Episode 131: Issa Lopez

ANNC: This is The Producers Podcast. Featuring the most respected international talent in the world of audio production and voiceover. TV, radio, film, and more. In-depth interviews and industry insights, putting you on the inside. Learn more at ryandreen.com. The Producers Podcast. With Ryan Dreen.

RYAN: Well, hi there. Thanks so much for checking out the podcast. I always appreciate your time. If you wouldn't mind giving me even more of that time and rating and review the show. Obviously wait until you're done listening to it and see what you think. Head over to iTunes, obviously is a good place to do it, or wherever you get your podcasts. It would mean the world to me. I ain't telling you how to rate it either. I don't care what you do. I would appreciate a good rating, but do it and write whatever you want. But it would, it would be very much appreciated by me. ryandreen.com has links to a million different places to go get podcasts or rate this podcast. And including if you're just getting this somewhere else, I'll have some more information about each guest On that site as well. I'll tell you about today's guest in a minute. I do want to highlight somebody I have coming back to the podcast. I'll be pretty quick here just to say Jeff Schmidt, one of my favorite just sound people. He does have his roots in radio, and I had him on many, many years ago. But he is neck deep in the world of high production value podcast producing, producing high production value podcasts. Boy, I sure said that well, didn't I? Talking some of the biggest podcasts on planet Earth, Jeff. is the guy making them sound the way they do. It's stellar. It's stellar work. So we're gonna do an episode focusing on that world, everything that goes into it. I've already asked him, is there anything we can't talk about? He's like, dude, you know me, I'm an open book. So we're gonna get that coming. I think it'll be a really interesting episode. And just Jeff's skills with sound design are amazing. I still use Alien Imaging content constantly, all the time. So that'll be something to look forward to. Now for today, one of my favorite female voice actors she's super genuine. And, you know, we get into this in the episode, but I think she really just knows who she is and does a great job. I've used her on— for work that I've had to do. Isa Lopez, she's a SOVA Award winner. Her website is isavoice.com. Radio imaging in both English and Spanish, commercial work, narration work, IVR, and she's a singer. She still is a singer, but she hasn't done that in quite a while. But I'll play you a sample at the end of the little demo I put together here. And we talk about it in the show. Her background is a fascinating story, and I seriously didn't know most of what we talked about. So really, really good stuff here. I really appreciate her time. So please go check her out at isavoice.com. She's on— she's a social media superstar, I'm gonna be honest. She's on everything, and just about every channel she is Isa Voice. So, you know, go engage if you will. But for now, we will hear some of her work and then bring on the one and the only Isa Lopez. This November, the biggest What an artist in the world will take over Miami to make music history? Our iHeartRadio Fiesta Latina featuring Del Chilo Pitbull, Mr. Rioja. Con nosotros solo escucharás éxitos, mucha más música que las demás. Esta es Boom 106, la estación de tus hits. If I don't get my breakfast in the morning, let's just say you don't want to see me at 8 AM, okay? That's why I always hit up McDonald's for my morning fix. Most health insurance, including Medicaid cover medications. Talk with your healthcare provider. Algún día, el mejor consejo de tu pediatra estará al alcance de tus manos. Hoy, la red de Florida Hospital.

RYAN: All right, and there she is. So what we just heard is some talking in. multiple languages. And also I had to end with some singing from my guest, this month, Isa Lopez. Isa, okay, let me try to give you a, a, a legit intro. voice actor, voice announcer, vocalist, you know, singer, writer, multilingual. And I'm, I'm gonna say social media superstar. In my opinion, that is one of your strong suits and you do it very well. Anyway, thank you for being a guest on the show. I appreciate you. Thank you.

ISSA: Hey, I appreciate you for having me.

RYAN: Absolutely. When you work on your own, and again, you'll have to correct me whenever I'm wrong, it's gonna happen throughout the show here, but you're 100% on your own now, right?

ISSA: 100%.com, yes. Yes.

RYAN: So when you work on your own, it's like, what's your title? I know, right? What do you say to people? What's your title? When people say, what do you do? What do you say you do?

ISSA: I say I do projects that require a voice. Because I used to say voiceovers, and then they would be like, well, what type? And then I'm just like, well, you know, I mean, what, 60% of what I do is radio imaging? And most people, they're like, what's that? You know? So then I explained that.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: And then I said, and, you know, you may be in Mexico and hear the ATM saying, you have $0. And that may be me too. And then they started cracking up. Oh, really?

RYAN: Well, that's a fun job. I bet you— from what I know about the industry, I bet you got rich off that one.

ISSA: What's funny is— no, what's funny, Ryan, is that most of the message stuff that I get is horrible news. Like, I'm the one in Florida that tells you that you didn't pass your drug test and you have to call your PO officer. Like, all this horrible stuff. And I'm just like, why am I being picked for this stuff? But the worst one, I have to say, Lord Jesus, please forgive me, but I had to pay the bills at that time. I was the person to tell senior citizens that their medication was not approved.

RYAN: Wow.

ISSA: I was like, no, not me.

RYAN: How? You have a—

ISSA: So anyway.

RYAN: Yeah, bad news. You're the bad news voice, I guess.

ISSA: Horrible. My gosh. Yeah. So yeah. But I also do good stuff too. Like, you know what? I just, I don't know if you saw it. This week I got to post, I am the tourism voice for Puerto Rico. And to be the tourism voice for people to visit where I'm from, what an honor to land that.

RYAN: It was awesome. Oh, that's cool. I should say right out of the gate, isavoice.com, that's your website. You have a great website. I've seen all kinds. I know that you had your site built by— they build voiceover sites. It's like voiceoverwebsite.com or something. What are they called?

ISSA: That's right. Joe Davis and his team. And, you know, I literally told them, I said, you guys, I want a website for dummies. Like, I want— if you didn't know me from Adam, I want people to go to isavoice.com and be like, oh, okay, I get this. I get it. And that's exactly what they gave me.

RYAN: It's a very— so people should obviously check it out just so they can see you and, you know, enjoy you. But also for those in the industry, I think it's a good example of a clean, simple, easy-to-consume voiceover website. You're not doing anything you're not, but you're showing everything that you are. So anyway, solid site.

ISSA: Awesome.

RYAN: Social media, you're basically Issa Voice on everything.

ISSA: Yeah, Issa Voice. I-S-S-A and then voice. Issa sounds like pizza.

RYAN: Oh, you got me all hungry. I'm starving. Oh gosh, it's dinner time.

