The commercial voice over read that works isn’t the one that sounds impressive. It’s the one that sounds like a person.
When someone is watching a commercial and they stop thinking about the voice, that’s it working. They’re just hearing what the brand is saying. That’s the job. Stay out of the way of the message while also being the reason they believe it.
I am not a performance voice. I’m a real one. Rural Illinois. Fire pit on a Saturday night. Craft beer from someone’s garage. The same guy in a black tie at a wedding as at a kegger in a cornfield. That’s not marketing copy. That’s what agencies are actually buying when the brief says “authentic, conversational, Midwest.”
The Read That Reaches People
Commercial spots have seconds to earn attention. The voice is the first thing the listener decides about. In the first two or three words, they’re already deciding whether this is someone they’d listen to.
Radio taught me to operate in that window. Broadcast audio is unforgiving. There’s no visual to bail you out. The voice either lands the thing or it doesn’t. I did that for 30 years before I moved full-time to voice over, and you don’t do 30 years of live broadcast without getting very clear on what makes people stay.
What I Record
TV spots. Radio commercials. Pre-roll and digital ads. Streaming audio. Brand videos. Promo content. Anything where the goal is to make an audience feel something in 15, 30, or 60 seconds.
The range: conversational, warm, dry, low-key authoritative, guy-next-door, best-friend, the voice that sounds like it knows something without announcing it. I stay away from reads that require me to sound like someone I’m not. The work is better when the voice fits naturally.
Who I Work With
Ad agencies. Production houses. Creative directors. In-house brand teams. Anyone who needs commercial voice over that sounds like a real person said it and meant it.
I work directly. No agency layer, no manager in the middle. You book me, you get me. The person on the other end of the email and the voice in the booth are the same.
Demos and Booking
The commercial demo is on the demos page. Listen to the whole thing before reaching out. If it sounds like what you’re looking for, send a message with the script and the deadline. I’ll get back to you the same day.
Recent Work
A national Dove spot and a local real estate campaign. Different brief, same result: it sounds like real life.