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Voice Coaches Radio #489 – Mail Call
Voice Coach's Radio. Everything voiceover. And welcome to this week's edition of Voice Coach's Radio. I am Josh Hellert. She is Marissa Lanczak. We are delighted to have you joining us here this week. Marissa, how are you doing? I'm, I'm feeling good. I'm feeling pumped. I'm feeling ready. Ooh. Oh, yeah. Yeah.
You need to get pumped up for this show, right? You gotta get jacked up for this show. Well, I just never know what you're gonna throw at me. That's how I like it. Are you recovered from a couple weeks ago? Um, I mean, that's a relative term, but, uh, you know, I'm, I'm, I'm hanging in there. I'm hanging in there.
Just making sure. Yeah, you know, and I'm, I'm hanging in there, still waiting to hear back on the, uh, uh, on the results yet. Uh, he had, he wanted a couple other people to, uh, to take a listen to it for him. And I said, that's, that's completely fine. It was a lot of audio to listen to. Yeah, I was gonna say, it's your book.
You want. It's a lot of audio. Do whatever you want. Um, but it's good. I've actually taken, uh, taken a week or so off. Uh, I haven't auditioned for anything. I haven't, uh, uh, I haven't done any recording. Um. Is it cuz you're scarred? Are you in recovery mode? Hypothetically, yes. Are you healing? Honestly, I just needed some time.
Like, literally, it's nice to put my son to bed at night and be like, I'm just going to read a book. And I am! I'm reading a book just for pleasure. And it's an actual, like, physical copy of a book, so I'm not looking at a screen, which is merciful. Merciful, because that started to get old very, very quickly.
I'm sure. But no, I'm reading a book about a wolf. Okay. Yeah, it's called, it's uh, It's not as weird as you think, okay? I mean, you know. It's not as weird as you think. I wasn't trying to judge you by any means. Really, you were holding it back, I could tell. I could tell. I was just wondering what, what exact genre is it?
Is it sci fi? What, what is it? No, it's uh, it's non fiction. It's about an actual wolf, like a real life wolf. Uh, it's called the Reign of Wolf 21. Uh, it's the saga of Yellowstone's legendary druid pack by a guy named Rick McIntyre. He um, uh, he was, you know, we, uh, I'm not sure exactly what his job was, but um, he followed them, uh, the, these wolf packs in Yellowstone for, for decades.
So you're kind of like reading National Geographic. I mean, I think that's. Uh, essentially, yeah, probably, like, something like that, yeah, but like, it's super cool, like, he was, uh, he was an alpha, and, uh, it's about his, his rise, but it's so cool because it's like, like, literally, like, things are happening, I'm like, these are like, they're like people, they're like real life people, like, they have arguments, they, you know, have, like, marriages, they have, like, um, you know, battles, I'm like, it's super cool, um.
I always say this about my pets, they're just kids with fur. They are, right? They really are. They, they, they totally are. So like, Wolf 21, um, he has three of them that he's written about, uh, about different wolves. Uh, The Rise of Wolf 8, which is his first one, which I haven't read, and he has another one coming out, um, at some point soon, I imagine?
I don't know. I think it's like the Redemption of Wolf. I don't know, they don't have names, like they have numbers, because they're wolves. But they're like actual like wolves! It's like a wolf wolf! Um. But like, who, who numbered them? They could have named them. I mean, I mean, yeah. You want to name it Mikey?
Come on. But like, check this out, like, ready? Like um, wolf, wolf 21, leader of the druid pack, who is known for his unwavering bravery, his unusual benevolence, unlike other alphas, he never killed a defeated rival male, and his fierce commitment to his mate, the formidable wolf 42! Again, why are we numbering them
Why? I don't know. It's probably easier than, than naming them. Like, w what would you name an alpha? Like Well, you're Bob. Maybe you're wolf. You're wolf Bob. Like I do use Bob an awful lot in classes. I mean, that's Bob's a problem. That's fair. That's just so, you know, Wolf, Wolf Wolf 21 is not a problem. Uh, but it's actually, it's really interesting.
And I, I am, I'm a nerd. Like I don't care. Um, so if you're interested in wolves, and I am, I wanted a wolf for so long when I was a kid. Do you ever watch Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman? That's random. No. No. Oh, you missed out Dr. Quit Medicine Woman, uh, starring the, uh, inimitable, um, uh, um, Jane. Oh my goodness, what's her name?
I don't know, I know exactly who you mean though. Jane, Jane, Ah! Oh my god, this is embarrassing. Um, uh, uh, uh, Jane... Google! I'm working on it as we speak. I'm literally working on it as we speak. Jane... Seymour! That's her name, Jane Seymour. Thank you. I didn't think it was right. Oh yeah, Jane Seymour, the inimitable Jane Seymour.
Used to watch it, it was part of... It was part of our Saturday night watching schedule, uh, that when I was a kid, we used to watch, uh, Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman, uh, early edition, which was on after that, which is about a guy who had a newspaper from the following day, so he knew the future, and s s s saved people's lives, um, and, um, Uh, uh, occasionally when, what, before, oh before that, before that it was uh, uh, Touched by an Angel.
Don't tell me you didn't watch Touched by an Angel. How dare you. No, I didn't. How dare you. No, like all this like Dr. Quinn and Walker Texas Ranger. That was the last one we used to watch when I didn't, I wasn't into that stuff. stuff. I don't know. Walker Texas Ranger was amazing. But Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman was was, you know, it was good.