ISSA: I know, right? Hey, I started a new diet yesterday, so let's not even go there and talk about food. Let's just keep— let's keep focused, Ryan.

RYAN: I did not start a new diet yesterday. I've been moving for what feels like like, 7 years. So I have been eating terribly and I will continue to do so. actually, I was— we were talking about this beforehand. You are the first thing I'm recording in my new booth, in my new studio that I'm building. So, you know.

ISSA: Well, how cool is that?

RYAN: I don't know what that means, but it's exciting that I— well, I guess we'll find out. I actually haven't even played back myself to test this, so God knows what this sounds like right now. But anyway.

ISSA: That's okay. If they can make Paula Abdul and all these other people sound amazing, you can make this interview sound bomb, okay?

RYAN: Okay. All right, I'll try. As long as you sound good. That's always my rule on these, though, especially with the voice talent that I talk to. Okay, enough about that. Let's get into the meat and the potatoes. So, first of all, I know where you are now. You're a Colorado talent. But where did you grow up? And where did— I guess, where were the beginnings of your life?

ISSA: So I was born in Puerto Rico. And when I was 6, my mom moved me here to Colorado. And then from there, it was very, very difficult for me. By the time I was around 11, I ended up in the foster system here.

RYAN: Oh, wow.

ISSA: So I— and then I emancipated at about 16 years old. And then— Yeah, I mean, it was just really rough. I really wanted my dad to kind of come and rescue me. But my father, that's where I get my music from, Ryan. My father was one of the starters of Menudo. Do you remember that group with Ricky Martin and all?

RYAN: Absolutely.

ISSA: Yeah, 'cause you and I are similar age, the same age. And so he was the music director for them and then for Casey and the Sunshine Band, Kool and the Gang. So I had always dreamed as a singer, you know, in the foster system that he was gonna come and rescue me and all that. But, you know, The music business is— it's nice and it's ugly at the same time. And so he was very successful, but at the same time, just drugs. And it was crazy. So it probably wasn't a good idea for me to go there. So as far as launching this whole voice thing of mine, I started out in singing.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: And so by the time I was 20, I had my first recording deal with Sony.

RYAN: Okay, I want to talk about that, but before, did you have any— singing wasn't your first job, I'm sure. Or are you one of these people that actually didn't have a job except for basically as a talent?

ISSA: You know, singing was my first job.

RYAN: Okay.

ISSA: Yeah, I used to do jingles and things locally, and I wanted to get more demos done as far as singing, so I would write a lot of hooks for rappers. And then I got together with— his name is Eric Foster. He wrote a lot for a lot of people. Like, my gosh, if you Google him, I mean, Whitney Houston, Britney Spears. So he was secretly living here, along with some other producers. And then I started to demo hits. And so people don't really understand that, look, Ryan, if you're a hot— like, let's say you can write your butt off, but you can't sing, you need someone like me.

RYAN: Right.

ISSA: to demo that sucker to get it sold. You know what I mean?

RYAN: So like J.Lo records it.

ISSA: Exactly that. Or something like that. And it's funny that you say that. So I've demoed for Jennifer Lopez, Jessica Simpson, just to name a few. Pussycat Dolls. I don't know if you remember Don't Cha, the song Don't Cha. I demoed that.

RYAN: Did you cut the demo for Don't Cha?

ISSA: Yes. Yes, I did.

RYAN: Oh, forget voiceover. We're gonna talk music the whole time. Wow.

ISSA: You stupid. You stupid. But you know, So on the other side of this whole music thing, and I guess in the whole Hollywood business, as a woman, it was just really, really hard. Because when you're young and you're excited about life and stuff— I know that sounds horrible— you think that it's going to be all glamorous. But I learned very quickly that LA and New York is like, oh, yeah, I'll help you. But what are you going to do for me?

RYAN: Sure.

ISSA: And so I learned the hard way. And so unfortunately, I worked and worked. And I finally got managers and— I was morbidly obese when I was a kid. I mean, by the time I was 11, I was already 280.

RYAN: Ooh.

ISSA: So when I knew that I needed to transform myself, by the time all this stuff was in front of me, including my deal, the record label totally wanted to make me like this just hoochie mama. And they had all these plans. And I remember sitting there on the long table. I'm sure you can picture it in your head. And I remember telling myself, which kind of connects to voiceover. How am I going to touch people on stage if I'm not who I really am? And if I can't sing what I want to sing about and what I write about? And I walked away from the deal. It was one of the most difficult things I've ever done.

RYAN: Was this when you were 20?

ISSA: It was around— it began between 20 and then about 23.

RYAN: Okay. Wow. So you kind of had— I mean, even though 23 is a grown-ass woman and you're an adult and all, And you clearly had some stuff in life to make you grow up faster. I mean, that's still a young age to walk away from something like that.

ISSA: Yes. I was— You know what? I remember waking up that next day feeling something I had never felt before. I couldn't physically get out of bed. And I think that was the first sign of, okay, this is a downer. You know what I mean? This is a downer. But here's what's crazy. And here's where the twists and turns happen. So I was disgusted with the music business because it slapped me in the face. And to pay the bills, I looked the next day online. And since I was a charmer, you know, you and I were talking earlier, I was in the foster system when I was a kid. I had a really rough childhood. And so on top of writing jingles, again, I did something with my voice. I did a lot of telemarketing. So I was very good at it. Mm-hmm.

RYAN: Oh.

ISSA: And so, in that, I found a job that needed a nanny. And so, that person knew all of the people of Clear Channel in Colorado. He provided— who I nannied for provided most of the glasses for people that were at Clear Channel. And one day, he was like, Hey, Isa, there's a new station coming to town. I know that you sing and stuff, but maybe you can be on the air, and they're looking for someone who speaks English and Spanish. So, Clear Channel was trying to do a new format, Ryan.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: Where they were trying to have, you know, people get on the air. As a singer and a songwriter, I'm not gonna lie, I have to be transparent with you, I was offended. I was like, okay, thank you. You know, thank you for inviting me.

RYAN: You mean like it was below you? Is that what you're saying?

ISSA: Oh, yeah. Oh, 100%. So here's what I did. I called Mr. Foster, one of the biggest producers that I worked for, and I told him what was going on. And he goes, listen, Issa, get in there. He goes, look at Ludacris. Look at where he's at. He was a DJ first.

RYAN: Yeah. Yeah, he was.

ISSA: And when he said that, something popped in my brain. And then what happened was very, very unrealistic. You being, you know, in radio at some point, you understand, I got my own morning show right off the bat. That does not happen at all, ever.

