His name is Jake Foushee and he’s an online voice-over sensation. Over one million people have watched his movie trailer man impersonation on YouTube.
If you haven’t seen the video, you might wonder: What’s the big deal?
Well, even though he sounds like he’s in his fifties, Mr. Foushee was actually fourteen years old at the time he shot the video. It’s creepy. Fortunately for Jake, we like creepy. Regular Joes rarely make the headlines, but we all love the bizarre and the eccentric, don’t we?
Next to the bearded lady we now have a 14-year old who sounds a bit like Don LaFontaine. It doesn’t get any better than that.
Ellen DeGeneres had him on her show and like a docile puppy,
I get frustrated when I daily see audition opportunities seeking someone who sounds like Sam Elliot, Dennis Leary, Mike Rowe, Morgan Freeman, etc.. etc.. etc..
It only adds to driving people to impersonate. It’s easy to see so many clients seeking that, that we may be tempted to lose our own voice in order to book the jobs with those seeking the voice of another.
Thankfully, I don’t sound like any of those folks… or Tim Allen either. I sound like me and that’s good enough for me. The clients that are OK with that are the clients I want to work with.
I too worry that Jake won’t last long. That he won’t be given time to find his own voice. It may be a lesson learned, and unfortunately for him, the hard way.
I agree, Marc. One of my colleagues said to me: “If a client wants Jeff Bridges, why don’t they hire Jeff Bridges?!” Of course the answer to that question is: Because they don’t want to pay for Jeff Bridges!
I think there’s a difference between calling for a Jeff Bridges without wanting to pay for him (cheesy) and calling for a celebrity voice caricature (like, say, a politician or a celebutante), which I don’t think is cheesy at all. After all, how many people outside voiceover (or Bridges’ immediate family or representation) know he does the voiceover for Hyundai?
However, back to the main point, I think you have a good statement here. I am very glad I didn’t have fame drop in my lap when I was 14 (though I wouldn’t mind some now that I have developed a good work ethic and good habits). However, I hope that the lad will not fall too hard when the “feel-good” part of his story evaporates, and that he will recover quickly and find his real voice.
Success is a great gift that needs to be cultivated and managed with care. Being good at something or having tremendous potential, is an ability and a responsibility.
I don’t know how long Jake’s “fame” will last, but I think he has a good VO career ahead of him if he makes the right descision. So does Bob Bergen.
Referring to Jake…
“THIS is what everyone needs and wants. THIS is the marriage of talent, opportunity, and smart marketing (YouTube). Put all of these together and every agent/buyer in the business wants THIS. The simple truth is, most pursuing VO have know idea what or how THIS fits into their career.
I see this kid and I smile ear to ear! Man, he’s good! He’s also charming as hell. He knows what he wants and he’s doing whatever he needs to do to get noticed. He reminds me of me. I was a 14 year old who knew exactly what I wanted. And, I did anything and everything to get there. My “YouTube” was the telephone. I called Mel Blanc. I called Hanna Barbara. I called and studied with every VO instructor in LA. I see the passion and drive in that kid and I relate. It’s exciting! And I hope I get the opportunity to work with him one day!”
—–Bob Bergen
http://www.voice-overs.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5479
While it is best to hone in on what we uniquely offer as a VO talent, there are trend-setters in VO, and a few VO talents have made a career out of following trends…take Hal Douglas and Ben Patrick Jonshon, for example–they do trailers in a style that’s highly reminiscent of Don LaFontaine. So much so that the “casual ear” often doesn’t know the difference. There’s been more than one occasion where I’ve mentioned to people outside the VO industry that Don LaFontaine is dead, and they react with shock. “Are you sure? I could’ve sworn I heard a trailer last week with his voice…did he, like, die recently or something?”
So I agree, trying to mimic the style of others probably isn’t the best idea in the grand scheme of things, but it is *possible* to make a very good career out of doing that.
Whoops! I’m sorry to post again, Paul, but I forgot one interesting detail that might add to this whole discussion. I started a thread in a Linkedin group about how social media goes viral, and used Jake as as an example, but the discussion ended up being steered towards Jake himself rather than how social media goes viral. In the course of that discussion, one of Jake’s agents at Abrams joined in and dropped an interesting detail…that apparently, they reached out to Jake *before* his YouTube video went viral.
http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Jake-Foushee-Went-Viral-When-137057.S.109675491?qid=52148da5-b72e-4774-b437-5e047572ac0c&trk=group_most_popular-0-b-ttl&goback=.gde_137057_member_111429589.gmp_137057
I enjoyed your blog and the LinkedIn discussion on viral videos.
The agent from Abrams said in the LinkedIn thread::
It sounds like Abrams found the video of Jake and his snowball microphone before it went viral. They must be combing the web for fresh talent and that’s good news for all of us voice-actors.
Thousands of hopefuls must be knocking on their doors every year. Thousands are rejected. Why did they pick Jake?
