Seiyu Grand Prix, a Japanese monthly voice actor magazine owned by Imagica Infos, revealed that the country’s current number of listed male voice actors has jumped to 702. Though still nowhere near the current total of female voice actors, this marks a record increase for the fourteenth consecutive year (source: Otaku Soken).
The magazine’s Voice Actor Directory first appeared in 2001, where only 145 male voice actors were listed at the time. The number of names grew to 300 in 2008 and reached 500 by 2015. The latest issue of Seiyu Grand Prix, released on March 10, features roughly 4.9 times the number of names in the first issue.
By comparison, the female edition of this month’s Seiyu Grand Prix reveals that there are currently 1,135 listed female voice actors in Japan, setting a new record increase for 15 years in a row. The 2001 inaugural Voice Actor Directory had 225 listed female voice actors, while the 2008 and 2022 editions saw those numbers jump to 500 and 1,000, respectively.
Cumulatively, there are a total of 1,837 currently listed voice actors in Japan.
Imagica Infos points out that while anime projects continue to be lucrative for voice actors, they are starting to receive more offers in terms of TV programs and commercials. While this news bodes well for voice actors, it also suggests that competition between industries is rising for their talents.
Like a Dragon: Kazuma Kiryu’s voice actor keeps being stopped by police
