The Story Behind the Voice
Every voice has a story behind it. Mine didn’t begin in a recording studio—it began in the forests and lakes of the Pacific Northwest.
A Voice Shaped by a Lifetime of Stories
My father was a regional executive with the Boy Scouts of America, which meant our family spent every summer living at Scout camps from the time I was two years old until I left for college. While many kids were spending summers playing ball or mowing lawns, I was exploring forests, paddling canoes, hiking mountain trails, learning outdoor skills, and surrounded by remarkable mentors whose influence continues to shape my life more than sixty years later.
Those experiences gave me a lifelong appreciation for quiet places, honest conversation, and the importance of earning people’s trust. Looking back, I realize they also laid the foundation for the voice I would eventually bring to the microphone.
From Journalism to Public Service
I originally planned to become a broadcast journalist, earning degrees in Journalism and Radio-Television Production. Life, however, had other plans.
My career eventually led me through nonprofit leadership, national advocacy, and public service. I spent twenty-five years leading an international cycling organization, later worked with a Washington, D.C.-based transportation advocacy organization, and eventually joined the National Park Service, helping advance bicycle and pedestrian transportation throughout America’s national parks.
Those years taught me that successful communication isn’t simply about delivering information. It’s about helping people understand, care, and take action.
Life in Montana
Today my wife and I live in a small log home tucked into a narrow valley in northwestern Montana between two designated wilderness areas. My professional recording studio occupies an even smaller cabin just a few steps from our home.
When I’m away from the microphone, you’ll often find me hiking mountain trails, searching for huckleberries, riding mountain bikes, or flying our beautifully restored 1959 Cessna 175 over the mountains and valleys of western Montana.
Living here reminds me every day that authenticity isn’t something you perform. It’s something you live.
Finding Voiceover
Voiceover became the natural meeting place of everything that came before it: storytelling, journalism, public service, and a lifelong appreciation for genuine human communication.
Over the past fifteen years I’ve recorded political campaigns, national commercials, corporate narration, educational programs, and more than seventy audiobooks. One of my favorite ongoing projects is narrating the classic Hardy Boys adventures, where—at an age when most people are thinking about retirement—I still get to spend my days as the voices of two teenage brothers solving mysteries.
Whether I’m recording a political commercial, narrating a documentary, or bringing a novel to life, I approach every script the same way: begin with the story, understand the audience, and let the performance grow naturally from there.
More Than a Microphone
Service has remained an important part of my life. Over the years I’ve helped charter a Rotary club, volunteered with organizations serving women and children, worked on projects benefiting children with cancer, and today serve as president of my local AARP chapter. My partner and I also spent three years traveling the country in a restored 1972 Airstream trailer, volunteering at national parks and wildlife refuges from coast to coast.
Those experiences continue to shape the perspective I bring to every recording session. Every project represents someone’s story, and I never lose sight of the responsibility that comes with helping tell it well.
A Simple Philosophy
I don’t believe the strongest political voice is the loudest one.
I believe it’s the one people trust.
Whether I’m introducing a candidate, explaining an issue, narrating an audiobook, or helping tell a company’s story, my goal is always the same:
Help the audience believe what they’re hearing.
Let’s Talk
If you’re looking for a voice that sounds authentic, thoughtful, and genuinely connected to the story you’re telling, I’d be delighted to record a custom sample of your script.
Thanks for stopping by, and I hope we have the opportunity to work together.
— Gary MacFadden