How I Help Hire Female Voice Talent Without Making It Complicated
I’ve been a professional voice actor for a very long time.
One of the benefits of doing anything for a very long time — besides having stories nobody asked to hear — is that you get to know a lot of talented people.
That’s especially true in voiceover.
Over the years, producers and clients have regularly asked me some version of this question:
“Peter, do you know a good female voice talent?”
Yes. I know quite a few.
And when I’m helping someone find a female voice talent, I’m not simply looking for somebody with a nice voice. There are thousands of people with nice voices.
I’m looking for someone who understands what the script is trying to accomplish, takes direction well, has the right recording setup, delivers professional audio and — this is important — makes the producer’s job easier rather than harder.
Here’s how I approach it.
I start with the voiceover project, not the voice
Before I start thinking about talent, I want to understand what the voice actually needs to do.
Is this a commercial that needs energy without sounding like somebody is selling steak knives?
A corporate narration that needs authority without sounding like the principal just called you into her office?
An explainer that needs to make something complicated understandable?
Healthcare? E-learning? Character work? Social media? IVR?
“Female voice” isn’t a direction.
I want to understand what we’re communicating, who we’re communicating it to and what that audience should take away from it.
That’s where I start.
I listen for interpretation, not just sound
Obviously, I listen to demos.
But I’m listening for more than what somebody sounds like.
I’m listening for whether she understands what she’s saying.
Does she interpret the copy? Does she make choices? Does it sound like she’s communicating something rather than simply reading words nicely?
That’s acting.
Even when nobody gets chased by a dinosaur or dramatically dies in Act III.
I pay attention to professionalism
The best voice in the world isn’t especially useful if the deadline is tomorrow and the talent disappears.
I want to know that I’m recommending a professional.
Can she deliver broadcast-quality audio? Can she work in a directed session when necessary? Does she respond promptly? Can she handle pickups? Does she understand usage and the business side of professional voiceover?
None of that is glamorous.
All of it matters to the producer whose name is attached to the project.
I consider whether the voice actress is easy to work with
This one matters to me.
Talent is important.
So is being a good colleague.
I usually recommend people I know and, in most cases, people I’ve actually worked with. That’s important because when I recommend a voice talent to a producer (female OR male), I’m putting a little bit of my own reputation on the line, too.
I want to know that the woman or man I’m recommending is going to be prepared, professional and pleasant to work with — because I’ve seen them be those things.
The goal isn’t merely to get a good recording.
It’s to recommend someone I trust to help the producer get the job done without making things complicated.
Then I let the producer decide
This is important too.
I’m not interested in becoming the middleman.
I can point a producer toward talented female voice actors I know and trust. The producer can listen, decide who fits the project and contact that person directly.
That’s why I created audio’connell’s Female Voice Talent page as an audio production resource.
It’s a curated group of professional female voice actors I’ve known or worked with, with demos and direct links to the individual talents.
There’s no audio’connell booking fee.
There’s no commission on the voiceover project.
I don’t stand between the producer and the talent.
No need for me to “worry about me” in there.
I just help make the introduction easier.
Both sides know where to find me because that’s how they found each other.
After more than four decades in voiceover, I’ve learned that finding good people shouldn’t be the hardest part of producing good work.
audio’connell Voiceover Talent offers producers a free, direct-to-talent resource for finding and hiring professional female voice talent. Browse audio’connell’s Female Voice Talent roster and contact the talent you choose directly.
