Kiyoyuki Yanada

(born Kiyoyuki Harita on May 10, 1965 — died on November 14, 2022) was a Japanese freelance voice actor who was formerly affiliated with Kyu Production, 81 Produce and D-COLOR. He was known for his characteristic low pitched and heavy voice, and often voiced characters with a large physique. He was known for his roles on Perfect Blue (1997), Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger (2002), and Engine Sentai Go-onger (2008), although he was perhaps mostly known for voicing Takenori Akagi in the anime Slam Dunk.
He voiced Richter Belmont in all his appearances since Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (except Portrait of Ruin and Tsuioku no Yasōkyoku) and Shaft also in Symphony of the Night.
==Personal life and career==
As a child, Kiyoyuki Yanada wanted to be a physical education teacher, before becoming a voice actor in 1987. The first role he auditioned for was Shutendouji in Ronin Warriors. During his voice acting career, he was known for roles such as Takenori Akagi in Slam Dunk, Megatron in Transformers: Armada, Andromon in Digimon Adventure, Jotaro Kujo in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Heritage for the Future, Serpent in Mega Man ZX, Richter Belmont in the Castlevania series and in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and Mike Haggar in various Capcom fighting games.
He took over some of the roles from the late Yō Yoshimura and Kazuyuki Sogabe.
On November 14, 2022, Mr. Yanada passed away while undergoing cancer treatment at the age of 57. The news of his passing were announced by his fellow voice actor and friend, Mitsuaki Madono, via X on November 21, 2022.@madonodono at X (November 21, 2022 - Japanese).
==Gallery==
Richter Belmont from Symphony of the Night.jpg|link=Richter Belmont|Yanada voiced Richter Belmont in Symphony of the Night and other titles...
Shaft SoN.jpg|link=Shaft|...and Shaft in Symphony of the Night.
==Videos==
Castlevania Symphony of the Night (J) Secret Sound Test -English Translation-
==Trivia==
*According to Toshiharu Furukawa, Mr. Yanada was cast as Richter Belmont for Castlevania: Symphony of the Night thanks to his performance as Jotaro Kujo in the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Drama CD.@CurryHermit at X (July 2, 2021)
*His in-game audio recordings for Richter Belmont in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night were leveraged to also be used on the enemy Fake Trevor.
*Mr. Yanada's hobbies included driving and sports such as baseball, soccer and karate.
==References==
==External links==
*Anime News Network
*Behind the Voice Actors
*IMDb
*Kiyoyuki Yanada at the Mega Man Wiki
*Kiyoyuki Yanada at the Ranger Wiki
*MobyGames
Category:Deceased Staff
Category:Japanese Voice Actors
Category:Voice Actors