In Japan, where anime and video games are given a little more respect than in the rest of the world. As such, many people who are voice actors (VAs) can become celebrities in their own right. This means that many people who are VAs garner a large number of fans and support, both in Japan and across the world. Today, we will be spotlighting Shiki Aoki, a trans man voice actor of great renown!
Early Life and Career
Born in Toyama prefecture in 1990, Aoki transferred to Tokyo for high school at the age of 15, here he soon became active in stage performances. He knew that he wanted to be a voice actor, but unfortunately did not have the resources to attend a vocational school for that career. However, he soon discovered Let’s Plays, and began creating his own content. It wasn’t long before he became popular, and started to be featured on official NicoNico Live broadcasts (NicoNico being a popular Japanese alternative to YouTube).
He soon passed the Gamers Angel audition for Famitsu, arguably the leading video game magazine in Japan. In 2015, he won a role for the video game The Idolmaster Cinderella Girls, as Asuka Ninomiya, a prickly adolescent. He has since gone on to win a number of roles in a variety of video games and anime, as well as continuing to stream Let’s Play content on a YouTube channel. Today, he is still highly recognized as a superb voice actor, although he is (at time of writing) on a hiatus for health reasons.
Discovering His True Self
In 2021, he published his first book, which detailed the difficulties that he had faced during their schooldays, most especially with bullying and with gender dysphoria. He noted that he had always wanted to be a voice actor who could embrace and portray characters of any and all genders. In his book, he noted that he had received a romantic confession, and felt deeply uncomfortable: not because of who the young boy was, but because Aoki didn’t like the idea of being seen romantically as a woman.
Initially, he identified as X-gender, a category often considered to be more or less analogous with the concept of non-binary in the west. Even in school, he used male or gender-neutral Japanese pronouns, such as “boku” or “jibun,” and the school he went to in Tokyo was happy to let him dress in boys’ clothing.
In 2020, he announced to his followers and fans on YouTube that he, in fact, was not X-gender, but identified as a trans man. He also confirmed that, having previously identified as bisexual, he now identifies as pansexual, while noting that gender and sexuality are two entirely separate issues.
He has also clarified that he will not, at least for the time being, be taking any hormones or surgical gender-affirming treatments, as he is attached to the characters that he currently voices, and does not wish to jeopardize his ability to voice them — or any other characters — at the present time.
He also broadcast a message to his fans who may be questioning their gender identity, whether they be in Japan or abroad: you are not alone. His message has been viewed over two million times: a sure sign that their message resonates with, and we must assume helped, people all over the globe.
Aoki is an inspiration to many young people: those who got their start doing what they love, those who have become the people they want to be, and those who are gathering their courage to do so. No matter who you are, you can always find inspiration waiting.