RYAN: What year was this?

ISSA: 2005.

RYAN: Yeah, I thought so.

ISSA: Yep.

RYAN: I had moved away by then, but I wasn't long away. And I stayed very familiar with the Denver market.

ISSA: Yeah. Yeah. And so it was Waking Up with Issa. And it's crazy because I never sung again. I'm the kind of person— that when I get involved in something, it's kind of like, you know, you can't be half pregnant. So you have to give it 100%, you know?

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: And that's how I fell into radio.

RYAN: All right. There's the end of the podcast. There's the advice. That's the last question. So great. Thanks for coming on. No, I guess.

ISSA: No, but that's—

RYAN: I couldn't agree more. Boy.

ISSA: Wow.

RYAN: I want to kind of step back to that part of your life here as we go, but I figure we should talk some voiceover too. All right, so you're in radio now. Do you start doing voiceover outside of the radio station while you're there? How do you get into that side of the business?

ISSA: So in 2005, at the same time that I went into radio, I had already had a very simple setup at my house to do intros and stuff, or still write jingles and stuff, but I just never did anything with it. Then in 2005, obviously, you know how Clear Channel at that time worked, which they work like that now, and a lot of companies do. Not only are you a DJ, but you're also a commercial voice. You also do this, you also do that. You know what I mean? And so at the time when I came on, it wasn't the time when you can sit there and look pretty and someone is managing the board.

RYAN: Right.

ISSA: So I had to throw myself into learning production, learning how to place things. And it was the best thing that ever happened to me because by the time I was voicing commercials for them, by the time 2007 came along, I was already doing my first radio imaging gig for West Palm Beach for iHeart. Now I was lucky because the director that was in charge of the Spanish sector was located in Colorado.

RYAN: Oh wow.

ISSA: I had expressed interest in radio imaging, and he sent me a couple lines, and I landed that first initial gig in the US. Now, but what got me the most experience, shout out to the legendary Andy Wig, who voiced a lot of stations in Colorado. So she had relationships obviously with the radio imaging director locally, and his name was Roger Keeler. And so he was like, Hey, Issa, I know someone that can take you under her wing. And so what Ann did, and also Jennifer Sweeney, which is an amazing radio imaging voice, they both took me in around 2006 under their wing and started giving me things that they could not do. Now, most of them was overseas, but like my first huge gig was for RCN in Brazil. And I remember Ann saying, listen, this doesn't pay anything, but guess what? you don't have a demo, and this guy's an amazing production person for top 40. She says, I know you want to do top 40. I said, yes, ma'am. So she says, you take it, you give him what he needs, and he gives you back a great demo. And it was, it was an amazing time for me to listen to these women and do exactly as they said verbatim, you know what I mean?

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: So that got me, that got me in the realm of getting a demo and saying, yo, you know, 'cause you need a demo. Hello. You know? And so that demo got me some more stuff. Go ahead.

RYAN: Yeah, so I mean, that sounds like a great start.

ISSA: Yes.

RYAN: I mean, you tell me what's a better way to— a better thing to talk about now. The point at which you go full-time voiceover, was that soon?

ISSA: Yeah.

RYAN: Or did you overlap your career?

ISSA: No.

RYAN: Okay.

ISSA: Let me tell you. So, I— so I was let go. I'll never forget it. January 2016 at 9:43 AM before my 10 AM shift. I had done many shifts in radio. I was with Clear Channel almost 11 and a half years. Very successful at that.

RYAN: What station was it in 2016? I'm sorry.

ISSA: It was, it was, 95.7 The Party. And then I was syndicated in Spanish for iHeart. So in my mind, I was unletagable. I know that's not a word, but—

RYAN: Yeah, no, I got you. Unletgoable. Gotcha. That's a good word. I like it.

ISSA: Yeah, right? But you guys, if you're listening, that is— that doesn't exist, you guys.

RYAN: No.

ISSA: Okay? Always have something in the back. And thank God, Ryan, that I had a full-fledged studio built 2 years prior to being let go.

RYAN: Mm-hmm.

ISSA: Because here's what happened. I went in, I was told 3 things. Today's your last day. Here's your package. Security will walk you out. Now, of course I was offended, but I found out later that that is protocol and they have to let you go that way. But the thing about it is, is that within 3 months of me being let go— no, you know what? Let me take that back. Within 30, days of me being let go, I knew why I was let go. And I'll tell you. I went to San Francisco. I interviewed for another morning show. And out of a few women, I was given that show. And Ryan, when they told me how much they were gonna pay me, I knew that the over $100,000 I was making with iHeart was the reason I was being let go. Why? Because I was gonna be offered around $40,000 to live in San Francisco for a morning show.

RYAN: Wow.

ISSA: And on the plane ride back to Colorado, I thought, okay, Julissa, 'cause that's my real name. I was talking to myself. I was like, you'd have to do the morning show and sell burritos afterwards to live in San Francisco.

RYAN: Like, that's crazy. Or live over in a real bad part of Oakland. Not even a good part of Oakland, but a bad part.

ISSA: And actually, it's not San Francisco. Sorry, San Diego, which is just as expensive. My bad.

RYAN: Okay.

ISSA: Well, different, but still, yeah. Just as expensive. So, you know, as I kept— because people were knocking on my door, don't get me wrong.

RYAN: People wanted me to do it.

ISSA: to do radio. I had been doing it for a long time, you know what I mean? But when I did the numbers, I wouldn't have been able to even pay my rent. You know what I mean?

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: So that day when I was— that day, going back to that day when I was like, go though, I wanna say something, you guys, because this happens in life, not only with voiceover, but with all kinds of stuff. You have to really focus on yourself. And when I got in the car with my package, I said, okay, They may have let you go, but you still have what you gave them, which is your imagination, your spunk, your voice. You know? And so after several offers on the table that were horrible as far as pay, I said, okay. I did the numbers, Ryan. And I said, okay. Since I wasn't married, no kids, no nothing, I had saved up a lot of money. So I was lucky. I said, okay, you have exactly 1 year worth of savings to ride out this voiceover dream to see if by any chance you can do this.

RYAN: Mm-hmm.

ISSA: And I jumped in that pool of cold water. It was the scariest— Ryan, for months I woke up with that feeling of wanting to throw up in my stomach like, oh my God, is this gonna work? It is the scariest feeling ever.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: Ever.

RYAN: How long in that— I mean, you gave yourself a year, or I should say you had money to give yourself a year, but how long did it take for you to then to finally say, okay, I think this is gonna work?

