If you vacationed in North Wildwood in the 1970s, there's a decent chance John Burke woke you up.
The short version
John Burke is a professional voice over artist based in South Jersey, working with clients across the country and, increasingly, across the Atlantic. He records from his own studio and delivers broadcast-ready audio, usually within 24 to 48 hours.
He is non-union, which means he can work directly with clients of any size without the administrative overhead that comes with signatory requirements.
How he got here
It started with his daughter.
Bernadette graduated from Rutgers with a degree in Music Education, voice concentration. The first time her vocal professor met John, she told him immediately that Bernadette had inherited her father’s voice. John didn’t believe her.
The professor kept at it. Through Bernadette’s senior year she asked repeatedly what John intended to do with his gift. He told her he wouldn’t know where to start. She handed him a list of names in New York City.
He was still working full-time in the beer business. He called one of the names and went into Manhattan to meet him. It was an eleven-hour day for a ninety-minute lesson. On the second visit he asked the question directly: did he actually have it?
The answer was that he’d been born with it and never used it. High school drama, debate, forensics. The raw material had been there the whole time. It would be a long road, but the road existed.
The training
John trained with Chuck McKibben for more than four years. Chuck is a Northeast Philadelphia coach who spent years as an audio engineer, including work for Mel Blanc, and John treated the training like school, because half-hearted training produces half-hearted results.
He learned studio setup, microphone technique, self-direction, and editing in Adobe Audition. He has since added coursework through Gravy for the Brain and Edge Studios.
The result is a bass-baritone that doesn’t sound like everyone else: authoritative but approachable, and built to stand out in a sea of mild, sound-alike voices.
The studio
John records and handles his own post-production, which means fewer hands between your script and your finished file.
- Mic · Audio-Technica AT875R
- Software · Adobe Audition
- Processing · iZotope RX 11
- Live · Zoom, bodalgoCall
How he works
John takes direction well and asks questions early rather than delivering something that misses the mark. If a script has a term he isn’t certain how to pronounce, he’ll ask before recording. If a line reads awkwardly out loud in a way it didn’t on the page, he’ll flag it and offer an alternative. The script is yours, but a second set of eyes from someone who reads copy for a living is part of what you’re paying for.
Revisions are part of the job, not a surcharge. If the read isn’t right, it gets redone.
On AI
John does not permit his voice to be used in AI or synthetic voice models, and does not license it for cloning. Every project is performed by him.
This isn't only a principle. Anyone can buy an off-the-shelf AI voice, which means anyone can buy the same one your competitor is using. Synthetic voices are getting better at sounding correct, but they don't make choices. They don't notice that a sentence lands differently depending on which word carries the weight, and they can't tell when a script needs a beat of air before the important part. That judgment is the actual product.
Who he's worked with
John is a spokesperson for Upside Global, which connects technology companies with sports organizations worldwide. He has also worked with La Salle University Athletics, the Autism Society of Greater Harrisburg Area, the United German Hungarians, Brauhaus Schmitz, Briganti Wines, and Stinger Home Management.
Outside the booth
John is the grandchild of Irish immigrants and remains awed by the courage it took for his grandparents to leave Ireland so young so that the generations after them would have more.
He’s a lifelong lover of the Jersey Shore. He grew up in North Wildwood and is a summer resident there now, still surrounded by friends he’s had since childhood.
He spent his career in the beer business, working with major brewers, importers, and wholesalers along the East Coast.
He’s a die-hard Philadelphia sports fan, carried in a low-key way. He was affiliated with the 76ers as a young man, and has worked part-time for the Phillies since the 2008 playoff run, where you can still hear him calling out “Get your scorecards here!” It’s a long way from a corporate booth, and he wouldn’t give it up.
Through his children, he has developed a real love of the arts and considerable pride in what both of them have built.