Mike Lenz Voice - A Journey Into Voice Acting

Hey there, I'm impressionist Brian Hull, and here is my channel where I do hundreds of impressions and have some comedy with them too! You may know me for my Disney and Pixar singing videos that have gone viral, but here is where the real magic happens! Come subscribe to check out my latest content uploaded every Friday!

Dan (Daniel Eduardo) Hurst is an experienced bilingual (English and Spanish) voice talent operating out of the Kansas City area. His business extends internationally, with clients including Maserati, Boehringer Ingelheim, British Petroleum, Kimberly-Clark, McDonalds, Volkswagen, Telemundo International, Shell, Hallmark, TransCanada, and many more, along with his national work for numerous infomercials, ESPN, MLB, and the Golf Channel, among others. When he’s not working, he spends time cheering for losing sports teams, getting kicked off of golf courses, and cursing his boat motor.  For more information go to www.DanHurst.com    

Joe Loesch is an award winning author, voice actor and spoken word producer. He trained for an acting career at the Pasadena Playhouse and now calls Nashville home. Joe has produced over a hundred audiobooks, voiced dozens of national commercials and several cartoons for the Disney channel. He produced the Baby Looney Tunes sound-books. Joe teaches voice acting locally for The Actor's School in Franklin, TN. He teaches nationally for Edge Studio in NYC. Joe is the voice of all characters for Dave Ramsey's "Junior's Adventures.   For more info on this and other episodes head over to mikelenzvoice.com.

Though I love to travel, there’s no place like my home in Missouri. I was born and raised just north of Kansas City, and being a Midwest girl, I believe in hard work and authenticity. I’ve always been fascinated with people and I’m the kind of person who strikes up a friendly conversation with the cashier at the grocery store, or the guy standing next to me in a long line. When I got to college and discovered that you can actually get a degree in communicating effectively with other human beings (who knew?), I couldn’t get signed up fast enough! Heading into my senior year, I had the crazy idea of becoming a TV advertising executive, so I landed an internship at a nearby cable station. One day, a producer asked me to read the script for a commercial and I suddenly discovered my passion for voice over! That was 10 years ago, and now here I am, recording in my home studio or with real people in their Kansas City area studios. When I’m not behind a microphone, I still hone my skills regularly by reading to my fo

Gabriel Kunda is a professional voice actor recently signed by Atlas Talent Agency. 

Dustin’s honest to goodness voice and professionalism have been bringing brands to life for over 20 years. His clients rely on his keen understanding of how to connect with both the soul of the listener and the script – and the fact that he sounds as trustworthy as he is to work with. Dustin’s clear, natural and believable reads are ideal for narration, commercials, promos and radio & television station imaging. He has been heard nationally on network television and radio, broadcast cable, MTV and VH-1. Dustin’s corporate narration clients include: The United Nations, General Electric, Pepsi, Intel, Delta Airlines, UBS, Kraft Foods, The Four Seasons Hotels, UPS, Cisco, The United States Air Force, Pizza Hut, American Express and many others. Dustin has a fully equipped personal studio with ISDN, Neumann U87, Sennheiser 416, Fousrite Red 7, Focal monitors and all available connection and delivery methods. Dustin is honored to be one of the founders of World-Voices Organization, an industry association for

My website gurus tell me this page needs to be “personal” and “not salesy,” but my personal life isn’t all that interesting. Well, since I’m paying them for their expertise, here we go… When people ask where I’m from, I hold up my left hand like anyone born and raised in the Great Lake State of Michigan. I kept the non-accent but left the cold to live in Georgia. Since I have no coordination and therefore stunk at sports, I turned to singing and theater as a teen where I found it was much more fun to be other people than my bookish, nerdy self. Being on stage, I found my happy place and even made some money in high school entertaining at little girls’ birthday parties as Snow White complete with balloon animals and a Pin the Ears on Dopey game. College kicked off with me earning a minor in Theater Performance at Auburn University, but then breaking my AU Tiger mother’s heart when I was accepted to the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism, where I earned a degree in Public Relations. Like any s

Julie Williams brings almost four decades of voice-over excellence to the table.  From showing travelers how to change their tickets at Orbitz.com, to instructing employees how to make the perfect Pizza Hut Pizza, to feature stories on HGTV, to teaching virtual high school Biology and Geometry eLearning course, a Savvy Woman Homebuyers series for Women’s Entertainment Television and helping lawyers with a Bar Exam study course, I have voiced hundreds of eLearning projects. I’ve also voiced hundreds of commercials over the past decades for such notable clients as Coca-Cola, Pampers, Imperial Sugar, Disney World, Foley*s, Dillards, and more. Most of her clients are repeat clients who return time after time. Why do I get hired so often? Because I communicate the story of the script by offering a transparency in which the focus is never on the me, but on the message. And that’s a skill I pass along to my students. An audiobook narrator with many titles to my credit, I’m proud to say I earned the honor of being an

