Hello dear people of Hive! Today I am sharing to you a special drawing I made in celebration for LiSA's 10th Anniversary. The anniversary was actually last April 20 but I was only able to finish this drawing four days ago. A bit late but it's better than never!
If you watch anime then there's a good chance that you've already heard a song of hers.
Risa Oribe or known on stage as "LiSA" is a Japanese pop/rock/anime song singer from Gifu Prefecture famous for her songs Gurenge, Homura, Crossing Field, Oath Sign, and other anime songs. She formerly sings on an indie band named Chucky and gained more popularity after being the singing voice of Yui, a character from Angel Beats in 2010. In April 20th of 2011, she debuted as a solo artist. She among the few singers who can cross between anime and rock music scene. She's also dubbed as "rock heroine"
Her name LiSA is an acronym for "LiVE is SMiLE ALWAYS".
I've been a fan of LiSA since 2013 and to celebrate her ten years as a solo artist, I present to you the many versions of LiSA throughout the years!
"Believe in Myself"
(Just a disclaimer before I proceed: This isn't all of LiSA's versions. I just picked those which I like the most and had a huge impact on her career. :))
Here I drew 11 versions of LiSA, plus a version of her in panda mascot behind. I was only aiming to draw 10 LiSA to match the 10 years but I didn't realize I went beyond the desired number.
As you can see on my drawing, the different versions of her are looking towards the LiSA on the center. That girl in the middle is the first LiSA version and they're attention is all at her to thank her for her hard work and passion.
The words "Believe in Myself" is her first song from her first album "Letters to U". I think this song is very special and meaningful for her because it's a reminder of her younger self being hopeful of achieving her dreams and goals as an artist. As a non-Japanese, I can only understand very few words of the lyrics although the melody of the song and the way she sings are enough for me to feel her emotions and grit towards her dreams. Hearing the song reminds me too to believe in myself.
Most of the LiSA versions I drew were from her anime singles because anime really plays a big role to the success and fame she is getting now, well, aside from being cute, pretty and fashionable of course!
Let's start from here:
The one in a blue hat and white dress was her look for her song Rally Go Round for the anime Nisekoi. I think she looks very pretty in this costume and it was her latest single when she had her show here in my country.
Beside her, in green blouse, was her outfit for her song Rising Hope for the anime Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei (The Irregular at Magic High School). I adore this outfit of hers and I like green color. Also, Rising Hope was LiSA's ultimate rock song back in 2015.
Below them is her look for her song Hi FiVE!. It was for her 5th anniversary and I think it deserves to be included on this drawing.
On the left is LiSA from 2011 for her song Oath Sign for the anime Fate/Zero. This is one of her early anime songs that made her popular today and the song that turned me into a fan.
Beside her is her version for her song Homura for the Demon Slayer film. This song was awarded as Japan's "Song of The Year" for 2020 despite being realeased only in October 2020. It's a no-brainer that this must be included on the drawing.
Below them is LiSA from her Crossing Field song for the anime Sword Art Online. It was one of her songs back in the day that went very popular as well. I drew her doing a peace sign to remind people that she didn't only became popular because of her Demon Slayer songs. Back in the day, Crossing Field was the jam the anime community loved.
Going further down, you see here a LiSA holding a megaphone. This was her look for her song LiTTLE DEViL PARADE. Of all the LiSA versions, this is my most favorite because she just looks so colorful and her hair and outfit is so cute! This was also the time when she announced about having her own music label, "Yaeva Music", wherein the logo was inspired from her yaeba teeth. I drew her holding a little flag of it as you can see on the drawing. The music label is under Sony Music Japan.
Now let's move to the middle. On the left is LiSA from her song Best Day, Best Way. An old song and not affiliated with anime but is a very special one which she still sings for most of her encore during shows. I think the song is about her life as an artist. The panda mascot in my drawing is part of this song, by the way.
On the right, is LiSA from the song Datte Atashi no Hero for the anime My Hero Academia. I have to draw her beside the first LiSA version to tell her "datte atashi no hero" (because you are my hero).
Then on the middle is the LiSA from her debut back in 2011 holding a pink microphone with closed eyes and smiling. Out of all the LiSA I've drawn for this artwork, I guess this one looks the most decent.
Last but not the least, the girl on the middle is LiSA from her Gurenge song for the anime Demon Slayer. Even though a lot of people are saying she only became famous because of this song, I must admit that Gurenge had really brought massive boost to her career both in Japan and abroad. This song was released in 2019 and still topping the charts in Japan in 2020. It was the song that introduced her to many people and so I am drawing the Gurenge LiSA patting the head of the LiSA from 2011.
Drawing Process
Since there are lots of characters on this drawing, I have to be careful so as not to get confused and neglect details of each LiSA.
To be more organized, I drew each LiSA on different layers and placed the layers in folders for easy navigation. I also drew one at a time to make sure I don't miss out on the details of other characters. For example, I color all their hair first then draw all of their accessories next, then color all of their lips next.
I didn't put much detail in the drawing since the drawings are only small. For the background, I added a gradient color of pink and orange to mimic the color of the sky during sunset, fitting for her favorite catchphrase, "Kyou Mo Ii Hi Da!" or "It's Another Great Day!" It's a positive phrase which you can say at the end of the day to honor your efforts and hard work.
Medium: Digital (Wacom Intuos Comic)
Program: Clip Studio Paint
Gif Made on Photoshop CS6
To end this post, here is LiSA singing Gurenge. Enjoy!
