Mike Lenz Voice - A Journey Into Voice Acting

Tawny Platis is not only a fellow voice actor but also a fellow podcast creator who hosts her very own 'The Dirty Bits' podcast.  Having started her own brick and mortar business right out of high school, Tawny gained a wealth of business knowledge that served her so well as she transitioned into voice-overs, coaching, and podast production.  So much good stuff on this episode!

I had a great time talking with VoiceZam creator Bob Merkel about his amazing product.  You'll find out that VoiceZam is so much more than a great demo player - it's a marketing resource to help propel your VO career, no matter where you are in your journey!  And be sure to listen all the way through to get a discount code to try out VoiceZam for free!  I love this product and Bob is truly committed to helping the voice-over industry.  Enjoy!

A collaborative artist like Julie Slack is driven to elevate your brand.   Julie Slack instinctively and technically knows how to bring out the best in your words, your story, and your vision so that your message resonates with your core consumers.   And those who have partnered with Julie will tell you that once you’ve worked with her, you'll always go back to her.  

Who is Monk? And why is he seen so often in a kilt? We'll get to that in a moment. First off, I am a voice actor and storyteller. From the stage to the screen to a quiet booth. Bringing a story to life is what I love to do. That script could be about a far-off land filled with mystical dragons, or a quick explanation of how your new online banking app functions. A voice over that conveys trust and honesty. My work has received Addy and Telly awards and I've received a couple of awards for my stage work as well. I record at Lodge Studios, a fully equipped Voice Over studio with iPDTL and Source Connect connections to the outside world.  So how did I get here? After 6 years of fixing helicopters for the USAF, I jumped into broadcast school, and after a couple of radio stations, switched to animation and film work. From there I hit the stage and moved from behind the camera to in front of it. I started singing and performing, and the storytellingand narration followed. When I approached my first agent, he threw

An established NYC producer at Pomann Sound once said Joan was his favorite "all-rounder."  Joan Franzino has been a professional voice actor since the mid-90's and she's done it all (well, almost).  Her home studio is top notch and upgraded regularly, her software and editing skills are the bomb, and you'll get your audio licketty split, swear.  She's cast as the young mom, the smooth spokesperson, that sober sound in your head, the voice that makes your sales training sound easy, she can do a slick delivery in your car spots, or that sexy voice with a girl-from-next-door slant.     On-camera, she's just as flexible.  She has tons of experience with teleprompters, and is trained and practiced with an ear-prompter.  On screen, She've been cast as a business woman, a perky spokesperson, mom, middle-aged beauty, and an easy-to-understand guide for your complex corporate message/training. 

Cameron has been pursuing the craft of acting since discovering its transformative effect at a young age. He comes from a family with a strong background in professional theatre. As a young adult he attended the Governor’s School of North Carolina as well as the University of North Carolina School of the Arts during his senior year of high school, both with acting concentrations. Up until this point Cameron had also been developing skills in voice over at two south eastern companies: Procomm Studios and Sunspots Productions. While training at Rutgers, Cameron delved into interpreting Shakespeare’s texts at the Rutgers Conservatory at Shakespeare’s Globe in London. While there, he participated in the annual Sam Wanamaker Festival, a celebration of Shakespeare’s plays performed by students from the UK’s acting conservatories. Most recent credits include a co-starring role in the season 3 premiere of the Emmy Award winning show Bloodline.

You know the voice that describes the benefits of owning an Electrolux washer? That’s Natasha. That voice who shares events overhead at that casino you visited in Upstate New York? That’s her, too. How about the voice that soothes you to calm while waiting on hold? There’s a good chance it’s Natasha’s voice. More than a decade in voiceovers, two decades in performance and three decades in customer service, Natasha adds professionalism and finesse to a video, a presentation, commercial copy…even voicemail.  Natasha’s voice is described as a "Compassionate, Mom-Next-Door"; "Warm, 30-something, Business Professional"; Conversational, with a neutral-accent, natural, friendly, articulate with feeling and sincerity... You have found an experienced voice-over talent, capable of handling a large scope of professional voice recording jobs, at a price that does not include fees to third party web marketplaces. Hiring Natasha means hiring a seasoned voice to interpret a script that you need recorded competently and …don

Mike Lenz recaps 2017 and offers some exciting discount codes for helpful voice-over courses!

