VC Radio
Voice Coaches Radio Episode #692 “Unforgettable Voice over Jobs”
John: [00:00:00] Well, hello my friends. I am John.
Tina: And I'm Tina.
John: And this is Voice Coaches Radio and it's episode six ninety two. We're gonna call this episode. Memorable. Memorable. Yeah. Memorable. Voiceover jobs. Uh,
Tina: unforgettable.
John: Unforgettable. That's even better. Unforgettable, voiceover jobs, let's call it that. I like it.
Cool. All right, so Tina, why don't, why don't you tell me, I mean, you've done so many jobs, but tell me about the jobs you remember the most. Uh, and it was funny if it was tragic. Hopefully funny, funny. Would be much better than tragic.
Tina: Yes, I know. It was not tragic. Um, it was just a different experience. I'm gonna have to say that, but it stands out only because I, I did this read for Microsoft, had no idea it was Microsoft until I got down to, I had to record in New York City in a studio at New York City and.
I think I was expecting, like what we [00:01:00] see here as a studio, so, you know, it's just purposely music, voice acting. It basically was like, um, an office building and so I, and an office floor. So I went into the building and got to the floor and walked in and, um, there's cubicles all over the place. And then in the back of the office space was, um, where I was gonna record.
Like in a phone booth, which is the craziest thing. 'cause all sides were glass and I wasn't expecting the client to be there. And I didn't know it was Microsoft until I got there and they handed me the script and they said, here, sit down. Here's the script you're gonna read. Uh, we'll be with you in a little bit.
So like 25 minutes later, but I'm reading this and I'm going, okay, woo. Microsoft, this is great. Okay, I can handle this. So they, they walk me to the back and there's that phone booth. All glass engineer sits on the right side, right to me, in front of me. And then the client. [00:02:00] Was right there. The Microsoft big wigs were right in front.
And that's when I have the nervousness. You know, you're just like, 'cause normally I'm okay, you know, I'm used to being in a studio. I do radio. I'm in used to all this. And I, I just saw and, and I just started sweating like crazy. Like, so I'm in there and I'm doing the read and everything's going smoothly and I, I can't remember what it was, but whatever word it was.
It all of a sudden came out with a very long island sound. I don't know what it could be, car, I don't know, but maybe I was going ka or something like that. I had, and, and the engineer was really great and he was just like, he goes, we just gotta pick that up. 'cause that all of a sudden hit. And I, so what we had to do was we had to go back and forth and he had to say, car.
And then I went car, car, car. Until it finally came out. But it, the good thing was I. Because of my personality. I was, I was very nervous, but when I get nervous, I, I talk and joke around a lot. So that's when I started, I [00:03:00] was getting nervous 'cause I couldn't get the word car down. Right. And it was like, kept coming out ka kaka and I'm like, oh my goodness.
I was just, and so that's why I started joking around with the Microsoft people and I figured, you know what? I don't care. I'm just gonna joke around with them. The good thing is they had a good sense of humor. I mean, but they're all in suits. Even the woman there, she's in a, you know, business attire, you know, and I'm just like, oh my goodness.
I'll tell ya. I walked out of there. Drenched. Drenched, but it was just, I could not get it. But finally, I think after five minutes of repeating car, I got the word car to come out, not ka. And they were really good sports about it. But that, that was, that will always stand out in my mind. Always.
John: Oh, that's a good, yeah, that's good.
I, I had one, I was in the studio. It wasn't for that. Particular job. Mm-hmm. And this can happen. This is interesting. So you never know. So you could be in a studio and get pulled into another job. Mm-hmm. Which happened to me. So they, there was this, um. There was a client there doing a, i, I don't know if I wanna call an action [00:04:00] figure.
Mm-hmm. I don't think it, because it is not an action figure. I guess it's a doll. Maybe it was. It was, it was, uh, they were doing this doll called Beerman, which was to be sold in Spencer's gifts, which I think it was sold in Spencer's gifts for years. And they had a voice actor there already. Mm-hmm. And for whatever reason, the voice actor just wasn't working.
So, uh, I was on my way out and they said. Hey, did you wanna try this? We need a voice actor for this year here. Did you want, uh, give this a try? I said, yeah, sure. This, this sounds great. And so I, um, I went in and so now a little background. I, I, I was younger then and. Uh, not too much younger, but I was younger.
This is a pretty long time ago, and I, uh, my entire childhood I wrestled at a high level. So I wrestled in high school. I wrestled in college, and so I didn't drink a lot. Mm-hmm. And, you know, uh, until I was probably 25 years old or something, you know, so I didn't really drink. Uh, and so where other kids were out partying?
Yeah, yeah. I wasn't doing any of that. I was running Or you [00:05:00] a sports guy? Yeah, so, so, uh, I, I get into the booth, they didn't gimme a lot of anything. I get into the booth, put headphones on, they go okay. Uh, here's what you're gonna do. We want you to sing 99 bottles of beer on the wall, just the first verse, right?
So I, so they didn't put anything in front of me, and I said, because I'd never sang this song in my life. Didn't, I didn't drink as a, as a younger person. And so I looked through the glass and I said, okay. Um. How's it go? And the, and the producer goes, come on. And I go, no. I really, I, I really don't know.
Tina: Yeah.
John: How it goes. I, I, I, I never sang the song. Mm-hmm. And, and he said, okay. So he sings it to me, you know, so he goes, now here's the direction they give me. We want you to sound buzzed, not drunk. Wow. Want you to sound buzzed, not drunk. And I said, okay. Okay. And then they s And so, and I sing it, right? Mm-hmm.
And now, here's the thing, I forget because again, it's the first time mm-hmm. I've ever [00:06:00] Yeah. Sang the song. I forget. There's one less bottle Yeah. At the end, right? Because the bottle or whatever happens, it falls off the wall or whatever. Yeah. And so at the, at the very end, they go, I go 99, oops. 98 bottles of beer on the wall.
