My Own Personal Star Encounter

I wasn't planning to write about this because it sounds very unbelievable, even to me, but it really happened.

Everyone knows I'm crazy about anime; it's something I've never tried to hide. Last October, after my psych rotation ended, I drove to Houston to attend my first anime convention, and it was there that I met and befriended Kyle, a voice actor famous for his roles in popular anime such as Naruto, Dragonball Z, Bleach, and Gurren Lagann. He's one of the few voice actors I've heard of who really invites anime fans to become his friend (others just sign autographs and end it right there), and we found common ground in both being from the DFW area. We occasionally chat on AIM and I ran into him again at two more conventions (anime cons are like a drug; once you attend one, it's hard to stop). When I told him I was coming to LA for an interview, he suggested meeting up for lunch at Burbank, then said if I wanted to, I could go to work with him and sit in on an anime recording session. No way was I going to turn that down.

Once I got to LA, I briefly visited Hollywood and then drove on to Burbank to meet Kyle for sushi. Then at 2:00 pm we went to the recording studio where Kyle showed me around the soundproof recording booth (it was small!) and let me see what a typical script looked like. The director and sound engineer welcomed me to the studio and let me have a seat where I could see all the action. Clips of the anime (whose name I won't reveal) were played in their original Japanese, and then Kyle would record his own lines in English. Precision was everything; he had to match the mouth flaps of the animated character, and if his emotion was not what it should be, the director would tell him how to improve and then have him redub his lines again. This was the first time I got to see dubbing in action and I was totally engrossed with what was happening. It's not every day a normal person can set foot in an anime dubbing studio.

After one hour and 22 lines later, it was time for a break, so I met Kyle in the hallway and he asked me what I thought about dubbing so far. Just as we were chatting, someone else walked into the hall and greeted Kyle by name. "Hey Johnny, how's it going?" said Kyle. When I saw who it was, I think I froze. OMG. No way. This man was at the top of the list of voice actors I've always wanted to meet, not only because of the voices he provided in Bleach and Code Geass (which I watch faithfully), but because I'm a huge fan of his music. Johnny is the lead singer of his own band, Eyeshine, and I've listened to both of his CDs so many times that I can sing along to most of the songs by heart, with "Waterfall" being my favorite. More people know him for being a former Power Ranger, but I liked him more for his anime work and music. And there he was, just a few feet away chatting with Kyle.

Johnny had a recording session at 3:00 pm, apparently, so while he went to another soundproof room to get ready, Kyle gave me a knowing look as though asking if I knew who that was. I nodded my head, but had no idea what to do. What do I say to the man who has one of the most famous voices of the anime world? And even if I had it in me, I refused be one of those crazy fangirls I'd seen at conventions who scream and swoon at the sight of a VA. That only freaks VAs out, and that was the last thing I wanted to do. Finally Kyle said, "Have you met Johnny yet?" and I said, "No." So as Johnny came out of the room, Kyle said, "Johnny, this is my friend [crescendo]."

"Hi, nice to meet you," I said, and we shook hands as Johnny said hi as well. "I have both your CDs, actually," I said. "Really?" he asked, interested, and I added that I was a regular at the Eyeshine forum, particularly the Bleach section, and he said, "Awesome. We're working on our 3rd CD, actually." I asked when he thought it would be released (because I plan to buy it for sure). "We're hoping to have the final version by the end of the month, but it probably won't be available on the website until late January," he said. "We're still working on the melody of one of the songs, it's not quite right yet." At that point the secretary came in and told Johnny that the president of the company wanted to see him, and as he left Kyle joked that Johnny was about to get a yellow slip (meaning he's getting fired). "They can't fire him, his voice is too valuable," I said, and Kyle agreed.

The break ended, and Kyle finished the rest of his lines in about 30 minutes. I didn't see Johnny again before we left, but afterwards as Kyle was giving me a ride back to my car, I said, "I didn't come off in a bad way, did I?" Kyle said, "No, you did good. He really seemed interested when you said he liked his music." I hope so. Voice actors hear all the time that fans love their voice, but voice acting is just a small part of what Johnny does. Not many anime fans know that he has a band, or that he wrote the lyrics to most of his songs, and I think that by listening to his songs, fans get a real appreciation for what kind of man he is. One of my favorite songs, "Not Really Good," was described by him as a "cry for help through struggles of being a believer." Not many people can put such personal struggles down in words, much less a song, and that impressed me. There was so much I would have liked to tell Johnny about how much I loved his music and voice over work, but sadly there wasn't enough time.

Even as I write, I still can't believe all of this happened. I have no proof that I even set foot in a dubbing studio, just a few snapshots of TV studios around Burbank as Kyle drove me around to see the sights. But I have my memories and a warm fuzzy feeling that hopefully won't fade anytime soon. Especially if Eyeshine comes to a convention in Texas before I graduate; then I can finally get my CDs autographed =)