Tom Dheere
Aug 20, 20193 min
I saw King Kong the musical on Broadway last week.
I went with an old friend and we had a great time. The show closed a few days later and I think I know why. First let me say that the acting, singing, dancing, and choreography were all fantastic. The 20-foot tall King Kong puppet was unbelievable! Here’s the trailer:
Anyway, I think the reason it had a relatively short run is because despite the high production value of the show and the talent of the performers, I couldn’t remember a single song. And if you walk out of the theater not humming any of the songs, it wasn’t a good musical. Moreover, if the songs didn’t resonate with you, that probably means you didn’t connect with the story or the characters. That spells doom for any story or storyteller, regardless of the medium.
On a VO Strategist “Systems of Thought” level, the story revolves around Ann Darrow, an aspiring actor who comes to New York City to pursue her dream of becoming a star but fails miserably at every audition. This is EXACTLY the 20th Century attitude I talk about that causes so many aspiring voice talents so many problems in the 21st Century, but I digress.
How does King Kong relate to voiceovers?
Effective voice talents are effective storytellers. Like King Kong, maybe you can’t deliver the goods where it counts. King Kong was great to look at but didn’t have any memorable songs. You as a voice talent may have a great voice but you may not be an memorable storyteller. The ability to truly act, seek & share the author’s truth, and give a memorable performance is what counts.
Effective voice talents demonstrate skill. I know that every time you’re putting your demo out there or submitting an audition you think you’re demonstrating your skill. But are you? Are you really? You would be shocked at the number of times I’ve heard voice talents say, “I know my demo isn’t great but I’m sending it out anyway” or, “I use auditions to practice” Are you kidding me?
Effective voice talents demonstrate progress. Maybe you haven’t demonstrated progress in your marketing such as a sharing a new demo or a recent gig. Progress demonstrates value. You need a competitive, current demo to demonstrate value, skill, and progress.
Thursday, August 22nd @8PM EST: Edge Studio Marketing 201 webinar, ‘4 Words that will Kill your Marketing’. In this one-hour webinar, I’ll talk about your vocabulary can seriously damage, if not destroy, your voiceover career before it even starts. Click here to sign up!
September 13-15: VoCation NYC is almost here!
This shiny new conference will focus on the business and marketing side of the voiceover industry. There is an incredible lineup of presenters who specialize in the marketing and business side of the voiceover industry, including keynote speaker J. Michael Collins and…
Carli Silver Casting
Tom Dheere Direct Marketing
Dr. Rupal Patel (VocaliD) Future of Voiceover
Tim Walsh (Atlas Talent) Agents
Eileen Schellhorn (DDO) Agents
Robyn Starr (ACM) Management
Jill Kershaw Casting (CEO of Sound & Fury)
Jim Kennelly Negotiation
Melissa Exelberth Turn Non-Union Work Union
Tracy Lindley Mastering LinkedIn
Celia Siegel Branding & Marketing
Matt Dubois Online Casting
Carin Gilfry Pay to Play
Rob Sciglimpaglia Business Structure / Tax
Joey Schaljo Working Pro Panel
Maria Pendolino Working Pro Panel
Andy Roth Casting
Hugh Edwards Future of Voiceover
Alissa Zea Working Pro Panel
Jamie Muffett Home Studio Setup
Johnny Heller Audiobooks
Jo Anna Perrin Audiobooks
Robert Fass Audiobooks
Scott Jacobi Audiobooks
Freddie Feldman Future of Voiceover
Attendance is limited to 150 seats and they are selling fast. Go to VOcationconference.com to learn more and click here to register!
Happy Vanilla Custard Day and Cuban Sandwich Day!
Tom Dheere is a 20+year veteran of the voice over industry who has narrated thousands of projects for hundreds of clients in over a dozen countries. He is also a voiceover business & marketing consultant known as the VOStrategist and produces the comic book “Agent 1.22”.
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