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2nd Seiyū Red and White Contest Announces Initial Line-up

After a successful inaugural competition, Jouji Nakata's second Seiyū Red and White Singing Contest has an initial line-up and firm date. The event will be held on May 2 at the Pacifico Yokohama National Convention Hall.

The first revealed members of the Red (Women's) Team are Kikuko Inoue (Oh! My Goddess, Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions!), Ai Orikasa (Sakura Wars, Tenchi Muyo!), Hiroko Kasahara (DNA², Magic Knight Rayearth), Sumi Shimamoto (Maison Ikkoku, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind), Rie Tanaka (Strike Witches, Mobile Suit Gundam Seed), and Noriko Hidaka (Ranma 1/2, Little Witch Academia).

The White (Men's) Team members announced so far are Kazuhiko Inoue (Natsume's Book of Friends, Naruto Shippūden), Tomokazu Seki (Fate series, Full Metal Panic!), Shunsuke Takeuchi (King of Prism: PRIDE the HERO, STARMYU), and Ryūsei Nakao (Dragon Ball Super, One Piece).

Noriko Hidaka, Kikuko Inoue, Hiroko Kasahara, Kazuhiko Inoue, Tomokazu Seki, and Shunsuke Takeuchi are returning from last year's competition.

The event will be moderated by Detective Conan series voice actor Rikiya Koyama and Fairy Tail voice actress Sayaka Ōhara.

Tickets went on sale in Japan on January 24. Last year's show will also stream for free until February 23 on GYAO!.

The idea behind the competition started with a casual Twitter post made by Nakata. He floated the idea of a voice actor version of the annual contest and was surprised with how much support he received from fans.

The competition is modeled after NHK's annual Kōhaku Uta Gassen ("Red and White Song Contest") that pits two teams of female singers (the red team) and male singers (the white team) against each other. The program is a New Year's Eve tradition.

Source: Comic Natalie