Voiceover work - where to start?

[alex matson]

Every two months or so the missus and I get a craving for Wendy's. There's a lady at the one on Powell here that has an amazing voice. Very nice woman as well, prob around 40. I told her she ought to do voiceover work and she said she's been told that before but doesn't know where to start. I know nothing about this sort of thing.
Does anyone have any suggestions I could pass along?

[Nick Sevilla]

You could hire her for a gig?

[alex matson]

My only involvement in music currently is at home. Just trying to help a fellow human out.
Specifically, should she get an assessment of her strengths in person, or record a demo? If she's underemployed I assume even an hour at a studio may be beyond her reach. Is there still a market for voiceover work?

[Gregg Juke]

Like anything else, it can be extremely hard to break in, but in some cases, there is more opportunity for go-getters who are internet/inter-webs savvy.

There are some online courses/agents that purport to teach you "how to" and then help to "book" you, but I can't currently vouch for legitimacy or success rates.

She _should_ record a demo (maybe you can help her there?). She probably shouldn't knock directly on radio station doors; they have in-house people, or they sub it out to the big names in Cali that do production all day and send stuff back on ISDN lines. She may want to see if there are any agents that handle that kind of work in your area, or if any of the ad/creative agency people would talk to her.

GJ

[kayagum]

Many online voice over agencies & websites. Try start with voice123.com

[JGriffin]

She will probably want to get some training before diving in--There are most likely VO workshops in your city. It's not enough to just have a cool voice (well, sometimes it is but not for a long career). There's definitely a skill set that needs to at least be somewhat in place. Otherwise, even if she hires someone to help her do a killer demo, she'll find it really tough. And if she gets in someplace on the strength of a killer demo and doesn't have the tools to back up that demo in a real session, that'll be her first and only job.

This is something that comes up a lot when my friends who are actors want to do a VO demo with me--sure, I can cobble together something that sounds cool from 75 takes, and it may get them in the door for a radio spot. But if whoever hired 'em has to then spend 75 takes getting what they need, because the VO can't really deliver, that VO's not gonna get hired again. I've been on the other side of that as well, slogging through a 2-hour session that should have taken 20 minutes, and thinking "but his demo was awesome, how did we get here?" So, I wind up sending lots of my actor-type friends to coaching before embarking on a demo.

[cgarges]

There was a broadcast studio in town that used to host VO workshops taught by an extremely in-demand voice talent. People who took the workshops learned how to get a good demo together and the smart ones booke dthe studio that hosted the classes to record the demos. If those folsk did a good job and were easy to deal with (like dwlb mentioned), they were more likely to get their demos submitted for work. It's just like getting offered freelance engineering work by a studio when they need someone. If you've taken a project to that studio and in the process of beoming a client of theirs, they see that you have it together, you're WAY more likely to get the call when they need someone than the random person that sends them a resume.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

[No Wave Casio Kitsch]

She will probably want to get some training before diving in--There are most likely VO workshops in your city. It's not enough to just have a cool voice (well, sometimes it is but not for a long career). There's definitely a skill set that needs to at least be somewhat in place. Otherwise, even if she hires someone to help her do a killer demo, she'll find it really tough. And if she gets in someplace on the strength of a killer demo and doesn't have the tools to back up that demo in a real session, that'll be her first and only job.

This is something that comes up a lot when my friends who are actors want to do a VO demo with me--sure, I can cobble together something that sounds cool from 75 takes, and it may get them in the door for a radio spot. But if whoever hired 'em has to then spend 75 takes getting what they need, because the VO can't really deliver, that VO's not gonna get hired again. I've been on the other side of that as well, slogging through a 2-hour session that should have taken 20 minutes, and thinking "but his demo was awesome, how did we get here?" So, I wind up sending lots of my actor-type friends to coaching before embarking on a demo.

Spot on advice. At the last place I worked, if the talent couldn't deliver the quality that was on their demo in 1-3 takes they would never be called in for future work.

