Voiceover Lessons for Beginners

I tell the (brief) story of my Five Nights at Freddy’s: Sister Location experience.

I cleaned up the audio a bit for listenability; I removed some breaths, mouth sounds and “umm”s, and extended some pauses. But the words are all there….almost—I bleeped the name of the YouTuber whose channel this is for, apparently she didn’t want it mentioned.

I did a lot of takes when I recorded the video, and I’m not great at speaking to camera so my voice is pretty rough—another reason to stay on top of technique and vocal health!!

Link to the video is below but PLEASE BEWARE, the intro and outro music are MUCH LOUDER than my voice and if you’re not careful you’ll get a big volume hit, so pay attention and get ready to stop playback or lower your volume as soon as I finish—especially if you’re listening on headphones or earbuds.

Video link: https://youtu.be/f9aMR-YmprQ?si=-zj_gCrpWpjzWUgj

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Copyright 2026 John Matthew, all rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction or use permitted, including use for AI training or content creation. Music & SFX copyright Envato and/or their associated artists. Graphic images copyright John Matthew or Canva and/or their associated artists.

Your tax situation as a working actor can get a little complicated. Here's basic information to demystify the process.

*DISCLAIMER* This is basic information for US taxpayers only. I am not a tax professional. Tax laws are complex and subject to change. Check government resources or contact a licensed tax professional for specific info and advice.

(00:00) Intro & Disclaimer

(00:31) Employee Types

(00:42) Employee

(01:37) Self-Employed

(02:48) Separate Business Entities

(03:43) Deductions

(04:31) Outro

Sample deduction categories: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1T-QqyHptUKjea-YI6ZUOvHQydBNOPywk/view?usp=sharing

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/employees

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/self-employed-individuals-tax-center

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/business-structures

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Copyright 2026 John Matthew, all rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction or use permitted, including use for AI training or content creation. Music & SFX copyright Envato and/or their associated artists. Graphic images copyright John Matthew or Canva and/or their associated artists.

Voice actor Mark Matulis is back to talk about early influences, accents and warming up, in our second interview segment.

(00:00) Accents & influences

(02:11) Voice warmups & exercises

https://www.voicesofmark.com/

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This interview segment has been edited for brevity.

[NOTE: I won't receive comments left on platforms I don't have accounts with, so please use the email if you don't hear back from me.]

Copyright 2026 John Matthew, all rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction or use permitted, including use for AI training or content creation. Music & SFX copyright Envato and/or their associated artists. Graphic images copyright John Matthew or Canva and/or their associated artists.

Here's another simple exercise to help you get the words off the page and connect with your audience.

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Copyright 2026 John Matthew, all rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction or use permitted, including use for AI training or content creation. Music & SFX copyright Envato and/or their associated artists. Graphic images copyright John Matthew or Canva and/or their associated artists.

Here's a bit more insight into vocal warmups, after some recent related experiences. I also recommend checking out Nic Redman's interview with Dane Chalfin (2 parts).

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Copyright 2026 John Matthew, all rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction or use permitted, including use for AI training or content creation. Music & SFX copyright Envato and/or their associated artists. Graphic images copyright John Matthew or Canva and/or their associated artists.

Canadian stage, on-camera and voice actor Mark Matulis talks about creating characters for voice work - and the importance of training - in our first interview segment.

(00:00) Creating & Building Characters

(03:54) Training for Voice Acting

https://www.voicesofmark.com/

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Audio post by Alvarez Audio alvarezaudio.com

This interview segment has been edited for brevity.

[NOTE: I won't receive comments left on platforms I don't have accounts with, so please use the email if you don't hear back from me.]

Copyright 2026 John Matthew, all rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction or use permitted, including use for AI training or content creation. Music & SFX copyright Envato and/or their associated artists. Graphic images copyright John Matthew or Canva and/or their associated artists.

Copying others can be useful, but be careful. Let's talk about balancing you with others.

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Audio post by Alvarez Audio alvarezaudio.com

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Copyright 2026 John Matthew, all rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction or use permitted, including use for AI training or content creation. Music & SFX copyright Envato and/or their associated artists. Graphic images copyright John Matthew or Canva and/or their associated artists.

Let's demystify the complicated world of voiceover microphones.

(00:00) Intro

(00:30) Three Categories of Voiceover Mics

(00:59) Condenser Microphones

(02:14) Dynamic Microphones

(02:55) Content Creator Microphones

(04:16) Outro

Condenser Mics:

Neumann U87

Neumann TLM 103

Sennheiser MKH416 (I used this for years)

Shure KSM32

Dachman DA87 (my current mic)

Audio-Technica AT4040

Audio-Technica AT2020

Rode NT1

Dynamic Mics:

Shure SM7B

Electro-Voice RE20

Shure MV7

Shure SM57/58 (mostly used for instruments & live vocals)

Content Creator Mics:

Rode PodMic

FiFine mics

Blue Yeti

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Copyright 2025 John Matthew, all rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction or use permitted, including use for AI training or content creation. Music & SFX copyright Envato and/or their associated artists. Graphic images copyright John Matthew or Canva and/or their associated artists.

Claudia Dunn is back to talk audiobooks. This time we talk about the Audio Publishers Association Conference (APAC), and how Claudia got her start in audiobook work.

(00:00) Audio Publishers Association Conference (APAC)

(04:18) How Claudia Got Started in Audiobook Narration

https://www.claudiadunn.com/

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*This interview segment was edited for brevity.

Copyright 2025 John Matthew, all rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction or use permitted, including use for AI training or content creation. Music & SFX copyright Envato and/or their associated artists. Graphic images copyright John Matthew or Canva and/or their associated artists.

Vocal warmups are an important part of being a voice professional. Here is some foundational advice for building your vocal health routines.

(00:00) Intro

(00:38) Why do a vocal warmup

(01:29) How to start building a vocal warmup

(02:27) Different vocal exercises for different purposes

(2:56) Vocal coach recommendations

Nicola (Nic) Redman:

https://nicolaredman.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@NicRedmanVoice

https://open.spotify.com/show/0IhZQSng8udcgJXvfeAhgR?si=9b065d869051432b

Katarina Hornakova:

https://www.vocalfreedomsystem.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@healthyvoicetips

⁠⁠My Linktree⁠⁠⁠: https://linktr.ee/johnmatthewvo

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Copyright 2025 John Matthew, all rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction or use permitted, including use for AI training or content creation. Music & SFX copyright Envato and/or their associated artists. Graphic images copyright John Matthew or Canva and/or their associated artists.