Celebrity Announcements

When you’ve got important information to share with your customers, you want to grab their attention.  That attention is increasingly hard to capture.  That’s why airports and public transit systems all over the world have hired recognizable (and typically likable) celebrities to voice their public announcements.  When we hear a robotic, deadpan voice, most of us default to tuning it out.  But, when that voice is recognizable or entertaining in their message or delivery, we notice.  But, celebrity announcements capture attention.

Which Celebrity Should Voice Your City’s Transit Announcements?

Recently, Seth Rogan was hired as the new voice of mass transit systems in Vancouver and Toronto, after allegations of sexual harassment against the previous announcer, Morgan Freeman.  This has led to a lot of talk about which celebrities should record similar announcements in cities across America.  As a professional voice artist and celebrity impressionist, I wanted to share a few ideas.

Barack Obama – Chicago

Barack Obama providing announcements for the CTA feels uniquely Chicago.

Christopher Walken – New York

Who else for the MTA, but the King of New York?

John Madden – Amtrak

Here’s a guy who doesn’t like flying on planes, but he likes to talk a bit, so here’s some safety announcements.  Boom!

John Malkovich – Factory Safety

Sometimes, when my kids are doing things which could result in their injury, I slip into John Malkovich’s voice to warn them of danger.  I think it would work.

Jeff Goldblum – Airline Safety Announcements

With his new TV show, The Curiosity of Jeff Goldblum coming to Nat Geo, this one is totally plausible.

If you have real, or parody announcements to be made at your company or event, contact me to discuss what I can do to make those announcements stand out enough to be heard.