And they go. Perfect. Oh, one take, they kept it, they added a hiccup. They added a hiccup sound effect after I went, oops. They added a hiccup and they put it in the doll and it was sold to Spencer's gifts for like years.
Tina: Oh my goodness. That's hysterical.
John: Yeah. Yeah. So it was, uh, it was, yeah, just, it was, there's an example of, you know, getting, getting lucky I guess, and getting a job, but, but, um.
Yeah, and it was weird. And so now I know the song, you know? Yes. In case I ever have to do it again. Beer Man gets an update because I don't think it's being sold anymore. Yeah, it was a long time ago. Who knows? Maybe it is. Uh, and um, but you know what's funny about that? People ask me all the time, do you, how many do you have?
I go, none.
Tina: Yeah.
John: Like that's not when, when I like do my, like when I talk to people and they ask me what kind of work I've done, Beerman never comes up. Yeah. Like I'm not [00:07:00] like, well, and by the way, you probably know me from Beerman.
Tina: It's Beerman
John: Beerman. And so it never comes up. So I was like, I have none of them.
They're like, I'm bought like 10 of those things. I'm like, what? No, I absolutely don't need that dollar. Like, you know, that's not something I'm like, Hey guys, look, here's your Christmas present in my voice singing nine, nine bottles of beer. So, yeah.
Tina: Oh, like I'm googling it to see if it's still available.
John: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So that, that was
Tina: beer man.
John: Yeah. Any more? Any other ones?
Tina: Oh my goodness. I, I think the one other one, there's, so there was two that, that with the Microsoft. The other one was, and I think I told this with Marissa, um, about going in, um. And getting copy. And you know, my background is radio. So when I first started doing voice acting, commercial copy is just a little different between what they hand you from the production director at a radio station to what, when you're doing voice acting.
And I think I was just so used to, you know, being 25 years in radio and then making [00:08:00] this switch and turning, I was just in that radio frame of mind. I get the copy for a commercial. And I just look at it and I go, I made a comment of like, this is not written good.
John: Don't do that, by the way.
Tina: Don't you do that.
Don't
John: do that.
Tina: Do not ever do that. Do not. It happened. So the guy who hired me, which was the producer, um, I, I just kind, I, when I said it, I looked up at him and. Saw the look on his face, and I went, oh my God, I can't believe I just said that. You know, am I, and I'm like, oh, but I can work with it. I, you know, I'm trying, you know, and I'm just like, so, so the thing is, I, we ended up doing it.
It turned out good. They were, ended up really high, but I knew right then and there, no, do not, just look at that. Keep all thoughts to yourself. You can ask questions, you know, on how you want it delivered, but if it's not written, if it looks like you're going, huh? Listen, they've been looking at that. They look at that over and over and over again.
So that's the copy [00:09:00] that they give you. That's the one you want. Do not make any comments.
John: Yeah, definitely not. That is something I always, that's funny. Do as I say, not as I do.
Tina: Yeah. Yeah. Oh my goodness. I'm like, but everything else has been great.
John: I had another one, but as a producer, I, I, so I get to produce the voiceover for this animated film.
Well. Okay, so it's so, so, so it was a movie called Get A Grip, which is actually making the rounds right now. This is funny. It was a long time ago. Mm-hmm. But it's making the rounds right now at all the, all the um, like what do they call the movie festivals?
Tina: Oh,
John: yeah, yeah, yeah.
Tina: Like, um, yeah, I know what you're talking about.
John: Yeah. But this was quite a while ago, but I, I produced the voiceover for, there was a, there was a part of the movie that went into animation. And, uh, now again, here's an example of, uh, the kind of, sometimes you're surprised by what you're doing. Like they, yeah, they're very vague. Hey, we want you to produce.
Yeah. The voiceover for this animated clip in this movie, it is only like a three minute animated clip. Um, so the voice actors [00:10:00] come in and it was a, a man and a woman. And what here's, uh, the premise of this is they, they fall in love and the movie kind of. Transitions all of a sudden into animation where, okay, they're both superheroes.
They fly up in the air.
Tina: Oh wow.
John: Mm-hmm. They start making out
Tina: wait while they're flying
John: weather, ma, and, and it gets worse than that.
Tina: Oh, oh,
John: yes. So they basically make love as superheroes in the air, oh, this, oh my goodness, this is the voiceover I'm supposed to produce. So, uh, as I'm watching it, I'm, I'm like, oh boy.
Uh, there's gonna be something. And then it turns out also that the animation was done by someone who was French.
Tina: Oh,
John: so the mouth
Tina: Yeah.
John: Doesn't match up with the script. Exactly. There's like extra syllables here and there because you know, when someone who's French speaks English, they might
Tina: mm-hmm.
John: Say a little differently.
So I had to [00:11:00] change the script as we went along to make it make sense. But here's what got weird. Mm-hmm. It's not weird enough already. Yeah. So, so first, uh, the female voice actor went in, she did all of hers. Mm-hmm. And there was quite a bit of moaning and things like that. Oh my. I also had to capture.
Yeah. Um, it wasn't quite pornographic, but mm-hmm. It was close. You're on that edge. It was, it was, yeah. It was, uh, so, so there was quite a bit of moaning and smooching and all of that that she did besides some of the, some words. Mm-hmm. Um, she comes back in, the guy goes in and the guy. Is really stiff. Like he, he Yeah.
Forgive the, that I don't mean that that way, by the way. Uh, Tina has a very nice, very dirty Mindy. Uh, no, that's not what I meant as, uh, you know, as in, uh, he was awkward. Yes. Seemed nervous.