ISSA: Let me tell you, because I don't wanna be phony about this.

RYAN: Right. Yeah.

ISSA: I was very lucky, Ryan, because I was let go in January and by September. Well, first of all, okay, let me go back because this is very important. If you're, if you're listening, which a lot of people email me, Isa, you know, I hear you online. I'm also on ra— in radio and I wanna do this full-time like you. So I, the first thing I did was I went to VO Atlanta. Okay. Best thing I did because it paid for itself within 3 months. I was able to get a bunch, like at least 2 or 3 clients. And it, the, the trip paid for itself. But what that did is I ran into Joe Cipriano, who came from radio, and he looked into my face and he said, okay, I know you're excited and I know you can do this, but on the weekends, Isa, I still want you to do radio. Try to find something locally. That's exactly what I did. I came right back home. Westwood One, shout out to them. They hired me for Hot AC syndication. And so it kept my foot in the door just in case the voiceover thing did not work. So pushing forward, I was doing voiceover marketing like crazy. We're talking from cold calling, 'cause I know people are like, okay, what do you mean, Isa? Cold calling, looking up. Okay, here's an— I hate to jump, but this is one thing that I really want your listeners to keep in mind. There is a difference between what you want to do in VO and what you can do to pay the bills at the moment in VO.

RYAN: Mm-hmm.

ISSA: And if you're going to go full-time and jump in pool of cold water. You have to really know yourself and know what are you booking for now. And so at that time, with my skill level of coming out of radio, because let me tell you, getting out of that radio talk, it took 2 years to start booking.

RYAN: Oh, yes.

ISSA: It took 2 years to start booking the big SAG jobs, okay? So, but going back, okay? So at that time, I was only booking IVR, things that didn't require like much skills, you know what I mean? Like just if you can talk really well and you have a nice voice, that's the only things that I was booking. And of course, radio imaging because I came from radio. So, so I would do cold calling, market myself on Facebook, keep in touch with the people that I met at VO Atlanta. And then I started to book more radio gigs through Westwood One. But what saved me the most And I'll never forget it. In September, the same person that said, this is your last day, here's your package, security will walk you out, was the same person that called me and said, where are you? I said, at a women's empowering event. He goes, can you talk? I said, just a second. I went outside and he goes, Clear Channel is about— and this was in 2016, same year.

RYAN: Mm-hmm.

ISSA: He goes, Clear Channel is about to launch. He goes, this is between you and me. I heart Latino. Do you want to try out for The Voice? I said, yes, sir. He goes, get home. So I went home. He sent me the liners and I booked it. And that was guaranteed because I— okay, here's another trick, you guys. I didn't have an imaging agent at that particular moment. Okay. So here's, here's a real money-making idea for people that are listening, Ryan, that are dying to get representation. Now, I had local representation, but to get actual representation, it took me 11 years. And don't get it twisted, it is not easy. But this time I had a reason for someone to, to rec— represent me. First of all, I had 5 stations on my own in the US, on my own. Okay?

RYAN: Mm-hmm.

ISSA: So I had, cuz remember, you can't manage something if you have nothing to manage. So don't take it personally that these agents sometimes don't get back at you. You gotta be something, you gotta be about it for them to wanna, you know, wanna get you on your team.

RYAN: Sure.

ISSA: So I called Josh Goodman 'cause I know he's not gonna mind. I said, oh my God, you're not gonna believe this. I landed da da da. And he's like, stop right there. He goes, you suck at business. Which I do. We all have our strengths. But let me tell you, one of my weaknesses is negotiating.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: A lot of women are like this. They're afraid to negotiate. They don't have the bola. to negotiate. So he told me on the phone, you're gonna hang up this phone, and you're gonna call this representation, and you're gonna tell him, hey, I'm the new voice of iHeartLatino. I need representation. And boom, I got an agent right away. Why? Because what they were gonna offer me by myself, he tripled that amount. And it was so much monthly that even if I just got that check by itself, Ryan, I was able to ride by myself in VO.

RYAN: Wow.

ISSA: So I'm very grateful, number one, for mentors in VO that are not afraid to tell you the truth about yourself. You have to listen, right?

RYAN: Yep.

ISSA: And so now all things don't last forever. I, I lost that gig actually, 4 months ago because sometimes you guys with radio imaging, if you're listening to this and you want to get into radio imaging, Ryan, I'm sure you know this, but just like the presidential office, when someone comes in, You know where I'm going with this, Ryan.

RYAN: Right.

ISSA: When someone comes in, they want to redecorate that presidential office, and sometimes that happens in radio. Now, please remember this because you will think of me when it happens to you. Number one, again, going back to what we talked about before, nothing lasts forever. And number two, it is not about you. You keep it rolling. You send them a thank you present. You say, thank you, I had an amazing time, and you keep it rolling. because it has nothing to do with you.

RYAN: I think it needs to be pointed out just to make sure, you know, when you were handed your package and you were walked out the door, you clearly left on good terms. And radio, for example, if you're coming out of radio, is way too small. It's shrinking every day.

ISSA: It's so tiny.

RYAN: You can't burn a bridge. It doesn't matter. You have to put all emotions aside no matter what happens all the time.

ISSA: That's right. Thank people and say, thank you. I had a great— this was a great run.

RYAN: It was a great run.

ISSA: You know, whatever you guys need, need.

RYAN: Right.

ISSA: Matter of fact, matter of fact, that cluster was at the Radio Summit. And when I was on stage with Joe and all these other great talents, they approached me when I got off stage and I hugged them and I said, hey guys, nice to see you. I hope Miami is doing great. I hope that all these Latin areas are doing great. You just keep it rolling because it's, again, Ryan said it, super tiny. But you know what? That goes for VO, period. Be careful what you say, what you do, and most importantly, Ryan, what you post. Because you have to represent who you are everywhere. Everywhere.

RYAN: That's a good transition. although you've really just been conducting this. You're doing a great job. I'm just along for the ride, and this is perfect. You're going down my list of topics here. It's great. No, but social media, I said it at the top, you're great at it. You're very good at— clearly, you understand the concept of having an image you want to portray, and doing that, and not muddying it with a whole lot— you know, look, if you feel the need to be online and be political and, you know, bring up issues and stand really staunchly on one side of something political, great. That's your right, I guess. But you're running a business, and I think you understand as well as anyone on the image you put out there, how important it is.