But anyway, one of the characters, a guy named Sully, I believe, um, he was Native American, and he had a wolf, he had a pet wolf. And I wanted that. I still want that. I don't even have a dog. I wanted a wolf. I still want a wolf. And, um, and I really wanted to, and I almost did, you know how you could like adopt like animals?
Yeah. Not like real life. For just 10 cents a day. Yeah, exactly. Thank you, Sarah McLachlan. You're welcome. And, um,
Copyright, stop it. Sorry. Um, and, uh, um, and so, um, you know, I, I wanted to adopt a wolf. So anyway, that's what I'm doing now. Oh, I thought you were just gonna say, now I'm adopting a wolf. No, I'm not, but I want to. I'll tell you what, when I finish this night, is that even still a thing? I'm sure you could still adopt a wolf, right?
I mean, probably. With the Wildlife Federation or something. And they'll send you like a little plush wolf toy. Yeah. And they'll tell you, here's a picture of your wolf, and like, oh, what's his name? They're like, his name is 21. 21, and I'll be like, the wolf 21? Could I have his paw graph? I mean, I don't know if they got that close to him.
But, uh, yeah. So now I'm gonna have to go to Yellowstone to meet the wolves. Um, I'm gonna be eaten by a wolf. Essentially, that's what I'm saying. That's, that's what's happening here. Um, and become a wolf. I am gonna put all the positive vibes your way. Thank you. Thank you. So that's what I've been doing with my life.
What have you been doing? Listening to you talk about your life. Uh, that's sad. For both of us. Really, for both of us. Yeah, sorry. Um, So yeah, so now you know a little bit more about me and how cool I am. Um, and how cool I've always been. Uh, yeah. So, uh, what can I say? What can I say? Anywho! Um, we had an email!
Someone, someone listen! Wait, we have fanmail? Yeah, well, I don't know if it's fanmail, but... Call it fan mail! Someone listened and sent us an email with questions and things like that. One person listened! Oh, thank you! Um, and so, uh, Kiana, uh, has sent us, uh, sent us an email with some questions, so I figured we'd answer them on the air because, uh, it's easier than responding to the email.
Uh, no. I figured we'd answer them on the air and then, uh, and then we'll see if she actually does listen or not. Right, that we're gonna find out. This is your test, Kiana. like, oh my god, I heard you answer my question, we'll be like, you actually are listening to us. Or, if it's like, why haven't you guys, uh, responded to my email, I'll be like, I didn't listen.
Because we did, on the pod. Thanks. So, um, she said, hi Josh and Marisha. Hi, Kiana. Thank you both for your advice on the podcast. Oh, you're so welcome. You're welcome. Josh, I appreciate your music background. Shaky at best. Most people probably don't. Um, so let's see. Couple questions for us. Uh, question number one.
Do you ever connect with a client or production team members on LinkedIn? Would they prefer a demo instead? What is a good time to connect with them? So, uh, as far as LinkedIn is concerned, it's a tool. It's a tool like anything else, and it can certainly be helpful. Obviously, if you're reaching out to someone through LinkedIn, I think you still absolutely need to have a demo.
Now, maybe you have a link from your LinkedIn page to your website, which has your demo on it. Maybe you actually uploaded your demo directly to LinkedIn. I don't know if you can do that. Yeah, you can. Oh, yeah. If you have a link to it, you can. So there you go. Uh, you can. Good. Um, um, so you can, you're certainly still going to want that because they're going to want, you know, not just to see what you've done and who you are, but they're also going to want to hear you.
So you're certainly still going to want to have the demo. No, as far as reaching out to them through LinkedIn versus just kind of sending out an email. To be honest with you, I think it probably just depends on the person receiving it, how they like to see things and how active they are on LinkedIn, um, and on other social media things like that.
Some people are much more than others. If they are active on it, then absolutely reach out to them that way. I think that's a perfectly fine idea. Um, and again, it tells them a little bit more about you. But make sure you still do have, uh, that, uh, that, that demo somewhere there so that they are able to listen to that because ultimately that is no matter what you say in there and the different things that you've done and how impressive they may or may not be, uh, they're going to want to hear you.
They're going to have to hear you. So. That's my thought on that. Yeah, I'm not a huge fan of LinkedIn, to be honest, but I feel like out of all of the social medias for, for what I've done primarily, which has been radio, like, I've always connected in a much better way on almost every other social media platform, but I know it comes in handy for people for all sorts of jobs.
Like, I've, I've had people get recruited off of LinkedIn without even trying. Oh, my, my wife, uh, uh... She works in HR now, but prior to that, she, she did recruiting for, um, for a financial company. And I mean, she used to scour LinkedIn and, uh, and help me make my LinkedIn page because mine was pretty not very good and it's better now.
Um, so yeah. So there you go. So yeah, I think it just depends on the person and it depends, like the field also as well. So I mean, if you've got a lot of people that you could find in, in this kind of, you know, voiceover. Field, then it could be beneficial. Absolutely. Absolutely. Again, make sure you still do have your demo there though.
Uh, reading out loud. I really feel like I'm learning to read. I mean, I hope you already knew how to read, but good, I'm glad, that's fantastic. I noticed when I started recording myself, I stumbled over my words more. How do you move past that? Ah, this is going to sound trite, but keep reading. Yeah, it's practice.
Honestly, that's really what it comes down to. You're not slipping up because you're recording. You may think that, it may be in your head a little bit, but that's really not what it's coming down to. Um, so it's all about continuing that, that out loud reading, continuing to, uh, you know, to, to improve upon that.