Tina: Yeah.
John: And, and, uh, so I. I was, I was trying to coach 'em through it. Mm-hmm. Which is weird for me too. Yeah. 'cause I'm trying to do demonstrative direction, which is very strange in [00:12:00] that mm-hmm.
With that script.
Tina: So that one It is.
John: And, and so then they realized that I felt like I was very awkward. Mm-hmm. And they, and so the, the voice actors, especially the female voice actor, realized quickly that I felt really awkward doing this. Mm-hmm. Particular script. And so she started kind of. Teasing me.
She goes, Hey, you know what, maybe it'd be easier if I go in there with 'em and help 'em. I'm like, no, no, no, no, no, no. That would not be easier. And, and then I realized she was teasing me. She was like, smiling. I'm like, oh, I get it. I get it very funny. I'm like,
Tina: no, no, no, no. Please don't.
John: So it was, uh, so that was the, the, the, a funny but most awkward one for me.
Tina: Yeah.
John: Um, but that movie is making the, the awards. Rounds, I guess it's like, uh, these, you know, movie festivals where people win awards and things. Yeah. So, but, but, but I, but it was funny is that was a long time ago. Yeah. That was, um, I bet you that was. It had to be at least 15 years ago, maybe longer.
Tina: Oh, wow.
And it's just coming out. That's crazy.
John: Well, no, it had [00:13:00] come out before it was released already. It's on IMDB and all that. But, so it had been out, but then I think I, I think they re-released it for like, all these film festivals all of a sudden.
Tina: That's crazy. Oh, all right. We're gonna have to watch this just for that part.
John: So, so that, yeah, that was, that was, that was, uh, one of the probably wildest and, uh. I, I will say I like, I always think to myself, if they had told me the entire scope of what was gonna happen, would I have accepted that job?
Tina: Oh yeah. Would
John: job was, and I guess I probably would've, because I don't have. Like there's, you know, I don't know if there's any jobs.
I would be like, well that's not true. If it was like triple X, I definitely be No, absolutely not. Yeah. Um, but I probably still would've done it 'cause it's worth the story. Oh
Tina: yeah. It's,
John: it's worth the story anyway, you know? Uh, so yeah. So yeah, those are the two for me that really stick out. Yeah. Like when people ask the, the strangest jobs, I think those are the two that really, uh, stick out.
Um, [00:14:00] I mean, do you have any others or is that
Tina: No, those are the two. Everything else that's has been pretty smooth, you know? Yeah. Going into a booth has been pretty smooth, you know, it just Yeah. But that, those are my two.
John: Yeah. I, I haven't had any, I think those are the two for me too. It's funny that we both have two of 'em.
Tina: Yeah.
John: But I, I, I did have a voiceover job not that long ago. Mm-hmm. Um, for a client where. This is how I talk. Mm-hmm. Like I'm talking right now how I talk.
Tina: Yeah. Just so you ever,
John: and so they gave me a script and I, and I did it like this. Like this is, this is my voice.
Tina: Yeah.
John: And the clients kept saying, Hey, can you sound a little less announcer?
Like,
Tina: Hmm.
John: And I, and I was thinking, oh boy, this is, this is me though. Yeah. Like, I'm not, I'm not going, dude, I'm not doing this. I'm not like, Hey, this is John. You know, I'm, I was talking like I'm talking now. And he kept saying, this is your voice. Your voice just sounds announcer. Like, huh. And I'm like. I'm like, okay.
And so I was like, then I was like, all of a sudden I'm like, in my head
Tina: yeah.
John: I'm like raising the picture of my voice. Like, okay, like I'm, I'm like, I don't know what's going on. This is my [00:15:00] voice. Uh, and so we eventually did get the job done, but I was like, I, it like messed me up for a while. 'cause I was like, wait a minute, this is my normal voice.
I'm not putting anything on.
Tina: Yes.
John: And so, yeah, that was, uh. That was a bizarre one. And it, and it was a, uh, a kind of a serious piece. Uh, wasn't a lot of Yeah. There was no joking around in it. So, but it was for like pain management or something, so Yeah. But I'm still like, blown away. I was like, I'm not doing anything with my voice that's announcer.
Like,
Tina: are you in pain?
John: Yeah. Are so, are you in pain? Like, I wasn't doing that. I was just doing it like this. Uh, so, uh, but you, you know, you have to listen to the client. It was the client too, not the producer. The client was like, can it sound a little? I was like, okay. Yeah, you just, and you know, you have to kinda like.
As a, as a voice actor, that's part of this.
Tina: Yeah.
John: You know, you, you don't have to agree. It's not up to you.
Tina: No.
John: You just have to take that direction and go, okay. And then. Do your best and Yeah. You know, it took, took a while. It was like, it was funny 'cause usually like, uh, it was like a 62nd spot. I consistently, at this point in my career, can get 62nd spots done in like 15 minutes.
Tina: Yeah.
John: [00:16:00] This one took like a full hour. I was like, I felt like I was new again. You know, it was like, they're just so specific and
Tina: Yeah. That's just so crazy. I don't hear that announcer voice. I don't hear that at all.
John: Yeah. I mean, I don't know. I didn't think, uh, but you know, it's, uh. I, I don't know, maybe it was weird 'cause they picked me based on my demo.
So they heard my demo.
Tina: So they heard the voice that you're doing. They heard the voice. Yeah. You're not, you weren't doing anything announcer in there again.
John: But, you know, sometimes clients just want something very specific. 'cause I've had that happen before where, um, I had a, I was doing a video game and, uh, the, the person doing the video game, the creator of the video game said, do you know any voice actors?
It was great 'cause I get to bring people in. Mm-hmm. So they said, do you know any voice actors who sound. Uh, like, I think it was 30, 30 years old.
