Voice Acting

For as long as I can recall, I've always been drawn toward sound.  My mother tells me that when I was a child as young as 3, I would sing along to records (yes, we had actual record players, and no I'm not that old) and actually be on key.


Every child is asked what they want to be when they grow up.  At 26, I ask myself that question more frequently and more seriously now than I ever did in the past.  Well, I don't believe everyone can achieve their dream job; quite frankly, society wouldn't allow it.  A character from the1999  movie Office Space posed a relevant question to his friends: If you had a million dollars and could do whatever you want every day, what would you do (implying that this should be your career path)?  David Herman's character, comically named Michael Bolton, said, "there'd be no janitors, because no one would clean up shit if they had a million dollars."


If my fate was not to clean shit up, and I could have any dream job, I would be a voice actor.  Watching and listening to videos of Dan Castellaneta, Harry Shearer, Nancy Cartwright, and Hank Azaria (the chief voice actors of The Simpsons) and Billy West, Tress MacNeille, and Maurie LaMarche (all of whom do multiple voices for Futurama) is inspiring to me.

Billy West

Futurama's Billy West is a particular "voice-hero" of mine.  On the show, he voices Fry, Professor Farnsworth, Doctor Zoidberg, Zapp Brannigan, and others here and there.  In the past, he has voiced Ren and Stimpy, "Doug," Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Woody Woodpecker, Popeye, the red M&M, the Honey Nut Cheerios Bee, and more (to anyone dumb enough to think so: no, he was not the original Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, etc.).


A voice I learned over the past couple years is one that I call the "throat singing voice," or "kargyraa voice."  It is one that I learned from watching Tuvan/Mongolian throat singers.  Once I figured out how to replicate it (on a VERY BASIC level), I discovered I could imitate the voice of a metal vocalist named Olve Eikemo (a.k.a. "Abbath") from the Norwegian band Immortal, who has such a deep voice, it sounds nearly frog-like.  I've even employed this technique a bit in my own metal project Strix Nebulosa.  After watching videos and interviews with Billy West, I discovered that Tuvan throat singing was the inspiration for his teaching himself Popeye's voice.

Kargyraa Throat Singing

Granted, every job on earth has its annoying aspects.  I don't believe there is such thing as a completely easy, cushy job.  Still, I cannot quite imagine what a bad day is like in a voice acting studio.  Getting a sore throat?  Repeating things over and over?  Maybe getting yelled at by a director for misinterpreting his "vision"?


From what I've been told, saying "I want to be a successful voice actor" is very much like saying "I want to be a movie star."  It's just not something that happens a lot.  I can think of two people I've talked to who have done voice acting - one of them did one radio commercial, the other one gets voice acting work every once in a blue moon.  Like film acting, steady work comes as a comprehensive resume is built, as good press is accumulated, and as an actor's name is well-marketed.


Most voice actors are theatrically trained, vocally trained, or both.  I am neither.  Since I wish to make more music in my life anyway, I believe it might be time to get some vocal training once I can afford it.


So kids, here's the moral of the story: if you're going to be a janitor some day, there's nothing wrong with that.  The world needs you.  However, you can still follow your dream at least on some level.