Um, and, you know, get to the point where it's not going to matter if you're recording or if you're not. It's just going to be completely muscle memory, and that's what we need to get to. Yeah, well, and I don't want to, like, go against what you just said, but I will say this, like, When you are doing something you are new at and all of a sudden you know that you've pressed the record button, it is a very subconscious like, like, you have like some inner nerves that you might not even be aware of.
Um, and I know that just because, like, I do songwriting too, and I've always been very scared to share any of it with people. I've shared it with very few people, and it's because when I go to press record, my, I just, Stiffen right up because I'm so used to being silly that being serious is not like it's just not me So and it's like sharing your diary too at the same point So like that that has always been that's what I've noticed for myself So that could be slightly for her just because it's new sure You know and but that is something that becomes a lot easier once you get going and it's because you're gonna get comfortable with what?
You're doing. Yeah, and I mean and the fact the matter is, you know at some point You know, having that record button pressed, being in the booth, it's not going to be as big a deal. It just won't, because you'll have done it so much. Um, it's never, you know, going to feel like you're in your room by yourself, just kind of.
Practicing, but there is no question that it is always going to be something, right? It's always going to, you know, you want to get to the point where it's, it's not, you know, are you recording? Yeah, no, who cares, right? Even for me, even, you know, uh, you know, doing those audiobooks when I go into my little, little closeted studio area.
Um, you know, I used to make a big deal out of it. A big song and dance, like, get ready, get prepared, do this, set up that, guess this, have that. And now I'm just eventually like, just get in there and just hit record and just let's go, let's go, let's move. Like, come on, we got stuff to do. Um, so it will, it will get easier.
No question about it. It will get easier. And a lot of that's just going to come with practice. But a lot of that is also going to come with time spent recording. Yep. Practice, time, skill building, comfortability. Uh, another question. With punctuation, such as parentheses and quotes, do you actually say quote unquote?
Or is this where I'm supposed to emphasize these words with my tune? Um, so in general, what I have found with quotes is that for the most part, I have not been.
It's gonna depend on the situation. It's also gonna depend on the producer of the project and what they're looking for, but I don't think I've ever had a quote unquote situation in my, in my time. Now, like the one book that I've done when they had quotes, they were like, so and so said. Yeah. You know, or, you know, They would say, like, you know, so and so was thinking, like, you know.
In the fiction book I just did, I mean, there's dialogue in there and you don't really do that for dialogue. Uh, now if it is there as kind of like an air quote type of situation, um, what I would do more instead of actually saying quote unquote is almost as if you were doing air quotes. Of course, they can't see you do that, I'm aware.
But, you know, that, that kind of little bit of, um, of emphasis on those words as if you were doing air quotes, right? So you can certainly make those air quote sounds without actually saying quote unquote. Same thing with parentheses. Um, same thing with parentheses. Usually it's going to be kind of an aside.
It's going to be something extra. It's going to be something, you know, said a little bit differently, but I don't think you necessarily need to, unless you're asked to, um, you know, quantify it with quote unquote. Or, open parenthesis, closed parenthesis, which I've never heard in my life. Yeah, so I think when it comes down to it, like, it kind of is what she asked about tone.
It's utilizing the emphasis and pitch in a different way. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. For sure. Absolutely. Uh, last one. Warm ups. Josh, I appreciate your a cappella experience. Do you though? Do you? Do you people appreciate my a cappella experience? I sure do. I thank you. Um, so you, uh, love Pitch Perfect. Me too. Uh, sang in choirs.
It's awesome. Outstanding. Now, here's the question. Do you find that warming up vocal cords similar to singing can help or is it too much strain? And Marissa, what warm ups do you find helpful? I found the tips, obviously there are tips in the, um, in the materials that we have. Now, let me preface this by saying that if you were to go back to Voice Coach's 29th.
Episode 464. Okay, that's episode four. You got real specific there. 64. Yeah. I literally talk about, this is before your timer, I mean, yeah, this is, this is Bmm before Mark. Yeah. 'cause your intro was March 19th. I'm looking at the, the master list here. Um, so this is pre Marissa, so this is just me. This is Josh Fly solo.
Um, and, uh, and I talk all about warmups, different types of warmups, different things you can do, um, and the, the benefit of them. Uh, so you can definitely go back and take a listen to that kind of, in a nutshell though, the answer is yes. Um, I do warmups the same way I used to do them when I would, uh, when I would be singing.
Um, you know, starting with kind of lip buzzing, starting with, um, you know, just kind of, uh, trying to get a little bit higher, a little bit lower, just kind of stretching it out a little bit. I don't always do it, but, uh, I did find, especially recently with the, the kind of massive amount of reading I was doing in the short amount of time, my voice was starting to, uh, to take a hit a bit, and I would need to.
to warm myself up. And it also depends on when you're recording. Uh, I know, Marissa, you and I talk, we joke that, you know, in the mornings we don't sound the same as we do morning. Like, that's the thing, is people have always been, always been like, um, so why don't you do morning radio? And I'm like, have you heard me in the morning?
Because you wouldn't be able to understand what my, my body reacts to what my schedule has always been. So, like, I did afternoons, like, for radio for a really long time. I was on the night show for a while. I did overnights. So, like, my body is just used to being more awake in the afternoon and night, and I feel like that's probably why I struggle to wake up in the morning.
But I will say this, too, I mean, anybody that's listened to this podcast knows that my voice does not wake up on Fridays for sure, uh, usually, but, you know, as I was starting here, because I was using my voice way more than I ever had, just teaching classes and doing the podcast, doing my own podcast, all these things, that.
