🎙️ So You Wanna Be a Voiceover Star?

What’s the most important skill in voiceover?

A voice so smooth it could sell ice to penguins?

A trendy tone that screams “I do National Geographic in my sleep”?

The ability to mimic any accent, including a 6ft 7 Martian with a lisp?

Sure, those are fun party tricks. But let’s get real.

People ask, “What do I need to make it in voiceover?” A fancy studio with more foam than a latte? An agent who lives on either coast and drinks oat milk? A U87 mic that costs more than your first car?

These are all popular answers—and technically, they’re not wrong. But here’s the twist: voiceover is a creative jungle gym, and while those answers are “valid” (yes, I looked it up—means “logically sound”), they’re not gospel. In this world, there’s rarely a right or wrong. Just a whole lot of weird, wonderful ways to play with words.

🧠 The Real Question: What Makes Us Listen?

Humans crave connection. Even introverts like me who treat small talk like a horror movie. I have the attention span of a squirrel on espresso, which means if you don’t hook me fast, I’m mentally reorganizing my sock drawer.

But when someone tells a story that grabs me? Time vanishes. I’m spellbound. And afterward, I always wonder: what sorcery was that?

Turns out, it’s not sorcery. It’s storytelling. And it boils down to five magical traits that can make even a phonebook sound riveting. (Okay, maybe not riveting. But at least mildly intriguing.)

🧙‍♂️ The Five Traits of a Voiceover Wizard

1. Empathy

You’ve got to “get” people. Make them feel seen. Heard. Hugged by your voice.

Most scripts start with a problem—your job is to sound like you’ve lived it. Even if you haven’t. Never had athlete’s foot? Imagine the emotional trauma of itchy toes and channel that energy.

2. Enthusiasm

No, you don’t have to sound like a caffeinated game show host. Just think about the last time you discovered something amazing—like fiber internet or a burrito that changed your life. That genuine excitement? That’s the vibe. Not “used car salesman.” More “friend who just found the holy grail of Wi-Fi.”

3. Make the story a gift

Newsflash: this ain’t about you. Your voice is just the wrapping paper for the script’s gift. You’re the human equivalent of a gift bag—fancy, but nobody’s here for the bag. Even if the script’s so boring it makes watching paint dry feel like a rave, you gotta deliver it like it’s the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Leave your ego at the door, or it’ll trip over your mic stand.

4. Believability

People can smell fake from a mile away. If you sound like you’re reading a script while thinking about lunch, they’ll tune out faster than my kids when I say, “Let me tell you something important. ”You don’t have to know the product. Just find a parallel. I know nothing about gas analyzers (a product a narrate 12 times a year. But I know electricity. So I channel my inner Bill Nye and pretend gas is just spicy, crackly, static filled air.

5. Vulnerability

Leave a piece of yourself in the story. Find the part of the script that makes you feel something—anything. Even in a 15-second spot, there’s room for emotion. Vulnerability isn’t weakness. It’s the secret sauce that makes people lean in and say, “I believe you.”

🎧 The Struggle Is Real

This stuff isn’t easy. It’s exhausting. Frustrating. Sometimes you’ll want to throw your mic out the window and become a llama farmer. But when it clicks? When the story flows and the listener is hooked? It’s pure magic.