Don’t get me wrong, he seems to be a nice kid, but who needs a 14- year-old, inexperienced movie trailer guy? You said it yourself, there are others who have cornered that niche successfully. Why would an agent want more of the same?
When I read the agent’s comments, it doesn’t sound like they really signed Jake yet. He’s coming to New York for coaching and I think that’s a very wise move. There’s a reason why baseball has a farm system. Playing for a major league team without experience and proper training, is just too big of a leap.
I shake my head and then laugh every time I think back to a few years ago when a studio called me up and had the nerve (to put it politely) to ask: “Can you recommend a VO talent who sounds like you but is cheaper?”
I also still wonder if they found someone and, if so, who! 🙂
Thanks for your post, Paul!
I am very happy to be me!
That was really a cheap move, James!
I have had studios ask: Can you recommend someone who’s younger or of the opposite sex with a similar accent, but that’s it.
Great post again, Paul!
As a young talent, I am still trying to find my voice. I actually spent some time at a talent agency yesterday behind the mic working on just that – being me. If you know of a good voice over coach who is effective over Skype, please let me know. I want to send clients the absolute best John I can give them.
Thanks again,
John
Some people don’t realize how hard it can be to act natural in an unnatural situation. Then again, a lot of us get uncomfortable as soon as someone’s trying to take our picture.
Here’s what has helped me a lot: the older I get, the less I care about what people think of me. I enjoy getting compliments, but I don’t seek people’s approval. I like satisfied clients, but I set my own standards.
As soon as I focus on what I believe others may think of what I’m doing, I get out of “the moment” and I become overly self-conscious.
These days, I absorb myself in making music and I stop worrying about the applause.
Fantastic post, Paul! I, too, have discovered that it’s easier being ‘me’ than not. The added bonus is that from that prospective, any character that you create is fresh–not an imitation of an imitator…
That’s why I believe it takes time for talent to mature.
Being comfortable with who we are, presupposes we know the answer to the eternal question:
Who am I?
To quote Kierkegaard: the journey of life is all about becoming who we are.
Wonderful article, as usual Paul! Thoughtful, provoking, and jam packed with truth. What did we read before Paul Strikwerda?
I’ve been in the voice-over business for 14 years now, and it took me a lot of those years to get comfortable with the perky nature of my sound. I naturally have a young-sounding, bouncy voice with loads of natural smile. For so long I made the mistake of wanting to be sexier sounding, huskier, more serious. That’s how v/o women are supposed to sound, right? Looking back, I realize now that I got my first few jobs specifically because I didn’t sound like the other women in my market.
Since I’ve embraced the natural “happy” in my voice, my career has gone from being average to THRIVING! Sounds like an infomercial, I know, but it is so true!
Here’s the cool thing about it – once you commit to who you REALLY ARE, your fans will FIND you. It’s like your putting out a radio signal and people are suddenly tuning in to your specific channel. Know why? Below all the words, they hear something they instinctually identify as truth and a genuine human connection is made. It’s subtle, but powerful. Pretty amazing. And as Paul already mentioned, this is great news for you because the more you do what your best at, the more fun your job becomes and the happier the client is.
So, while I will probably never be the voice of a perfume, amusement parks love me! And while I may never narrate a series like Planet Earth, there’s no one better to call for a perky promo for a kids network.
John, I do coach over Skype and have helped many students hone in on their signature sounds. It is work that I thoroughly enjoy! Please get in touch with me through my website if you’re interested in discussing this further. Jeannie Stith
Hi Jeannie, it sounds like we have a lot in common. In the beginning of my career I tried to be everything to everyone and it worked counter-productive.
I was told that all I needed to do was be myself.
It’s so easy to tell people “Act normal” but it’s almost a contradiction in terms, isn’t it?
If you’re being “normal” you’re not acting.
You’re absolutely right: one you’ve found your voice, things seem to click in place and work will come your way.
It’s finding that relaxion backed by real v/o skill that creates the magic. I had a v/o coach who used to just say “act natural” but the difference was he had 20 years of v/o experience behind his “natural” and I had none! So, that direction didn’t work for me at the time. So it comes back to what you said – you mature into your sound, and you mix in things you learn along the way. I tell my students all the time that there is no shortcut. Just keep doing the work.
Jeannie
Nice post Paul. I had a feeling you’d have something to say about Jake.
I wish all the luck! He just needs to work around the “gimicky” and the press highlighting that comes with his popularity… use it as a springboard but buckle down and get serious as a talent. Maybe he has already. But he does need to find his own voice and I hope it doesn’t become confusing for him.
Like you, Paul, I’m mellowing out. I figure it took a lot of trials and tribulations, ins and outs of the Nashville music business,years of working in smokey old bar rooms, personal and professional shortcomings (and/or failures)and practice, study and guts… to get this voice. This voice that turned out to be more unique as a VO talent than it is as a singer… (usually it’s the other way around like Michael McDonald, for example. Where does that fabulous voice come from?) Bringing everything together was and is the key for me.
