Top 10 Most Iconic Voices in History

On screen, it’s often a person’s voice that brings everything to life. A dull, monotonous voice won’t cut it when it comes to capturing an audience’s attention. When you hear a voice that you instantly recognize on the big screen, you can’t help but feel drawn to what’s happening, whether it’s a Hollywood Blockbuster or a live stream from your favorite gamer. 

Some of us are blessed with those unmistakable voices that give the audience a sense of character in the blink of an eye. And then there are some of us who have to mold our voices and perfect our pitch to create an introduction as gripping as Don LaFontaine’s voice. At Voicemod, we know better than anyone how important it is to get the voice you want for content creation, roleplaying, or whatever else you may need a real-time voice changer for. That’s why we created different voice filters in our desktop app, like our Voice Enhancer, which uses PowerPitch to give you incredible pitch-shifting freedom while maintaining the naturalness of your unique voice.

If you want to sound like a movie star, pair our 100+ voices with some simple voice acting techniques, and you’ll be on your way to fame. Speaking of fame, let’s take a look at some of the most iconic voices in history for some expert-level inspiration: 

Image Source: Telemundo

Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech is just as powerful today as it was in 1963, and for good reason: His voice. His strong voice was full of emotion and delivered a message his audience would remember for years to come. 

We bet you read “I have a dream” in Martin Luther King’s voice each and every time too–it’s unforgettable. His voice was authentically him and commanded attention thanks to his use of rhythm and pitch.

Not an expert on making the most of different pitches yourself? Fear not! Anyone can use our Custom Pitch voice in the Voicemod desktop app to play around with their voice and develop their own authentic edge.

Image Source: Gage Skidmore @Flickr

Famous for voicing many classic childhood characters, LaMarche is most well-known for his impression of Orson Welles (or more accurately, Orson Welles’ head) in Futurama. 

For some reason, we find impressions of real people entertaining, especially when they’re so accurate you can barely tell the difference between them.

Welles was known for his performance in Citizen Kane, among other influential movies, all marked with his remarkable baritone voice. LaMarche’s voice acting skills are next level when it comes to his (parody) impression of such a distinctive voice.

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Having reached superstar levels of fame thanks to his folksy delivery that conjures up images of cowboy saloons, horses, and the typical American ranch, thinking of a better example of the American cowboy is no easy task.  

Sam Elliott is one of the greats when it comes to mastering that Western drawl. 

Impersonating a classic cowboy is a great way to put your voice acting skills to the test and with some practice, you’ll be well on your way to kicking off a career in voice acting.

Image Source: Screendaily

One of the first people we think of in the world of narration, Morgan Freeman has one of those voices that commands attention.

His calm demeanor and level-headed tone earned him today’s title as Hollywood’s Voice of God and landed him a role as the US President as well—two claims to fame we wouldn’t mind having ourselves.

He’s an expert in showing his emotions through his voice. You can easily mimic his pensive pauses and take your impression of him to the next level with our PowerPitch technology to alter the pitch of your voice in real-time and impress your friends and subscribers.

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Best known as the first Bond, James Bond, and appearing in seven 007 movies, you’d think he’d have typecast himself as the smooth-talking Scotsman, but he proved the doubters wrong. 

He always retained his distinctive Edinburgh lilt in whatever role he was playing, making use of its air of authority to provide voice-overs for many games and animated movies, including Dragonheart. He took on the voice of Draco, managing to give a fire-breathing dragon a sense of sage wisdom.

Image Source: Men’s Journal

Developed during his six-decade career, his character in The Silence of the Lambs was one of the best villains to grace our screens and certainly one of the most memorable.

Of English and Welsh descent, he can turn his Welsh accent into whatever each unique character demands, even a convincing Southern accent—something we could probably all work on ourselves.

He’s also an expert mimic and put these skills to work on the 1991 restoration of Spartacus, where he recreated the voice of his late mentor for a scene where the soundtrack had been lost.

Image Source: Military.com

Having played all types of characters, from Biblical figures to Shakespeare’s Mark Antony, Heston was an expert in capturing attention, and his iconic voice was a big part of this. 

As he aged, his delivery went from strength to strength and the authenticity he brought to historical movies would improve beyond all expectations.

Image Source: Cinescopia

Vincent Price and horror movies go hand-in-hand. As a voice artist, he built a career as a classic villain (with an enviable evil laugh) and master of atmospheric narration. He began as a man of the stage, perfecting his clear and modulated voice, loaded with mystery, and later established his persona solely based on his voice through radio and voice-overs.

Have a listen to Michael Jackson’s Thriller and see if you can pick out Vincent Price’s distinct voice and menacing laugh.

Image Source: Indiewire

If there’s one thing you can always count on in the world of Old Hollywood voice acting, it’s that they’ve cast a British guy that’s mastered his sinister tone to play the villain. It’s a classic Hollywood rule for good reason. 

Having played Scar in The Lion King and Simon Gruber in Die Hard with a Vengeance, he’s got his precise intonation down to a tee, which tells us all that he’s got an extra trick up his sleeve. 

Using his well-rounded accent, he’s done his fair share of voice narration and acting and is an expert in that easily recognizable voice and persona that go hand-in-hand.

Distinctive voices give us a sense of character, create a mood and establish a relationship with the audience. These personalities have used their unique voices in different ways, but all have been memorable.  

Whether you’re planning on being the next Don LaFontaine or not, putting your hand–or rather, your voice–to voice acting can be a lot of fun. Shaking up your content with different pitches also engages your audience and makes your friends laugh.

You don’t need to spend years perfecting that deep villain voice or the tones to be an enigmatic leader. Thanks to our PowerPitch technology, you can use our Custom Pitch voice effects and alter the pitch of your voice to suit whatever persona you want. Play around with the pitch shifter and change your voice in real-time to create unique personas next time you log online, without sacrificing that clean, crisp sound quality.

With all these iconic voices, from activists to dragons, using our PowerPitch technology makes it possible for anyone to be the next voice of the online universe.