Project.R (pronounced Project Dot R) is a Japanese musical ensemble established by Nippon Columbia and Toei Company in 2008 to perform on the soundtracks for the Super Sentai Series beginning with Engine Sentai Go-onger. The group was silently disbanded (in an official sense) with the conclusion of Kaitou Sentai Lupinranger VS Keisatsu Sentai Patranger in 2019 - although most of the actual performing members have not left working on sentai.
For the various series, Columbia has taken various popular vocalists of anime songs and brought them together in a group called Project.R (the "R" stands for "Ranger"). The opening and ending themes as well as the insert songs are all performed by individual members or a subset of members of Project.R. Several songs are performed by long standing theme song singers who are not included as being members of Project.R (the songs are composed by Project.R members, though).
Members of Project.R:
- Hideyuki Takahashi ("Engine Sentai Go-onger", "Gotcha☆Goseiger", "Busters Ready Go!", "Morphin! Movin! Bustership!")
- Takayoshi Tanimoto ("Juken Sentai Gekiranger", "Engine First Lap")
- Sister MAYO ("Jumon Kōrin ~ Magical Force", "Engine First Lap", "Shinken Matsuri", "Que Bom! Ryusoulger")
- NoB ("GoGo Sentai Boukenger", "Tensou Sentai Goseiger", "Saikou Saikyou SUPER STARS!")
- Takafumi Iwasaki ("Mahou Sentai Magiranger", "Engine Third Lap")
- Hideaki Takatori ("Hurricaneger Sanjou!", "Engine Second Lap", "Shirokujimuchuu Shinkenger", "Minna Atsumare! Kyoryuger", "Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger")
- Mayumi Gojo ("Eien ni…", "Engine Second Lap", "Waga Kokyo ZyuLand")
- Psychic Lover (YOFFY & guitarist IMAJO; "Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger", "Boukensha On The Road", "Samurai Sentai Shinkenger")
- Tsuyoshi Matsubara ("Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger", "KyuTama Dancing")
- Saki Oshitani (one of many vocalists on "Super Sentai Hero Getter", wrote Shinken Pink's Image Song)
- Showgo Kamada ("Vamola! Kyoryuger", "Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger Brave")
- Yohei Onishi ("Saa Ike! Ninninger!", "Lets! Zyuoh Dance", "Mashin Sentai Kiramager")
- Tomohiro Hatano ("LUCKYSTAR", "Kishiryu Sentai Ryusoulger")
- Shinichi Ishihara ("Kyūkyū Sentai GoGoV")
- Tatsuhiko Yoshida ("Lupinranger VS Patranger", "Lupinranger, Dial wo Mawase")
- Hitomi Yoshida ("Lupinranger VS Patranger", "Chase You Up! Patranger")
- Tsukasa Yoshikubo ("Keisatsu Gattime! Pat Kaiser")
- Kenichirou Oishi (composer, founder)
This band provides examples of:
- Anime Theme Song: Some members of Project.R had these before the band was formed, Mayumi Gojo being one of them.
- Autobots, Rock Out! / Theme Music Power-Up: Since Go-Onger, officially, but Project.R members have been performing Super Sentai themes since as early as Turboranger.
- Bland-Name Product: The Akibaranger singers are Project,R (Project Comma R), referencing the fact that even its theme song performers don't get to be official.note
- Careful with That Axe: Takayoshi loves screaming at the start of songs. Just watch any live performance of the Gekiranger theme and you'll see a huge grin appear on his face afterward.
- Cover Album: At the 2017 Super Sentai live show, Project.R (along with Daiki Ise, and a guest appearance by Haruko Momoi) performed literally every single theme song to date. 26 of the 43 theme songs performed, which includes the entire first half, were cover songs.
- Custom Uniform: Most members who have performed an opening (and sometimes ending) theme have a modified version of that Red Ranger's jacket. Usually color inverted or in metallic rather than red. Takafumi goes even further by having a custom guitar with a giant Magi Red emblem.
- Dancing Theme: "Jumon Kourin~Magical Force", the Engine Raps, "Gotcha☆Goseiger TYPE 2 REMIX", "Minna Atsumare! Kyoryuger", "Let's! Zyuoh Dance", and "KyuTama Dancing".
- Demoted to Extra: While no singer has gotten to perform a theme song twice in a row, making them all examples of this trope, there are a couple subversions where the opening theme singer transitions to ending theme singer for two consecutive seasons. These include Takayoshi (Gekiranger to Go-onger), Showgo (Kyoryuger to ToQGer), and Yohei (Ninninger to Zyuohger).
- Early-Bird Cameo: Before officially joining the group in 2018, Hitomi Yoshida previously appeared on a Kyoryuger insert track with Hideyuki Takahashi and Tsuyoshi Matsubara five years earlier.
- Expy: They're a Sentai band version of JAM Project.
- Gratuitous English: Just try to find a song that doesn't use English words.
- Gratuitous Foreign Language: "Vamola! Kyoryuger", and several other songs from that series, uses gratuitous Portuguese.
- Honorary True Companion:
- Several singers from older seasons are brought in for various insert songs, despite not being made members. The list includes Akira Kushida, Ichirou Mizuki, Isao Sasaki, Mitsuko Horie, MoJo, Takayuki Miyauchi, and Yukio Yamagata.
- Daiki Ise, who performed insert songs for Kyoryuger and ToQGer, the theme song to ToQGer, and the ending to Ninninger, yet is not an official member of the group.
- Iconic Outfit: NoB's fatigues for Boukenger, YOFFY's hakama or (red) flannel for Shinkenger and Yohei's ninja pants for Ninninger.
- Intergenerational Friendship: The youngest member was born in 1990 (Showgo) and the oldest member was born in 1960 (Shinichi). A 30 year age gap! And while the two have never performed a duet, Showgo has sung with Hideaki Takatori on "Gaburincho of Music" and "Minna de Carnival" who was born in 1967 and the two of them have a 23 year gap.
- Japanese Ranguage: Used deliberately on the Engine Raps as it's supposed to mean both Rap (due to the song style) and Lap (due to the motif of the season).
- List Song: The Engine Raps list off all of the engines from Go-onger, three per song until the final "Engine Winning Lap", "Super Sentai Hero Getter" lists every Super Sentai series up to that point, and "Minna Atsumare! Kyoryuger" lists every dinosaur used in Kyoryuger.
- Motor Mouth: All of the Engine Raps.
- One-Book Author: Saki Oshitani's only credit with the group is the original "Super Sentai Hero Getter", where she wasn't even a prominent vocalist.
- Out of Focus: Mayumi Gojo has been a member since 2008, yet has never gotten to perform lead vocals on an opening or ending theme.
- Revolving Door Band: A one-way door only. New members join every year but no one ever leaves.
- Soprano and Gravel: The Engine Raps contrast Sister MAYO and Takayoshi Tanimoto, Mayumi Gojo and Hideaki Takatori, and Takafumi Iwasaki and YOFFY. The latter vocalists may not be super deep, but the former vocalists make up for it by singing just that much higher.
- Step Up to the Microphone: Psychic Lover's IMAJO, normally a guitarist, performs lead vocals on the Gaiark's theme from Go-onger.
- Supergroup: For the Super Hero Taisen films, Project.R members formed one with Rider Chips and Kamen Rider Girls called Hero Music All Stars.
