Voice-Over Sisters

Here’s an adorable story coming out of the Huntersville Herald in North Carolina about two of the youngest voiceover actors around. It’s worth reading not only for the cuteness factor, but because there are several helpful hints to be picked up thanks to the wise advice of the sisters father Brian Haymond.

Huntersville sisters launching their voice-over acting career from family’s closet.

By Todd Mayes

A father and his two young daughters recording professional-quality voiceovers from a walk-in closet in Huntersville: priceless.Or at least remarkable.In the makeshift, four-by-eight-foot studio in their home, Olivia Haymond (age 10) and her sister Samantha (7) are fast becoming professional voiceover actors. If you don’t know what a voiceover actor is, it’s just because of the lingo. Everyone has heard them. They provide the “voice over” the picture or other programming in thousands of TV commercials, radio advertisements, and pre-recorded phone messages every day.

Brian Haymond, the girls’ father and a seasoned voice over actor himself, says, “Anytime you do not see a face, but you hear a voice, that’s voiceover.”

And Brian Haymond’s voice has definitely been heard. For 20 years now, Brian has lent his distinctive voice to an array of on-air purposes.

On top of maintaining a busy work schedule recording for numerous clients, Haymond now coaches his two daughters as they begin to develop their own voice-acting personalities. He introduced Olivia and Samantha to the world of voiceover nearly two years ago, shortly after he and his wife, Bridget, moved their family from Los Angeles to Huntersville so he could begin voice acting full-time — directly from his master bedroom closet. Haymond converted the walk-in closet by wrapping it in second-hand sound deadening fabric (purportedly linked to Neil Diamond) and equipping it with a computer with two flat screen monitors, a top-of-the line microphone, and one heck of an audio interface, along with a set of headphones.

Since their move to Huntersville, Olivia and Samantha have begun to speak out, and their voices can be heard worldwide via the Internet. Olivia is the imaging voice for “Kid Hits,” a new Internet radio station on TheRadio.com. With clarity and that genuine energy of a 10-year-old, Olivia tells listeners to sit tight for “Hannah Montana, High School Musical, Jonas Brothers and more.” Olivia can also be heard in the opening of the audio edition of “Ask Arizona.”

Samantha has her own credits. She recently finished recording Bojangles’ “Free Iced Tea” radio commercials and has performed in an Opal car commercial airing in Amman Jordan. Samantha can also be heard in Highlights Magazine’s audio edition of “Ask Arizona.”

Haymond says his daughters’ success has been a reflection of their contagious and youthful personalities.

“Clients want the kid to be just a kid,” he says. “and that’s exactly what Olivia and Samantha do.” As a voice actor, says Haymond, “you must tell the story of the client using who you are rather than trying to be someone else.”

That’s an industry trend. Haymond says that over the years voiceover has become much more conversational, celebrating real people and real voices rather than the traditional monotone commentary. But just like in any other profession, a voiceover actor still has to prepare and practice to be successful. Sounding just a bit coached, Olivia says that “practice makes perfect,” and that you must “do creative stuff but keep it in the fence of what the client wants.”

Samantha embraces the same practice-makes-perfect mentality by reviewing scripts on her way to Grace Covenant Academy, where the girls attend school. The more familiar the girls are with their scripts, the more natural their voices during recording and the more success they enjoy — even in school. The sisters agree that their voiceover experience helps them when reading in front of their classes.

While it is unusual, voice acting does not define the Haymond sisters, who have remained fairly “normal” despite their unlikely occupation (or, more to the point, the fact that they’re already “working” at all).

And yes, they do make money. Add one more unusual skill to their resume: both girls are learning to budget their hard-earned funds.

“When the girls are themselves, the end product is better and they have a great time doing it. Everyone wins,” says Haymond. “Voice acting is a lot like being a hot air balloon pilot. Not many people do it, and sometimes it’s slow. But, overall, it’s beautiful up here, breathtaking.”