George The Tech’s Performer Friendly Podcast

What does it take to survive (and thrive) through every era of voiceover? Studio engineer, producer, and VO talent Mark Graue joins George Whittam to share stories from radio hustle to Hollywood studios, working with legends, and building a career that adapted from analog tape to today’s digital world. From a near-disastrous timecode session to landing VO work at Hanna-Barbera, this episode is packed with hard-earned lessons on engineering by ear, storytelling in demos, and knowing when to step away. Timeline 00:00 – Audio service promo00:22 – Cold-call spec spots: the original hustle03:12 – Breaking into Cherokee Recording Studios03:36 – The Van Halen spec spot gamble04:39 – Building a Warner interviews archive06:10 – The open audition that led to Hanna-Barbera07:39 – Buying Studio 5 and going independent10:26 – Moving to Burbank and evolving the business12:47 – Surviving the analog → digital shift15:09 – The timecode session disaster 15:54 – Handling pressure when everything’s on the line16:17 – Why great engineers use their ears, not just meters17:13 – Storytelling secrets in voiceover demos18:01 – Memories of Don LaFontaine20:10 – The “voiceover gypsy” era21:46 – Life beyond LA23:45 – Travel, boundaries, and no mobile rig24:37 – Coaching talent and modern home studios25:32 – Gear graveyard stories27:16 – Where to find Mark   

What happens when a seven-time Emmy winner realizes his audio isn’t good enough? We’re re-releasing this episode with CBS Sunday Morning correspondent, Emmy Award winner, and New York Times bestselling author David Pogue to celebrate his new book, Apple: The First 50 Years, which recently debuted on the NYT Best Sellers list. In this conversation, David joins George the Tech to break down how his echoey home office got upgraded to broadcast-ready sound—without a booth—and why most people misunderstand how to fix bad audio. You'll also hear about his years covering tech for The New York Times, and why he’s turning down voice-cloning deals in the age of deepfakes. If you record from home—or care about where tech is headed—this episode hits both. Timeline 00:00 — Big Question: AI Utopia or Dystopia? 00:30 — Introducing David Pogue 03:30 — What He Actually Does Day-to-Day 07:00 — His Music Background (Broadway → Now) 10:00 — The Windsor Castle Story 16:30 — Why He Needed Help With Audio 18:30 — The Big Misconception: “Just Get a Booth” 21:00 — The Facebook Thread That Changed Everything 23:00 — The Actual Fix 25:30 — The Last 5%: Clarity VX 28:00 — Workflow Friction (Final Cut Issue) 31:00 — Broadcast Reality vs Perfectionism 34:00 — The Challenge of Great Audio + Great Video 36:30 — The “Perfect Zoom Background” Problem 40:00 — AI Tools He Actually Uses 43:30 — Deepfakes: Real Risk or Overblown? 47:00 — Turning Down Voice Cloning Offers 50:00 — AI Lawsuits + Ownership Questions 54:00 — Where to Follow David Pogue

From closet booth to NFL sidelines—Queen Noveen didn’t just break into voiceover, she built her own lane. In this episode, she joins George the Tech to share how viral moments, relentless hustle, and smart social media turned into real bookings—including the San Francisco 49ers, NASCAR, and NFL Honors. But it wasn’t smooth. Along the way, she faced noisy apartments, blanket booths, online trolls—and figured it all out in real time. If you’ve ever wondered how VO careers actually take off today…this one’s a must-listen. Learn more at: www.queennoveen.com/ Timeline 00:00 – Soundcheck Promo00:21 – Handling online hate00:45 – Meet Queen Noveen01:52 – Closet studio beginnings02:59 – Juggling early jobs04:20 – Moving from Connecticut to LA05:15 – How voiceover found her06:36 – Dealing with noise interruptions08:44 – The “blanket booth” era13:50 – Upgrading to a real home studio15:51 – Self-directing vs. being directed17:06 – Going viral on TikTok20:58 – Managing comments & negativity24:27 – Learning mic technique the hard way26:32 – The story behind “Queen Noveen”28:12 – Turning social media into bookings29:19 – NFL Honors + 49ers breakthrough29:54 – NASCAR opportunity chain reaction31:24 – Inclusion, opportunity, and pushback34:13 – Australia TV interview experience35:43 – Editing yourself on camera38:13 – Launching Ready. Cue. Announce!39:59 – Curriculum + how it started44:16 – Who the program is for46:52 – Measuring student success49:03 – How to enroll50:28 – No “get rich quick” promises52:16 – Wrap-up + community