Tina: Mm-hmm.
John: I said, yeah, actually I do. I said, I, I have this voice actor I know really well that that is 30 years old. Mm-hmm.
Tina: Yeah.
John: He was 30 years old.
Tina: Sounds 30. Yeah.
John: So he came in and the guy goes, he sounds like super old, by the way. He didn't, yeah, he sounded 30. [00:17:00] This guy was 30 years old. He sounded 30. And he goes, he just sounds super old. And I'm thinking, what? This is wild. And so this voice actor, same thing goes, okay, I can sound younger. And he did like a younger voice and it sounded like he was in his teens.
I mean it really good.
Tina: Yeah.
John: And the creator of the video game goes perfect. And I go, how? Just, I don't usually ask this, but
Tina: Yeah.
John: How old are you? 'cause they patched him in. We, we, we didn't see him. Yeah. And he goes, well, I'm 21. I go, ah, ah. So to a 21-year-old, 30 is ancient. You know what I mean? Yeah. It was perspective, right?
Mm-hmm. So this 21-year-old was thinking, this guy sounds so old, but he was 30, he sounded 30, and he wanted him to sound. His idea of what 30 sounds like, sounds like. Which really was like young sounding.
Tina: Yeah. Alright, so I get it.
John: Yeah. Yeah. So that was weird. But that was, uh, again, that wasn't really on me.
I was, I felt bad for this, but he, he took it in stride. Real professional.
Tina: Yeah.
John: He was like, he was like, he, this guy just sounds really old. And, and the guy didn't bat an eye. He was like, okay, yeah, I can sound younger.
Tina: Yeah, that's good that he didn't take it heart. [00:18:00] He was just like, all right, give what?
Alright, lemme try something else.
John: Yeah. Yeah.
Tina: That's
John: good. Did this voice, that totally sounded like. S an animated, like an animated show. Mm-hmm. Of a teenager. Yeah. And the guy, and this, this person who was like, I love it. Perfect. Like, wow. All right. Sounds good.
Tina: Well, that's a lot of times that's, well that's what I tell students too.
You might get in there with one way. They will have you do one way, you know, and then they listen to it and then go, you know what, let's try it a whole different way. 'cause we want something different. You know, because the just, they listen to your voice and their script and say, okay, you know what? Let's go younger.
Let's go older, something like that. Yeah. So you have to be prepared for that.
John: You do. And they change the script all the time too. Oh yeah. That happens all the time. Sometimes it's, and and I tell people, don't take it person like it, because sometimes,
Tina: yeah,
John: it's not. It is your voice, by the way. Mm-hmm. But in a positive way, they'll say like, they love your voice.
So they'll say, okay, you know what? This doesn't work with her voice.
Tina: Yeah, yeah.
John: So let's, and, and sometimes once people start to trust you, they'll even ask you. Mm-hmm. They'll say, how would you say this? Like, this doesn't sound right. This doesn't sound right with [00:19:00] your voice. How would you say this? Uh,
Tina: yeah,
John: I bet that happen many times.
And I'm like, okay, well I would probably say it like this. Okay, let's try that. And they're like, oh, perfect. You know, so, yeah. You know, and never take a per, I always, I know it's hard. I think, I think it's hard for anybody in the arts in general. Mm-hmm. Right? Yeah. In any creative industry, we tend to take it personally because, uh, many times anything we do that's creative, um, we feel like it's a piece of us.
Tina: Yeah. Yeah.
John: But voice acting is very different. You're kind of the, you know, you're the clay, right? Mm-hmm. That they're going to try to mold and sometimes you'll think of something, you'll do it, and they'll love it, but sometimes they won't.
Tina: Yeah.
John: And, and you have to be able to go, okay. Hey, I'm not the one paying the bills here.
You know, they're paying me, so, mm-hmm. That's my job. And, and, and I, I've, I've, I've witnessed, as a producer, I've witnessed the people I'm directing, getting not happy, starting to get, like, they, like the more direction I give them, the more like they're like. You know, and you don't wanna do that. You don't ever want ab Yeah.
'cause those people, I, I go, oh, I don't really wanna work with this person again. 'cause when I give [00:20:00] them direction
Tina: mm-hmm.
John: They just don't take it very well.
Tina: Yeah.
John: And so always be careful with that. Always just listen, you're, you're the clay, you're mm-hmm. It is a collaborative effort. Mm-hmm. I wanna, I always try to make that clear.
Listen, I appreciate voice actors who are creative as part of your job title. Mm-hmm. Right. It's read out loud. Be creative, take direction. Yeah. I, I, so I appreciate your creativity and sometimes you will do something that I didn't think of that I might not even like at first, but when I play back, I go, Ooh, that works.
Mm-hmm. But don't get upset. If I don't like something that you're doing. Yeah, yeah. You know, as a voice actor, you have to kind of really let it roll off your shoulders. I think it's the ultimate, the, the ultimate test of being a Buddhist.
Tina: Yeah.
John: You have to be a voiceover Buddhist.
Tina: Yes,
John: you do. You know, you have to be like, okay, sounds, yeah.
Whatever. Sounds good. Let it roll off your back. It's hard. I know. So there we go. I think. I think that's a good episode. It's an episode. Episode
Tina: too.
John: Yeah. Unforgettable jobs. And I hope you, uh, I hope everyone out there enjoyed that one. Um, I haven't got to tell those stories [00:21:00] in a while, so that's good.
That's good. Awesome. Well, uh, thank, I wanna thank everybody very much for listening. Once again, something we forget to do, I won't forget this time. Mm-hmm. If you have ideas for episodes, yes. If you have any questions. Mm-hmm. If you have any comments, uh, you can reach out to me at john [email protected].
Again, John [email protected]
Tina: or [email protected]. Simple.
