Pitch Perfect: How Tone Bridges Barriers | Inka Magnaye | TEDxADMU

and now for our next speaker she's a versatile professional voice actor content creator and podcast host renowned for a dynamic presence and unwavering advocacy for body positivity her captivating skill as a voice Talent made her the first philippine-based artist to join the DC Universe and has allowed her to Pioneer ASMR meditation podcasts in the country her authenticity shines through her online presence where she fearlessly Champions self-love and encourages others to embrace their uniqueness serving as an inspiration to individuals seeking empowerment and acceptance ladies and Gentlemen please welcome Inca magnay what am I doing this my

first time introducing myself but it's part of the effect right did you like that yeah wasn't weird okay good okay because First Impressions last I like this one it says you never get a second chance to make a first impression right and we know this and I bet you first impressions last is the first thing that pops into your head every time you're about to meet new people right it's almost automatic this is because we are so in tuned with looking at somebody you know what I mean this is also why we've learned to put

so much importance into our appearances because our appearances can make or break an opportunity for us whether you're applying for a job or maybe you're representing an organization or maybe you're dating right first impressions last but do you know what creates a second more subtle but Lasting Impression it's our voice because from this our brains create a whole narrative about the person who is in front of us even without us realizing that it's happening I bet you from when I did my voice over and until now my voice is already sending all sorts of bits

of information in your brain whatever it is that you're making assumptions about me oh she's probably really incedible she's super smart she's so intimidating I don't know whatever it is but it's already doing things to your brain because our voice is what makes people stop to listen yes I was a radio DJ for eight years to judge and to believe and when you have command over your voice people will listen whether what you have to say is good and true or not Julian treasure says that the human voice is the instrument we all play and

is probably the most powerful sound in the world he goes on to say that it's the only sound that can start a war or say I love you succinctly laying out the duality of this power the human voice can be a tool to incite change and it can also be weaponized to create conflict and sew Discord let's say political figures like Barack Obama and Donald Trump both very charismatic but obviously use their voices in vastly different ways the voice is a double-edged sword we all possess and today I will make you aware of how you

can use yours would you like that okay very good you're so dumb oh you're so dumb you're so dumb do you see that it's almost like magic even when saying the exact same words the human voice can change the meaning behind anything think about what that can do right especially when you expand that idea and grasp the fact that your voice doesn't just talk about like how you sound or how you speak but it it encompasses your character your voice because what you do says so much about your values how you were raised and who

you are as a person actions speak louder than words right and words have power so if I listen to your voice as a whole right now what do you think your voice would tell me about you in my line of work as a content creator you need to know your voice inside and out because this is the root of everything this is where the inspiration comes from when you make your videos or whatever it is that you post it is the reason why clients consider you for their campaigns and it is also the root of

the tone that you use when you communicate with people in your community and the big part of my voice is responding to hate comments my friends know this one yes I know I know every time I do this the good people ask why why do you do this Inca people don't understand why I give the negativity attention who follows me on Facebook here I'm sure I'm sure you guys have seen me do that every now and then yes I see people nodding don't feed the trolls they say don't stoop down to their level it's not

worth your time Inca but I'm going to open your eyes to another magical property that our voices possess it's Alchemy do you know what Alchemy is it's the power or the process of changing lead into gold okay so I don't just respond to hate comments for the sake of responding to them sometimes okay what I'm doing is an attempt at Alchemy I am taking something dull and worthless and transforming it into something that can be a value as an example I recently joined a fitness competition that a lot of people have supported me in but

also there's so many people who say that I don't belong there I'm not fit enough I'm not pageant enough you know and I a i i acknowledge those comments not to agree with them because I don't agree with that but I I acknowledge it to take it so that I can change it right I can change it and flip it and instead turn it into something that can encourage people to try something new to be unafraid to be a beginner to take a chance at something and leap at that moment of fearlessness to do something

that they've always wanted to do but were probably scared of doing you know because when you think about it people aren't born with abs right people aren't born knowing how to pageant walk already they do training for that for a long time and doing this I want to remind people that we were all beginners at one point and I wouldn't have been able to vocalize that if I didn't reply to these hate comments I mean yes I could have just ignored them also like what my family and friends always tell me to do but then