ISSA: It is. It is. It really is. But you know, another thing that I wanna hit on, when people see us post like you, people are like, wow, look at this podcast. I want a podcast. I wanna be like Ryan. Or whatever it is, okay? In social media, it's always so easy to see the positive and the perfect and the, hey, this is what we're doing. But I want you guys to know that, for instance, even a year into VO full-time, I was only booking maybe 0.2% of commercial. Of commercial, okay? It took me, Ryan, forever to do more than radio imaging. And I can only speak on a personal level, but you know when I started to book more? When I started to talk the way I talk to you right now.

RYAN: Right.

ISSA: Which is just me.

RYAN: Be you as yourself.

ISSA: I get paid to be— yeah. And don't get me wrong, we all know that there are— and shout out to the VO actors out there, okay, that can act their butt off and do the different voices. And 'cause again, there's so many sectors in voiceover, right? But on a personal level, 'cause this may work for some of y'all that are listening, the minute I started to be Issa is when I started to book like crazy.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: And man, I know that I had heard it like 30 million times getting into VO because I listened to a lot of podcasts and a lot of bloggers, but it just took practice and practice and practice. And the minute that I started saying it and not reading it is when I started to book.

RYAN: Sure.

ISSA: So if that helps you out there listening, it just, I don't know, coming out of radio and talking like this, it just— it just, yeah. And you know what, Ryan? That may come back like Hammerpants. You never know. It may come around. It may be in style 10 years from now. You don't even know.

RYAN: Yeah, maybe. I don't know, though. I feel like as time has gone on, we've never swung back— like bell-bottoms. I think they came back around maybe in the '90s.

ISSA: Okay, right.

RYAN: But we've never swung back around to pukey fake announcer guy. I don't think that's ever gonna swing back into—

ISSA: Right.

RYAN: Yeah. So I think we're gonna keep becoming more real as time goes on. But let me just keep on social media real quick. Do you have any philosophies on how you approach it? More literal, you post this on these days, you post this type of content on these channels, or do you kind of just like whatever's natural and let it flow and it just happens to be that it just seems correct?

ISSA: So, okay, you need to go with what your strength is. So for me, I'm horrible at written anything. If you ask me to write an email—

RYAN: Yeah, you jump on video a lot. Yeah.

ISSA: It's horrible. Like, I— okay, so again, with me it's person to person and video. So here's the thing, if you guys want to start doing videos, because I had a lot of people with voiceover, conferences, they come up and they're like, man, I love your videos, Isa, I want to start doing videos. But that doesn't necessarily mean you know how to do videos. So I want you to practice. So, you know, definitely keep it under a minute because, hey, you guys, Because this world, it's very low attention span. You know what I mean? So, and also—

RYAN: Are you driving when you're doing your videos? Are you actually physically driving sometimes? Or do you just pull the car over?

ISSA: No, no, no, I'm pulled over all the way. I don't play around.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: Oh yeah, yeah. And sometimes I do it in my car because something comes in my head and I'm like, oh my God, I gotta let them know this. You know what I mean? And so, and the way I'm talking to you now is the way that I talk in my videos. Just real simple. You know, I'm not gonna get technical because I'm not technical. So I want you guys to be true to yourself. So if you know about gear, like Ryan, anything that has to do with PC and gear, like I just learned like a week ago again what an interface was. Like I pay people to hook my stuff up. Like I know nothing about it. So guess what? I'm not gonna talk about it. You know what I mean?

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: So find out what your thing is and that is a way of really advertising. So the reason I do is not only because I consider everyone online my coworkers, because we're all in this little box all day by ourselves, right? So it's my way of reaching out to you, but it's also my way of keeping you in— keeping me in your head.

RYAN: Right. Yeah.

ISSA: Because Ryan may be doing a voiceover tomorrow, and someone may say, hey, Ryan, do you know somebody who speaks Spanish? And guess what? If I'm in your head, I'm doing it right.

RYAN: A, I— well, I met you in real life finally. In fact, it might even be a year ago today. It's like a year ago within a day or two.

ISSA: and within a week you got me that— you got me a gig that is like monthly. So thank you for that.

RYAN: Oh, that's— I forgot about that. But I've used you personally.

ISSA: Yes, I'm the— hello, I'm the voice of Ashley Furniture in Texas.

RYAN: I'm like, hey. Yeah, no, that's— yeah, I don't have to touch that. So you're, you're doing that. I just pass that off and then I don't ever see that or touch it. So that's great, though.

ISSA: Yeah.

RYAN: But yeah, I mean, the fact that— it's not that— it's almost if you keep yourself front and center, and I'm terrible at it, I'm the last person to talk about how to do it right. But when suddenly that guy Ryan needs someone that sounds— I didn't even need someone that sounded exactly like you, but I needed—

ISSA: Right.

RYAN: Well, I just met you, and then you're on social media in the right ways.

ISSA: Hey, hey, and another thing, guys, don't overdo it. You know, like, you know, don't overdo it. Yeah, that's a good point. 'Cause, you know, yeah, we don't want that. You know what I mean? It's like that commercial that just keeps coming over and you're like, okay, I've seen this 30 million times. Like, don't be that.

RYAN: As far as social goes, I mean, it's back to kind of what I was asking. Do you have, you know, like, look, I posted a video earlier today at noon. I'm not gonna jump on here for another 3 days or 1 day or 6 hours.

ISSA: Yeah.

RYAN: Like, do you limit yourself and on, on which channels do you do more or do you get more value from?

ISSA: So I'm on Facebook and Instagram and also LinkedIn. You guys, there is so much work on LinkedIn. there should be a podcast about just how much work there is on LinkedIn. You guys, you have to be professional, right? And so it dip— if, if the video is either something that I've done or something that I'm, you know, saying, cuz it's under a minute, I post that sucker because I, it, It works for me. You have to find what works for you. Listen, even if it's a meme.

RYAN: How often, let me jump. How often do you post on LinkedIn? Just to use that as an example.

ISSA: Not more than once, not more than once a week. Never more. Oh wow.

RYAN: Okay.

ISSA: Okay. Yeah. I don't do anything else like that. Like, I mean, and if I post other stuff, it's not about VO, but you know what else? I don't wanna give all my secrets away.

RYAN: Sure.

ISSA: But you can also do, you can also, if you do a motivational quote or something and then just put your website under it, it doesn't have to be videos. It could be, Anything. You know what I mean? Like, okay, I'll give you an example. Last year I finally, discovered, which if you don't have one, Ryan, you have to get it right now. Here I go with the commercial. Do you have an air fryer? Huh?

