Inka Magnaye. Handout
She's already one of the most sought-after voice artists in the Philippines, but Inka Magnaye is not resting on her laurels. On the contrary, she is setting her sights on even bigger things.
The 36-year-old recently signed with the Unbox Creator Network (UCN), an influencer management agency founded by digital entrepreneur Carlo Ople.
As UCN's new "voice of tech," Magnaye gets to tap into a wider audience and more brands as a content creator -- a natural result of her work as a voice talent.
"I want to grow more as a creator and I want to challenge myself, to see if I can expand my other skills while still maintaining and holding on to the roots that I have of -- voiceovers," she said.
"So I want to be able to grow with other brands as well, learn from people within this agency, making new connections and relationships."
Inka Magnaye (right) with UCN founder Carlo Ople. Handout
For Magnaye, voice acting is something that she always had in her, as someone who grew up with parents from the same industry.
She recalls working with her mom and dad in the recording studio as early as the age of five, stepping up whenever they needed a kid for commercials: "In a way, I've been training for it my whole life, basically," she said with a smile.
Magnaye is known to many as the woman behind the in-flight safety announcement of flag carrier Philippine Airlines -- a feat that even she found hard to believe when she heard her voice on board for the first time three years ago.
She considers this as one of the highlights of her career, as well as her voice acting stint for the local release of Warner Bros. Pictures' movie "Blue Beetle" back in 2023.
"So I became officially part of the DC family," she said. "Very cool, that was pretty big for me."
Magnaye recently sat down with ABS-CBN News to share how voice acting started her content creator journey, how she plans to build her own brand, as well as her views on artificial intelligence (AI).
Below are excerpts from the interview:
Q: How did you make that transition from being a voice artist to a content creator?
"Because of the pandemic, there were a lot of restrictions on doing events, so I wasn't able to do all the voiceover work that I've really wanted to do, and I've really desperately missed. So I started doing more content on that -- and even until now that things have pretty much come back to normal.
"People didn't really know what the life of a voiceover artist is like, what it entails, what is involved in the work -- and I give them a look into that. At the same time, I put tips on what to do. A lot of people say in the comments that they learn so much from the videos that I post, even by just watching me."
Q: What made you decide to work with UCN? is this your first time be part of an agency?
"With anyone? Yes, because I've been managed by my family [before this]. But because Carlo (Ople) is someone that I've already known, and I trust in him and in his company's expertise which is tech, I was thinking -- you know, it's about time to branch out and trust that part of my career, to be with people who know what they're good at."
Q: If there's one tip you can give to aspiring content creators, what would it be?
"Find something that people want to know about that you can give them... Beyond being authentic, you need to see if your content gives value to people. Because if you put yourself in the position of the viewer, parang ask yourself: Is this something that you find beneficial to you, whether it's entertaining, educational, or inspirational?
Q: Where do you see yourself 10 years from now?
"I actually want to move into starting my own business. I have a podcast, 'Sleeping Pill with Inka,' and it's designed to help people relax and sleep. I want to build that into a brand and expand it to kind of just help people do the same thing. I'm really big on mental health awareness and good mental health hygiene -- taking care of your mind, reducing stress, and all that stuff.
"And I want to move into that space because one of my core values as a creator is to help people. I want to help -- so that's whether I want to help them become better at doing voiceovers, I want to help them relax and go to sleep, I want to alleviate their stresses, etc. So moving into that, I want to make 'Sleeping Pill' into a bigger brand because I don't think I'll be a content creator forever. I'll make content still until I'm older, but I don't want that to be my main bread and butter.
"Voice acting will always be my main, my number one. I'm going to be voice acting until... my mom is 64 and she still does voiceovers. And I want to do that."
Q: What is your take on AI, given how voice actors around the world have expressed concern about how it has been threatening the industry?
"I saw someone reply on Threads talking about how AI should always be a tool and not the final product. And I thought that it was such a beautiful way to put it. Because what happens is, for example when I do a voiceover for a brand, I ask: 'What's the peg for this?' And it's normal to have a peg, like a rough voiceover showing you what it should sound like. And then you get an actual talent to translate that into the final product. It's in the same way that they would do that for graphic artists or designers, or anyone in the creative field.
"But what's happening is, without the regulations, these rough recordings or demos that are meant to be for the process end up becoming the final product because of cutting costs, or whatever. And I caution the overall use of AI in this way because it's a great way to cripple an industry. Sayang eh -- you have so many creatives who will do beautiful work, who will give you better product ideas with nuance more than a computer can, especially for a final product. Yeah, it will cost you money, but that's how it's always been. We all survive and thrive together, and to undercut that, I feel, would be such a waste.
"Sometimes people message me, 'Is this you?' And they send me an AI video of a voiceover and it sounds like me... because they used my voice to train it. Kasi walang regulation. So it's a very dangerous tool if left unregulated."
Q: You spoke of regulating AI -- how do you think should it be done?
"We are trying. So I'm part of a group called VocAlliance, it was founded years ago by people like my dad, Robi Joseph, and other veterans in the voiceover industry, even before AI. And we're trying to come together to add regulations to at least the contracts when we get hired by studios and stuff like that.
"Because sometimes in contracts, you agree to let us train an AI model for your voice just in case there are revisions for the scripts. And we say no, just bring us back to the studio. The regulations are not in law yet, so how do we know that it will be used the way they say they're going to use it? There are still so many issues.
"You cannot use my voice to train AI, period. Like it's the safest step to take. Protect the talent and also the client to prevent misunderstanding. So when you put that on paper, it protects both parties. Because it's better to be safe habang wala pang legislation.
"It's not that we want to ban it -- we just want it regulated. Because AI is a perfect tool. It's great, it can help you. But don't let it replace you. Treat it as an extension of you, and not a replacement."