Emmy-winning producer Rudy Gaskins is CEO and Executive Creative Director of Push Creative, Inc., a full-service branding agency providing strategic marketing, graphic design and video/film production. Clients include Lexus, FOX News Channel, BET, American Express, Spike TV, ABC Television, Actors Federal Credit Union, History Channel, MSNBC, and NBC Sports. Drawing on his former experience as a filmmaker and writer/producer/director for PBS, Gaskins has recently expanded Push Creative’s production scope to include program development and is actively developing TV and web series in several genres. In an admirable gesture to elevate the quality and perception of the voiceover industry, Gaskins conceived and initiated the creation of two innovations that have had a very special impact on the TV marketing and promotions community: 1) In 2007, Gaskins created what has become Promax/BDA’s tri-annual event called “Speed Dating for Clients and Vendors.” The process, which is not unlike speed dating in the personal

Joan Baker, author of Secrets of Voice-Over Success, has performed hundreds of promos and commercials for TV, film and radio throughout her highly regarded career. ABC News, American Express, Other clients include: King World, ESPN, BLOOMBERG TV and radio, SHOWTIME, HBO, NBA Entertainment, COURT TV, Imus in the Morning, Olay, Lens Express, Sony Music, JP Morgan Chase, American Express, Costco, and The New York Times Classified represents just a few of the numerous clients who regularly call upon her unique sound. You could even say that Joan’s talents reach the highest levels of American royalty and deep into the political power structure: She voiced a TV ad campaign for The Muhammad Ali Center and narrated a documentary about the founding of the William Jefferson Clinton Library, now a part of the library’s permanent display. And Joan also has it going on live! She provided the live voice announcements for the “Museum of the Moving Image Salutes Will Smith” which aired on Bravo TV. Prior to authoring Secret

What’s the deal with “Zippy,” anyway? Long story short, the nickname “Zippy” comes from a character I played in a 2nd grade talent show. It was my first acting experience, and wouldn’t you know it- the name stuck! With that being said, should I call you “Christopher?”  “Chris?”  “Zippy?”  I’m confused! It doesn’t matter- I’ll answer to any of the three! So acting’s been in your blood since you were a kid- pretty cool.  Did you do anything with that passion? I was able to parlay my love of acting into a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the California Institute of the Arts, where I was privileged to get a mix of both classical and experimental theatre training from some of the top instructors in the country.  They also had great Halloween parties. What happened after college?   I got a job. Then what? I took standup comedy classes over at Mi’s Westside Comedy Theater in Santa Monica, California.  I enjoyed being a part of Westside’s community, and it led me to go through their improv training.  I was lucky enough to be

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’m so excited you're here because that means you have an interest in the voice over industry.  Maybe you’re just beginning and don’t have a clue where to start.  That’s OK, because that's exactly where I was 9 years ago.  In fact 10 years ago my life looked a lot different than it does today. 10 years ago 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 communicating 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 eve

Welcome!  Did I mention that I love what I do?  (You probably read that on the first page.  ) I collaborate with clients all over the world from my broadcast quality studio, voicing national and international commercial campaigns for companies like Bissell, Kraft/Capri Sun and Visit Orlando, narrating documentaries & web/explainer videos along with shows on both Slice Network in Canada and HGTV in the US.  I’ve even played the role of a fairy queen in a children’s cartoon (and wow, was that fun!).  My journey to voice overs actually started with a love of computers.  I used to sell computers when the 386-SX was new (remember those days?).  That graduated to a love of the Internet and all that it could do (quite a lot!).  I spent a number of years as an SEO specialist and media buyer for local companies, and along the way, incorporated my love of music and the Internet together when I created a songwriting resource website called The Muse’s Muse back in 1995.  That was my testing ground for a LOT of Intern

John Florian Founder and Webmaster     If you've ever written a "personal mission" for yourself, you'll understand when John says that his mission is to "Help people succeed in life and business through creative ways of communications."   Indeed, that activates his two passions: voice-overs and publishing.   As a voice over actor, John is called back by producers who want that "warm and friendly guy" (but don't typecast yourself! warn the coaches).   And as a former editorial director/writer/marketer, John has created many business and consumer magazines and newsletters.   Now these two communication fields merge with his creation of VoiceOverXtra - the voice-over industry's online news, education and resource center.   John is also active in civic and self-improvement organizations, where he finds that "giving back" and networking continue to inspire.   Email: johnflorian@voiceoverxtra.com Web: www.VoiceOverXtra.com   For more information on this and other episodes head over to mikelenzvoice.com.

