Less than a year after our enormous investigation into the AI invasion, we are back to report on its first big battleground. A VO in Canada is suing social media giant TikTok over the alleged theft of her voice, and as she womans the barricades, we take a second look at how the UK government is getting on with the boringly-named-but-actually-terribly-important Beijing Treaty… Here are a couple of fun things to do: Find out about straw phonation! All the cool kids are doing it, so join our...

At the risk of turning all Pop Will Eat Itself, we've decided to share the award entry that got us nominated for Best Business Podcast in the British Podcast Awards 2021! Big thanks to VO Socialites Natalie Winter, Dave Jones, Andrew Dennis, Amina Koroma, Millie Jones and Alice King for your wonderful contributions. Get 15% off your Studiobricks booth at Black Cat Music by using the Secret Password, VO Social Pod Cats Theme tune written and performed by Martin Stirrup under this Creative...

Podcasts are a relatively new avenue of work for voiceovers, which sounds exciting but can also be a bit infuriating - in this episode we take a look at what sort of jobs are available, as well as the HUGE inconsistencies in rates. Also, find out what happens when we challenge a podcast branding specialist to create an ident for the VO Social that can get past Leah's anti-branding defences...  - Missed the AI episodes last year? Get up to speed before our update on the 14th June by listening...

Get ready to go into battle with the algorithm! Join us for a big chat about how to conquer social media without being annoying. This episode is the third and final instalment in the Shine Online With the VO Social series, and it's sponsored by Black Cat Music - get 15% off your Studiobricks booth by calling them up and using the secret password: VO Social Pod Cats Theme tune written and performed by Martin Stirrup under this Creative Commons license. --- Send in a voice message:...

We've somehow managed to make an episode about SEO that isn't boring!  In the second part of our "Shine Online With The Voiceover Social" series, we wheedle recent search terms out of producers from animation, commercials, audio drama, IVR and gaming, find out from branding and web design expert Helen Bee exactly how to make SEO work for you, and ask the most popular female voiceover on Google - "Is it even worth it??" Here's the unofficial list of ranking factors Helen mentions:...

If a casting director was looking for your exact voice, right now, how easy are you making it for them to find you? Leah's been dabbling in a spot of casting lately and was so horrified by what she found she's turning the experience into a whole three part series. We won’t let our beloved VO Socialites put pointless obstacles in their own darn way! This episode is supported by Black Cat Music - The only UK distributor of Studiobricks booths. Get 15% off yours with the secret password "VO...

This rummage around in the world of commercial demos was recorded live with an audience of pro VOs, and features: An interview with expert commercial demo producer Martin Fisher from SonicPond - http://sonicpond.co.uk Sample demos by: Sarah Paul https://voicecall-online.co.uk/female/sarah-paul/ Mark Oxtoby https://www.justvoicesagency.com/voice/mark-oxtoby Competitive performances by: Elizabeth Price: https://elizabethprice.co.uk/ Natalie Chisholm:...

Peaky Blinders may have gone some way towards helping the magical Birmingham accent out of the pit of scorn it's been abandoned in for decades, but many Brits still confidently pick it as their least favourite, without necessarily knowing why. WE know why, though, thanks to the extremely well informed and universally respected linguist David Crystal. We saved this little bit back from the RP episode he featured in, because it truly deserved some its own bit of the limelight. Three cheers for...

Snogging the back of your hand is one way to do it, but sound designer Eloise Whitmore from Naked Productions says if you want intense and honest intimacy in audio drama, there are a lot more things to think about... Pack your Fairy Liquid and your baking trays, VO Socialites, we're going on an adventure! IMPORTANT WARNING! READ THIS WARNING! - This episode includes sex scenes from audio drama, and unbeeped swearing. THAT WAS YOUR WARNING, DID YOU READ IT? Okay good. Carry on! Listen to...

Astonishingly, the actual King and Queen of voice teaching have been listening to the The Voiceover Social and like it so much they asked us to be guests on their podcast! What a lovely surprise! Anyway, we had such a nice time appearing on This Is A Voice that we thought we'd share a little bit of it it with you... To hear the rest, click here: https://thisisavoice.buzzsprout.com/ --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thevosocial/message

Sure, you THINK you know what RP is, but do you? Do you REALLY? In this episode we ask the most marvellous linguist in all of the land to tell us where it came from, and how it’s progressed through the ages. We also had a brilliant response to our call for your RP samples, so we use those to have a big think about what RP means in its modern form. Featuring submissions by: Andre Refig, Andrew Dennis, Millie Jones, Alice King and Amina Koroma Here are some links, as promised in the...

Five years after the VO Social’s innocuous start as an audio invitation to the pub, it’s now become a thriving monstrosity featuring award nominations, regular involvement from our talented listeners, and – VERY EXCITINGLY - a treasured collection of hand picked sponsors! In this episode, find out exactly how we convinced them to get involved. This bonus episode is supported by Source Connect, who are the future of voiceover recording and Black Cat Music, who are the UK’s only distributor of...

At some point you might to have to scream as part of your voiceover work, and the very idea that you might not have warmed up properly is filling us with a cold dread, so we've talked to the lead singer of the metal band Impavidus about how screaming and growling can be a safe, expressive part of your everyday repertoire. RRRAAAARRRGGHHH! Things to do: SEE the Zen of Screaming by Melissa Cross for even more information SEND your RP read of the sentence we announce at the end of the episode...