I, I mean, I remember one day specifically, I thought I was okay, but I had said nothing at all in the morning because I live alone. Uh, so I was on my way here, and I realized, because I went to order a coffee or something, I was like, oh, oh dear God, I have no voice. So, The whole way here, I did vocal warm ups, like you were just saying, and it helped slightly.
Yeah. I was still squeaky as all heck, but I, you know, it definitely helped compared to what it was. No, and I think that's, I think that's important. Um, and so, so the answer is, is yeah, I mean, I think both of us do find warm ups helpful, um, in, in certain situations. And again, if you have experience with warm ups, you know, for, uh, you know, for your singing, then, then that's a great.
thing to lean upon, um, because you already have some experience. But like I said, go back to, uh, to the, to that episode back in the, uh, uh, back in, in the day, back in January. So again, that's January 29th. It's episode 464. Sorry, I won't be there. That's true. That's true. Um, this is before we were graced with your presence and our lives were Emptier.
Our lives are emptier. You can just say that you're blessed now. It's fine. It's true. It's true Hard to be stressed when you're blessed. Hey, hey, um, and uh, you know, it it it does go into more specific examples of that um, and um, you know kind of uh, Showing what what I personally do. Um, you know, and and certainly that's something you can You can copy, you can, you know, but you, but again, if you have experience, you know, with vocal warm ups it, honestly, it's no different whether it's singing, um, I mean, you say that, you know, is that going to be too, too straight, too much strain?
I, I don't know what you do for your vocal warm ups when you're singing, um, and if that is too much strain and if it is probably not a great warm up, but, um, just saying, uh, so no, it should not be too much strain, uh, depending. But you can take a listen back to, uh, to that episode and, uh, find out. By the way, if, if you have any questions that, that we haven't answered, obviously you can email us, like I said, like, uh, like Kiana did, and thank you, Kiana, for reaching out to us.
Um, but, uh, you can always do that, but if you have a lot of free time, you can scour the, the Voice Coaches Radio archives, and I'm sure you can find episodes that touch on pretty much every topic you can imagine. Um, I'd like to say we're breaking new ground. I don't think we are, Marissa. I really don't think we are.
Oh, come on. Sure we are. It's like music. No. It's like music. We are, we are. You're being, you're being hard on us. And I don't think that's okay. I mean, I'm just saying. Don't be our, our, our own worst critic. That's just, that's awful. I mean, listen. I don't want to start my weekend that way. Sorry. We're amazing.
Come on. We're awesome. Yeah. So good. So good. This episode is great. Um, so that would be, uh, that would be our answer to, uh, to that, Kiana. So thank you so much for reaching out and, uh, and thank you to all of you who have reached out, uh, and had questions. Some of which we've been able to Fan mail is good, questions are good as well, um, that we'd be happy to, uh, to discuss here on the podcast and then, uh, quiz you to see if you've been listening or not, um, because we're not sure if you are.
We're not sure. That's why the fan mail's important. It is. It makes us feel good about ourselves. That too. It makes us feel good about ourselves. Um, but, uh, but no, definitely reach on out, joshatvoicecoaches. com, that's the quickest and easiest way to reach out to us. Josh at voicecoaches. com. Get in touch with me or Marissa or anyone else here at voice coaches.
And, uh, we're happy to answer those questions or if you have any topics that you want us to cover, certainly happy to do that as well. Um, got, uh, some things in the works from some, uh, emails that we've gotten previously as well that I'm looking to, uh, to get out sooner than later, which will be good. Um, and then, uh, next week we're going to hear from, uh, another one of our, our newbies here, by the way, um, pretty sure the average age in this.
Uh, in this establishment dropped like 20 years. I do feel old now. Yeah, with like the new addition of the new people. Um, especially Katie and Jordan. Like, they're like, talking about like, Oh yeah, when I graduated college a couple years ago. And I'm like, Couple years ago. Oh, you crazy kids. Oh my word. I'm just glad I don't look my age.
That's all I'm getting at, you know? I look... I do. No, you don't. It's just the beard my man. It's gray. It's a gray beard. Only if you look close. I mean, thank you. So, uh, so yeah, so although I will say we're doing a lot of classes on zoom now Oh, that is not a great look for me. I love it. Oh, that is that is like I'm playing for the camera Every bring it on gray is just accentuated Also, I have to like wear clothes Oh, yeah, what's that about?
I don't know. I don't know like literally what I'll do it is just like put a button down shirt on No pants, no pants. No pants If i'm standing if you're seeing my pants like what what is happening in this zoom session? No, no pants. Why? Pants are over. I'm not wearing pants right now. I am What I am we're in the office, bro.
I had to I had to um, so uh, so awesome What's happening here? Uh, anyway, uh, so fantastic. So again, thank you. Thank you for you If anyone's still listening, and I, I honestly wouldn't blame you if you're not, uh, if anyone's still listening, thanks so much for listening to us this week and every week here on Voice Coaches Radio.
Uh, Marissa, thank you, I think? Um. Thanks for having pants on. I say, listen, you know what? It's the least I could do. It's literally. The least I could do. Um, Kiana, thanks for your question, and again, love to hear your questions, comments, concerns, uh, topics you'd like us to discuss, guests you'd like us to have us, uh, try to get, uh, joshatvoicecoaches.
com, let's hope we can do that. Uh, again, we'll hear from, uh, the newest member of the team, Jordan, next week, uh, but of course, uh, you know. We'll be here as well. All right. So hopefully you're tuning on there, Marissa. Thanks so much. Great to chat with you again, warmups in, uh, so we can, uh, we can do this again next week.
