This week we recorded two Radio spots and four TV spots for KFCs new campaign. The VO talent selected after a long casting with a couple of call backs was our friend Vicente Solis.
KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) was founded by Harland Sanders, an entrepreneur who began selling fried chicken from his roadside restaurant in Corbin, Kentucky, during the Great Depression. Sanders identified the potential of restaurant franchising, and the first “Kentucky Fried Chicken” franchise opened in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1952. KFC popularized chicken in the fast-food industry, diversifying the market by challenging the established dominance of the hamburger. Branding himself “Colonel Sanders”, the founder became a prominent figure of American cultural history, and his image remains widely used in KFC advertising. The company’s rapid expansion made it too large for Sanders to manage, and in 1964 he sold the company to a group of investors led by John Y. Brown, Jr. and Jack C. Massey.
KFC was one of the first fast-food chains to expand internationally, opening outlets in England, Mexico and Jamaica by the mid-1960s. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, KFC experienced mixed success domestically, as it went through a series of changes in corporate ownership with little or no experience in the restaurant business. In the early 1970s, KFC was sold to the spirits distributor Heublein, which was taken over by the R.J. Reynolds food and tobacco conglomerate, which later sold the chain to PepsiCo. The chain continued to expand overseas, and in 1987 KFC became the first Western restaurant chain to open in China.
In 1997, PepsiCo spun off its restaurants division as Tricon Global Restaurants, which changed its name to Yum! Brands in 2002. Yum has proved a more focused owner than Pepsi, and although KFC’s number of outlets have declined in the US, the company has continued to grow in Asia, South America and Africa. The chain has expanded to 18,875 outlets across 118 countries and territories, with 4,563 outlets in China alone, KFC’s largest market.
Ali Benarbia ISDNs to London for a LIVE interview from Elite
We had Professional Football Player Ali Benarbia in the studio for a Live Interview using our ISDN facilities. He was interviewed by Hugh Ferris for Sportswell, a live radio show broadcasted by BBC Sport in London, UK.
Ali has had a long career playing football for many clubs in Europe such as FC Martigues, AS Monaco, FC Bordeaux and Manchester City.
Benarbia made his debut in a 2002 African Cup of Nations Group 4 qualifying game against Burkina Faso in September 2000. He represented Algeria a total of seven times, participating in three World Cup qualifying games, two Africa Cup of Nations Cup qualifiers and two friendlies.
He was really nice to work with and we would love to have him again!
Renowned actor CLANCY BROWN records at Elite!
It has been a very busy week over here! We’ve had 3 celebrities visit us just this week and in still Thursday! On Monday we had Iggy Pop who was recording his Radio Show for BBC as usual. On Tuesday we had Jeremy Wade with an ADR for his River Monsters Show for Animal Planet. And yesterday we had the amazing pleasure of having Clancy Brown record a 2 hour session for Chevrolet, while visiting in Miami.
Clancy Brown is an American film, television and voice actor. He is known for his live-action roles as Captain Byron Hadley in The Shawshank Redemption; The Kurgan in Highlander; Brother Justin Crowe in Carnivàle and Career Sergeant Zim in Starship Troopers. Brown is also known for providing the voices of animated characters such as Mr. Eugene H. Krabs in the animated series SpongeBob SquarePants; Lex Luthor throughout various DC projects; Captain Black and Ratso in Jackie Chan Adventures; Otto in Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!; Dr. Neo Cortex in the original Crash Bandicoot video games; Savage Opress in Star Wars: The Clone Wars; Long Feng in Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Yakone in The Legend of Korra.
We think he is an incredible voice actor who definitely enjoys and knows his craft. He is apparently coming back next week!
We had our own River Monster at Elite Music Studios!
Jeremy Wade visited us in Miami to record several hours of ADRs for the River Monsters show in Animal Planet. This is a wildlife documentary television show produced for Animal Planet by Icon Films of Bristol, United Kingdom. Hosted by biologist Jeremy Wade who travels around the globe in search of the most fearsome freshwater killers.
Wade is also a published author. With joint-author Paul Boote, in 1992 Wade published his first book, Somewhere Down the Crazy River.Also, he made his acting debut in the 2014 film Blood Lake: Attack of the Killer Lampreys, playing a lamprey expert. He had previously covered the fish in the River Monsters episode “Vampires of the Deep.”