I would have missed the opportunity to turn a negative into a positive voice is so powerful it can change hisory his as we knew it so it can fit The Narrative of those in power but remember that it can also do the opposite because it's really all about the intention anyway and so that's a good question to ask yourself all the time what was my intention right and anything that you do and this is something when you ask yourself this it requires a deep honesty no fooling yourself no trying to make yourself feel better there's

no one in here to impress it's just you and you okay what was my intention and so people get confused every time I post like responses to these hate comments or when I post my failures like this this was a challenge a physical challenge and I was dying of an asthma attack right in the middle and Carl took the video thank you it was so embarrassing to struggle in front of all of these artists and my fellow finalists and I was thinking do I even post this but then I received this comment if it's big

enough for you guys to read posting that video built a bridge between this woman and myself and you know what I noticed it's in these moments that make the strongest and deepest connections with my community the vulnerability the honesty and when people can see your authenticity because in this world of hyperconnectivity we can be more disconnected and divided than ever you guys realize that it is so easy to connect with everyone and yet there's so many people who choose to use it to disconnect to divide when I was a kid bullying used to stop when

I left school but now it's right in our hands in our beds with us at midnight when we're trying to fall asleep and this furthers my drive to keep responding to hate comments within reason of course because I always ask myself what was my intention in responding to them it's Alchemy if you can only take one thing from this talk let it be this in anything that you do your voice has the power to change lead into gold you have the power to alchemically rear the negativity on its ugly head and create something that can

make positive Ripples and at this point you might be thinking Ina what does this have to do with me I'm not a content creator I don't have a following like how can I apply this I'm not a social media personality well you don't need to be an influencer to have influence your ta who uses Facebook to repost Bible quotes can make one comment about your body and I promise you it will influence the way you think for days and she doesn't even have a following she has like what 200 friends also on the flip side

someone can make a comment about your outfit or your haircut and it'll change your mood instantly voice has power and this is something that I want you to understand today do you know the story that goes that you have like two wolves inside of you there one is evil hateful um malicious and cruel manipulative thing and the other is good compassionate honest and empathetic they're Rivals that all of us have inside of us locked in this ongoing battle this push and pull for your soul that's what they say and the Wolf who wins is the

one you feed now I am by no means a saint okay there are days when I feed that Dark Wolf a bone a steak even and boy is it so fun to entertain that darker Ral cuz it's so easy it's so easy to give in to that darker wolf who makes being Sinister sound like so much fun you know a little gossip here and there a little cattiness towards that person feeding the fire a little bit and all that stuff but the thing is when you're aware of the power of your voice it changes because

with that awareness comes accountability when you are aware of the power of the weapon that you carry it's very difficult to be oblivious to the influence that you can have over the people around you so allow me to introduce Rivals the different components that make up your double-edged sword Rivals okay that is relating Imaging variety authenticity listening and silence first one these are the six voiceover skills by the way that I learned as a professional voiceover talent that can be used in real world situations you know with and with the honing of these skills and

the right combination of each of them you can begin to enact the change that you want to see in the world but I impart these to you you with a hope that you will use this knowledge to build bridges for the greater good because with great power comes very good relating relating in the industry this manifests in products or Brands choosing voiceovers that sound like their target markets okay for example um Telco Brands usually use use voices that sound like young professionals or college students okay get up to one full hour of YouTube every day

with unlimited calls and texts to other networks what about ads for food they sound like our mothers when used in real world situations it's about sounding more like the person that you you're speaking with in order to make them feel comfortable around you this is so that it's easier for them to open up to have a conversation things like that it's also sounding like the kind of person that you want to project like maybe someone sweet and innocent maybe or like I don't know what I'm talking about so much can you tell me more about

it I don't know maybe you want them to like underestimate you or maybe you want to sound like a professor or a Ted XP speaker to make the audience think you know what you're talking about she's credible imagery is our next skill or Imaging this is the ability to paint pictures with your words 50% of the time voiceovers don't even have an accompanying visual so we need to rely on our voices to be able to paint the picture for the audience this is also known as the theater of the mind like if I told you