All right. So, uh, thanks so much for tuning in everyone. And until next time, so long, everyone. Visit voice coaches. com for more voiceover news and information.
You need to get pumped up for this show, right? You gotta get jacked up for this show. Well, I just never know what you're gonna throw at me. That's how I like it. Are you recovered from a couple weeks ago? Um, I mean, that's a relative term, but, uh, you know, I'm, I'm, I'm hanging in there. I'm hanging in there.
Just making sure. Yeah, you know, and I'm, I'm hanging in there, still waiting to hear back on the, uh, uh, on the results yet. Uh, he had, he wanted a couple other people to, uh, to take a listen to it for him. And I said, that's, that's completely fine. It was a lot of audio to listen to. Yeah, I was gonna say, it's your book.
You want. It's a lot of audio. Do whatever you want. Um, but it's good. I've actually taken, uh, taken a week or so off. Uh, I haven't auditioned for anything. I haven't, uh, uh, I haven't done any recording. Um. Is it cuz you're scarred? Are you in recovery mode? Hypothetically, yes. Are you healing? Honestly, I just needed some time.
Like, literally, it's nice to put my son to bed at night and be like, I'm just going to read a book. And I am! I'm reading a book just for pleasure. And it's an actual, like, physical copy of a book, so I'm not looking at a screen, which is merciful. Merciful, because that started to get old very, very quickly.
I'm sure. But no, I'm reading a book about a wolf. Okay. Yeah, it's called, it's uh, It's not as weird as you think, okay? I mean, you know. It's not as weird as you think. I wasn't trying to judge you by any means. Really, you were holding it back, I could tell. I could tell. I was just wondering what, what exact genre is it?
Is it sci fi? What, what is it? No, it's uh, it's non fiction. It's about an actual wolf, like a real life wolf. Uh, it's called the Reign of Wolf 21. Uh, it's the saga of Yellowstone's legendary druid pack by a guy named Rick McIntyre. He um, uh, he was, you know, we, uh, I'm not sure exactly what his job was, but um, he followed them, uh, the, these wolf packs in Yellowstone for, for decades.
So you're kind of like reading National Geographic. I mean, I think that's. Uh, essentially, yeah, probably, like, something like that, yeah, but like, it's super cool, like, he was, uh, he was an alpha, and, uh, it's about his, his rise, but it's so cool because it's like, like, literally, like, things are happening, I'm like, these are like, they're like people, they're like real life people, like, they have arguments, they, you know, have, like, marriages, they have, like, um, you know, battles, I'm like, it's super cool, um.
I always say this about my pets, they're just kids with fur. They are, right? They really are. They, they, they totally are. So like, Wolf 21, um, he has three of them that he's written about, uh, about different wolves. Uh, The Rise of Wolf 8, which is his first one, which I haven't read, and he has another one coming out, um, at some point soon, I imagine?
I don't know. I think it's like the Redemption of Wolf. I don't know, they don't have names, like they have numbers, because they're wolves. But they're like actual like wolves! It's like a wolf wolf! Um. But like, who, who numbered them? They could have named them. I mean, I mean, yeah. You want to name it Mikey?
Come on. But like, check this out, like, ready? Like um, wolf, wolf 21, leader of the druid pack, who is known for his unwavering bravery, his unusual benevolence, unlike other alphas, he never killed a defeated rival male, and his fierce commitment to his mate, the formidable wolf 42! Again, why are we numbering them
Why? I don't know. It's probably easier than, than naming them. Like, w what would you name an alpha? Like Well, you're Bob. Maybe you're wolf. You're wolf Bob. Like I do use Bob an awful lot in classes. I mean, that's Bob's a problem. That's fair. That's just so, you know, Wolf, Wolf Wolf 21 is not a problem. Uh, but it's actually, it's really interesting.
And I, I am, I'm a nerd. Like I don't care. Um, so if you're interested in wolves, and I am, I wanted a wolf for so long when I was a kid. Do you ever watch Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman? That's random. No. No. Oh, you missed out Dr. Quit Medicine Woman, uh, starring the, uh, inimitable, um, uh, um, Jane. Oh my goodness, what's her name?
I don't know, I know exactly who you mean though. Jane, Jane, Ah! Oh my god, this is embarrassing. Um, uh, uh, uh, Jane... Google! I'm working on it as we speak. I'm literally working on it as we speak. Jane... Seymour! That's her name, Jane Seymour. Thank you. I didn't think it was right. Oh yeah, Jane Seymour, the inimitable Jane Seymour.
Used to watch it, it was part of... It was part of our Saturday night watching schedule, uh, that when I was a kid, we used to watch, uh, Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman, uh, early edition, which was on after that, which is about a guy who had a newspaper from the following day, so he knew the future, and s s s saved people's lives, um, and, um, Uh, uh, occasionally when, what, before, oh before that, before that it was uh, uh, Touched by an Angel.
Don't tell me you didn't watch Touched by an Angel. How dare you. No, I didn't. How dare you. No, like all this like Dr. Quinn and Walker Texas Ranger. That was the last one we used to watch when I didn't, I wasn't into that stuff. stuff. I don't know. Walker Texas Ranger was amazing. But Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman was was, you know, it was good.
But anyway, one of the characters, a guy named Sully, I believe, um, he was Native American, and he had a wolf, he had a pet wolf. And I wanted that. I still want that. I don't even have a dog. I wanted a wolf. I still want a wolf. And, um, and I really wanted to, and I almost did, you know how you could like adopt like animals?
