UlasanAnime.com – In the realm of voice acting, the career of Yurika Ochiai, who later adopted the name Yurina Hase, has been marked by significant challenges and public revelations. While the author acknowledges her as a victim and wishes her well, interpreting her recent statements requires an understanding of her tumultuous history, both professionally and personally.
It is recommended to view any available recordings of her recent stream and the chat logs to form an independent opinion. The author admits to not paying full attention during the live event due to work commitments, but the following points are largely based on her past experiences rather than the stream itself.
Yurishii, as she is known, entered the voice acting world in 1999 through an open audition with Arts Vision. She was recognized as a promising talent with numerous accolades. In 2006, she became a freelance artist before joining Genki Project, where she unfortunately received death threats.
Many became aware of her past struggles due to a recent “casting couch” revelation. This incident is linked to a larger scandal that rocked Arts Vision in 2007, involving agency-wide casting couch allegations. While reported by Anime News Network, much of the subsequent coverage and industry fallout has faded from public memory. This scandal led to several departures from the company, with some individuals forming new agencies. For fans closely following the industry at the time, it was a significant event.
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The “casting couch” phenomenon, known as “makura eigyou” in Japanese, was a pervasive issue within the entertainment industry. The author views Yurishii’s story as the voice acting industry’s manifestation of this shadow. She suggests that everyone carries their burdens, and this particular issue deeply affects this niche sector. The #MeToo movement also brought to light an instance where a female voice actress was invited to mixed bathing with industry superiors, illustrating how such situations can unfold believably. The difficulty in finding official or tabloid reports from that era, with matome blogs being the primary remaining sources, highlights how easily such shadows can be obscured.
In 2009, Yurishii changed her name to Yurina Hase and went freelance amidst the death threat situation. By 2010, she was removed from the IDOLM@STER cast. She joined a third agency in 2013 but eventually took a break from voice acting in 2014.
In 2015, Yurishii publicly shared her account of the IDOLM@STER transition, attributing it to her management’s inability to protect her adequately. The full details of her account, if accessible, delve deeper into the reasons behind these events. The author notes the sad involvement of Miyu Matsuki in Yurishii’s story, underscoring the interconnectedness within the relatively small anime voice acting industry.
In recent years, Yurishii began engaging in influencer and personality activities for her dedicated fanbase. Initially, she discussed her time with the IDOLM@STER series and even covered old IM@S songs, which seemed permissible as she was no longer officially affiliated. However, this escalated to her cosplaying as Yukiho and selling associated merchandise, leading to a cease and desist letter from Bandai Namco. Many fans believe this action was the catalyst for her recent live stream.
For devoted fans of the series, the prospect of hearing Yurishii perform songs like “Kosmos, Cosmos” or “Alright*” is compelling, and her renditions are still available on CD. The author understands the allure of what she offers and the incentives for fans to support such activities, much like the incentives for news outlets to publish sensationalized content. Yurishii, however, did not provide specific details, instead offering a cascade of controversial statements. The author questions the revelation that Sunrise engaged in “makura eigyou” in the 2000s, finding it unsurprising given the industry context.
Yurishii’s stream was less about granular details and more about sharing explosive, albeit vague, accusations. The author mentions the alleged bullying involving “Mingos” with “Eririn” joining in, the “Chiaking” situation, and issues involving Shizuka Itou and Aya Hirano. The author expresses fatigue with these recurring patterns, noting the strangeness of bullies persisting in their behavior over many years and the focus on shared targets within an adult context. Yurishii also discussed numerous personal struggles, including references to “Menhara” (mental harassment), which she stated she did not wish to be associated with. While acknowledging the believability of Yurishii’s claims, the author advises against over-interpreting them without corroborating evidence, especially considering the events are over a decade old. The author also points out that these revelations do not address broader issues like “makura eigyo” or domestic violence, the latter being a particularly shocking aspect.
Here is a summary of the key points from the Monday stream:
This post is dated to reflect the developing nature of this story, which has been unfolding for over two decades and shows no signs of ending soon.
For the wider audience, the author suggests taking action if one is in a position to do so, or to observe quietly. The world already has an abundance of misdirected anger and a lack of justice; what is truly needed is affirmative healing and genuine change.