RYAN: No, I don't. But I almost got one once. Okay.

ISSA: You listen to me. I'm gonna send you a link and you're gonna get it because as voiceover artists, and if you're very, very busy, like you can cook salmon, no doubt. Okay. In 5 minutes. Like I literally showed people—

RYAN: You cook salmon in an air fryer?

ISSA: In 5 minutes. And I'm gonna send you a video and you're gonna be like, oh my God, Isa, listen. So I did a video last year and I was like, you guys, there's nothing like being in that booth where you can't even come out for air because of all the stuff that you're doing. I said, you guys, look at this. This salmon was done in 3.58 minutes.

RYAN: Yeah, right, under 4 minutes.

ISSA: Gotcha. I said, and then I put the fork in and I said, listen, with the asparagus in there, you cannot beat that. And so, and again, you're talking about something that has to do with voiceover, but it's not necessarily— like, just tie it all in, you guys. Like, you know, tie it in. And again, that was an advertisement for myself, but I had to also let you guys know about this air fryer because of what we do.

RYAN: And you've kept Issa front of mind, but you're not selling him. You're not selling. It's not, it's not, ugh, like, okay, we get it. You're humbled and blessed because you did something else. Nelson, for some girl.

ISSA: Oh, I know.

RYAN: It's— no, you're just being a human, and, and people can, relate to it. Yeah. Okay.

ISSA: That's right. That's right.

RYAN: that's awesome. Okay, I gotta know, a total hardcore gear switching here, not even a good segue, but, you work with lots of clients in the States and foreign. I guess first, main differences in the way that either they interact with you or that you interact Okay, well, I learned this the hard way, but—

ISSA: and again, I'm speaking on a personal level, you guys. So anything overseas, 'cause I have like over 20 stations in South America, I get paid first. I don't care who you are, because I learned the hard way.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: Don't— I personally no more ever send anything without getting not even half, you guys. I get it all.

RYAN: And is that like monthly retainer clients down there? Do you have stations on monthly retainers?

ISSA: I would say about 7 of them are monthly retainer. One of them pays once a year, which is fabulous because the person at Western Union is looking at me like, oh my God, is she a drug dealer? But—

RYAN: I wish they sent cash FedEx. That would make it look even better. Oh my God.

ISSA: Right? So he's giving me this cash. He's usually looking at me all weird. Like, what does she do? What is this chick doing? Like, what is she doing? Yeah, but, but again, that is— and a lot of people have hit me up like, Issa, how do you handle it? And I'm like, how do you handle it? You get your money first. And it's because of my past, because it's just been like people burn you. And you know—

RYAN: How bad did you get burnt? If you want to tell us, like, what was a real bad burn? Just because, I mean, it's a reality. Everybody who works in voiceover—

ISSA: I would say anything over, anything over like 2,000 words, like that's a lot of time, you know?

RYAN: What about money-wise?

ISSA: Right. Well, what I'm saying is sending something and it's long and then you don't ever hear from someone, who knows? There's a station in Ecuador that I know for a fact is still using my voice. They just never paid. And yeah, it's unfortunate, but you live and you learn. You have to be careful. You have to be careful.

RYAN: Yeah, right. And I guess you're right. They know you're probably not going to jump on a plane and go down there and do anything about Yeah, I'm not.

ISSA: I'm not gonna go to Ecuador.

RYAN: Right.

ISSA: What would you do? And be like, yo.

RYAN: Yeah. I'm here. Now what?

ISSA: Yeah. Like, I'm gangster, but not that gangster.

RYAN: Right. What about then, as far as not the business, not the financial side or the business side, but yeah, I got burnt. I only got burnt from a foreign client once, so now I get paid upfront. But anyway, just working with them, the way they direct you or the way they expect the work to be done, is it still— is it very similar? to American radio clients or commercial clients?

ISSA: It is not. It is not. Unfortunately, in— well, Spanish stations are different, Ryan. They're just— they're, I need it right now, like right now this second. They kind of talk to me like I don't do anything, and then when they hit me up, it's gonna be— so as a woman, I have to really put my foot down and kind of train them, I hate to say it, and get them on a schedule. So if I get, you know, if they contact me, they know, okay, I will get this to you in the order that it came in. You're 6th in line today.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: You will get, you know, and then they understand, you know what I mean? But, you know, I have a huge talk with the program directors and the group in the beginning, which are all men still. I mean, a lot of radio in Spanish is very old school still, Ryan, all predominant men. And so it's just now that radio stations are accepting the women— me as a woman with radio imaging. It's very, very new. So it's exciting because there's a lot of— gosh, I mean, I've yet to be in Canada. Like, I'm excited because I know that there's probably some European markets that I can get into. But either way, in South America, it's very new. And so it's taboo. You know, usually the man does it. You know?

RYAN: Is there differences in different countries in South America versus Central versus Mexico versus the States? In other words, you're kind of talking about Spanish language stations as kind of a whole. Are they all fitting in the same umbrella?

ISSA: Okay. Here's the way I'm gonna answer that. And again, this is in my world. I've created a Spanish image style. And so when they come at me, they're asking for that because they know about it. So it's not like English at all. It's as if all stations would contact Ryan for Ryan's sound only.

RYAN: Right. But you kind of have 2. You have the Issa that we would be hiring up here in the States in English. And then you have that brand that would be hiring Spanish language-speaking countries.

ISSA: Right. Like, I have 2 stations in the US, which a lot of stations are grabbing this, which I'm so excited. So, you know, I do Spanglish now, where I'm like, you know, 107.1, you know, it's your station. You know, and then I'll say, like, instead of turn it up, súbelo. You know, or like, en tres, dos, uno, starting now. And so I'm starting that Spanglish thing. It's growing. It's exciting too. It's already big. Because I love the fact that these, huh?

RYAN: It's kind of like being in India where they'll be speaking, you know, Hindi or something.

ISSA: Yeah.

RYAN: And suddenly English is popping up every fourth word.

ISSA: Exactly. Exactly. Because, you know, as we are not going anywhere, we are everywhere. And it just makes sense. So in Spanish, going back to Spanish, they're seeking my sound. So I'm not conforming to them. So I'm kind of lucky. in that perspective. Yeah.

RYAN: About your day, I think you already mentioned that you're kind of 60% radio imaging, but what's your day like? When do you get started and how much of the different facets of voiceover are you doing throughout the day?

