Rica Matsumoto

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Rica Matsumoto

Rica Matsumoto (Japanese: 松本梨香 Matsumoto Rika) is a Japanese voice actress for Pokémon the Series.

Biography

Matsumoto was born on November 30, 1968, in Yokohama, Japan. Her most famous role is that of the main protagonist of Pokémon the Series, Ash Ketchum. After getting into theater at a young age, Matsumoto discovered voice acting and singing. She has since been typecast as young boys in Japanese anime series.

In addition to being a solo artist, Matsumoto is a member of two singing groups:

  • JAM (Japanese Animationsong Makers) Project, with Hironobu Kageyama, Masaki Endoh, Hiroshi Kitadani, Masami Okui, Yoshiki Fukuyama, Ricardo Cruz, Eizo Sakamoto and Ichiru Mizuki
  • Tricycle, with Yoshiyuki Ishikawa and Keīchi Kodo

Also, Matsumoto hosts or has hosted three radio shows:

  • I'll Catch Your Heart (Japanese: 君のハートをGETだぜ)
  • Rumors About Him (彼奴の噂)
  • Saturday HOT Request

Pokémon roles

Animation

Pokémon the Series

Humans
Major
Minor
Pokémon
Major
Minor

Video games

Pokémon Masters EX

Musical appearances

* This song is credited in-character as Ash.

Other non-Pokémon roles

Anime series

Tokusatsu voice roles

Dubbing roles

Video game roles

Albums

Solo albums

  • 花の園 Hana no En, Flower Garden
  • Cluster
  • Destiny
  • Rough Love
  • RICA the BEST
  • Alive A life (Kamen Rider Ryuki)
  • Go! Now! Alive A Life Neo (Rider Time: Kamen Rider Ryuki)[1]

Group albums

JAM Project

  • JAM Project LIVE 震撼~Return to the Chaos~
  • JAM Project BEST COLLECTION II ~FREEDOM

Tricycle

  • Desert, Grass and Forest

Trivia

  • Her favorite Pokémon is Cubone.[2]
  • In Pokémon X and Y, Lass Anna's Japanese name is Rica, a reference to Rica Matsumoto. Like Ash, she uses a male Pikachu.
  • Matsumoto has said that her overall favorite Pokémon League battle is the battle between Ash and Paul.[3]
  • She performed a cover of the original Pokémon Theme with Hideaki Takatori on his Youtube channel.[4]

References

External links


Project VA logo.png This article is part of Project VA, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on voice actors in Pokémon animation and Pokémon games.