about the most Sumptuous bowl of ramen I've had in a while with a broth so warm so rich and so thick it filled my mouth with flavors of meat and mushroom and with a noodle so springy you'd think it was hand pulled right in front of me that is the power of Imaging it helps The Listener visualize what you're trying to give them so in real life uh applications when your words can guide your audience through a cinematic experience it'll be easier for them it'll be easier for you to convince them to come over to

your side to see your point of view and it allows you to evoke in them whatever emotions that you want to come out like now I want you to be hungry did that work yeah okay good um variety is our next one Variety in terms of how you speak or procity this is the patterns of Rhythm and sound used in poetry now this isn't just a way of removing monotony from your speech because it's so difficult to listen to someone who just speaks in like one tone and then you kind of get lost right this

variety of speech also adds uh a kind of deeper meaning to whatever you're saying because depending on how you add variety to your words you're actually highlighting different things I didn't say she did it I didn't say she did it I didn't say she did it again same words imagine something so subtle can change the meaning so drastically so use this wisely authenticity this one is very straightforward when it comes to ads um authenticity helps build credibility for the brand again when clients or Brands choose voiceovers that sound like their target market it makes it

easy easier for the people buying to kind of trust the product oh yeah cuz it sounds like me sure I'll get that I see myself using this so very much like the examples I gave earlier on the real life applications of this it's it's pretty simple if you wish to connect with others you need to come from a place of authenticity because the more natural you are the more comfortable people will be around you do you know that one person that we know who's just like so weird and always is like trying to like put

on more than they actually are and it's super weird hanging around them because you can always tell most of the time when someone's being authentic or not people can feel that about you as well next I would say this is the most important skill of all listening because for effective communication to happen the first step is always to listen this skill is where all the other skills come from and without this skill it will be difficult to hone the others in the real world active listening helps you connect with others it helps you recalibrate where

you stand in terms of your like opinions and values it also helps you learn lessons for your growth and helps you listen to the needs of the people around you your communities so that you can better help them you can be a better um partner wife mother sibling friend so listening is an important skill that will help you make a difference and our last skill silence this skill is one that I learned from my dad the guy in the blue bandana over there he is a season voiceover Talent he's hiding he hates this and he's

a multi-awarded producer he's really good pops told me that in a performance silence is as eloquent as the words themselves he was producing an ad one time and the client who was there listening to him asked him him can we remove that pause there so that there isn't much of a gap in between the words and my dad was like no that's that's part of the dialogue and the client was like but she sounds like she hesitated to which my dad replied exactly that silence was able to convey more of what that whole dialogue needed

than the words ever could used in different doses silence can cause varying effects if there's too much of it it causes unease it's weird unless that's what you're going for right you can also bait people into waiting for what comes next in your story and you can also use silence to subtly highlight words or push ideas by sandwiching them in between pauses as an example there is a noticeable difference between hello and welcome to tedex versus hello and welcome to tedex right silence is potent law four always say less than necessary Robert Green and the

48 Laws of power says that being silent makes you come across as more powerful and more intimidating if that's the game that you want to play but also silence can lessen the risk of you putting your foot in your mouth it's such a great it's such a great skill to learn Mark Twain has one of my favorite quotes about that actually he said it is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you're a fool than to open it and remove all doubt it's so true now I don't know if you all will

remember so much Rivals right that's all you have to remember Rivals but just to reiterate remember that as with any tool or weapon how you use your voice is completely up to you will you use it to perpetuate negativity to spread misinformation or to add to the noise and like just vapid things on the internet that's just polluting our minds and spaces or will you use your voice to spark passion to advocate for the voiceless to inspire others into action change lives maybe in the process or will you be silent the choice is always yours

it is your voice after all I can't speak for you I can only speak to you and I can only hope I can only hope that you use your voices to help leave the world a little better than when you found it so with every word I urge you strive to inspire with a use of the right tone educate with empathy through active listening Foster understanding enable communication and connection use your Whispers to calm not to inight your shouts and screams to Champion not to belittle or berate your silence to listen not to cower or

be complicit remember your voice can break barriers and Bridge divides as I said earlier it is a tool so please use it to build the future that you want to be a part of so right now I ask you what do you want your voice to tell the world thank you