John: There you go. All right. We out
Tina: out.
Tina: And I'm Tina.
John: And this is Voice Coaches Radio and it's episode six ninety two. We're gonna call this episode. Memorable. Memorable. Yeah. Memorable. Voiceover jobs. Uh,
Tina: unforgettable.
John: Unforgettable. That's even better. Unforgettable, voiceover jobs, let's call it that. I like it.
Cool. All right, so Tina, why don't, why don't you tell me, I mean, you've done so many jobs, but tell me about the jobs you remember the most. Uh, and it was funny if it was tragic. Hopefully funny, funny. Would be much better than tragic.
Tina: Yes, I know. It was not tragic. Um, it was just a different experience. I'm gonna have to say that, but it stands out only because I, I did this read for Microsoft, had no idea it was Microsoft until I got down to, I had to record in New York City in a studio at New York City and.
I think I was expecting, like what we [00:01:00] see here as a studio, so, you know, it's just purposely music, voice acting. It basically was like, um, an office building and so I, and an office floor. So I went into the building and got to the floor and walked in and, um, there's cubicles all over the place. And then in the back of the office space was, um, where I was gonna record.
Like in a phone booth, which is the craziest thing. 'cause all sides were glass and I wasn't expecting the client to be there. And I didn't know it was Microsoft until I got there and they handed me the script and they said, here, sit down. Here's the script you're gonna read. Uh, we'll be with you in a little bit.
So like 25 minutes later, but I'm reading this and I'm going, okay, woo. Microsoft, this is great. Okay, I can handle this. So they, they walk me to the back and there's that phone booth. All glass engineer sits on the right side, right to me, in front of me. And then the client. [00:02:00] Was right there. The Microsoft big wigs were right in front.
And that's when I have the nervousness. You know, you're just like, 'cause normally I'm okay, you know, I'm used to being in a studio. I do radio. I'm in used to all this. And I, I just saw and, and I just started sweating like crazy. Like, so I'm in there and I'm doing the read and everything's going smoothly and I, I can't remember what it was, but whatever word it was.
It all of a sudden came out with a very long island sound. I don't know what it could be, car, I don't know, but maybe I was going ka or something like that. I had, and, and the engineer was really great and he was just like, he goes, we just gotta pick that up. 'cause that all of a sudden hit. And I, so what we had to do was we had to go back and forth and he had to say, car.
And then I went car, car, car. Until it finally came out. But it, the good thing was I. Because of my personality. I was, I was very nervous, but when I get nervous, I, I talk and joke around a lot. So that's when I started, I [00:03:00] was getting nervous 'cause I couldn't get the word car down. Right. And it was like, kept coming out ka kaka and I'm like, oh my goodness.
I was just, and so that's why I started joking around with the Microsoft people and I figured, you know what? I don't care. I'm just gonna joke around with them. The good thing is they had a good sense of humor. I mean, but they're all in suits. Even the woman there, she's in a, you know, business attire, you know, and I'm just like, oh my goodness.
I'll tell ya. I walked out of there. Drenched. Drenched, but it was just, I could not get it. But finally, I think after five minutes of repeating car, I got the word car to come out, not ka. And they were really good sports about it. But that, that was, that will always stand out in my mind. Always.
John: Oh, that's a good, yeah, that's good.
I, I had one, I was in the studio. It wasn't for that. Particular job. Mm-hmm. And this can happen. This is interesting. So you never know. So you could be in a studio and get pulled into another job. Mm-hmm. Which happened to me. So they, there was this, um. There was a client there doing a, i, I don't know if I wanna call an action [00:04:00] figure.
Mm-hmm. I don't think it, because it is not an action figure. I guess it's a doll. Maybe it was. It was, it was, uh, they were doing this doll called Beerman, which was to be sold in Spencer's gifts, which I think it was sold in Spencer's gifts for years. And they had a voice actor there already. Mm-hmm. And for whatever reason, the voice actor just wasn't working.
So, uh, I was on my way out and they said. Hey, did you wanna try this? We need a voice actor for this year here. Did you want, uh, give this a try? I said, yeah, sure. This, this sounds great. And so I, um, I went in and so now a little background. I, I, I was younger then and. Uh, not too much younger, but I was younger.
This is a pretty long time ago, and I, uh, my entire childhood I wrestled at a high level. So I wrestled in high school. I wrestled in college, and so I didn't drink a lot. Mm-hmm. And, you know, uh, until I was probably 25 years old or something, you know, so I didn't really drink. Uh, and so where other kids were out partying?
Yeah, yeah. I wasn't doing any of that. I was running Or you [00:05:00] a sports guy? Yeah, so, so, uh, I, I get into the booth, they didn't gimme a lot of anything. I get into the booth, put headphones on, they go okay. Uh, here's what you're gonna do. We want you to sing 99 bottles of beer on the wall, just the first verse, right?
So I, so they didn't put anything in front of me, and I said, because I'd never sang this song in my life. Didn't, I didn't drink as a, as a younger person. And so I looked through the glass and I said, okay. Um. How's it go? And the, and the producer goes, come on. And I go, no. I really, I, I really don't know.
Tina: Yeah.
John: How it goes. I, I, I, I never sang the song. Mm-hmm. And, and he said, okay. So he sings it to me, you know, so he goes, now here's the direction they give me. We want you to sound buzzed, not drunk. Wow. Want you to sound buzzed, not drunk. And I said, okay. Okay. And then they s And so, and I sing it, right? Mm-hmm.
And now, here's the thing, I forget because again, it's the first time mm-hmm. I've ever [00:06:00] Yeah. Sang the song. I forget. There's one less bottle Yeah. At the end, right? Because the bottle or whatever happens, it falls off the wall or whatever. Yeah. And so at the, at the very end, they go, I go 99, oops. 98 bottles of beer on the wall.