Yeah. Not like real life. For just 10 cents a day. Yeah, exactly. Thank you, Sarah McLachlan. You're welcome. And, um,
Copyright, stop it. Sorry. Um, and, uh, um, and so, um, you know, I, I wanted to adopt a wolf. So anyway, that's what I'm doing now. Oh, I thought you were just gonna say, now I'm adopting a wolf. No, I'm not, but I want to. I'll tell you what, when I finish this night, is that even still a thing? I'm sure you could still adopt a wolf, right?
I mean, probably. With the Wildlife Federation or something. And they'll send you like a little plush wolf toy. Yeah. And they'll tell you, here's a picture of your wolf, and like, oh, what's his name? They're like, his name is 21. 21, and I'll be like, the wolf 21? Could I have his paw graph? I mean, I don't know if they got that close to him.
But, uh, yeah. So now I'm gonna have to go to Yellowstone to meet the wolves. Um, I'm gonna be eaten by a wolf. Essentially, that's what I'm saying. That's, that's what's happening here. Um, and become a wolf. I am gonna put all the positive vibes your way. Thank you. Thank you. So that's what I've been doing with my life.
What have you been doing? Listening to you talk about your life. Uh, that's sad. For both of us. Really, for both of us. Yeah, sorry. Um, So yeah, so now you know a little bit more about me and how cool I am. Um, and how cool I've always been. Uh, yeah. So, uh, what can I say? What can I say? Anywho! Um, we had an email!
Someone, someone listen! Wait, we have fanmail? Yeah, well, I don't know if it's fanmail, but... Call it fan mail! Someone listened and sent us an email with questions and things like that. One person listened! Oh, thank you! Um, and so, uh, Kiana, uh, has sent us, uh, sent us an email with some questions, so I figured we'd answer them on the air because, uh, it's easier than responding to the email.
Uh, no. I figured we'd answer them on the air and then, uh, and then we'll see if she actually does listen or not. Right, that we're gonna find out. This is your test, Kiana. like, oh my god, I heard you answer my question, we'll be like, you actually are listening to us. Or, if it's like, why haven't you guys, uh, responded to my email, I'll be like, I didn't listen.
Because we did, on the pod. Thanks. So, um, she said, hi Josh and Marisha. Hi, Kiana. Thank you both for your advice on the podcast. Oh, you're so welcome. You're welcome. Josh, I appreciate your music background. Shaky at best. Most people probably don't. Um, so let's see. Couple questions for us. Uh, question number one.
Do you ever connect with a client or production team members on LinkedIn? Would they prefer a demo instead? What is a good time to connect with them? So, uh, as far as LinkedIn is concerned, it's a tool. It's a tool like anything else, and it can certainly be helpful. Obviously, if you're reaching out to someone through LinkedIn, I think you still absolutely need to have a demo.
Now, maybe you have a link from your LinkedIn page to your website, which has your demo on it. Maybe you actually uploaded your demo directly to LinkedIn. I don't know if you can do that. Yeah, you can. Oh, yeah. If you have a link to it, you can. So there you go. Uh, you can. Good. Um, um, so you can, you're certainly still going to want that because they're going to want, you know, not just to see what you've done and who you are, but they're also going to want to hear you.
So you're certainly still going to want to have the demo. No, as far as reaching out to them through LinkedIn versus just kind of sending out an email. To be honest with you, I think it probably just depends on the person receiving it, how they like to see things and how active they are on LinkedIn, um, and on other social media things like that.
Some people are much more than others. If they are active on it, then absolutely reach out to them that way. I think that's a perfectly fine idea. Um, and again, it tells them a little bit more about you. But make sure you still do have, uh, that, uh, that, that demo somewhere there so that they are able to listen to that because ultimately that is no matter what you say in there and the different things that you've done and how impressive they may or may not be, uh, they're going to want to hear you.
They're going to have to hear you. So. That's my thought on that. Yeah, I'm not a huge fan of LinkedIn, to be honest, but I feel like out of all of the social medias for, for what I've done primarily, which has been radio, like, I've always connected in a much better way on almost every other social media platform, but I know it comes in handy for people for all sorts of jobs.
Like, I've, I've had people get recruited off of LinkedIn without even trying. Oh, my, my wife, uh, uh... She works in HR now, but prior to that, she, she did recruiting for, um, for a financial company. And I mean, she used to scour LinkedIn and, uh, and help me make my LinkedIn page because mine was pretty not very good and it's better now.
Um, so yeah. So there you go. So yeah, I think it just depends on the person and it depends, like the field also as well. So I mean, if you've got a lot of people that you could find in, in this kind of, you know, voiceover. Field, then it could be beneficial. Absolutely. Absolutely. Again, make sure you still do have your demo there though.
Uh, reading out loud. I really feel like I'm learning to read. I mean, I hope you already knew how to read, but good, I'm glad, that's fantastic. I noticed when I started recording myself, I stumbled over my words more. How do you move past that? Ah, this is going to sound trite, but keep reading. Yeah, it's practice.
Honestly, that's really what it comes down to. You're not slipping up because you're recording. You may think that, it may be in your head a little bit, but that's really not what it's coming down to. Um, so it's all about continuing that, that out loud reading, continuing to, uh, you know, to, to improve upon that.
Um, and, you know, get to the point where it's not going to matter if you're recording or if you're not. It's just going to be completely muscle memory, and that's what we need to get to. Yeah, well, and I don't want to, like, go against what you just said, but I will say this, like, When you are doing something you are new at and all of a sudden you know that you've pressed the record button, it is a very subconscious like, like, you have like some inner nerves that you might not even be aware of.