Rodney Saulsberry is the voice of choice for behind-the scenes narration. This Detroit native and University of Michigan Graduate, is one of the premier voice-over talents in the country. He is also a published author with three bestselling books, You Can Bank on Your Voice, Step Up to the Mic and his latest release, Rodney Saulsberry's Tongue Twisters and Vocal Warm-Ups. Saulsberry’s distinctive announcer voice is literally everywhere. He has announced promos for the ABC hit Dancing With The Stars and the ABC critically acclaimed Charlie Brown Christmas Special. He announced the 34th NAACP Image Awardsand the Essence Awards specials on FOX Television and voiced promos for the Grammy Awards and Country Music Awards for CBS. Rodney can be heard currently announcing promos for the CW Network in primetime. As one of the top trailer voices in the business, Rodney’s voice has promoted many favorites: Red Tails, Tupac Resurrection, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Friday After Next, Dru

Jordan Reynold's voice is based in Los Angeles, California but has been heard all over the world. Voicing internationally known companies such as AT&T, BMW, Sprite, and Cisco - to voice dubbing celebrities - to screaming as various video game characters - to guiding thousands of customers on hold - to explaining hundreds of new startup businesses products online. His voice encompasses a broad spectrum from cool and conversational to a diverse body of engaging characters. Jordan produces voice over demos for some of the top voice actors today: demoswithchops.com He also played a key role in designing the Roswell Pro Audio RA-VO microphone: A high quality microphone made specifically for voice over.

Nicole Britton - I'm a voice actor who manages to jam 23 years of acting experience into my tiny booth every day; my passion for performance filters into everything I do . I am skilled in voiceover for Narration, e Learning, Corporate Training, IVR and Commercials and have a bevy of Characters and Kid voices on the tip of my tongue. I am proud to be a chicken "clucking " aficionado ;) Represented by RSH Management and Voice Hunter, proud member of World-Voices.org and SAG-AFTRA. ​ After studying theater at CU/Boulder, I headed straight for the Big Apple to continue learning my craft at Playwright's Horizons Theater School. While working with award winning theatre companies such as Ensemble Studio Theatre and Blue Light Theater Company, I cultivated a diligent work ethic and an ability to interpret scripts and bring them to life. ​ In Los Angeles, I worked as an actor and a stilt walker (yes, you read that correctly.) These outlets presented opportunities to travel the world whilst being creative. Never a dul

Mike Lenz interviews Edge Studio CEO, David Goldberg. Information about Edge Studio: We are VoiceSTA certified. We have 1000+ clients, 20+ years experience, and 0 complaints ever registered in the Better Business Bureau. Currently I oversee all areas of our business. I interact with everyone in the office daily to ensure that every customer is receiving the best possible experience. I am directly involved with marketing, production, casting, sales, career building, and internal operations. I am always available to customers and make certain that each is treated as though they are the the most important one that Edge Studio has regardless of how much money they spend. * Started a recording studio by myself and continued to grow the operation to a team of very impressive experts * Partnered with related businesses to further expand the suite of services offered to customers * Pride myself on only being an email or phone call away from any customer with any question or concern they have * Currently have three

For over 20 years Matt has specialized in concert promotion, promo, commercial, corporate, and Radio and TV imaging. Most recently the promo voiceover for ABC's "The View". Matt has had the pleasure of working with most of the major networks. He voices local and regional campaigns for Shane Co Jewelers, Subway, Crew Car Wash, Grange Insurance, Boost Mobile, Microsoft and hundreds of corporate narration's and product promotional social network videos. Matt's studio is equipped with broadcast-quality recording equipment. Connect via ISDN, Source Connect, or have your file of choice transferred directly to your computer.

Evan is a millennial (born in 1990) and he loves telling a story, especially yours. In 2006, Evan narrated his first self-produced documentary, inspired by a chance meeting with ski filmmaking legend Warren Miller. Since then, he has lent his signature sound to hundreds of projects around the world. He also hosts a podcast where he explores the question, "What makes creative people creative?" It's called the Get Creative Podcastand it can be found wherever you get your podcasts.