I also know that, had I attempted serious VO work earlier than I did as a full time talent, I couldn’t have brought half of the life’s experience into my voice that is in it now.
So I’m busy making a career of imitating myself! I only hope I don’t push it so far as to be, say, Bob Dylan, who now sounds like a bad imitation of himself.
Hey Paul,
Great post. As I read it, I recalled that whenever I tell people what I do for a living, they almost always ask me if I can do a good Donald Duck….or whatever.
I’m forced to conclude that is what the public’s perception is of voice talent; those who can do wierd things with their voice or impersonate someone vocally. This, is likely the reason for Jake’s recent aquisition of fame.
For the record – in the 30 some years I’ve been doing VO, I’ve never landed a gig doing an impersonation of someone – mostly because I simply don’t bother to audition in the first place.
Kind regards,
Todd Schick
Hey Todd, it’s nice to welcome you to my blog, although you unknowingly made a guest appearance last week.
My impression of impersonators is this: they fall into two categories. 1.) those who are really good, and 2.) those who are painfully bad. Some are so bad that they announce the name of the person they’re going to impersonate. Otherwise the public would not have a clue.
I used to watch shows like “American Idol” and “America’s got Talent” and it was hard to detect real, original talent on these shows. Why? Because so many contestants were in fact impersonating their favorite singers.
My motto: Get real. Be real.
Another simply fabby blog post, Paul!
On the issue Marc Scott raised, I concluded the same thing that you didl: “You want Jeff Bridges? Hire Jeff Bridges.” But sometimes (only sometimes) the client really means they want a similar sound, not a dead-on impression. But either way, the reality is that once a client has a particular voice in their mind, nothing else is going to float their boat.
I’ve gotten audition notices requesting, for example, a Chicago accent. Accents are a tough thing. We might really believe we can do a perfect regional accent, but the problem is that if the spot is going to air in that area, locals are able to tell in an instant when they hear someone trying to do the accent. I wonder why, when clients request a regional accent, they don’t just look for talent from that area.
A potential client several years ago was going to have me re-do a narration done by someone else because the original narrator pronounced a word differently than the client pronounces it. I thought it odd that the client didn’t just ask the narrator to make the necessary changes, but they wanted to use me. However, they insisted that I sound like the original narrator. Knowing that I’d be spending more energy trying to sound like someone else than I would in trying to deliver a good read, I said to the client: “I’m sorry, I don’t do impressions of other narrators. And, frankly, I don’t know any who do.” That’s why I described this client as ‘potential.’ I wasn’t prepared to play games. Buh-bye.
Todd is absolutely correct. Just this past week, when I answered I was a voice-over/narrator, the two people who’d asked just looked at each other. I could see the huge question mark over their heads. I then tried to make it sandbox-simple by saying “I read training, promotional and commercial material.” Then one said to the other, “Oh… I have a friend who works on the radio.” Well, we both use a microphone.
And, the topic of radio brings me back to Jake. He heard something that inspired him and began developing himself. Many voice-over talent who came out of radio broadcasting did the same thing. And, trying to lose the evil ‘radio sound’ can be – and has been – a difficult row to hoe for many, myself included. We all see and/or hear something early in life that makes the earth move for us. And we convince ourselves that “this is the way this is done.”
It’s true for many facets of our lives, but it takes more time for some than others to realize “it’s better to be me than to be anybody else.” And the best advice is to be the best ‘me’ (you) you can be.
Great words of wisdom, Mike!
You’re right: quite often a client asks for a type of voice and delivery, and they use a famous actor as reference. But sometimes they want someone to sound exactly like George Clooney without having to pay what they would pay Mr. Clooney.
Perhaps I should disclose that at one point in my career I auditioned for a part requiring me to do a David Attenborough type of voice. Much to my surprise I got the job and ruined my voice for the next three days… Here’s the result: http://snd.sc/jF5Bi7
Wie immer, hast Du den Nagel auf den Kopf getroffen, lieber Paul. Keep at it, my friend! Kindest greetings from The Eternal City. When are you coming over? Edwin @VPI
Hitting the nail on the head: Not bad for a guy with two left hands!
This summer I shall be spending two wonderful weeks in The Netherlands. Unfortunately, there’s not enough time to go to any other countries.
Paul, you nailed it again. I enjoy reading your blog. I never comment much on what I read anywhere, but your blog and Dave (CourVOs) are my two favorites in the VO world. They are both consistently great. I love your analysis of trends, paper tigers, sensations and the like. Thanks for thinking and writing what a lot of us think about, but don’t write.
Your actions speak even louder than your words, Dustin, and I applaud you for both!
Your determination and vision to help build a new association out of the ashes of what could have been, has inspired many, including myself.
Knowing how busy you must be as you’re beginning to build and strengthen World Voices, I am amazed and delighted that you took some time to visit these pages.
These posts are patient and will welcome you back any time!