Kana Hanazawa (花澤 香菜, Hanazawa Kana, born February 25, 1989) is a Japanese actress, voice actress and singer. She is best known for her voice performances in anime, which include Nadeko Sengoku in Monogatari, Anri Sonohara in Durarara!!, Angel / Kanade Tachibana in Angel Beats!, Kuroneko / Ruri Gokō in Oreimo, Mayuri Shiina in Steins;Gate, Akane Tsunemori in Psycho-Pass, Natsume Tsuchimikado in Tokyo Ravens, Kosaki Onodera in Nisekoi, Rize Kamishiro in Tokyo Ghoul, Hinata Kawamoto in March Comes in Like a Lion, Shirase Kobuchizawa in A Place Further than the Universe, and Ichika Nakano in The Quintessential Quintuplets. Her debut single, "Hoshizora Destination" (星空☆ディスティネーション), was released on April 25, 2012 under the Aniplex/Sony Music Entertainment Japan label. She is represented by the Office Osawa talent agency.
Biography
Hanazawa began acting when she was in kindergarten. She made regular appearances at the variety program Yappari Sanma Daisensei. She made her voice acting debut as Holly in Last Exile. She played Ryoko Kaminagi in Zegapain. She was signed up with voice acting agency Office Osawa. Hanazawa went to university in 2007, while at the same time, she began to make her mark as a voice actress. She voiced the title character in Kobato., Suou in Darker than Black: Gemini of the Meteor, Nadeko Sengoku in Bakemonogatari, Angel / Kanade Tachibana in Angel Beats, and Anri Sonohara in Durarara!!. She was voted in 2010 as "Best Female Voice Actress" by listeners of the radio program Nonko and Nobita's Anime Scramble (ノン子とのび太のアニメスクランブル). She graduated from university in 2011, and in the same year became a full-time voice actress. In late 2010, she was invited to the Anime Festival Asia anime convention in Singapore. On February 23, 2012, it was announced that Hanazawa would launch her official website. A few days later, during the "Kana Hanazawa Solo Debut Presentation Party event", it was announced that she would release four singles within a year: "Hoshizora Destination" (星空☆ディスティネーション) released on April 25, "Hatsukoi no Oto" (初恋ノオト), released on July 18, "Happy Endings", released on October 24 and was used as ending theme for anime Zetsuen no Tempest, and "Silent Snow", released on January 16, 2013. Her first album Claire was released on February 20, 2013, and her second album 25 was released on February 26, 2014. She released an album title Blue Avenue in April 2015, and went on a concert tour starting at the Nippon Budokan on May 3. The Blu-ray release of the show, Live Avenue Kana Hanazawa in Budokan, ranked number six in sales. Hanazawa won Best Supporting Actress at the 9th Seiyu Awards. She later won Newtype's Best Voice Actress award. Hanazawa starred in her first live-action feature film Kimi ga Inakucha Dame Nanda (君がいなくちゃだめなんだ, It's Definitely No Good You're Not Here). Her video would later place tenth in Oricon's Blu-ray Disc Chart. Hanazawa moved to the Sacra Music record label under Sony Music Entertainment Japan in April 2017.
Discography
Albums
Title |
Album details |
Peak position |
JPN |
Claire |
Released: February 20, 2013 Label: Aniplex Catalog No.: SVWC-7929 |
6 |
25 |
Released: February 26, 2014 Label: Aniplex Catalog No.: SVWC-7988/90, SVWC-7991/92 |
8 |
Blue Avenue |
Released: April 22, 2015 Label: Aniplex Catalog No.: SVWC-70064/5, SVWC-70066 |
12 |
Opportunity |
Released: February 22, 2017 Label: Aniplex Catalog No.: SVWC-70251/2, SVWC-70253 |
15 |
Kokobase |
Released: February 20, 2019 Label: Sacra Music |
18 |
Singles
Title |
Year |
Catalog No. |
Peak position |
Album |
Limited edition |
Regular edition |
JPNOricon |
JPNBillboard |
"Starry Sky Destination" (星空☆ディスティネーション|, Hoshi‐zora☆Disutinēshon) |
2012 |
SVWC-7840 |
SVWC-7842 |
7 |
23 |
Claire |
"The Sound of First Love" (初恋ノオト|, Hatsukoi no Oto) |
SVWC-7863 |
SVWC-7865 |
4 |
31 |
"happy endings" |
SVWC-7899/900 |
SVWC-7901 |
7 |
33 |
"Silent Snow" |
2013 |
SVWC-7926/27 |
SVWC-7928 |
8 |
43 |
"Love Planet" (恋する惑星|, Koisuru Wakusei) |
SVWC-7974/75 |
SVWC-7976 |
11 |
34 |
25 |
"Smile Mode" (ほほ笑みモード|, Hohoemi Mōdo) |
2014 |
SVWC-70021/22 |
SVWC-70023 |
12 |
28 |
Blue Avenue |
"Cocytus" (こきゅうとす|, Kokyūtosu) |
SVWC-70041/2 |
SVWC-70043 |
13 |
27 |
"I'm Useless Without You" (君がいなくちゃだめなんだ|, Kimi ga Inakucha Dame Nanda) |
2015 |
SVWC-70053/54 |
SVWC-70055 |
13 |
45 |
"Transparent Girl" (透明な女の子|, Tōmei na Onna no Ko) |
2016 |
SVWC-70138/9 |
SVWC-70140 |
20 |
87 |
Opportunity |
"New Song" (あたらしいうた|, Atarashī Uta) |
SVWC-70170/1 |
SVWC-70172 |
14 |
56 |
"Rough" (ざらざら|, Zarazara) |
SVWC-70225/6 |
SVWC-70227 |
20 |
66 |
"A Person Loved in the Spring Is Who I Long to Be" (春に愛されるひとに わたしはなりたい|, Haru ni Aisareru Hito ni Watashi wa Naritai) |
2018 |
VVCL-1164/5 |
VVCL-1166 |
15 |
— |
— |
"I'm Alright" (大丈夫|, Daijōbu) |
VVCL-1267/8 |
VVCL-1269 |
27 |
97 |
VVCL-1270/1 |
Tours
Kana Hanazawa concert tour 2019 (2019, in Japan and China)
Awards
Year |
Award |
Category |
Result |
Refs |
2015 |
9th Seiyu Awards |
Best Supporting Actress |
Won |
|
2015 |
Newtype Anime Awards |
Best Voice Actress |
Won |
|
2017 |
Newtype Anime Awards |
Best Voice Actress |
2nd place |
|
2018 |
Newtype Anime Awards |
Best Voice Actress |
Won |
|
Read More