Mr. Wade and Dominic from Icon Films were very nice to work for and we hope to see them again!
Bernie Goldberg records at Elite again!
We had Bernie Goldberg visit us at the studio again to record a Voice Over for a piece on student athletes that was very interesting!
Bernard Goldberg is an American writer, journalist, and political pundit who has won twelve Emmy Awards during his career. He is currently a commentator for Fox News and a correspondent for HBO‘s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.
The SAG-AFTRA Miami Local Conservatory “Actors Branching Out” event was a big success…
… And we were a part of it! CC Limardo, our Studio Manager, who has also been a VO talent for many years, was a speaker in this amazing event from the Union.
This event was focusing on the theme Actors Branching Out and it consisted of a variety of sessions and topics with an amazing group of presenters: Memo Sauceda, Herta Suarez, Matt Florio, Darryl Gilley, Ruth Paul, Diana Loy, Dave and Matt Corey, Bob Carter, Ed Arenas and of course our own, CC Limardo.
The conservatory provided an opportunity for participating performers to explore new employment options and expand their job opportunities.
Two more spots in Spanish for MassSave.com
We just finished two radio spots for the current campaign for MassSave.com
These commercials were recorded in Spanish and will be recorded also in Portuguese this next week.
Memo Sauceda was the announcer and we had the incredible voices of Rosalinda Rodriguez, Vicente Solis, CC Limardo, Manolo Zota and Jonathan Ramirez for the actors in the script. These turned out great and very funny!
Mass Save is an initiative sponsored by Massachusetts’ gas and electric utilities and energy efficiency service providers, who work to provide a wide range of services, incentives, trainings, and information promoting energy efficiency that help residents and businesses manage energy use and related costs.
We closed last week with a BANG! Recording 4 commercials for a popular Bank in South Florida.
It was a very warm session! Margarita Coego, Chris O’Connor, Chris Mezzolesta, and the very talented kids, Mylena Barrios and Daniel Lara recorded VO’s for this amazing TV campaign.
It was all recorded by Rafael Pereira, our Studio Engineer and the voices were amazing and the result spectacular. Soon we will be able to see the finished product on TV.
The Talent Agency
Talent agents represent performers. Talents agencies are licensed by the state and must include the words “Talent Agent” or “Talent Agency” in any print advertising. along with their address and license number. The talent agent works with advertising agencies, producers and casting directors to obtain work for the performers they represent.
A talent agent receives a commission of 10% to 25% based on the scale they negotiate for their performer and whether their performer is union or nonunion. For AFTRA/SAG work the commission is above and beyond the performers fee. In some cases, the commission may be taken out of the talent fee, especially for nonunion freelance work obtained by an agent. For talent agencies to book union talent, they must be franchised by the local AFTRA and SAG unions.
Unfortunately, this is not a perfect world, and there are many unscrupulous agents who will attempt to relieve you of your money. If anyone asks you for money up front to represent you or to get you an audition, they are operating a scam. The best thing to do is find a reputable agent and stay in touch with him or her. Even if you are freelance and must pay your agent a 25% commission, the advantages of representation may well be worth it.
Do you need a talent agent to do voice over work? No. Will a talent agent benefit you and your voice over career? In most cases, yes.
At Elite Music Studios we have a relationship with Bohemian Sound Talent Agency, whom we recommend with our eyes closed for anyone who is interested in starting or maintaining a voice over career.
Here’s this week VO Tip!
We already talked about using a microphone, now let’s talk about another important tool in the recording business, THE HEADPHONES!
Communication during a recording session is extremely important, and a comfortable pair of headphones is the best way to do it. By wearing headphones, you will be able to hear yourself as you are delivering your lines. This auditory of your voice will often allow you to hear subtle mistakes that might go unnoticed if you aren’t wearing headphones. It will also allow you to effectively apply certain microphone techniques for achieving warmth or avoiding breath pops.
Another benefit of wearing headphones is that the producer, director and engineer will be able to communicate with you. Some voice talent feel that headphones are a distraction and prefer to work without them, but the simple fact is that there is often no other option for communication between the control room and booth.
That is our VO Tip of the week!