Eileen Bra
dy, one of Mind The Gap’s talented voice over artists, always knew she wanted to be a performer. When she was a senior in high school she told her parents she wanted to be an actress. They were less than thrilled. Her father told her to get the newspaper and look through the want ads. “How many ads do you see in there for actresses?” he asked her. “None” was her answer. “How many ads are there for secretaries?”
There were lots of ads for secretaries. So Eileen and her parents arrived at a compromise: She would go to community college, get some skills she could use to work in an office, and in her spare time she could study acting and pursue a career as a performer.
Some People Are Not Cut Out For a 9 to 5 Job
After college she took a job as a legal secretary; and she hated it. She knew she was simply not cut out for a 9 to 5 office job.
Her passion for performing remained strong. She took classes in acting and singing; and began finding work in the theater and as a vocalist. In one of the productions she was in, she met an actor who was also doing voice over work in commercials. He told her she had a great voice and that she should consider voice over work.
That was the beginning of a long and successful career. She took voice over classes, began listening to and learning from the voices she heard in TV and radio commercials, and started getting more and more work in commercials.
A Way With Words
Eileen has continued her work as a jazz vocalist while acting and doing voice overs. She performs with different bands at clubs, weddings and other events.
As a jazz vocalist, one of her skills is interpreting lyrics and making the audience “feel” the emotions in the song. Clearly, that ability positively impacts her work as a voice over artist. She doesn’t just read the copy, she “performs” it and is able to convey the real meaning of the message.
One of the other talents that makes some voice over artists so much better than others is their ability to take direction. As a writer and director, I’ve worked with lots of voice over artists who have great voices, but they can only read the copy one way. If you ask them to be more conversational or to sound more enthusiastic, for example, they’re not really able to do it.
Eileen’s theater training makes her different. She’s able to read the same copy any number of ways, always sounding like she’s talking to you, not reading at you.
Using Her Voice To Make A Living
It’s not often that someone really knows early in life what career they want to pursue … and actually ends up making a living that way. Those who do are very fortunate. They’re happier at work than most people since they’re doing something they love. They’re also usually very good at what they do; again, because they’re doing what they enjoy.
Eileen always knew she wanted to use her voice to make her living. And she’s very good at what she does. You can hear her in many of Mind The Gap’s on hold messages; but if you’d like to hear some samples of her singing, check out her website and be prepared to be blown away!
