What were you up to before you got into voice-over?
A lot. For the sake of time I’ll sum up: I’ve been acting since my first role in a regional theatre production at the age of six. I played sports in high school but got back on the stage in college and did some local improv shows, but most of my experience has been on the stage. Usually funny/character roles in musical theatre or straight comedies. However, right before having children I did get in front of a camera to do a few commercials, and a couple of very small roles on the small screen. I did get to be in a SAG-AFTRA commercial for a healthcare company with Magic Johnson in 2016.
My day job is ministry. I have been working full time with students grades 6-12 until I moved to my first lead pastor role in 2012 here in West Palm Beach. We currently rent a movie theatre on Sundays for our church and I really enjoy helping out people in our community.
Had you heard of VO before or considered it as a career path? If not, what about it appealed to you most?
I have always had a strong love for funny voices. I love doing impressions, and I’ve always enjoyed watching all kinds of animation. A dream tucked in the recesses of my mind would have been to get paid to do that one day. Doing things I love to do, and getting paid to do it…isn’t that the dream?
What was the most valuable part of your training with SAV?
That’s tough because off the cuff I would say the excellent coaching. I had a fantastic coach in Tim Powers, not to mention Robin Brooke who led my introductory class and my MasterClass workshop. Even my Demo production coach Bill Brooks got me to another level that I would have NEVER been able to get to on my own. But after thinking about this question a bit…it’s really a tie. Without the technical training components early on from Ben Marney and the ongoing aid from Lauren Goode and the VO Pro Facebook group I’m not sure I would be where I am this soon into my endeavor.
What was your first paid voice-over gig? How did it come about, and how did it go?
After auditioning around 70 times on Voices.com I landed my first gig. It was a humbling experience because after I delivered the files and got paid for the spot, I saw it posted again. Now, they could have decided to go with a female voice or something else entirely but man was it a confidence shaker. Fortunately, soon after that I booked my next gig, and that has turned into a repeat client. The rest as they say, is history.
How would you describe your sound?
I’m still doing a shotgun approach in my auditioning, so it just depends on the day and the audition, but mostly I feel my sound is the warm yet engaging guy next door sound. I tend to get shortlisted any time there is a character voice involved so I’m pretty sure that will be my niche at some point.
What pushed you to get representation?
Landing an agent this early on was HUGE for me. It came a bit sooner in my plan that I had expected due to the stories I have heard about how difficult it can be to secure VO
representation. But apparently I had enough jobs under my belt and my demos were quality enough to get signed. I signed in February and haven’t been booked yet, but the clients are bigger, the budgets are bigger, and the opportunities to fill out the resume with bigger clients is well…bigger.
What would your dream VO role/project be?
Easy. A comedic animated voice for any property Disney owns.
What advice would you have for folks currently going through their VO training?
Stay at it. Be Persistent. Do the work. Every day just move the ball a little bit more down the field. The hardest part for me is that I tend to slow down when I haven’t booked in awhile. If you haven’t booked yet, it feels even harder to keep going, I know. But your investment will pay off. Just keep at it.
Aside from VO, what are your hobbies or passions in life?
My main reason for getting into VO was that I needed a creative outlet that would allow me to stay around my biggest passion: my wife and kids. We have 2.5 year old and a 4 year old, and auditioning and booking on-camera stuff was taking me away from the house far too often. Plays…forget about it. VO has given me a place to continue my acting, and get paid to do it. Aside from VO and Ministry, I love anything to do with Star Wars and Marvel.
Anything you’d like to plug?
I have a Facebook group for SAV alum called: SUCH A VOICE-Over Group.
We are there just for encouragement and support. About 22 members right now. We are open to listening to auditions, giving peer feedback, and from time to time we have a SAV pro checkin and give insight. We haven’t done much yet but we seemed to be hitting a sweet spot with SAV folks who have booked a little and are wanting to take the next step. We tend to ask questions that may be too much for the bigger VO Pro group. All are welcome, here’s the link.
Check out our free PDF with pro-tips from real working voice-over actors here!
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