VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[nick reed]

Hi Everyone,

I don't know if anyone is really interested in this...but what the heck, it's late and I can't go to sleep yet! So, here's my story. You can probably copy and paste your own name and pronouns in here.

Like everyone else here, people kept saying to me, "You sound like a DJ" or "You have an FM voice" or whatever. It was always a compliment because I have been voice concious for many years and have worked at improving my formerly weak voice. I always imitated commercials and thought at times that I could do it better...ha.

Well, a couple of months ago a convention was in town, I can't remember what it was, a broadcasters convention or something. Anyway, I was making dice calls on a crap game and one of the players said, "Nick, I see voiceovers in your future". I asked about him. He said that he has produced commercials for around ten years and has been in the business for years prior to that. He told me that I had a special quality in my voice.

Finally, I took this seriously. There had been another guy around a year ago who told me that I had a great voice for broadcasting. He told me that he had been a DJ in college and he knew a good voice when he heard it. It was a nice compliment but still I did not take it THAT seriously. But when a producer told me this, it really woke me up.

I told him that I had decided right there and then that I would pursue a career in voiceover...and here I am. I think this is the perfect career for me in many ways. I don't understand why I didn't see it before.

Anyway, I just finished reading "The Art of Voice Acting" and I am setting up a little home studio for practice. I am humbled before you...

[Philip Banks]

That was a nice post to read, Nick. The bad news is that 95% of people who launch themselves never make any money out of voice over work. The good news is that 5% DO make a living or more than a living.

If you're meant to be in the 5% nothing will stop it from happening. If you're not, then with the right attitude you'll learn a great deal about yourself, grow and have fun.

Best wishes.

[mcm]

Welcome Nick!

Let's focus on the good news -- you can do VO if you really want to. It's hard work and you'll spend a ton of time marketing, but if you can work in a casino and use your voice in such a way that people notice it, that suggests a level of comfort and energy in a pretty strange environment that will help you in this career, if that makes sense. And from your post on the Gear board you're obviously serious and prepared to make smart choices and invest in this as a career.

It isn't just the quality of your voice that matters, it's what you do with it, your ability to make the copy sound good even if it isn't, the energy you give to your read, among many other things, but probably more than that, the stamina to be rejected, and keep on looking for new contacts, and, when you don't get yet another gig you thought you'd nailed, to "pick yourself up, dust yourself off, start all over again...." And also to remember that, for most of us, you won't be making a living during the first year after you hang out your shingle. Maybe not even the second or third. Persistence is a very important quality, but that's true for pretty much anything, certainly anything that's competitive. I'm not making a living yet, the first year isn't over, but I'm making some money. So I think, if I'm making some, why not more? So I keep going. And I love it, which is why I can keep going.

You've certainly come to a good place-- there are so many people on this board who have helped me in so many ways, and I'm sure you'll find a lot of support here too.