ISSA: I would say I do radio imaging very little now just because most stations are low maintenance. You know what I mean? Like, I'm sure that if I ever, or I'm not gonna say if I ever, I'm sure when I book New York or when I book LA, it's gonna be like, it's gonna be like 5 pages You know, a month. But when you have 2-pager stations, and if you're listening and you're like, Issa, what's that? It's just 2 pages of reads, about 20, 15 to 20 liners a page. You rarely get stuff. So, you know, I would say I start, I do a lot of IVR, a lot of IVR, which is telephony. You know, thank you for calling Walgreens.

RYAN: On hold messages. Yeah.

ISSA: Yeah, and you know, it's refreshing, Ryan, 'cause I don't have to think. I don't know if you understand. Like, I could just voice it, you know? And then if I get my Spanish stations in, I probably get about 1 or 2 reads a day, whether it's English or Spanish. And Spanish is very dramatic, so I have to do the hands. I have to do— English, it's more like I'm talking to you now. That's what I'm booking, you know, where it's like I'm the voice of, like, let's say, you know, KISS in Cincinnati. So I'm like, KISS 107.1. You know, it's just like that. But in Spanish, it's like, ¡Mía noventa y dos uno! It's just really high energy.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: And then I go— I do a lot of auditions because I am now represented by Atlas. So with those auditions, the auditions are probably the first thing that I do. Why? Because those have deadlines, and you have to meet those deadlines. Why? Because you have to stay in that good standing with those agents. So. But those, they differ. There's so many different styles now that people want. I think one of the most difficult ones, I don't know if you've seen this, but this is a trend. A lot of people want inner voice. And I'm like, what the hell is that? What the hell? You know, like that is, wow, good for you if you can do that. And you know what? The next time you're in the living room watching your Game of Thrones and watching all these things, you're gonna see a commercial that is inner voice and you're gonna be like, that is what Isa was talking about.

RYAN: Yeah, absolutely. A lot of the couples I do.

ISSA: Yeah, so it varies. It varies what I do, but it's very balanced, and I've never been overbooked on a day, so I'm very grateful. It's kind of like my day is filled, and it's perfectly filled. I'm just, I'm really lucky, so I'm grateful.

RYAN: Do you kind of do a 9-to-5 type of schedule, or do you have situations where, you know, clients that force you to be working late into the night?

ISSA: No, I don't do late, and I can say it's because I can. In the beginning, okay guys, when I went full time. There's a saying, Ryan. Some people work 22 hours not to work 8.

RYAN: Mm-hmm.

ISSA: And that was me. Sometimes I would start— and that's the thing. When you do full-time, you have to find structure, guys. 'Cause sometimes I would stay in my booth so long that by the time 4 o'clock came out— came in, I wasn't drinking, I wasn't eating, and I was exhausted. That is a no-no. Always remember, when you're at home When you're at home, treat it like if you were at work. Did you stay in that office from 8 to 4? I don't think so. You got up, you went to the bathroom. You got up, you talked to some friends, right? You socialized for 10, 15 minutes. Do the same thing at home. It was the best advice that a couple of my friends told me. You have to have structure when you're at home because if not, you're gonna go cuckoo. And you're not gonna perform as well. So make sure you're hydrating, that you're eating right, that you're sleeping.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: Because that's really gonna make a difference in your sound.

RYAN: For sure. You talked about being with Atlas.

ISSA: Yes.

RYAN: Have you worked with coaches? Do you have any—

ISSA: Yes.

RYAN: I don't know, a manager?

ISSA: Yes, I have a coach. I've worked with several. So I've worked with— oh my gosh— Dave Walsh. I've worked with Everett Oliver. I've worked with Marianne— oh my gosh, I forgot— Marianne Weiser. Mary Lynn Weisner.

RYAN: Yeah, okay. I haven't, but sure.

ISSA: But for me, what has really gotten me to book is— I mean, if you ask me, Issa, how many times you audition a day? I audition over 30— on a low day, maybe 25 to 30 a day auditions. And I still get booked. I send most of them if I can. If I'm not— if I'm extremely overbooked, I can only do about 10. But it is constant reading.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: Getting familiarized with reading. Reading skills is such an amazing thing. You have to do it, you guys. I read something when I first went full-time that freaked me out. And I said to myself, oh no, that's not going to be me. I don't remember who it was. But she was like, yeah, guys. She says, getting out of radio, it was great. I was excited. I thought, well, I've been doing voice for 20 years. I'm gonna book. She says, I didn't book anything really. It took me about 2 and a half years to get to booking. And when I read that, I was like, haha, okay, well, that's her.

RYAN: Yeah.

ISSA: You know what? Nope. It was at 2-year mark when I started to book, book, book, book, book. It's about finding yourself. And I said this on one of my videos, please do not be all over the place. 'Cause let me tell you, Ryan, when I talk about dropping thousands of dollars on demos. I'm not going to mention the demos that I've dropped, but do not drop on demos that are not you. Please don't do it, guys, because they're just going to sit there and collect dust. Because at the end of the day, and Ryan, I know you know this, and it's funny because I told this to my agents when I met them for the first time at the Radio Summit. I said, I know you guys know this, but don't laugh at me. I said, you can have the most unbelievable slap-your-mama demo, but it doesn't mean squat if you cannot book a job. So please choose wisely with the demo that you're going to invest in and practice, practice, practice. Because if you cannot live up to that incredible demo—

RYAN: Exactly. You have to be able to recreate what they hear, what, what, why they bought you. If you can't get in the, in the room and, and do it, then who cares?

ISSA: Right. And you know what? An agent can call you tomorrow and be like, Ryan, you, you are everything that I need. and represent you. But if Ryan can't book auditions, it's not gonna work out. It ain't. You have to book. It's the hard truth.

RYAN: Yeah. Absolutely. Staying on representation a little bit, 'cause people care, are you one of these people that have multiple agents? Do you have lots of them all over the place? A lot of regionals?

ISSA: No. No. Atlas obviously represents me in LA and New York. Have representation where it makes sense. So for me, I speak Spanish. So guess what? I am going to seek out agencies that are going to need a lot of Spanish VO, which is Texas, Arizona, you know.

RYAN: Sure.

ISSA: Connecticut. And being Puerto Rican, I book Connecticut and Jersey like it's nobody's business. So I seek out IVR companies. I seek out a lot of Miami. Why? Because I sound like I'm from Miami because I have that Puerto Ricanness And I book Florida like I'm the voice of Florida hospitals. Why did I book it? Because I sound like I live in Florida. Hello. So again, going back to that, Ryan, it's important for you to date yourself in voiceover. Get to know who you are. And I'm telling you, that's when you're gonna start making the money. I promise you guys that.