Um, and I know that just because, like, I do songwriting too, and I've always been very scared to share any of it with people. I've shared it with very few people, and it's because when I go to press record, my, I just, Stiffen right up because I'm so used to being silly that being serious is not like it's just not me So and it's like sharing your diary too at the same point So like that that has always been that's what I've noticed for myself So that could be slightly for her just because it's new sure You know and but that is something that becomes a lot easier once you get going and it's because you're gonna get comfortable with what?
You're doing. Yeah, and I mean and the fact the matter is, you know at some point You know, having that record button pressed, being in the booth, it's not going to be as big a deal. It just won't, because you'll have done it so much. Um, it's never, you know, going to feel like you're in your room by yourself, just kind of.
Practicing, but there is no question that it is always going to be something, right? It's always going to, you know, you want to get to the point where it's, it's not, you know, are you recording? Yeah, no, who cares, right? Even for me, even, you know, uh, you know, doing those audiobooks when I go into my little, little closeted studio area.
Um, you know, I used to make a big deal out of it. A big song and dance, like, get ready, get prepared, do this, set up that, guess this, have that. And now I'm just eventually like, just get in there and just hit record and just let's go, let's go, let's move. Like, come on, we got stuff to do. Um, so it will, it will get easier.
No question about it. It will get easier. And a lot of that's just going to come with practice. But a lot of that is also going to come with time spent recording. Yep. Practice, time, skill building, comfortability. Uh, another question. With punctuation, such as parentheses and quotes, do you actually say quote unquote?
Or is this where I'm supposed to emphasize these words with my tune? Um, so in general, what I have found with quotes is that for the most part, I have not been.
It's gonna depend on the situation. It's also gonna depend on the producer of the project and what they're looking for, but I don't think I've ever had a quote unquote situation in my, in my time. Now, like the one book that I've done when they had quotes, they were like, so and so said. Yeah. You know, or, you know, They would say, like, you know, so and so was thinking, like, you know.
In the fiction book I just did, I mean, there's dialogue in there and you don't really do that for dialogue. Uh, now if it is there as kind of like an air quote type of situation, um, what I would do more instead of actually saying quote unquote is almost as if you were doing air quotes. Of course, they can't see you do that, I'm aware.
But, you know, that, that kind of little bit of, um, of emphasis on those words as if you were doing air quotes, right? So you can certainly make those air quote sounds without actually saying quote unquote. Same thing with parentheses. Um, same thing with parentheses. Usually it's going to be kind of an aside.
It's going to be something extra. It's going to be something, you know, said a little bit differently, but I don't think you necessarily need to, unless you're asked to, um, you know, quantify it with quote unquote. Or, open parenthesis, closed parenthesis, which I've never heard in my life. Yeah, so I think when it comes down to it, like, it kind of is what she asked about tone.
It's utilizing the emphasis and pitch in a different way. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. For sure. Absolutely. Uh, last one. Warm ups. Josh, I appreciate your a cappella experience. Do you though? Do you? Do you people appreciate my a cappella experience? I sure do. I thank you. Um, so you, uh, love Pitch Perfect. Me too. Uh, sang in choirs.
It's awesome. Outstanding. Now, here's the question. Do you find that warming up vocal cords similar to singing can help or is it too much strain? And Marissa, what warm ups do you find helpful? I found the tips, obviously there are tips in the, um, in the materials that we have. Now, let me preface this by saying that if you were to go back to Voice Coach's 29th.
Episode 464. Okay, that's episode four. You got real specific there. 64. Yeah. I literally talk about, this is before your timer, I mean, yeah, this is, this is Bmm before Mark. Yeah. 'cause your intro was March 19th. I'm looking at the, the master list here. Um, so this is pre Marissa, so this is just me. This is Josh Fly solo.
Um, and, uh, and I talk all about warmups, different types of warmups, different things you can do, um, and the, the benefit of them. Uh, so you can definitely go back and take a listen to that kind of, in a nutshell though, the answer is yes. Um, I do warmups the same way I used to do them when I would, uh, when I would be singing.
Um, you know, starting with kind of lip buzzing, starting with, um, you know, just kind of, uh, trying to get a little bit higher, a little bit lower, just kind of stretching it out a little bit. I don't always do it, but, uh, I did find, especially recently with the, the kind of massive amount of reading I was doing in the short amount of time, my voice was starting to, uh, to take a hit a bit, and I would need to.
to warm myself up. And it also depends on when you're recording. Uh, I know, Marissa, you and I talk, we joke that, you know, in the mornings we don't sound the same as we do morning. Like, that's the thing, is people have always been, always been like, um, so why don't you do morning radio? And I'm like, have you heard me in the morning?
Because you wouldn't be able to understand what my, my body reacts to what my schedule has always been. So, like, I did afternoons, like, for radio for a really long time. I was on the night show for a while. I did overnights. So, like, my body is just used to being more awake in the afternoon and night, and I feel like that's probably why I struggle to wake up in the morning.
But I will say this, too, I mean, anybody that's listened to this podcast knows that my voice does not wake up on Fridays for sure, uh, usually, but, you know, as I was starting here, because I was using my voice way more than I ever had, just teaching classes and doing the podcast, doing my own podcast, all these things, that.
I, I mean, I remember one day specifically, I thought I was okay, but I had said nothing at all in the morning because I live alone. Uh, so I was on my way here, and I realized, because I went to order a coffee or something, I was like, oh, oh dear God, I have no voice. So, The whole way here, I did vocal warm ups, like you were just saying, and it helped slightly.