And they go. Perfect. Oh, one take, they kept it, they added a hiccup. They added a hiccup sound effect after I went, oops. They added a hiccup and they put it in the doll and it was sold to Spencer's gifts for like years.
Tina: Oh my goodness. That's hysterical.
John: Yeah. Yeah. So it was, uh, it was, yeah, just, it was, there's an example of, you know, getting, getting lucky I guess, and getting a job, but, but, um.
Yeah, and it was weird. And so now I know the song, you know? Yes. In case I ever have to do it again. Beer Man gets an update because I don't think it's being sold anymore. Yeah, it was a long time ago. Who knows? Maybe it is. Uh, and um, but you know what's funny about that? People ask me all the time, do you, how many do you have?
I go, none.
Tina: Yeah.
John: Like that's not when, when I like do my, like when I talk to people and they ask me what kind of work I've done, Beerman never comes up. Yeah. Like I'm not [00:07:00] like, well, and by the way, you probably know me from Beerman.
Tina: It's Beerman
John: Beerman. And so it never comes up. So I was like, I have none of them.
They're like, I'm bought like 10 of those things. I'm like, what? No, I absolutely don't need that dollar. Like, you know, that's not something I'm like, Hey guys, look, here's your Christmas present in my voice singing nine, nine bottles of beer. So, yeah.
Tina: Oh, like I'm googling it to see if it's still available.
John: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So that, that was
Tina: beer man.
John: Yeah. Any more? Any other ones?
Tina: Oh my goodness. I, I think the one other one, there's, so there was two that, that with the Microsoft. The other one was, and I think I told this with Marissa, um, about going in, um. And getting copy. And you know, my background is radio. So when I first started doing voice acting, commercial copy is just a little different between what they hand you from the production director at a radio station to what, when you're doing voice acting.
And I think I was just so used to, you know, being 25 years in radio and then making [00:08:00] this switch and turning, I was just in that radio frame of mind. I get the copy for a commercial. And I just look at it and I go, I made a comment of like, this is not written good.
John: Don't do that, by the way.
Tina: Don't you do that.
Don't
John: do that.
Tina: Do not ever do that. Do not. It happened. So the guy who hired me, which was the producer, um, I, I just kind, I, when I said it, I looked up at him and. Saw the look on his face, and I went, oh my God, I can't believe I just said that. You know, am I, and I'm like, oh, but I can work with it. I, you know, I'm trying, you know, and I'm just like, so, so the thing is, I, we ended up doing it.
It turned out good. They were, ended up really high, but I knew right then and there, no, do not, just look at that. Keep all thoughts to yourself. You can ask questions, you know, on how you want it delivered, but if it's not written, if it looks like you're going, huh? Listen, they've been looking at that. They look at that over and over and over again.
So that's the copy [00:09:00] that they give you. That's the one you want. Do not make any comments.
John: Yeah, definitely not. That is something I always, that's funny. Do as I say, not as I do.
Tina: Yeah. Yeah. Oh my goodness. I'm like, but everything else has been great.
John: I had another one, but as a producer, I, I, so I get to produce the voiceover for this animated film.
Well. Okay, so it's so, so, so it was a movie called Get A Grip, which is actually making the rounds right now. This is funny. It was a long time ago. Mm-hmm. But it's making the rounds right now at all the, all the um, like what do they call the movie festivals?
Tina: Oh,
John: yeah, yeah, yeah.
Tina: Like, um, yeah, I know what you're talking about.
John: Yeah. But this was quite a while ago, but I, I produced the voiceover for, there was a, there was a part of the movie that went into animation. And, uh, now again, here's an example of, uh, the kind of, sometimes you're surprised by what you're doing. Like they, yeah, they're very vague. Hey, we want you to produce.
Yeah. The voiceover for this animated clip in this movie, it is only like a three minute animated clip. Um, so the voice actors [00:10:00] come in and it was a, a man and a woman. And what here's, uh, the premise of this is they, they fall in love and the movie kind of. Transitions all of a sudden into animation where, okay, they're both superheroes.
They fly up in the air.
Tina: Oh wow.
John: Mm-hmm. They start making out
Tina: wait while they're flying
John: weather, ma, and, and it gets worse than that.
Tina: Oh, oh,
John: yes. So they basically make love as superheroes in the air, oh, this, oh my goodness, this is the voiceover I'm supposed to produce. So, uh, as I'm watching it, I'm, I'm like, oh boy.
Uh, there's gonna be something. And then it turns out also that the animation was done by someone who was French.
Tina: Oh,
John: so the mouth
Tina: Yeah.
John: Doesn't match up with the script. Exactly. There's like extra syllables here and there because you know, when someone who's French speaks English, they might
Tina: mm-hmm.
John: Say a little differently.
So I had to [00:11:00] change the script as we went along to make it make sense. But here's what got weird. Mm-hmm. It's not weird enough already. Yeah. So, so first, uh, the female voice actor went in, she did all of hers. Mm-hmm. And there was quite a bit of moaning and things like that. Oh my. I also had to capture.
Yeah. Um, it wasn't quite pornographic, but mm-hmm. It was close. You're on that edge. It was, it was, yeah. It was, uh, so, so there was quite a bit of moaning and smooching and all of that that she did besides some of the, some words. Mm-hmm. Um, she comes back in, the guy goes in and the guy. Is really stiff. Like he, he Yeah.
Forgive the, that I don't mean that that way, by the way. Uh, Tina has a very nice, very dirty Mindy. Uh, no, that's not what I meant as, uh, you know, as in, uh, he was awkward. Yes. Seemed nervous.
Tina: Yeah.