RYAN: Yeah, that's interesting. That's an interesting way to say that.

ISSA: Yes.

RYAN: Let's see here. I had something written down here and I'm not, I feel like you've probably covered it. But, you know, a few— it actually hasn't been that long that you've been out of the radio world. I'm surprised. I actually thought that you had been 100% full-time voiceover for longer than you have.

ISSA: No, no, I have been doing voiceovers for 19 years.

RYAN: For sure.

ISSA: Oh, like, it's been a long time. Yeah, you've been doing it a long time. So I don't want people to think, oh, yeah, 'cause on social media it's crazy. It looks like I'm just this sensation all of a sudden, but then when I have consultations with people, because people do reach out to me and they wanna consult, and I do consult with people if I have the time, and I think that hey, this person has potential. Yes, I'm gonna give you 15 minutes of my time to talk to you. But I let them know, yo, I've been doing this over 15 years. I went full-time 2 years, 2 and a half years ago. You know what I mean?

RYAN: You put the work in. So my question was, and I'll say this, 15 years ago, you know, if you were to look forward and look at your career now, what would surprise you the most? Maybe that's the way to ask it.

ISSA: The fact that I'm booking more VO than radio and imaging. I can't believe that.

RYAN: Okay. That's good.

ISSA: But I, and I won't share what it is, but I have found my niche in VO. And when you find what you are, that is when you're really going to excel. I know what I am in VO. And when you know fully, and it's crazy cuz I did a video about when you go to conferences, right? And, and, and I, I, I tell people, Guys, know who you are. Try to get to know yourself because a lot of times when I meet people, I'm like, okay, so who are you in VO? Are you the girl next door? Are you— they just kind of look at me with this daze, and you don't want to be that because let me tell you, when I was interviewing with Atlas, and this happens with a lot of agents, big talent agencies, if you don't know how to answer that question, shame on you because you only have a few minutes to—

RYAN: Great point.

ISSA: who you are with these people. And an agent, you gotta know who you are, guys. So really, again, go back, go back and get to know yourself and kind of— and even if you don't really kind of know, really write down what you're booking. And for now, again, 'cause 2 years ago, I wasn't what I am now, but just in steps. It's okay. You can't— listen, you can't be that restaurant, okay, that has the Greek food, the Mexican, and the Italian.

RYAN: Right.

ISSA: Okay? 'Cause you know when you go in there, the food's gonna be just aight. And aight gets them by, but you don't want to stay aight just, you know, forever. You know what I mean?

RYAN: Were you a Seinfeld fan? You're reminding me of the Dream Cafe episode of Seinfeld.

ISSA: You know, I've never seen that. I've never seen Seinfeld. I've never seen Seinfeld.

RYAN: It really has nothing to do with this, but you've given me so many— okay, wait. I want to do this. I want to print it for the record. So, 15 years ago, your surprise date at, you know, you would've been surprised at what you're booking now. In 15 years, where do you see yourself at that point in your career?

ISSA: I definitely see myself doing more English work and more comedy because—

RYAN: Okay.

ISSA: Okay. Well, because I never— I am very, very— when you get comfortable with yourself and you start to find who you are in voiceover, The realness of you comes out in the voiceover. And in person, I'm hilarious. So it's starting to come out in auditions, and I'm starting to book like crazy 'cause that sarcasm and that comedy is starting to come out. So I think that I'm gonna get better in that. And hopefully, I will get back to my singing, which is something that I ran away— There we go. Well, I ran away from a long time ago. But yes, my ultimate dream, Ryan, which I hardly talk about it 'cause it's sensitive, But I would love to sing, like, for Disney or for DreamWorks because I have that voice, and I would kill it. So, yes, that would be the kill me now. I can rest with everyone that died a week ago on Games of Thrones. I can just die once I do any type of singing cartoon type of a role.

RYAN: All right. Let me get— I'll get Eisner on the phone. I'll make that happen for you.

ISSA: Oh, my gosh.

RYAN: You're right.

ISSA: You got right.

RYAN: I, I worked for Disney for 5 seconds. I have a pension coming my way when I retire, $43 a month. I'm not trying to brag. Wow, you go! Yeah. Oh yeah, that's—

ISSA: Listen, that is a slammin' meal for 2. No, that's a slammin' meal for 4 at Chick-fil-A. Don't, don't, you know, don't judge that.

RYAN: Well, although I won't, I won't get it till I retire, so in like 25 years, what will it be? A slammin' meal for 1 at Chick-fil-A, maybe? Yeah, I mean, you'll have dentures, you'll be fine. Okay. You've been awesome. I hope— I mean, I feel like I was just on the Issa ride today.

ISSA: Yes, I knew.

RYAN: I was just along for the ride here, and it was great. But you also had just like 50 different great pieces of advice for anybody who has been in the industry or likely starting out in the industry. Any last piece of— any last nugget you want to drop on above all else?

ISSA: I don't know if you guys know this, but most people only book 3% of auditions. So do not beat yourself up if you're not booking. Just keep going, guys, because you will book. And when you will book, you're going to start to book more and more and more. And seek out someone to be a support along the way. Oprah did not make it on her own, and neither will I. Neither has Ryan. Seek out someone that will give you the And that is what I have to say. It's very important.

RYAN: So awesome. Issa, you're the best.

ISSA: Aw.

RYAN: I said a lot about you in my intro, you know, award winner, your website, your socials, everything.

ISSA: Yeah.

RYAN: But seriously, go to the website, issavoice.com.

ISSA: Yeah.

RYAN: You are on all of the socials, Issa Voice.

ISSA: That's right. Or Issa, I-S-S-A, Lopez. Just look me up. And, you know, if you listen to Ryan, just say, hey, be like, Isa, I listen to Ryan's podcast. I'd be like, okay, cool.

RYAN: Yeah, there you go. You'll get an in.

ISSA: We'll go from there.

RYAN: She'll talk to you. You'll be cool enough to talk to Isa if you drop my podcast name. Yeah.

ISSA: Definitely.

RYAN: All right, Isa, thank you so much. I appreciate your time. Thanks for being on the show.

ISSA: Likewise. Visit briandreen.com to subscribe, contact the show, and listen to every episode. Please rate and review The Producers Podcast on iTunes or on Apple Podcasts. on your favorite podcast app.

ANNC: The Producers Podcast with Ryan Dreen.