What do Saturday Night Live, The Golden Girls, and modern voiceover studios have in common? Ed Moskowitz has worked on all of them—and his biggest lesson after decades in the industry is surprisingly simple: don’t overcomplicate your audio. In this episode, Ed walks George through his journey from scrappy theater kid to mixing some of the most iconic shows in TV history. Along the way, he shares wild live-broadcast stories (yes, including the Macy’s Parade), the evolution from boom mics to lavs and RF, and why today’s tech sometimes makes things harder—not better. They also dig into Ed’s current voiceover setup (refreshingly minimal), his philosophy on signal chains, and what actually matters when you’re trying to sound professional. If you’ve ever wondered how the pros really approach audio—this one’s packed. Timeline 00:00 Pro Audio Soundcheck Intro00:33 Meet George and Ed02:49 Ed’s Theater Roots04:52 Hollywood Sound and SNL06:37 Studio 8H Sound Design09:56 Snakes, Soldering, and Travel12:35 Macy’s Parade War Stories16:51 Union Work and Sync Playback19:24 Sitcom Factory to Golden Girls24:36 Golden Girls Sound Crew25:56 Larry Sanders Breakthrough31:16 Booms, Lavs, and RF Evolution37:32 Leaving Set for Voiceover41:32 Inside the Booth42:05 Mic Collection Talk44:06 Signal Chain Basics46:25 Analog Control Philosophy48:34 Live Sound War Stories53:58 Voiceover Growth Path58:29 Sennheiser Prototype Story01:02:58 Noise Reduction and Plugins01:09:48 Tech Updates Headaches01:12:27 Wrap Up and Where to Find

Can your audio quality make or break your voiceover career? In this episode, George the Tech sits down with legendary demo producer Chuck Duran to talk pro audio, modern VO demos, and why your home studio might be the biggest factor in whether you book or get passed over. Chuck shares his journey from music roots and moving to LA at 13, to a decades-long friendship with Jess Harnell that unexpectedly launched his career producing voiceover demos. Along the way, he reveals why great reads aren’t enough if the audio is bad, how commercial production has evolved into story-driven sound design, and why he now produces demos 100% remotely—so your real studio sound is front and center. You’ll also hear how custom scripts, simple signal chains, and clean mic technique beat over-processed “radio sound,” and how VO Buzz Weekly’s demo spotlights can help talent get seen by agents.If you’re a voice actor, this episode could change how you think about your studio, your demos, and your career.   00:00 Audio Makes or Breaks 00:56 Meet Chuck Duran 02:24 Origin Story in Music 03:04 Frampton Spark and First Guitar 04:31 Moving to LA at 13 06:02 Meeting Jess Harnell 08:18 Roger Rabbit Breakthrough 09:14 Building a Better Demo 12:01 Why Audio Quality Matters 13:42 Demo Demolition Win 15:15 Modern Demo Production 16:59 Raw Audio Costs Jobs 19:59 Soundcheck and Fixes First 20:42 Commercial Production Trends 21:28 Sound Design Tells Story 22:42 Stacy Personal Story 25:18 Custom Demo Copywriting 28:48 Adapting to Industry Shifts 32:27 Remote Demo Business Model 33:33 Studio Quality Matters 36:15 Demo Spotlight Series 41:01 Representation Through Process 41:54 Where to Get Started 43:05 Final Thanks and Wrap