John: And, and, uh, so I. I was, I was trying to coach 'em through it. Mm-hmm. Which is weird for me too. Yeah. 'cause I'm trying to do demonstrative direction, which is very strange in [00:12:00] that mm-hmm.
With that script.
Tina: So that one It is.
John: And, and so then they realized that I felt like I was very awkward. Mm-hmm. And they, and so the, the voice actors, especially the female voice actor, realized quickly that I felt really awkward doing this. Mm-hmm. Particular script. And so she started kind of. Teasing me.
She goes, Hey, you know what, maybe it'd be easier if I go in there with 'em and help 'em. I'm like, no, no, no, no, no, no. That would not be easier. And, and then I realized she was teasing me. She was like, smiling. I'm like, oh, I get it. I get it very funny. I'm like,
Tina: no, no, no, no. Please don't.
John: So it was, uh, so that was the, the, the, a funny but most awkward one for me.
Tina: Yeah.
John: Um, but that movie is making the, the awards. Rounds, I guess it's like, uh, these, you know, movie festivals where people win awards and things. Yeah. So, but, but, but I, but it was funny is that was a long time ago. Yeah. That was, um, I bet you that was. It had to be at least 15 years ago, maybe longer.
Tina: Oh, wow.
And it's just coming out. That's crazy.
John: Well, no, it had [00:13:00] come out before it was released already. It's on IMDB and all that. But, so it had been out, but then I think I, I think they re-released it for like, all these film festivals all of a sudden.
Tina: That's crazy. Oh, all right. We're gonna have to watch this just for that part.
John: So, so that, yeah, that was, that was, that was, uh, one of the probably wildest and, uh. I, I will say I like, I always think to myself, if they had told me the entire scope of what was gonna happen, would I have accepted that job?
Tina: Oh yeah. Would
John: job was, and I guess I probably would've, because I don't have. Like there's, you know, I don't know if there's any jobs.
I would be like, well that's not true. If it was like triple X, I definitely be No, absolutely not. Yeah. Um, but I probably still would've done it 'cause it's worth the story. Oh
Tina: yeah. It's,
John: it's worth the story anyway, you know? Uh, so yeah. So yeah, those are the two for me that really stick out. Yeah. Like when people ask the, the strangest jobs, I think those are the two that really, uh, stick out.
Um, [00:14:00] I mean, do you have any others or is that
Tina: No, those are the two. Everything else that's has been pretty smooth, you know? Yeah. Going into a booth has been pretty smooth, you know, it just Yeah. But that, those are my two.
John: Yeah. I, I haven't had any, I think those are the two for me too. It's funny that we both have two of 'em.
Tina: Yeah.
John: But I, I, I did have a voiceover job not that long ago. Mm-hmm. Um, for a client where. This is how I talk. Mm-hmm. Like I'm talking right now how I talk.
Tina: Yeah. Just so you ever,
John: and so they gave me a script and I, and I did it like this. Like this is, this is my voice.
Tina: Yeah.
John: And the clients kept saying, Hey, can you sound a little less announcer?
Like,
Tina: Hmm.
John: And I, and I was thinking, oh boy, this is, this is me though. Yeah. Like, I'm not, I'm not going, dude, I'm not doing this. I'm not like, Hey, this is John. You know, I'm, I was talking like I'm talking now. And he kept saying, this is your voice. Your voice just sounds announcer. Like, huh. And I'm like. I'm like, okay.
And so I was like, then I was like, all of a sudden I'm like, in my head
Tina: yeah.
John: I'm like raising the picture of my voice. Like, okay, like I'm, I'm like, I don't know what's going on. This is my [00:15:00] voice. Uh, and so we eventually did get the job done, but I was like, I, it like messed me up for a while. 'cause I was like, wait a minute, this is my normal voice.
I'm not putting anything on.
Tina: Yes.
John: And so, yeah, that was, uh. That was a bizarre one. And it, and it was a, uh, a kind of a serious piece. Uh, wasn't a lot of Yeah. There was no joking around in it. So, but it was for like pain management or something, so Yeah. But I'm still like, blown away. I was like, I'm not doing anything with my voice that's announcer.
Like,
Tina: are you in pain?
John: Yeah. Are so, are you in pain? Like, I wasn't doing that. I was just doing it like this. Uh, so, uh, but you, you know, you have to listen to the client. It was the client too, not the producer. The client was like, can it sound a little? I was like, okay. Yeah, you just, and you know, you have to kinda like.
As a, as a voice actor, that's part of this.
Tina: Yeah.
John: You know, you, you don't have to agree. It's not up to you.
Tina: No.
John: You just have to take that direction and go, okay. And then. Do your best and Yeah. You know, it took, took a while. It was like, it was funny 'cause usually like, uh, it was like a 62nd spot. I consistently, at this point in my career, can get 62nd spots done in like 15 minutes.
Tina: Yeah.
John: [00:16:00] This one took like a full hour. I was like, I felt like I was new again. You know, it was like, they're just so specific and
Tina: Yeah. That's just so crazy. I don't hear that announcer voice. I don't hear that at all.
John: Yeah. I mean, I don't know. I didn't think, uh, but you know, it's, uh. I, I don't know, maybe it was weird 'cause they picked me based on my demo.
So they heard my demo.
Tina: So they heard the voice that you're doing. They heard the voice. Yeah. You're not, you weren't doing anything announcer in there again.
John: But, you know, sometimes clients just want something very specific. 'cause I've had that happen before where, um, I had a, I was doing a video game and, uh, the, the person doing the video game, the creator of the video game said, do you know any voice actors?
It was great 'cause I get to bring people in. Mm-hmm. So they said, do you know any voice actors who sound. Uh, like, I think it was 30, 30 years old.
Tina: Mm-hmm.
John: I said, yeah, actually I do. I said, I, I have this voice actor I know really well that that is 30 years old. Mm-hmm.