A collection of some of the best bits of the VO Social podcast's lesser known episodes, in case you've missed them: BONUS - The Cocktail Party 29 - The Continuity Announcer 27 - The Promo Voiceover 25 - Doc Brown 23 - The Puppeteer 22 - Ode To Studio Engineers 19 - The Radio Commercial Producer 11 - The Sound Designer We also mention The AI Voice episodes, the one about the Mid Atlantic Accent, and "How To Get More Work In Gaming", but you've probably already heard them because they...

We decided it was about time animators and voiceovers got to know each other a bit better, so we joined forces with the world famous Manchester Animation Festival to put everyone in the same room! In this episode: Animation Director Kitty Taylor (Charlie and Lola, Dennis and Gnasher, Tree Fu Tom etc) helps us figure out how we can all work more collaboratively AND We are exorbitantly proud to present the international premiere of "Escapado", a new piece of writing by Mark Oswin...

There's been quite a bit of good news around recently, (90% effective vaccine! All the other stuff!) so we thought we'd celebrate by bringing you this previously unheard, teeny-tiny clip of Mr BBC Radio 4, Zeb Soanes. We spoke to him back in May for Episode 29. The Continuity Announcer, but saved a few minutes of him on how to not be a terrible newsreader till now. Also, WIN A VOICEOVER SOCIAL WATER BOTTLE! It's insulated y'know... See this tweet for how. Competition ends 28.11.20 ---...

Learning gender-switching techniques for your audiobook characters or animation work is one thing – but what about when the character is you, the audiobook is your life and people can’t hear you properly without the techniques? In this episode we talk to delightful Trans creative Kate O Donnell about her relationship with her voice, and Nic takes us through some of the ways you can move around the gender spectrum for work. Also – The Voice Realm… what’s THAT all about?!? News From Equity is...

Our Nic doesn't hold back in this handy bonus episode... find out what her most challenging job has been to date, whether she's ever turned down a client, and what "do your research" ACTUALLY means.  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thevosocial/message

If you’re from the North West of England or thereabouts you’ll probably already know about Buzz Hawkins; his series, The Bradshaws, is a cultural beacon for Northerners wherever they live in the world.  He's got some highly useful things to say about finding and developing characters that can be sustained over three decades and 700+ episodes – and about not letting them get too big for their boots, too. Then, in the Panic Room, Nic deals with the issue of keeping your character voices...

Expert gaming voice director Kirsty Gillmore explains How To Get More Work In Gaming in front of a live zoom audience! Includes: What to put on your demo Where to find work  How to submit an audition that gets you the job A couple of highly revealing anecdotes from Nic and Leah that possibly should have been edited out. Also featuring tiptop contributions by Sara Starling, Philip McGuinness, Cherise Silvestri, Bryan Boston and Chris Tester. --- Send in a voice message:...

Things are much less gloom and significantly less doom than we thought! Listen to this episode and be filled with the golden glow of optimism.  Huge thanks to Natalie Winter, Dave Jones, Sara Starling, Mark Ryes, Marcus Hutton, Katy Maw & Hugh Edwards for your contributions. To everyone else - we really appreciate you getting in touch, and and we're sorry we couldn't include all the responses in this episode.  Get a whacking great 15% off your Studiobricks booth by quoting "VO Social Pod...

They say “But AI sounds so robotic!” Then they say “There’s no expression! No emotion!” And then they conclude “It will never take over from a real human.” But they are wrong. In the latest episode of the Voiceover Social, we hear from the company that created "Faith, The First AI That Can Cry" and the actor whose voice was used to make it. Then we ask the actors’ trade union, Equity, what practical steps we can take to stop voiceovers’ livelihoods being completely annihilated. Get the...

We've teamed up with our wonderful sponsors FOCUSRITE, SOURCE CONNECT & B DOUBLE E to run a raffle and raise money for The Trussell Trust! Please do buy a ticket if you can, it would mean a lot to us. Get your tickets HERE and help save the world! Big love to you all, from Nic & Leah PS: Raffle tickets here if the link above doesn't work: https://raffall.com/39544/enter-raffle-to-win-the-vo-social-podcast-prizes-hosted-by-leah-marks --- Send in a voice message:...

Voiceovers of the world who are thinking of starting a podcast! Here’s a very brief overview of some of the things that have worked for us, pitfalls to avoid, and recommendations for a couple of creative shows already being made by our fellow VOs. Note: There are two separate incidences of the word "w*nker" in this episode, and zero apologies for either of them. Podcasts we recommend: Tales From The Tannoy + The Offcuts Drawer + Tiredness Kills WIN tickets to our live show all about how to...

Sure, we’ve all got lovely voices – but imagine if your voice was EXTRAORDINARY. What if every time you spoke, people properly paid attention? What if really, truly, no one else could do what you do? For this episode, we have a lovely chat with Ralph Ineson and Krystal Dockery about how their lives and careers have been shaped by their exceptional voices. ALSO - In this episode’s Panic Room, Nic takes us through a few exercises to explore different parts of our pitch ranges – do join in and...