Interview Special: Jimm Singer

Today, I'm very pleased to be able to bring you an interview with voice over actor Jimm Singer. Jimm is currently recording the audio book version of The Deliverers: Sharky and the Jewel, which will be available on Audible.com, Amazon, and iTunes before the end of the year.

Jimm Singer

Jimm is a really great guy. He's been awesome to work with. I find that he's great at interpreting the characters in The Deliverers, and he's got a talent for characterization that I really admire. The whole experience of creating the audio book has been fantastic for me as an author, and it's a pleasure to work with someone as professional, and nice as Jimm. Let's see what he had to say.

Oh yes, don't forget to check out the end of the interview where I've posted a chapter from the audio book for you to check out.


Greg:  You’ve been a narrator and voice over actor for many years. Can you tell us a little about some of the projects you’ve been involved in?

 Jimm:  I’ve done voice overs for many different genres, from typical radio and TV commercials to public service announcements.   Some of the more fun projects that I’ve been involved in have been doing character work though—video games, phonetic learning toys, ebooks. 

 One of the most fun on-going projects that I’ve worked on over 15 years I’ve been doing voice over has been as a sound-a-like for Elmo!  Not the REAL Elmo of course, the wonderful and talented Kevin Clash is Elmo’s voice and puppeteer.   I’m the voice of the “test” Elmo that the executives hear.  I become “Elmo”—I laugh, sing, tell jokes and have a great time!  My son, who is now 9, has grown up with “Elmo”.  Many times, he’ll sit in the recording booth with me while I’m doing my work and just laugh, laugh, laugh.  It’s great fun!  

Audio Book Cover

 Greg:  That’s really cool! How is recording an audio book different from other types of narration?

 Jimm:  Sometimes there is no difference except for the time involved.  Some narratives are exactly the same as producing an audio book, it just depends on the length of the book.   If the narrative is a non-fiction read with only a narrator, it’s very straightforward.  If the narration is fiction and involves many characters, like The Deliverers, it can take several weeks or months, depending on the length of the book.   Fiction audio books are fun, but they’re a lot more work…in a good way!  :-)

 Greg:  What about recording The Deliverers: Sharky and the Jewel was appealing to you?

 Jimm:  All the characters!  They’re so diverse and different from one another that it’s made this project really compelling and fun.   

 Greg:  How is the recording going so far?

 Jimm:  Pretty well so far.  I’ve had to take a few days off here and there because I have to work on other projects but when I work on the book, I like to work on it for an extended amount of time. 

 Greg:  How do you prepare for narrating a book?

 Jimm:  I re-read the chapter first to get a sense of what’s happening.  If a new character is being introduced, I try to “find” that character’s voice before beginning.   Then I drink lots of hot tea, baby and pamper my voice a bit, and jump in the booth!
 

Greg: You have a studio in your home. What sort of equipment do you use?

Jimm:  My default set up for audio books and commercial recordings is: an AKG 2000B studio condenser microphone with an Art tube pre-amp, Tascam US-144mkII audio interface and a dbx 266xs Compressor/Gate. My recording booth is a super quiet space and nearly soundproof, the noise floor is very low, about -70db.

Greg:  What do you like to do in your spare time?

 Jimm:  I live in California and love taking advantage of our amazing national parks, coastline and natures beauty.   I’m drawn to water, I go kayaking, go to the ocean to walk, swim or just relax and enjoy the scenery, head up to Lake Tahoe…point to a body of water and I’m there!   I’m a pretty good cook too and enjoying whipping up new dishes for me and my son.  I’m a single Dad and very devoted to my son, so I spend much of my spare time with him.

 Greg:  What sorts of projects are you available for, and how can folks contact you?

 Jimm:  I’m available for corporate and educational narration, commercial voice overs (radio / television), children’s educational projects (toys, ebooks, educational narratives).   I love projects that involve lots of characters, (no surprise there) so if an animated series falls in my lap, that would be pure heaven…how does the saying go, “from your lips to God’s ears”, just sayin’. :-) You can reach me on my website: http:/http://www.jimmsinger.com/

Jimm's a fantastic narrator. Here's a sample--Chapter 14 of The Deliverers: Sharky and the Jewel. Give it a listen, and let me know what you think!