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Friday, December 8, 2023
HomeENTERTAINMENT14-Year-Old Single Mother Turned Entrepreneur Launches First Black, Female-Owned Voiceover & Audio...

14-Year-Old Single Mother Turned Entrepreneur Launches First Black, Female-Owned Voiceover & Audio Production Company

The voiceover industry is a $4.4 billion dollar  industry and is expected to triple by 2025. Like many other industries the presence of Black talent and  Black voices is underrepresented and, in some cases, not represented at all. The House of Genesis – where  creation begins with sound – educates, trains, coaches, and casts Black voice talent and audio production  professionals. Founded by 14-year-old single Mother turned corporate and entertainment PR professional  then media personality, voice actor and entrepreneur, Tashyra Ayers now heads the first Black, female owned voice acting, and audio production company dedicated to introducing, educating, and training the  Black community on the power of using their voice for impact and income. The House of Genesis is a  resource that provides remote work opportunities, an additional income stream, and virtual courses to  individuals. Based in Philadelphia, PA The House of Genesis provides businesses and entrepreneurs with  voiceover and custom music production for advertising campaigns, TV and streaming radio commercials,  YouTube and podcast intros, audiobook narration and corporate learning materials. 

The House of Genesis was founded in July of 2020 in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. The  company began by testing its business model with the soft launch of its virtual voiceover classes called  Casting the Culture. Casting the Culture educated two groups of aspiring and novice Black voice actors  by the Fall of 2020. Some of those students are now active, paid voice actors who can be heard on podcasts,  audiobooks, social media ads, and radio commercials. 

“The House of Genesis is more than just voiceover, it’s about our identity in our sound,” said Greg  Brown, one of the voice actors in ‘the house’.  

“The next voice of Siri and Alexa is at The House of Genesis! The next Samuel L. Jackson, Cree  Summer, and Bryan J. Howard are in this house!” said Tashyra Ayers, founder of The House of Genesis,  voice actor, media personality and serial entrepreneur.  

The House of Genesis was able to launch Casting the Culture with help from some of the world’s  most talented and award-winning voice actors and industry experts who serve as coaches, instructors, and  mentors. The experts include Nakia Dillard actor, casting agent, and owner of Aikan Acts in Philadelphia; the Vocal Expressionist Stephanie of Lagos, Nigeria; Tyrone Ayers, vocal coach, and creative entrepreneur of Bernard Blain Creations; Abim Idowu of Voice of Abim from Lagos, Nigeria; and NAACP Image  Award-winner James Lewis of TalkTime VO in Washington, D.C. 

In less than a year, The House of Genesis has secured multiple contracts with clients as far as the  United Kingdom and domestically in New York, Philadelphia, and New Jersey. The House of Genesis’  new clientele and partners include Aikan Acts, audio drama podcast, Concrete Growth Project; corporate  coach, speaker, and author Carmen Breveeld of The Netherlands, and the New York Academy of  Medicine’s Youthworks program. Tashyra and her head of production, Daevon Ayers will take the next  year to inform, educate, and train youth in New York about the career opportunities that are in voice acting,  production, and the power of using their voice.  

When asked her inspiration behind the company, and how she came up with the name, Tashyra  said, “In 2017 while new to the voiceover industry, I searched for networks, organizations, and even a  marketplace specifically to train Black voice actors. Although there are groups that mention diversity, and  even a network that houses an online platform for existing voiceovers, I did not find an organization who  specifically trains and educates Black voice talent,” Tashyra said. “That is imperative as we naturally have a unique, identifiable sound that is often imitated throughout mainstream media. I was searching for a  resource that could specifically speak to our sound,” Tashyra said.  

One day while recording an audiobook at the iHeart Radio studio in Philadelphia, Tashyra told her  producer that the two should launch a voice acting and production company that helps train and coach Black  voices. “He loved the idea,” Tashyra said, “but ultimately, three years later I would go on to create the  source for Black voices on my own and bring my son into yet another business endeavor. Now, it is a family  affair that will help our voices and the voices of those ‘in this house’ to remain in the Earth long after we are gone,” Tashyra said. While she studied the voiceover industry, Tashyra produced her own projects as  an independent voice actor securing audiobook deals through ACX, an Amazon company. Her published  works can be found here and on Audible.com by searching ‘Tashyra Ayers’.  

As for the name, The House of Genesis, Tashyra says that she took her time with naming this  company – one of many she founded over the years. She began to study the context, presence and anatomy of voice and sound. What Tashyra found was fascinating in that sound is only second in travel speed to  light, and travels faster underwater. Her spiritual roots did not fail her as she put prayer and meditation as  the requirement when establishing The House of Genesis. Tashyra revisited the book of Genesis – defined  as ‘the beginning’ – and was reminded that creation as we know it came to be because of the audible  command of God. In other words, creation began with a sound that permeated out of a voice who  commanded creation to be, and those creations remain where they are until this day. Therefore, when  thinking about the purpose and the timing of life in which this business was forming, the tagline came to  mind first followed immediately by the business name. “The House of Genesis – where creation begins  with sound – does just that,” Tashyra said. “With our words we create, bring words to life; we dispel myths,  defeat dissension, dismantle stereotypes, and erect structures. The voice is a powerful instrument that we  must use intentionally and deliberately,” Tashyra concluded. 

The House of Genesis plans to present the now and next generation of Black voiceover talent to  the world. These voices are vital to a society that capitalizes off the Black culture in style, music, beauty,  and yes, our language and sound. “Our voices are prepared for the big screen – for films, movies, plays,  multi-media platforms, and more,” Tashyra said. 

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1 COMMENT

  1. This is an absolutely brilliant idea and I am elated that God has enlightened Tashyra Ayers to create what the world needs now, The House of Genesis.

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