Fairouz Ai

Ai Fairouz (ファイルーズ あい, Fairūzu Ai, born 6 July 1993) is an Egyptian–Japanese voice actress who is affiliated with Pro-Fit. She played her first anime role as Hibiki Sakura, the protagonist of the 2019 anime series How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift? She plays the role of Emily Orange in the 2019 anime series Kandagawa Jet Girls and will play Eripiyo in the 2020 anime series If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, I Would Die.

Fairouz was born on 6 July 1993 in Tokyo, to a Japanese mother and an Egyptian father. She was named after the Lebanese singer, Fairuz. She spent a few years of her elementary education in Cairo before returning to Japan. During her junior high school years, she became familiar with the manga series JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. Due to her growing interest in the series, she would join Skype reading sessions with other fans. Eventually, she was inspired to pursue a career in voice acting, but her parents initially disapproved of her plans. Instead, she would initially study at a graphic design vocational school before spending a year as a dental assistant. Once she was able to save enough money for tuition, she enrolled in a voice acting training school.

After finishing her training, Fairouz became affiliated with the voice acting agency Pro-Fit. In 2019, she was cast in her first anime role as Hibiki Sakura, the protagonist of the anime television series How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift? She and Kaito Ishikawa performed the series' opening theme "Onegai Muscle" (お願いマッスル), and as part of promotions for the series, she would appear in various weightlifting videos. She has also been cast as Emily Orange in the multimedia franchise Kandagawa Jet Girls and as Eripiyo in the 2020 anime series If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, I Would Die.

Anime

2019

• How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift? as Hibiki Sakura
• Cautious Hero: The Hero Is Overpowered but Overly Cautious as Valkyrie
• Kandagawa Jet Girls as Emily Orange

2020

• If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, I Would Die as Eripiyo

Video games

2019

• Fire Emblem Heroes as Phina