Today we’d like to introduce you to Jason Shablik.
Hi Jason, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I was into music as a kid and fascinated with recording. This fascination led to a degree in Music Engineering and eventually a job at the top recording studio in Atlanta. Let’s chalk that up to some talent, a little perseverance, and a lot of luck. Maybe a dash of being in the right place at the right time, too. Within the first six months at this job, I recorded radio commercials during the day and assisted on landmark albums from Toni Braxton, TLC, and Babyface during the evenings. I cannot stress how fortunate I felt to have had incredible mentors during that period of my career.
Although I loved working on phenomenal album work, I gravitated to the more regular work schedule that advertising and corporate clients afforded me after a few years. Pivot. Sound design and creating the theater of the mind experience became my focus. Blending layers of sound effects and voices are a lot like music composition. Everything has its place in the performance.
As technology changed, I decided my next pivot would be opening my own audio post-production company, Jason Sound. Small, flexible, and able to take on the projects that interested me most. Short films, mobile apps, interactive experiences, adventure rides, podcasts, and any video content that requires special attention to audio, including the advertising and corporate work I’ve always enjoyed. Around the same time, I started training with some outstanding voiceover coaches, and my voice became a part of many of my projects. Voice acting is not dissimilar to music. At least, as a former musician, this is how I approach it. Practicing, auditioning, and performing. Tempo, intonation, phrasing, emotion, and attitude.
Fourteen years later, Jason Sound continues to adapt and change with current technology and trends. Almost all my projects are created remotely from my 450-square-foot studio. And I collaborate with partners all across the US.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
If the road always feels smooth, you probably aren’t challenging yourself enough. I’ve always tried to look toward the next trend or evolution of technology. Some of the new technology is disruptive to your business, but most of it is beneficial. Knowing the difference is crucial. Having a long career is about working smarter, not harder.
On the voiceover side, the work can be very cyclical. Your voice type may trend well in commercials for a few years, and then it is out of favor for the next few. Just because you aren’t booking doesn’t mean you lack talent. It might mean looking at different genres that suit your voice print better. Keep practicing your craft with the help of a good coach, and your moment to shine again will be soon enough.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Jason Sound and Argonaut Audio specialize in audio post-production and voiceover for commercials, corporate videos, digital content, and visual media. Simply put, we make your video content sound great. Our services include recording voiceover, adding sound effects or creating sound design elements, searching and licensing appropriate music, cleaning up production audio, and mixing. Our clients are independent video production companies, advertising agencies, and content creators all over the US.
As a voice actor, you can hear my voice on projects for clients like Mercedes Benz, Porsche, Fiserv, Delta, Johnson & Johnson, Kendall Motor Oil, and many hospitals and financial institutions. You can also hear my voice lead you on an audio-guided tour of the Art Deco District of South Beach in Miami. Or teach you about the Cold War at the National Museum of Nuclear Science and History. I am currently narrating the second season of MotoAmerica’s Pressure to Rise for Fox Sports. My voiceover superpower is making complex subjects sound more relatable to a general audience.
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
Always be open to new ideas. Be a student for life. You have no idea where opportunities to learn and grow will originate or lead to, so always be open to trying different things. Older people have a lot of experience to share. But I am not too proud to learn from someone younger than me. I witnessed many incredibly skilled people in my profession refuse to adapt when the recording industry transitioned from analog to digital. Always be looking forward. Know when to adjust and pivot.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://jasonsound.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jasonsound/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jasonshablikvo
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/jasonsound
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9pOlA7n1rwHJ5KuX3R3qAg
Image Credits
All photos by Danielle Barfield Jarrell or Jason Shablik
