Rica Matsumoto facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rica Matsumoto
松本 梨香
Rica Matsumoto at Anime Summit Chibi in Brasília, Brazil, 2023
Born	(1968-11-30) November 30, 1968 (age 56) Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
Occupation	Actress voice actress singer
Years active	1986–present
Notable work	Satoshi (Ash Ketchum) (Pokémon)
Height	160 cm (5 ft 3 in)
Musical career
Genres	J-pop Anison
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1993–present
Labels	Media Factory Tokuma Japan Communications
Associated acts	JAM Project

Rica Matsumoto (born November 30, 1968) is a famous Japanese actress, voice actress, and singer. She was born in Yokohama, Japan. Her name is sometimes written as Rika Matsumoto. She helped start the music group JAM Project, which sings songs for Japanese animation (called "anison").

Rica Matsumoto began her career acting on stage. Later, she started doing voice acting and singing. Her most well-known role is Satoshi, who is known as Ash Ketchum in the English version of the Pokémon anime series. She also voiced Ryo Bakura in Yu-Gi-Oh!, Midori Kodama in Azuki Chan, and Aoi Futaba in You're Under Arrest. Matsumoto also sings many of the opening songs for the Japanese Pokémon TV show.

She has played main or supporting characters in many TV shows. She also had her own radio show in Japan. She sometimes helps by dubbing (changing the language of) American movies and TV shows into Japanese. In 2008, she decided to take a break from JAM Project to focus on her own music.

Voice Acting Roles

Rica Matsumoto has lent her voice to many characters in different types of shows.

TV Anime Shows

Anime Movies

• Roujin Z (1991) as Chie Satō
• Perfect Blue (1998) as Rumi
• Pocket Monsters films (1998–2020) as Satoshi
• Taiho Shichauzo the Movie (1999) as Aoi Futaba
• Metropolis (2001) as Female customer
• Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Dark Side of Dimensions (2016) as Bakura
• DC Super Heroes vs. Eagle Talon (2017) as Wonder Woman

Video Games

• Lunar 2: Eternal Blue (1994) as Nall
• Brave Fencer Musashi (1998) as Musashi
• Kingdom Hearts II (2005) as Megara
• Mario Kart Arcade GP DX (2013) as Commentator
• Kingdom Hearts III (2019) as Megara
• Pokémon Masters EX (2022) as Satoshi

Dubbing for Live-Action Films

Rica Matsumoto has also provided the Japanese voices for many famous actors in Hollywood movies.

Patricia Arquette

• True Romance (Alabama Whitman)
• Holes (Katherine "Kissin' Kate" Barlow)
• Medium (Allison Dubois)
• Boyhood (Olivia Evans)

Drew Barrymore

• Ever After (Danielle De Barbarac)
• Never Been Kissed (Josie Geller)
• Charlie's Angels (Dylan Sanders)
• 50 First Dates (Lucy Whitmore)

Renée Zellweger

• Bridget Jones's Diary (Bridget Jones)
• Chicago (Roxanne "Roxie" Hart)
• Cinderella Man (Mae Braddock)

Sandra Bullock

• Speed (Annie Porter)
• Miss Congeniality (Gracie Hart)

Reese Witherspoon

• Legally Blonde (Elle Woods)
• Sweet Home Alabama (Melanie Smooter Perry)

Other Notable Roles

• The Fifth Element (Leeloo Minaï Lekatariba-Laminaï-Tchaï Ekbat de Sebat (Milla Jovovich))
• Friends (Melissa Warburton (Winona Ryder))
• The Terminator (Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton))
• Wonka (Mrs. Scrubbit (Olivia Colman))

Dubbing for Animated Films

• The Road to El Dorado (Chel)
• Terra Willy (Willy)
• Trolls World Tour (Delta Dawn)
• Despicable Me 4 (Valentina)

Music Career

Rica Matsumoto is also a talented singer. She has released several albums and many popular songs, especially for the Pokémon series.

Albums

Popular Songs

Rica Matsumoto is famous for singing many theme songs for the Pokémon anime.

• "Alive A life" (Opening for Kamen Rider Ryuki)
• "Mezase Pokémon Master" (Opening for Pokémon: Original Series)
• "Type: Wild" (Ending for Pokémon: Original Series)
• "Rival!" (Opening for Pokémon: Original Series)
• "OK!" (Opening for Pokémon: Original Series)
• "Challenger!" (Opening for Pokémon: Advanced Generation)
• "Spurt!" (Opening for Pokémon: Advanced Generation)
• "High Touch!" (Opening for Pokémon: Diamond and Pearl)
• "Best Wishes!" (Opening for Pokémon: Best Wishes!)
• "Yajirushi ni Natte!" (Opening for Pokémon: Best Wishes! Season 2)
• "V (Boruto)" (Opening for Pokémon XY)
• "Getta Ban Ban" (Opening for Pokémon XY)
• "XY&Z (Ekkusu Wai & Zetto)" (Opening for Pokémon XY&Z)
• "Arōra!!" (Opening for Pokémon Sun & Moon)
• "1・2・3" (Opening for Pokémon Journeys)

See also

In Spanish: Rika Matsumoto para niños