Yeah. I was still squeaky as all heck, but I, you know, it definitely helped compared to what it was. No, and I think that's, I think that's important. Um, and so, so the answer is, is yeah, I mean, I think both of us do find warm ups helpful, um, in, in certain situations. And again, if you have experience with warm ups, you know, for, uh, you know, for your singing, then, then that's a great.
thing to lean upon, um, because you already have some experience. But like I said, go back to, uh, to the, to that episode back in the, uh, uh, back in, in the day, back in January. So again, that's January 29th. It's episode 464. Sorry, I won't be there. That's true. That's true. Um, this is before we were graced with your presence and our lives were Emptier.
Our lives are emptier. You can just say that you're blessed now. It's fine. It's true. It's true Hard to be stressed when you're blessed. Hey, hey, um, and uh, you know, it it it does go into more specific examples of that um, and um, you know kind of uh, Showing what what I personally do. Um, you know, and and certainly that's something you can You can copy, you can, you know, but you, but again, if you have experience, you know, with vocal warm ups it, honestly, it's no different whether it's singing, um, I mean, you say that, you know, is that going to be too, too straight, too much strain?
I, I don't know what you do for your vocal warm ups when you're singing, um, and if that is too much strain and if it is probably not a great warm up, but, um, just saying, uh, so no, it should not be too much strain, uh, depending. But you can take a listen back to, uh, to that episode and, uh, find out. By the way, if, if you have any questions that, that we haven't answered, obviously you can email us, like I said, like, uh, like Kiana did, and thank you, Kiana, for reaching out to us.
Um, but, uh, you can always do that, but if you have a lot of free time, you can scour the, the Voice Coaches Radio archives, and I'm sure you can find episodes that touch on pretty much every topic you can imagine. Um, I'd like to say we're breaking new ground. I don't think we are, Marissa. I really don't think we are.
Oh, come on. Sure we are. It's like music. No. It's like music. We are, we are. You're being, you're being hard on us. And I don't think that's okay. I mean, I'm just saying. Don't be our, our, our own worst critic. That's just, that's awful. I mean, listen. I don't want to start my weekend that way. Sorry. We're amazing.
Come on. We're awesome. Yeah. So good. So good. This episode is great. Um, so that would be, uh, that would be our answer to, uh, to that, Kiana. So thank you so much for reaching out and, uh, and thank you to all of you who have reached out, uh, and had questions. Some of which we've been able to Fan mail is good, questions are good as well, um, that we'd be happy to, uh, to discuss here on the podcast and then, uh, quiz you to see if you've been listening or not, um, because we're not sure if you are.
We're not sure. That's why the fan mail's important. It is. It makes us feel good about ourselves. That too. It makes us feel good about ourselves. Um, but, uh, but no, definitely reach on out, joshatvoicecoaches. com, that's the quickest and easiest way to reach out to us. Josh at voicecoaches. com. Get in touch with me or Marissa or anyone else here at voice coaches.
And, uh, we're happy to answer those questions or if you have any topics that you want us to cover, certainly happy to do that as well. Um, got, uh, some things in the works from some, uh, emails that we've gotten previously as well that I'm looking to, uh, to get out sooner than later, which will be good. Um, and then, uh, next week we're going to hear from, uh, another one of our, our newbies here, by the way, um, pretty sure the average age in this.
Uh, in this establishment dropped like 20 years. I do feel old now. Yeah, with like the new addition of the new people. Um, especially Katie and Jordan. Like, they're like, talking about like, Oh yeah, when I graduated college a couple years ago. And I'm like, Couple years ago. Oh, you crazy kids. Oh my word. I'm just glad I don't look my age.
That's all I'm getting at, you know? I look... I do. No, you don't. It's just the beard my man. It's gray. It's a gray beard. Only if you look close. I mean, thank you. So, uh, so yeah, so although I will say we're doing a lot of classes on zoom now Oh, that is not a great look for me. I love it. Oh, that is that is like I'm playing for the camera Every bring it on gray is just accentuated Also, I have to like wear clothes Oh, yeah, what's that about?
I don't know. I don't know like literally what I'll do it is just like put a button down shirt on No pants, no pants. No pants If i'm standing if you're seeing my pants like what what is happening in this zoom session? No, no pants. Why? Pants are over. I'm not wearing pants right now. I am What I am we're in the office, bro.
I had to I had to um, so uh, so awesome What's happening here? Uh, anyway, uh, so fantastic. So again, thank you. Thank you for you If anyone's still listening, and I, I honestly wouldn't blame you if you're not, uh, if anyone's still listening, thanks so much for listening to us this week and every week here on Voice Coaches Radio.
Uh, Marissa, thank you, I think? Um. Thanks for having pants on. I say, listen, you know what? It's the least I could do. It's literally. The least I could do. Um, Kiana, thanks for your question, and again, love to hear your questions, comments, concerns, uh, topics you'd like us to discuss, guests you'd like us to have us, uh, try to get, uh, joshatvoicecoaches.
com, let's hope we can do that. Uh, again, we'll hear from, uh, the newest member of the team, Jordan, next week, uh, but of course, uh, you know. We'll be here as well. All right. So hopefully you're tuning on there, Marissa. Thanks so much. Great to chat with you again, warmups in, uh, so we can, uh, we can do this again next week.
All right. So, uh, thanks so much for tuning in everyone. And until next time, so long, everyone. Visit voice coaches. com for more voiceover news and information.
This week, Josh and Marissa answer questions from a listener. Including questions about marketing. Questions about practicing. And questions about warming up.