I don't know what it's like in the "big leagues" in LA or NY and such, but in the midwest where I was working it was very rare for the talent to see copy before showing up for the session. Needless to say, it's very important (and tougher than you might think) to have the ability to show up and cold read copy in just a few takes.

I'd say a solid demo (followed by practicing pulling off what's on the demo!), some workshops, and get that demo out to local talent agencies that rep voice talent. IME, voice123.com is a waste of time.

[JGriffin]

I don't know what it's like in the "big leagues" in LA or NY and such, but in the midwest where I was working it was very rare for the talent to see copy before showing up for the session. Needless to say, it's very important (and tougher than you might think) to have the ability to show up and cold read copy in just a few takes.

Well, I don't work in LA or NY, but I do work for a pretty large ad agency in Chicago that regularly patches to NY, LA, London etc. for voice sessions. Unless they've auditioned for the spot (a rarity), the actor never sees the copy before they get to the studio--and lots of times the copy gets there after the actor does!

[Gentleman Jim]

I do a bit of VO work; mostly online learning or internal training type stuff. I also record and edit podcasts and video pieces for trade magazines that they sell as sponsored content. So I'm definitely nowhere near dwlb in terms of the budgets and end user audience size of things, but still, there's money to be made.

I'd guess I've auditioned 20-25 family, friends, and friends-of-friends. Actors, people who have worked in radio, and some who just fancied themselves potential VO candidates. I can say that out of that number, I would consider maybe 5 or 6 to be even worth recording to pass on to clients as potential VO talent, even for low budget jobs. I've found that it's more important to be able to read well than even having a pleasant voice. Most people can't read copy convincingly.

Alex, if you have a recording space, why not just ask the woman from Wendy's if she'd like to record a demo with you for free? If you really want to help a human out, I can assure you that you'll both know within 10 minutes if she's a realistic candidate.

As far as getting work, I would recommend she start with local video production companies, or similar production businesses. With many people, there's still something to be said for having a personal relationship, even in the age of Voice123 and similar sites.

[alex matson]

Thanks to everyone. I think I'll print this out, drop it off to her and offer to record her. I could do it on my laptop at the restaurant! Especially if there's a quiet moment!

[Gentleman Jim]

I hate to be Captain Bringdown, but there's no way you're going to get anything usable as a VO demo out of a recording session at a table in Wendy's.

[JGriffin]

I hate to be Captain Bringdown, but there's no way you're going to get anything usable as a VO demo out of a recording session at a table in Wendy's.

I dunno, I've put stuff on the air that was recorded in all sorts of odd places.

[Gregg Juke]

Yeah, that's one thing I was going to say ("Don't do it on a laptop at Wendy's").

Another would be (regardless of the prep she will actually get or not on a real gig) make sure she can read and has some familiarity with the copy, current events, and some simple oral English language skills. Sounds silly, but it's important. Years ago, I met this gal who was a club DJ that wanted to get into radio. We got to talking, and one thing led to another, and I wound-up working with her on a demo-in-lieu of an aircheck, so she could start to canvas stations.

I was still in public radio at the time, so I had access to an AP machine and a bunch of old news copy. I brought a few news stories, weather, and some specific music-oriented pieces for her to read.

There was no rush, but it became apparent after HOURS of her fumbling through basic reading, that she wasn't quite ready for prime-time, and that we would be
spending hours after she was gone trying to razor-blade edit that mishmash into
something useable.

This was over 25 years ago, and I can still remember gems like "3.5 da-grees Kel-
sy-oos" (35 degrees Celcius), and "The t-yoo fas-finkered fet-bordis" (the two fast-
fingered fretboardists). Make sure she has a script, has practiced it, and can read.
If she needs the print blown-up or something, figure that out ahead of time.

GJ

[alex matson]

Yeah, but if she CAN read some copy at the relatively quiet time late at night that I'd attempt this, we could do it again at a more suitable location. I'm not bringing a total stranger over to my house, and she'd be right to be cautious about that as well.

Hell, maybe I'll have my gf use her ipod to record her next time we order and post it here for your feedback...