"Hello. I'm Johnny Cash" (A surprise throwback pic)

 This picture of me and Mr. Cash was totally unexpected and not planned.

It was my day to host and emcee on behalf of our radio station WIRK from the South Florida Fair in West Palm Beach. Typically, you'd have a matinee show under the big tent at 4 PM and then an evening show at 8PM. We had an RV off the midway with a live microphone back to the main station so we could go on the air from the fair and yack for a minute or so to get people to come out to see the entertainment;most of it country music stars.

A station photographer and friend of mine ("Sam") was at the ready and yelled, "Hey John!" as we were going up the stage stairs. We both looked over and he snapped this cool picture of the two of us. I forgot all about it until Sam brought it by the station a few days later and gave it to me. I was honored to be on the same steps with "The Man In Black." He's quite an imposing figure! Now if only I could sing like him! A  real treasured photo.   

                                                                                

"Let's Get Physical!"

 Some of us remember the Olivia Newton John song, "Physical," from way back when. It was a song full of sexual tension and play. Here's the chorus line.

"Let's get physical, physical, I wanna get physical, let's get into physical. Let me hear your body talk, your body talk, let me hear your body talk." 

Why am I posting this on a voice over blog? Folks are often surprised to see all the physical movements that voice actors use in the booth. Established Hollywood stars often find voice over quite challenging. That makes sense. Think about it. If you're on camera, you have both sound (your voice) and visual (body movement) coming into play. With voice over, visual is not a factor. So, there's that additional requirement of needing to convey the emotion through words alone. Not always an easy task.

Beginning voice over artists are often told by their coaches to go ahead and get physical. (Not the kind Olivia sang about, but you get the idea). Move those hands! (the exception might be if you're recording a very low energy piece of copy). Make those facial expressions as you voice! It all comes through in the recording. So it should come as no surprise to see voice actors gesturing a lot in the recording booth. Watching an animation recording session is particularly loaded with actors using body language to the max for high energy reads.

Here's an experiment. Grab some copy for an auto dealership ( or write a paragraph or two) where the direction is "High energy-over the top" with the delivery. You've no doubt heard these hard sell spots on your TV. (Yep, the loud, annoying ones). Now, put both your hands in your pocket and try voicing with that high energy direction in mind. I'm sure you'll find that the hands in your pocket will clamp you down considerably. It's much more productive to get those hands moving as you read. It's the same reason why many VO artists record standing up. Sitting down can cramp your style. Studies have shown there is a direct correlation between your vocal chords and body movement. 

When I was in high school, I used to get teased for talking with my hands. When I entered the voice over world, I realized that talking with your hands can make you money. Not a bad trade.

So, go ahead, get physical when you voice that copy!