Level Up Your Voice Like Markiplier
Described by some as the “golden voice” of Youtube, Markiplier (real name Mark Fischbach) is a successful let’s player, content maker, and even a voice actor himself! Perhaps you’re looking to do an impersonation of Mark, or perhaps you’d like to emulate some of his vocal qualities in your own voice. Whatever your end goal is, we’ve compiled a guide of three tips to nail a Markiplier voice impression.
1. Speak from Your Diaphragm
- Do: Utilize deep breathing and project your voice.
- Don’t: Speak from the throat or upper register.
One of the best qualities of Markiplier’s voice is that it has depth and is resonating. To him, this is likely a natural quality, but for others, a little practice can help you emulate this behavior.
To practice speaking from the diaphragm, sit in a chair with a hand resting on your abdomen. Begin saying your vowels, “A-E-I-O-U,” in slow succession. Every time you repeat this sequence, envision yourself moving air from deeper and deeper within your core.
Although our diaphragm doesn’t hold air, it is the large muscle responsible for squeezing and contracting the lungs. Training and developing this muscle will lead to significant long-term success in voice acting.
2. Add a Rasp
- Do: Frame your sentences with a gravelly edge.
- Don’t: Overload your voice with texture and sound hoarse
Another key feature of Markiplier’s voice is that it is somewhat gravelly. The beginning or endings of his sentences will sometimes have a rough edge, which gives his speech the quality of sounding rugged yet refined.
Imitating an organic trait such as this one can be difficult. When adding an element to your vocal profile, you want to avoid oversaturating your voice with any one element. Too much rasp can make a voice that is hoarse or breathless. If you’re a voice actor, you’ll want to especially avoid too much rasp as it can quickly make a character or narrator sound unrefined.
Playing up your voice’s own natural rasp is a great way to emulate this trait. People naturally begin to sound gravelly at the beginning or end of a sentence, as this is when more stain is on the vocal cords. In particular, putting the edge towards the end of a sentence gives a unique tone. If done only at the beginning, a listener may think that the speaker has a cold, or their vocal cords are not warmed up properly.
3. Speak Authoritatively
- Do: Annunciate your words and give pause to your speech.
- Don’t: Use filler words or speak too quickly.
The third quality of Markiplier’s voice that makes him so resonate with people is the authority with which he speaks. Speaking both clearly and succinctly will go miles for your voice.
Having an authoritative voice means several things. For one, it’s important to annunciate your words and avoid soft distortions of vowels or other soft sounds. However, this is only one part of having an authoritative voice profile. Another element is having good timing. This is perhaps Markiplier’s greatest natural quality. He gives appropriate pauses to his words and keeps a steady pace that isn’t too fast or too slow. It commands the attention of the listener and is easy to focus on. Perhaps this is the reason why he is such a successful Youtuber!
The last thing you can do to have a more authoritative voice is to avoid filler words. Not using “um” or “so” will make your voice more direct and confident. Using these words is the equivalent of not making eye contact. By speaking directly, you’ll be “making eye contact” with your viewers.
Good Voice, Good Game
Have you mastered your Markiplier voice impression yet? Is there another Youtuber you’d like to emulate? It makes sense that people will naturally gravitate towards videos with voices they like to hear, especially over video games and other kinds of footage. With so much happening visually, it can be easy to lose focus. However, these iconic voices have a way of grabbing our attention and not letting go.
What are your tricks to making a good Markiplier impression? Let us know in the comments below.