Tina: Yeah.
John: He was 30 years old.
Tina: Sounds 30. Yeah.
John: So he came in and the guy goes, he sounds like super old, by the way. He didn't, yeah, he sounded 30. [00:17:00] This guy was 30 years old. He sounded 30. And he goes, he just sounds super old. And I'm thinking, what? This is wild. And so this voice actor, same thing goes, okay, I can sound younger. And he did like a younger voice and it sounded like he was in his teens.
I mean it really good.
Tina: Yeah.
John: And the creator of the video game goes perfect. And I go, how? Just, I don't usually ask this, but
Tina: Yeah.
John: How old are you? 'cause they patched him in. We, we, we didn't see him. Yeah. And he goes, well, I'm 21. I go, ah, ah. So to a 21-year-old, 30 is ancient. You know what I mean? Yeah. It was perspective, right?
Mm-hmm. So this 21-year-old was thinking, this guy sounds so old, but he was 30, he sounded 30, and he wanted him to sound. His idea of what 30 sounds like, sounds like. Which really was like young sounding.
Tina: Yeah. Alright, so I get it.
John: Yeah. Yeah. So that was weird. But that was, uh, again, that wasn't really on me.
I was, I felt bad for this, but he, he took it in stride. Real professional.
Tina: Yeah.
John: He was like, he was like, he, this guy just sounds really old. And, and the guy didn't bat an eye. He was like, okay, yeah, I can sound younger.
Tina: Yeah, that's good that he didn't take it heart. [00:18:00] He was just like, all right, give what?
Alright, lemme try something else.
John: Yeah. Yeah.
Tina: That's
John: good. Did this voice, that totally sounded like. S an animated, like an animated show. Mm-hmm. Of a teenager. Yeah. And the guy, and this, this person who was like, I love it. Perfect. Like, wow. All right. Sounds good.
Tina: Well, that's a lot of times that's, well that's what I tell students too.
You might get in there with one way. They will have you do one way, you know, and then they listen to it and then go, you know what, let's try it a whole different way. 'cause we want something different. You know, because the just, they listen to your voice and their script and say, okay, you know what? Let's go younger.
Let's go older, something like that. Yeah. So you have to be prepared for that.
John: You do. And they change the script all the time too. Oh yeah. That happens all the time. Sometimes it's, and and I tell people, don't take it person like it, because sometimes,
Tina: yeah,
John: it's not. It is your voice, by the way. Mm-hmm. But in a positive way, they'll say like, they love your voice.
So they'll say, okay, you know what? This doesn't work with her voice.
Tina: Yeah, yeah.
John: So let's, and, and sometimes once people start to trust you, they'll even ask you. Mm-hmm. They'll say, how would you say this? Like, this doesn't sound right. This doesn't sound right with [00:19:00] your voice. How would you say this? Uh,
Tina: yeah,
John: I bet that happen many times.
And I'm like, okay, well I would probably say it like this. Okay, let's try that. And they're like, oh, perfect. You know, so, yeah. You know, and never take a per, I always, I know it's hard. I think, I think it's hard for anybody in the arts in general. Mm-hmm. Right? Yeah. In any creative industry, we tend to take it personally because, uh, many times anything we do that's creative, um, we feel like it's a piece of us.
Tina: Yeah. Yeah.
John: But voice acting is very different. You're kind of the, you know, you're the clay, right? Mm-hmm. That they're going to try to mold and sometimes you'll think of something, you'll do it, and they'll love it, but sometimes they won't.
Tina: Yeah.
John: And, and you have to be able to go, okay. Hey, I'm not the one paying the bills here.
You know, they're paying me, so, mm-hmm. That's my job. And, and, and I, I've, I've, I've witnessed, as a producer, I've witnessed the people I'm directing, getting not happy, starting to get, like, they, like the more direction I give them, the more like they're like. You know, and you don't wanna do that. You don't ever want ab Yeah.
'cause those people, I, I go, oh, I don't really wanna work with this person again. 'cause when I give [00:20:00] them direction
Tina: mm-hmm.
John: They just don't take it very well.
Tina: Yeah.
John: And so always be careful with that. Always just listen, you're, you're the clay, you're mm-hmm. It is a collaborative effort. Mm-hmm. I wanna, I always try to make that clear.
Listen, I appreciate voice actors who are creative as part of your job title. Mm-hmm. Right. It's read out loud. Be creative, take direction. Yeah. I, I, so I appreciate your creativity and sometimes you will do something that I didn't think of that I might not even like at first, but when I play back, I go, Ooh, that works.
Mm-hmm. But don't get upset. If I don't like something that you're doing. Yeah, yeah. You know, as a voice actor, you have to kind of really let it roll off your shoulders. I think it's the ultimate, the, the ultimate test of being a Buddhist.
Tina: Yeah.
John: You have to be a voiceover Buddhist.
Tina: Yes,
John: you do. You know, you have to be like, okay, sounds, yeah.
Whatever. Sounds good. Let it roll off your back. It's hard. I know. So there we go. I think. I think that's a good episode. It's an episode. Episode
Tina: too.
John: Yeah. Unforgettable jobs. And I hope you, uh, I hope everyone out there enjoyed that one. Um, I haven't got to tell those stories [00:21:00] in a while, so that's good.
That's good. Awesome. Well, uh, thank, I wanna thank everybody very much for listening. Once again, something we forget to do, I won't forget this time. Mm-hmm. If you have ideas for episodes, yes. If you have any questions. Mm-hmm. If you have any comments, uh, you can reach out to me at john [email protected].
Again, John [email protected]
Tina: or [email protected]. Simple.
John: There you go. All right. We out
Tina: out.
John and Tina talk about voice over jobs they’ve done that are unforgettably amusing.
