CATDOLL: Interview with Daisuke Namikawa, the Italian CV of "Hetalia: The World Twinkle"

The cute Italy is back! The "Hetalia" animation "Hetalia: The World Twinkle" will begin airing in July. This latest work, which was released two years ago, has attracted great attention from fans. The theme song this time will be sung by the voice actor Daisuke Namikawa who plays Italy, and the song is called "ヘタリアン☆ジェット".

Every theme song of the "Hetalia" series can be called a divine song. Not only are the melodies brainwashing, but the lyrics are also very interesting. I believe that this new song will not disappoint the fans' expectations.

Now that Daisuke Namikawa has finished recording the song, he has accepted an interview with reporters. In the following interview, he will talk about the story behind singing the theme song as Italy again after many years, and his feelings about returning to the world of Hetalia.

——First of all, what was your first feeling when you heard the theme song "Hetarion☆Jett"?

Namikawa: Like the previous theme songs, this time, the lyrics that don't have any special meaning but seem to have deep meanings are added to the bright style. This is a theme song that maintains the traditional style without any theme (laughs). You can sing it without thinking about anything. However, some of the lyrics are related to the previous theme songs "Marukaite Chichi", "Hatafute Parede", and "Marukaite Chichi Londo". In the previous theme songs, Italy crossed the hills and the ocean, but this time it turned into a song about flying out of the earth. After listening to it, I felt like I had suddenly realized something, but when I returned to the earth in the end... Anyway, this is the main content of the song. The animation is a return after a long time, and this meaning is also implied in the theme song.

——It’s connected to the previous theme song and also to the animation. It seems to be a song with great depth.

Namikawa: If that's the case, then it's true. The style of the lyrics is really the same as before (laughs). I had already guessed that the last line would be "Hetalia~". The ending part before was "Hetalia~", and this time it was "Hetalia~" as well. I was relieved to see that it was the same as before, and it felt so nostalgic.

——After listening to this song, I felt like “this is the world of Hetalia”.

Namikawa: Yes. At the end of the recording of the fifth season, Hiroki Takahashi said, "Hetalia is like a relative of my family. We will meet again soon." So I didn't feel lonely when I said goodbye. At that time, it had not been decided whether to produce the sixth season. Finally, the time for reunion has come, so I will sing this song with memories.

——After such a long time, we can hear you play the lovely Italy again, everyone is looking forward to it.

Namikawa: I haven't played a role like Italy recently, and I haven't had the opportunity to sing a character song with a voice like Italy, so I felt a little uneasy singing the theme song this time. However, when singing, I recalled the world view of "Hetalia", and the staff also heated up the atmosphere before recording, so that I could sing happily.

——It’s been a long time since you sang as an Italian. Did it take you a long time to get back into the groove?

Namikawa: Yes, it took a long time to find the feeling. It's the same when I usually sing under my own name. If I'm not careful, my voice will become silly. I have to hide this and control myself when singing. However, after becoming Italy, I can go all out. I even have to sing with 250% of my silly feeling. I released everything I have suppressed so far. Whenever the staff said "You were so cute just now", I felt shy and embarrassed (laughs). Because no one has said that to me for a long time recently.

——What is the most difficult part when singing as a character?

Namikawa: Every time we sing songs for Italy, it’s always a tough battle. Especially this time, the key of the sound source we got at the beginning was very low, so we had to raise the key and record it many times. Not only was it very hard for me to record, but it also caused a lot of trouble for the staff. After raising the key, the structure of the song must also be adjusted accordingly... However, the song creation of "Hetalia" pays great attention to the characteristics of the characters, and I deeply agree with this, so everyone is working towards the same goal and moving forward in continuous improvement.

——It’s in line with the style of Hetalia to pay attention to the characteristics of the characters and never compromise on them.

Namikawa: The basis of singing is pronunciation. However, I am not very good at pronunciation, so I learned a lot of pronunciation from people who pay attention to the characteristics of the characters, which helped me a lot.

——Character songs with lyrics and rhythm like this are rare nowadays.

Namikawa: I've never heard it except in Hetalia. No one sings "Uooohh ...

——Although the character songs of each work have their own characteristics, the lyrics of "Hetalia" will definitely add the language of a certain country or the characteristics of the characters as important elements, making the world view more interesting.

Namikawa: In the theme song and the main story of the anime, I said a lot of Italian, even though it was just a few words, such as greetings and counting. Even so, I still can't speak Italian at all! I have been speaking Italian for 7 years, and I should be able to sing the whole song in Italian... But I haven't even learned Japanese well, and I'm currently studying Japanese (laughs). All in all, I improve a little bit every year!

——Which lines in "Hetarion☆Jett" impressed you the most?

Namikawa: Every line left a deep impression on me, but as I said just now, the parts related to the previous theme songs left a deeper impression on me. For example, the line in Season 5, "Aren't we all Earthlings?" was added to the lyrics. Adding lines is a very characteristic of Hetalia. Another thing is that some negative terms can be immediately transformed into positive terms, which is very interesting.

"When you encounter something really bad, just sing a song. See, isn't that how it's solved?" When you encounter something bad, don't worry. Just use two sentences to solve the problem. This speed is amazing! "When you encounter a spaceship, greet it with pasta, wine, singing and dancing." The first thing you do when you encounter a spaceship is to greet it (laughs). This song really only has the "beginning" and "end" of the "beginning, development, turn and end" and, I'm serious. The whole song is very simple and easy to understand.

When the Hetalia series first started, the main purpose of the creation was to make it understandable and fun for children. Although many years have passed, this tradition has been preserved.

——All of them are simple and easy to understand, and they sound very comfortable.

Namikawa: In short, it has a very bright and joyful atmosphere (laughs). This is the advantage of Hetalia.

——Please recommend the biggest selling point of the whole song.

Namikawa: Every part of the song is classic. This is a song that can bring energy and vitality to everyone. In short, I hope everyone can listen to it. Especially those who are depressed should listen to it. Although "Hetalia" is a comedy, the original work itself is very surreal. The animation ends at a place that makes people feel "Huh, is this the end?", and there is no special explanation. However, the theme song sings the spirit of moving forward courageously. It's similar to the feeling of "living in the present" (laughs). So, I hope everyone will buy the CD as soon as it is released and listen to the entire disc.

——Thank you. Finally, please say a few words to the fans who are looking forward to the sixth season of the anime and the theme song.

Namikawa: From the 1st to the 5th season, the story became more and more complicated, and my appearances became less. This time in the 6th season... Will Italy still be able to appear? I'm really worried (laughs). However, thanks to the fact that I can still sing the theme song, I can promote myself to everyone: "I'm here! I'm still here!" If I don't sing the theme song this time, my presence will become quite dangerous. Usually when I record, I will think a lot of things, "Finally it has come to this point" (laughs).

In the fifth season of this anime, the Nordic group appeared as new characters, and there will probably be new characters this time. It has become a huge family, but the early characters such as the Axis and the Allies are also active. Please don't miss them, they will definitely appear somewhere. This anime will become an interesting work with the explosion of personalities of new and old characters. I hope everyone will like every character in it.

Theme song of the animation "Hetalia The World Twinkle"

Information on single disc of "ヘタリアン☆ジェット"

Release date: July 24, 2015

Price: 1,200 yen (excluding tax)

Singer: Daisuke Namikawa

First-time bonus: Special sticker