Conversations with Lori Wild

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lori Wild.

Hi Lori, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I always wanted to be an actor but I had some health issues that prevented me from going down that path, as well as crippling stage fright. I had severe endometriosis and about five years ago I had a hysterectomy and all of the endometriosis was removed. I do have other health issues as well so this issue was making my symptoms worse. I knew there was an actor inside of me and I kept seeing a Facebook friend post about voiceover. I had no idea this was something you could do from your home. I knew I wanted to pursue this profession so it took me about a year to message this person about how she got into VoiceOver.

I knew as soon as I messaged her that I would follow whatever instructions she gave me and there was no turning back. That’s the type of person I am. I think about things for a long time and then I go all in. I did everything this person told me to do. I started reading aloud, listening to commercials and joining Facebook groups, and I found myself a coach. From there I just kept training and soaking up everything that I could. Then I was dealt the devastating news that I had a speech impediment which I didn’t realize was so bad. I’m hearing impaired and the hearing aids I had at the time were not great. I just couldn’t hear the speech impediment as other people could. The speech impediment was caused by my teeth shifting as I got older, so I had to end up getting braces.

Adult braces are terrible. I had to wait until my braces were off to record my demo which was almost 2 years after they were put on. This was upsetting but it gave me more time to train and be ready to start auditioning and marketing as soon as they were off. Oh, and make demos. Even though this was not how I planned my voice acting career to begin, it put me in a better place when I started off. I was at a higher level and was able to book jobs quicker than someone who had only been coaching and training for a year. That being said, after about six months in, I had booked several jobs and landed my first agent and I signed with DDO LA. Since then I’ve signed with four other agencies, and I’m working fairly steadily. I had to keep pushing forward and not let these obstacles stop me. So glad I did!

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I do the voiceover for commercials, promo, narration, medical narration, audio description, explainers, e-learning, dubbing, character work, and IVR. I specialize in commercials, promo, and narration. I’ve voiced videos for BMW, Netflix, Schwan cosmetics, AgentSync, nonprofit videos, explainers, Golden Tap, Avangrid, and many more.

I’m proud of myself because this is something I never thought I could do, and being that I suffer from stage fright, performing in front of others can be very difficult for me. But I push through the nerves and go for it. Sometimes I wonder how I do it!

I think what sets me apart from others is that I have a very vivid imagination and can visualize and connect to copy easily. I’m a storyteller and that comes through in my reads. Also, I bring to the table a lot of life experience and I’ve had to fight for everything I have. I still have health issues and being hearing impaired is a challenge. Luckily my headphones are on top of my hearing aid I have super hearing. Haha, I wish I could walk around like that all day with my headphones on.

In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I think it will just keep growing and growing with the number of streaming services out there offering discounted plans with ads. I think we will continue to see real person reads and that people still want to hear that connection in our voice.

Contact Info:

• Website: loriwildvoice.com
• Instagram: @Loriwildvoice

Image Credits
Manon Halliburton