I'm actually so serious about become a voice actor.
I'm doing research into classes I can take and equipment I can purchase. I cleaned and rearranged my closet to turn it into a recording studio. I'm looking up microphones I should invest in, and I've already started doing daily vocal warm ups + practices to build them up. I'm mainly interested in voicing animation, but my close second preference is narrating audio books. Tomorrow I'm booked up, but later next week, after all my bills are paid when I recieve my paycheck, I'm going to a Guitar Center or something to pick out a mic and possibly some good headphones.
I've decided that visual art is something I want to keep personal, despite getting a degree in it. I want it to just be for fun, but I still wanted to be involved in some sort of creative field. I love the idea of bringing words to life. I love the idea of messing with different voices to make a cartoon character really shine.
My main inspiration is Richard Horvitz because his voice is so unique, and he's been in the game for at least twenty or thirty years. I'd love to voice a character within a project similar to Helluva Boss, something that let's me be a little goofy with it. Also, involving singing with my voice acting sounds incredible too. I think I'm going to focus on just getting the basics of voice acting down, and then move on to improving my singing. I know singing is a totally optional skill for voice acting, but adding anything to your roster shows more skill and dedication to the craft. Also singing in a character voice is really fun.
And If I'm really getting serious about this, I gotta start taking care of my voice too. Where I live, it's kinda dry, so I need to invest in a humidifier to help keep my vocal chords moist. I need to drink more water and cut back on caffiene. I can't eat spicy food or dairy before recording demos, especialy caffiene, too. I intend to fully change my lifestyle to support my efforts in becoming a successful voice actor. Turns out too, that being tense and stressed make your voice not as strong, so I gotta invest in more self care too.
Besides, I don't know of many transgender voice actors. I need to invest time into finding an agent too if I want to land more gigs. And then there's the matter of joining the union. But I'm getting a little ahead of myself. I just need to invest in a good home studio and start recording demos and improving my voice before I consider all of that. I also need to find connections! But that's what I'm hoping to find eventually as I get more involved in the community. I'm not really thinking about it right now, but I may eventually move to Los Angeles to get closer to more gigs. Like I said, I don't think I have to worry about that for a long time.
I've discovered that I'm more than likely a baritone! Which is crazy because of course I haven't always had such a deep voice. I haven't been professionally evaluated, this is just what following a lot of Youtube videos have told me. Not that the type of voice range I'm in matters much in voice over, but if I plan to add singing to my roster, then it's a good thing to know
But yeah so, I'm getting pretty serious about it. The only reason I am is because I've always wanted to give this a good go, but my dysphoria prevented me from really liking my voice. Now that my voice dysphoria is gone, I feel more comfortable playing around with it. Like I said, it's also a creative endeavor for me to try that doesn't involve visual art. Something tells me I'll excel in this career. Like, I just have a good feeling about it. I think my efforts will pay off. I think I'll get a role I want someday! I'm sure voice acting is also a very saturated market, but what set me apart is my dedication to it. I think I got this. ❤️