Great Scott (Whyte)!: From The Big Screen To The Voice…

ScottWhyte

It’s a Teenage Ninja Mutant Turtle! No, it’s a Transformer! Wait! Is that Homer Simpson??… Yes. And they’re all Scott Whyte. 

What voiceover have you done in the past? I’ve been very lucky in my career thus far… everything from radio spots, tv spots, animation, video games, tv promos for networks.. worked with some of the biggest brands on the planet, along with being part of film and tv projects for some of the worlds largest production companies… I’ve been very lucky, and I feel I’m just getting warmed up!!

What are you up to presently? Currently, due to non disclosure agreements, I cannot specifically say certain projects im currently working on.. but I can say, perhaps 5 video games, a Disney animated series, a few radio and tv spots are currently airing featuring my voice… again, ive been lucky, but I put lotsa time and love into this business.

Have i ever had a voice coach? would you recommend it? I’ve worked with a few great singing coaches, including an amazing singer/ vocal coach Lee Anthony Lontoc in Los Angeles. Lee helped me understand my voice, strengthen my technique, and has helped me maintain my voice thru lots of rough sessions. Having a great vocal coach can also help you expand while helping to prevent any injuries. i highly recommend a proper vocal coach or speech coach to anyone that wants to take this career seriously.

How did you get started as a VO actor? What was your first gig? I got into the business through a top voice over actor friend, Robin Atkin Downes. Long story short, i had always been imitating Homer Simpson since The Simpsons first aired. I was about 10. Well, cut to me in my late 20s, and a big video game company was looking to cast someone to voice Homer Simpson for a video game. Well, Robin knew i wanted to be a vo actor, knew I can do a quite spot on Homer Simpson, so he recorded me, submit my audition… and i booked it!!! From there, the stars lined up, and perhaps, the top voice over agency in the world reached out to take a meeting. I owe my career to Robin for helping me, along with my wonderful agents for believing in my talent and giving me a shot.

How much time do you spend auditioning for new work? My career is always based on the new stuff. Once Ive booked ‘that gig’, im immediately thinking about the next move, next step, next gig waiting for me. half my career is based on the work im currently doing, the other half is focused on booking the next excited opportunity. and they both take an awful lot of time, in the best of ways.

What gear do you use? Uh-oh. nerd alert!!!! you opened up a pandora’s box with that one. shah! Ill keep it simple. I use an apogee ensemble into my apple tower, but i bypass those internal preamps to use different preamps, of which i have a small collection, neve, bae, api, avalon, and focusrite… my background is music, so each preamp has a different flavor to add to the music mix. For voice over, i tend to stick to using my api 3124+, or my avalon 373. I use waves plugins for compressors and eq’s, when im not using my rack stuff. As for microphones, i either use a u87, sennheiser shotgun mic (im forgetting the model), a neuman tlm103, or my trusty (and inexpensive) studio projects C3 (perhaps sounds better or just as good as any of the other mics)

recording gear7-2

What did it feel like the first time you heard your voice in a cartoon? Honestly, I teared up and cried a bit. I couldn’t help but think of all the work i put into this career I love, how badly i wanted it. It was a childhood dream come true, I was just so proud of myself and what i had accomplished. It felt like i was in a dream.

How do you approach impressions? Impressions can be very tricky. The first step, Id say, is to know what your voice is capable of. Know its limits. Go as far out there as you can, try anything to create different sounds from your throat. Don’t be afraid to experiment. Once you get a good feel, what you can or cant do, the next step is having a good ear. Just listen to others, in detail. hear differences in speech patterns, pitches, tones, placement of peoples voices. Then experiment with mimicking others. Practice practice, practice.

What inspired you to pursue a career in voice over? I had always watched cartoons. I still do. However, back in the day…ha!… I played a video game called Dragon’s Lair. It was an animated adventure game, basically a choose your own adventure cartoon. I remember playing that game over and over with my brother, watching and loving the cartoon and the characters in the game. I can remember going home, swinging my sword, and, unknowingly, mimicking the sounds of Dirk the Daring (the hero of the game) as i jumped, swung my toy sword, and pretended to be falling off cliffs. It was that point, I had my first thought of wow! i wish i was the real voice of Dirk. Which grew into wow! I wish I could do cartoon character voices. After Dragon’s Lair, I paid attention to cartoon character voices a lot closer.

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Favorite Tv show of all time? The Simpsons. Its a cartoon that I have grown up with. Starting when I was 10 or so, and I still watch it today… and new episodes, mind you.

Whats your guilty pleasure? Lately? Facebook… i just mindlessly scroll down the page, liking and sharing pics and ids. I think its a way for me to shut my mind off, my mind is always on the go. It just puts me in zombie mode, and helps me relax. Oh, and eating Pizza, chocolate chip cookies and milk while I sit staring at my computer screen doesn’t hurt either! shah

Star Wars or Star Trek? Seriously?… no brainer. Star Wars. Jar Jar is my fav.    😉

Where in the world is Carmen San Diego? I don’t know, but if no one can find her, and they need her voice… yeah, sure, ill give it a shot! hahaha

 

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