage everyone to check out her music and social media via the links below. As always, keep an eye out for more from Akane Kumada in the future!

Official Links:
Official Site: https://kumaka.jp/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kumadakane_official/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/official_kumaka
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCM_5BE5ckx_PQdYcBRkuMhg

First Album "Sekai ga Haretara" Online Mini Live