Hi, I'm Mike Lenz.   I'm a professional voice actor, the author of Paid To Talk - A Journey Into Voice Acting, and the host of a popular podcast, Mike Lenz Voice - A Journey Into Voice Acting.  I really appreciate you stopping by! I love being a voice actor and helping clients give voice to their projects, but my life didn't always look this way.  In fact 10 years ago my life looked a lot different than it does today. Back then I was running my small brick and mortar business and serving as Mayor of my hometown.  I'd been involved in politics for about 10 years and really thought that politics was my future.  I’ve always been a creative person and I enjoyed the communication part of serving as Mayor - speaking to groups, and doing radio and television interviews.  But honestly, the pressure was draining every creative bone in my body.  Fortunately for me, I lost my re-election bid, and although I was disappointed at the time, that event forever changed the course of my life and led me down the path to th

Mike Lenz interviews voice actro and audiobook narrator Tom  Jordan. I started voiceovers in 1994 – before the internet. I did some computer-based-training voiceovers that paid the rent for a few months, but was living and working in Long Beach, CA and these were the days before people had in-home studios, so whenever I had to audition, I had to drive to LA – in LA traffic! It just didn’t seem worth it at the time. Fast-forward to 2002 and the internet now allows home studios and emailing MP3s – a huge breakthrough. I start soliciting my VO skills to local cable TV providers – ones that had in-house video production. Got several gigs around the nation – mom and pop stores, mostly – TV and radio gigs. This was fun, but three kids and a full time job took priority. I had done corporate narration in addition to copywriting as my day gig for several years and, in May 2016 finally decided to turn my VO experience into something that could feed me in retirement – still many years off, but I needed to start som

Elise Napier is a graduate from the University of Southern California, where she earned a BA in Psychology with a minor in Neuroscience and Theatre. She is looking to continue to learn and pursue all avenues in the entertainment industry, specifically voice over acting. She's a quick learner, dedicate worker, and thrive with organization and color coordination. For more information please contact her at elisenapier2@gmail.com or visit elisenapier.com. 

About me: Hey, I'm Tim. I'm a husband and a father, first and foremost. I've spent over 3 years in the podcasting space, learning everything I could about what makes a podcast great. Prior to getting into this arena, I spent my time touring the country with a band of my best friends (including Liam, one of our project managers here). We got the opportunity to play on MTV, at the Bamboozle, on Warped Tour, and various other opportunities for not-so-humble brags. My background is in sales and marketing -- both online and off, and that's allowed me to help podcasters get amazing results. I've also been the voice for many incredible companies like TOMY Toys, Disney, AT&T, The Travel Channel, The UFC, Expedia, Honda, and more. I'm a nerd, and wouldn't have it any other way... and I eat, sleep, and breathe Syracuse sports (GO ORANGE!) For more information on this and other episodes, head over to mikelenzvoice.com

Audible Best Selling Narrator, Andrea Emmes was born in Hollywood, FL and grew up in both Tennessee and Rhode Island, started her career in musical theater. Cutting her teeth at The Trinity Arts Center in Rhode Island, Andrea eventually made her way to Orlando and began her eclectic career singing/dancing in various shows at Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, Pirates' Dinner Adventure, performing as a magician's assistant, headlining on the Las Vegas Strip and touring Los Angeles as an L.A. Award winning artist with her album, "I'm On My Way".   Having worked in tv, film and video games, Andrea, a total Book Nerd, now enjoys narrating audiobooks at her home studio in San Jose, California. Her wide range of character voices and dynamic/emotionally invested performances has reviewers and listeners alike commenting on how she effortlessly pulls listeners in, and has versatility and charisma. Fun Facts: Andrea has a Bachelor of Science in Game Art and Design; was a game designer for Disney Interactive; once

I’m a voice actor–which basically means that I love to talk–whether it be narration for commercials, documentaries, instructional films, industrial videos, trailers; or imaging voiceovers for promos and radio stations around the country; or IVR (phone prompts and messaging services) for phone directories; or any other kind of VO! I’ve voiced campaigns for Acura, Honda, Primerica, Akamai, Schlage Locks, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Roche Molecular Diagnostics, YAMAHA drums, Vic Firth drumsticks, Atlanta Institute of Music, Cleveland Indians, Cleveland Browns, Georgia Lottery, Southeastern Conference, Sportstime Ohio, and many more! In radio, I’ve been the imaging voice for 94.7 WDSD, WWTX 1290 AM, The Ken Coleman Show on WDUN 550 AM, and Lonestar 92.9 KDCD FM.