That’s NOT Voiceover!

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That’s NOT Voiceover

Update!
The original link to the article and quiz no longer works.
I’ve updated it to the new link to “Do You Have the Right Stuff for Voice Acting?”
However: the new article no longer has the quiz. The quiz link in the article just takes you over to the “That’s Voiceover!” site, which I do not endorse.
— the management

That's Not VO Logo
Last week, Backstage posted an article entitled “Do You Have the Right Stuff for Voice Acting?”. I was hoping for something thoughtful and in-depth covering the profession of voice acting. Instead the article struck me as being vague at best and very light on any important details. It left me with a new-age vibe from statements like “the question of whether you can succeed is best answered by the student” or “we strongly encourage the voiceover student to look within”… Meh.

At the end, I was directed to a rather disappointing Quiz on the “That’s Voceover” site. They encouraged the readers to answer honestly, and said that at the end I would “receive a general evaluation that may help you determine what’s next for your career”… Which goes counter to most of what the Backstage article posits. But what the heck – I’m game!
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Free VO Giveaway!!!

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Free VO Giveaway!

Do you ever give away your VO work for free?

Why would anyone do that?!?!?

Well, actually, there are a number of great reasons to work for free.
(and a metric tonne of reasons *not* to work for free)

Here’s just a few ways to use your VO powers for good:

Reading for the Blind and Visually Impaired
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Web Site Traffic and a Turkey for SEO

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Web Site Traffic and a Turkey for SEO

How can a picture of a Turkey with some guns drive traffic to a web site?

It’s a mystery well worth investigating…

Back in November, 2013, I posted a song parody “Herbert The Homicidal Turkey” for Thanksgiving. It featured the following picture of the felonious fowl:

Herbert The Homicidal Turkey

Herbert The Homicidal Turkey

Fast forward to today… not a day goes by that Joe’s Dump doesn’t get at least a few hits for the song.

So, what gives? Where are the hits coming from?
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Joe’s Traffic School

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Joe’s Traffic School

*** WARNING!!! ***
Joe’s Traffic School is not a school, traffic school, or otherwise knowlegable entity.
We really don’t know squat about the law, driving, or motor vehicles.
What follows is a rant about traffic.
Reader discretion is advised!

General notes:

Pay Attention!

Stay Alert!

Be Courteous and Considerate! (news flash: other people exist, moron)

Don’t Honk! (unless absolutely necessary)

Front of the Line – Stop lights:

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Wrong Man For The Job

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Wrong Man For The Job

Have you ever been in a situation where everything just seemed to “click”?
You’re at the right place, right time, and everything feels… Right!
Like a perfect storm of awesome!

Well, this isn’t about that.

It’s about the opposite.

How do you know when you’re the wrong man for the job?

Let’s look at a recent example (imho) from the media…

Last month, Bob Dylan released his new album “Shadows in the Night“, a collection of 10 show tunes (mostly), previously sung by Frank Sinatra.

Bob Dylan. Show Tunes. Frank Sinatra.

What could possibly go wrong? Continue reading

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Wishing and Hoping…

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Wishing and Hoping…

Wishing

Today, I’d like to discuss how a pop song from 1963 can provide some very valuable lessons about business, and about life.

Wishin’ and Hopin’” was written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. First recorded by Dion Warwick in 1963 and also released later by Dusty Springfield in 1964.

In brief, the song delivers advice to a woman who seems intent on landing a man. The conclusion is that wishing is not enough – she’s gotta actually do something!.
(video and lyrics are at the bottom of this post for your reference)

So let’s break the song lyrics down into three categories and find out how they can help us to achieve our own goals: Continue reading

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The Myth of Conversational VO

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The Myth of Conversational VO

(aka. “Nobody Talks Like That”)

BlahBlahBlah
A big part of the job of voice acting is auditioning. And a current trend seen in many auditions is the “Conversational” or “Non-Announcer” style. Rarely a day goes by that I don’t see at least one audition request asking for that guy-next-door sound. A friend. A neighbor. BUT NO ANNOUNCERS!

Well, I’m here to tell you, friends and neighbors… there’s very little VO out there in the real world that would be mistaken for an actual conversation. Here are just a few examples:

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Technology Rising, Quality Sinking

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Technology Rising, Quality Sinking

Technology Sinking Quality Ship

Technology…
It’s here to help.
It’s here to save us.
To make things better.

But as the technology becomes more and more prevalent in our daily lives, the quality of many industries, products and even people are on the decline.

It’s this relationship between the rise of technology and the sinking level of quality that this article will explore.
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