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INTEREST: Voice Actress Megumi Nakajima Explains Why She Went on Hiatus After Macross Frontier




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Beltane70



Joined: 07 May 2007
Posts: 3868
PostPosted: Sat Jan 12, 2019 6:29 pm Reply with quote
I was really disappointed when she went on hiatus after Macross Frontier as I always felt that she had much more talent and a much better voice than May’n. I was actually quite happy when she made her return back in 2017.
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chocorade



Joined: 05 Jun 2016
Posts: 50
PostPosted: Sat Jan 12, 2019 6:38 pm Reply with quote
It's really sad to hear that she felt like that! Sounds a lot like depression, too. I hope she feels better now and can see her worth Smile
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BlueAlf



Joined: 02 Jan 2017
Posts: 1493
PostPosted: Sat Jan 12, 2019 7:34 pm Reply with quote
I still believe she's a great talent.
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Nyghtwynd



Joined: 24 Jan 2012
Posts: 62
PostPosted: Sat Jan 12, 2019 8:16 pm Reply with quote
After reading this I'm excited to have a chance to meet her in April at a local anime con!
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Takizawa-Shinzou



Joined: 28 Jul 2006
Posts: 102
PostPosted: Sat Jan 12, 2019 9:16 pm Reply with quote
Frontier was over for nearly 3 years when she went on hiatus. She went on hiatus April 2014, the last Frontier movie aired in theaters Feb 2011. So it's a bit odd to say she went on hiatus "after Macross Frontier". She had a rather busy 3 years after Frontier ended and before her hiatus.

"All those songs I sang all those activities I did, none of it suited me. Knowing that was what broke my heart." - I think this line was specifically about Macross songs. Her work as "Megumi Nakajima" hasn't changed since then. Her new stuff is made by basically all the same people as her old stuff so that would be a weird statement to say it didn't suit her unless she's also saying her current music doesn't and I doubt she would say that.

It's really sad to hear what she went through. I hope she's since realized that there are plenty of people that respect her and admire her for herself and just as Ranka.IMO, she has one of the most unique and beautiful voices

Mari Iijima had similar issues, IIRC. I think she fully hated Macross for a long time because of it.
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bin1127



Joined: 21 May 2009
Posts: 148
PostPosted: Sat Jan 12, 2019 9:41 pm Reply with quote
May'n and Megumi are both amazing in their own right and Frontier only served to showcase their great potential. What's weird is that May'n really did go downhill. Sometimes Megumi gets a good song and I enjoy listening to it over and over. But May'n really needs to work with better composers to get some hits going.
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whiskeyii



Joined: 29 May 2013
Posts: 2242
PostPosted: Sat Jan 12, 2019 11:39 pm Reply with quote
Sounds like a nasty mix of depression and imposter syndrome. Still, I’m glad she decided to continue, this time of her own volition. I always liked her voice, and Good Job made me realize just how vastly she’s improved. Smile
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SWAnimefan



Joined: 10 Oct 2014
Posts: 634
PostPosted: Sun Jan 13, 2019 2:41 am Reply with quote
How sad, I remember watching Macross Frontier and thought she had so much potential as a future Seiyu, her songs were so uplifting. And becoming the first Virtual AI - Gumi / Megpoid. But I never realized she felt so depressed. Sad

With Megumi talking about people walking on egg shells around her and saying she wasn't needed, one can only speculate if she had a bad manager or she fell to Japanese bias at Stardust Promotions being half Filipino. I still recall the stories of Americans and Canadians trying to get into the industry in Japan saying how difficult it was because of that bias.

But I was happy to see her reappear at a Macross event in 2017 when May'n posted a picture with her on Instagram with Walkure. And since then gradually returned to action. I'm happy she got out of the pit of despair and hoping things work out of her.


bin1127 wrote:
May'n and Megumi are both amazing in their own right and Frontier only served to showcase their great potential. What's weird is that May'n really did go downhill. Sometimes Megumi gets a good song and I enjoy listening to it over and over. But May'n really needs to work with better composers to get some hits going.


I wouldn't say May'n went down hill, she just had a powerful push with Macross. But she never disappeared and has sung many wonderful songs over the years, even performing overseas (Singapore, China, the US), not many Japanese singers and even Seiyuu can say they've done that.
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yuzumei



Joined: 03 Dec 2016
Posts: 53
PostPosted: Sun Jan 13, 2019 3:03 am Reply with quote
My favorite macross frontier song and scene:

Ai Oboete Imasu ka
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKiu30uKR7s

I always preferred Megumi's voice over May'n.

Sorry to hear about her problems.
Seems that she got too famous too fast and too young.
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omiya



Joined: 21 Sep 2011
Posts: 1823
Location: Adelaide, South Australia
PostPosted: Sun Jan 13, 2019 5:53 am Reply with quote
Would it be fair to say that Megumi Nakajima didn't want to be typecast as Ranka Lee?

Macross Frontier was a big part of what made May'n and Megumi Nakajima well known, purely on the number of songs they sang for that franchise.

From what I have seen attending Animax Musix / Animelo Summer Live and May'n solo concerts, May'n and Megumi Nakajima have a lot of fans who don't just want the Macross Frontier songs from them.

Happily they seem capable of enjoying collaborating again:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTiabgxkt-0 (Good Job 2-chorus version).


Last edited by omiya on Sun Jan 13, 2019 8:42 pm; edited 1 time in total
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jhuhn



Joined: 25 Jun 2005
Posts: 147
PostPosted: Sun Jan 13, 2019 8:20 am Reply with quote
Nakajima will also be attending the International Fan Fest in Toronto, Ontario, Canada this Easter weekend, April 19-21.
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crosswithyou



Joined: 15 Dec 2007
Posts: 2892
Location: California
PostPosted: Wed Jan 16, 2019 4:42 am Reply with quote
jhuhn wrote:
Nakajima will also be attending the International Fan Fest in Toronto, Ontario, Canada this Easter weekend, April 19-21.

Let's hope that if someone brings this up, they do it tactfully.

I think I can understand Nakajima's frustrations in a way. To many people, "Nakajima = Ranka," and she just wants to disassociate herself with that image. I assume it's probably because she hasn't gotten many big roles since Ranka that she's feeling a bit depressed.

It's pressures like these that while I love seiyuu, I would never dream of becoming one. It's a tough industry, though that can be said of entertainment as a whole.
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