VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[VoicePilot]

Some feedback on my Demo would be great.

www.voices.com/people/VoicePilot

I am new to this and can use all the help I can get.Thank you.

[Philip Banks]

3 words for you - All too deliberate. What I heard was someone reading well but he was certainly reading. A little tightness in your vocal chords comes through and the demeanour is "this is not really me I am pretending to be someone else".

You have a difficult transition to make which is very easy to explain. Let yourself become part of the script and the script become a part of you.

The next time you call a friend on the phone record the conversation. Listen to you being you then reproduce the sound in your reads. It's frustrating a first but once you get into it the doors begin to open. Good luck.

[Mike Sommer]

+1 on what Mr Banks said.

What I heard was someone just reading a bunch of scripts; and mostly it was the same read all the way through. There was no ebb and flow, no conversational attitude, just "here's what the script says guys!"

The first thing you need to realize is, is that we are storytellers. That is all we do -we tell stories. And in order for the listener to be interested in the story, we need to make the story interesting; we need to know who our character is (As an actor we can not play ourselves, if what we say is scripted. We can only be ourselves when we go about talking off the tops of our heads and reacting to our world in our daily lives); we need to know who our character is talking to; we need to know where the conversation is taking place, and we need to believe in what is going on 100%. Only then, can we become a believable storyteller.

Understand the copy and it's meaning. Try to decipher what the advertiser wants from the commercial. Understand what you want the listener to feel or take away from the story. If it's a great deal, make them feel like it's the best deal in the world. If it's a food product, you want the listener salivating and craving the product.

When you know and understand the script, it becomes an aid, not a crutch. In other words if - you - need - to - read - each - and - every - word, it sound forced and staccato. If you know and understand the copy, and know where you want to add little humanistic nuances, you make it more believable.

For example the first spot. You can approach the first word "Finished", in a few ways. You say, "Aaah, Finished!" (with a little laugh of satisfaction). Or, you could be reacting to something someone said, something like this: "Honey, how much longer? We have to be at the Paterson's in an hour." this would give another interpretation or feeling to how the rest of the script would be played out. Or imagine that same line being delivered in an angry tone. Your response would again, be different.

Sometimes playing out each script in different emotions and attitudes helps us find the right placement, because we discover different nuances with each read.

I would suggest getting some VO coaching, along with acting and improv classes.

Just my 2¢.
_________________
The Blog:
http://voiceoveraudio.blogspot.com/

Acoustics are counter-intuitive. If one thing is certain about acoustics, it is that if anything seems obvious it is probably wrong.

[Deirdre]

[Jeffrey Kafer]

Try this as a first step: Forget the actual words of the copy. Paraphrase the script in your own words, basing it on what you think the point is. How would you talk about this service/product/whatever to a friend if you were genuinely interested in it? Find that emotion, and hang onto it. Then read the actual script with that emotional connection.

You won't be perfect yet, but you'll see an incremental improvement if you're being emotionally honest.
_________________
Jeff
http://JeffreyKafer.com
Voice-overload Web comic: http://voice-overload.com

[The Voice of Steve]

Newbie giving feedback...BEWARE.

I like your voice very much. I was REALLY looking forward to hearing a Northeastern accent come thru at some point! The reading, as has been said before, was just that...reading. Didn't REALLY believe YOU believe in what you are telling me. Just loosen up and talk to the mic like it's a friend of yours, and you'll come accross a lot better. I'm fortunate in that my mic IS my best friend...

Keep workin' at it, 'Pilot!