Andrea Collins: Voicing Some Pretty Major Stuff

Back in 2006, the first time I met Andrea, she was just finishing up her tenure working promotions for Power 97 in Winnipeg. Little did I know just how far she'd go.

Over the following 14 years, Andrea made herself into a prominent radio figure in Winnipeg, Montreal and Toronto. She spent time on air at major stations like Curve 94.3 in Winnipeg, Virgin Radio, CTV, and iHeartRadio, all the way up until 2018 when she was laid off (as is the case for many radio employees). But of course, though her time in radio ended, that didn't mean her career was over too. She quickly pivoted to voiceover, and has been putting her radio-honed voice to work as a sought-after VO talent ever since.

How To Be a VO In Today's World

Naturally, we discuss how Andrea made the transition from radio to VO, but the real meat and potatoes of our conversation comes in the form of her advice for other up-and-coming voice talent. In particular, other VOs in the audience may want to pay special attention to out how she's handling AI and her business. Much to the chagrin of voice talent everywhere, AI voiceovers are seemingly here to stay, and most of us aren't totally sure how to navigate this new landscape where robo-voices are scooping up a chunk of the work. Andrea, on the other hand, is thinking of the things that a lot of people have not considered, for both radio and voiceover. No spoilers, but in short: Protect Your Voice.

We also discussed her involvement with CAVA, The Canadian Association of Voice Actors, and her recent move to Ottawa. For those who don't know, CAVA is a non-profit, national organization formed by industry professionals who - given that we have different laws and needs in Canada - saw the need for a Canadian version of the U.S.-based National Association of Voice Actors (NAVA). If you are a voice actor in Canada, joining does not the cost a lot, and the perks will literally pay for the membership.

Steal Andrea's Setup

Andrea goes over her recording setup in the episode, but for any VOs who think she sounds great (she does) and want to copy her on the tech side, here's what she uses for such crisp audio:

• Neumann TLM 103 Microphone

• Motu M4 Audio Interface

• Macbook

• Adobe Audition for editing and production

Some of these items may be a little on the pricey side, and things like the Macbook certainly aren't necessary for success, but if you've got the budget, this episode is proof they're worth it.