In today's perennial recession in Japan's CD market, anime songs and voice actors' works show their own sense of existence, which is particularly eye-catching. Recently, the number of newcomers to this genre has gradually increased, forming a force that will change the landscape of the record industry.

Since a few years ago, anime songs and voice actor works have occupied an important position in the CD market. This is evident in its share of the charts in the CD category.

More than 34 weeks have passed since 2013, and on the Oricon Weekly Top 10 Songs chart, anime-related songs have only been on the list for a week. Even excluding J-Pop artists, there has only been 7 weeks without a single anime song on the chart.

Let people witness the booming anime song market again

Starting from the weekly statistics on May 6 this year, the CDs related to "His Royal Highness the Prince of Songs MAJILOVE2000%" have been ranked in the TOP10 for 8 consecutive weeks. As of August, there have been two anime songs that have sold more than 100,000 copies.

Compared to the past, it is no longer an era when certain people dominate, but artists of all types can produce popular works.

In terms of long-established gold records, since the late 90s, Megumi Hayashihara, a pioneer of voice actors, has taken the lead. And after Megumi Hayashihara, different popular works will come out on a regular basis. "The Magic Teacher" and the aforementioned "His Royal Highness the Prince of Songs" have opened up the market for character songs.

In the middle of the last decade, FlyingDog of the Victor Entertainment department showed off his existence with related works such as "Archangel of Creation" and "Macross F". MORE RECENTLY, PONYCANYON HAS SHOWN ITS VIGOROUS VITALITY. Around 2010, the merchandise of "Light Girl" was a big hit with the momentum of causing social phenomena, and this year's works related to "Attack on Titan" are also very popular.

Companies such as Lantis that specialize in the anime song market have also received enough support over the course of this century. As the music division of the game company, KeySoundsLabel has produced products including "Bird Poems", "AngelBeats! and other related exclusive music, which has left a deep impression on people to this day. And the former is known as the two-dimensional "national anthem".

A person in the animation industry commented on the characteristics of the current market, which is easy to absorb newcomers: "Fans of anime songs are interested in the integration of music and video, and taste the anime works with a strict eye, and then evaluate the quality of the works. Therefore, rather than the technical content of the music, the sense of substitution with the anime work itself is more important. Therefore, even if the singer is not courageous, there is a possibility that he will suddenly become popular, and for the record industry, even if the strength is not good, he can still struggle. ”

**E Group's Aniplex has been investing in its own independent music department since about 3 years ago. Since their debut in 2011, LiSA has sold more than 100,000 songs in two consecutive songs, setting a record of amazing popularity. In addition, it also cultivates popular voice actress Kana Hanazawa and allows her to be displayed in front of the public as a solo singer, thereby increasing the department's sense of survival.

Warner and Aniplex's success in the music sector is a testament to the vitality of the animation company.

Shinji Yamauchi, Vice General Manager of the Planning and Development Department of Aniplex, said, "LiSA has been able to achieve such a big breakthrough due to the strong anime theme song of our company. In addition, everyone is a company, and the singer can also have an in-depth discussion with the producer in charge of the animation work about improving the quality of the work without any scruples. ”

The commercial matching model of the anime song market is: first let the animation work gain popularity, and then if the song itself can also reach a relatively high level, then it is easy to become popular. Some people in the animation industry also pointed out, "There is a solid foundation in this field. As long as the producer examines the thoughts of anime fans and follows some methods and rules, he will be able to launch a best-selling song on a certain process. ”