  Holly Franklin is a spunki-licious voiceover star who lost count how many times people have asked her, “is that your real voice?” ages ago. She specializes in kid, teen and character voices and is best known for her work on My Little Pony, Barney, Owlegories & BOZ the Bear series. She also appears on-camera and in commercial print work. Whether it was cheerleading, theater or acting out Oscar winning performances for the neighbors while mowing the lawn – all the world has been a stage for this born & raised Texan. Holly went on to attend Texas A&M University where she met her nerdy Civil Engineering husband. After her brief stint as a high school health teacher, she got tired of getting asked for her hall pass. So, she turned in her grade book for a microphone, honed her raw talent by training with the best in the biz, and the rest is Hollypoppin’ history. She has 3 freaking amazing kids who tolerate her quirky parenting style, and even stranger voice. Holly has a soft spot for preschoolers and

Erik Sheppard – “Today’s Voice” has over 12 years of professional experience, voicing thousands of high profile projects across the globe ranging from corporate presentations to national radio and television campaigns. He is consistently the preferred male voice for many of the most widely recognized corporate, commercial and promotional production companies worldwide. Clients include Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Citibank, HSBC, American Express, Ebay, MTV and TV Land. When not in the booth, Erik is an industry blogger, host of “The Erik and Ember Show”, and organizer of the Voiceover Mixer series of networking events. He is the owner and head talent agent of Voice Talent Productions, a New York based agency representing an elite roster of voice talent from around the world. His career and related projects have been profiled in such places as Voice-Over Xtra, Voices, Voice123.com, The Voice Over Insider and countless other blogs and podcasts. If it is happening in the voice over industry, chances are Erik is i

Jay Preston VO.  You've come here in need of a Voice Over for your project. Be it E-Learning, How-To Videos, Commerical Voice Over for Radio or TV and one thing is clear. There is a certain sound and quality you are looking for, and chances are, I can deliver it. From Warm and Natural, to Edgy and Sarcastic,  I'm sure I can make your message ring Honest & True. As an added bonus, we are going to have a great time working together.  For more info on this and other episodes head over to mikelenzvoice.com.  

America’s premiere female live voice announcer Randy Thomas made history as the first woman to announce The Academy Awards©, The Emmy Awards©, The SAG Awards©, The AFI Awards©, to name a few. As the seven-time announcer of The Oscars©, and fourteen-time Tony© announcer, Thomas has been winning accolades and opening doors for female voice artists for over 20 years. For the past nine years she’s been heard daily by millions of people as the iconic voice of CBS Television Distribution’s “Entertainment Tonight©,” one of the most watched entertainment programs in the world. In addition to voice over, with more than 20 years of experience as a radio personality in New York, Los Angeles, Detroit, and Miami, Thomas has gone on to achieve her dreams as one of the most recognizable voice-over artists in the world as well as co-author of “VOICE FOR HIRE: Launch and Maintain a Lucrative Career in Voice-Overs” (Watson-Guptill Publications, a division of Random House Inc.). For more info on this and other episodes head ove

Nydia Monarrez was born and raised in Monterrey, N.L. Mexico. She has a degree in Communications and Public Relations. She studied Acting for 2 years using Eric Morris Method, the most organic and complete method in the Industry. Nydia is Bilingual (English/Spanish) and also has a background in, Training, Financial Services and Corporate Business. Nydia is currently a Full time, Professional Spanish Voice Over Talent, Actress, Host and Life Style Model. She is also a Yoga lover, Audio Books Fan and Happy Foodie! She lives in Chicago, Ill. USA. with her husband and 2 kids. For more information on this and other episodes, head over to mikelenzvoice.com.

Cristina Milizia is a professional, full time voice over talent in Los Angeles, California.  Her voice is youthful, sweet & upbeat! Conversational, millennial, approachable, fun, and hip are also accurate adjectives. Cristina's wealth of experience allows her to perform voice over fluidly in commercial, narration, IVR & telephony, e-learning, on hold messaging, Spanish, video games, mobile game apps, toys, & audiobooks. She works full time as a talent & as a voice over coach, and can turn around any new project within 24-48 hours. Her professional home studio set up will give you the top notch sound quality you need, while saving your money on outside studio costs. Additional services for professional sound design, editing, music production & translation services available upon request.