Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jonna-Lynn Alonso. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Jonna-Lynn, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
For as long as I can remember, I always wanted to create. I wanted to make people feel and have them know what I was feeling in return. As a child, art provided the means to express my thoughts and feelings in ways I couldn’t really understand nor describe until I got older. Creative endeavors always called to me numerous despite shifts in life plans and goals. My initial plan was to graduate with honors, enter graduate school, and study to reenter academia as a professor of psychology with an emphasis on culture, community, and social justice. Upon graduating university, I realized I needed a break from traditional schooling after participating in the U.S. education system for over 15 years. During my gap year, I strived to land a job related to my degree in psychology and social justice in order to pay back my student loans and other outstanding debt. However, during that period, it seemed every door to opportunities slammed in my face. I received rejection after rejection for nearly a year, despite several positive messages and interviews. The process was grueling and exhausting. As the days passed without any prospects, I worried whether I’d be able to support myself financially. But most of all, I worried I’d made the biggest mistake in my career choices. A nagging voice in the back of my head kept whispering that I wasn’t good enough, smart enough, charismatic enough to succeed and that studying something as worthless as psychology would never amount to anything. I felt like I was wasting my life and disappointing my family. Because of these feelings, I spent a lot of time in self-reflection and even wallowed in my sorrow for what seemed like eternity. However, also during that period, I also had the freedom of choice to do whatever I wanted. I could play games, watch anime, go outside and feel the breeze in my hair as I basked in the sunlight. I had all the time in the world to simply exist as a human being for once and engage with the activities I longed to do while I was in school or working no matter how mundane. As I reinvigorated my love for creating, I realized there was nothing stopping me from pursuing this again. I didn’t have schoolwork or a job to occupy my time; I could dedicate myself to things that made me truly happy. Even in my lowest moments, my escape from pain, sadness, and grief was always drawing or singing or writing. I wanted those good feelings to return once more, so it was a no-brainer to return to my roots and pursue creative passions again with a renewed vigor and perspective.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I work as a voice actor, singer, writer, director, producer, storyteller for video games, animation, ADR and dubbing, commercials, narrations, audio dramas, scratch work and more. But most importantly, I am silly girl who just wants to tell fun stories with fun people in fun ways. This involves embodying kindness, leading with passion, and centering stories from underrepresented bodies and voices. Despite my life paths converging in many different directions, from aspiring to be an illustrator as a 5-year old to a music therapist and theater director as a 16-year-old to a psychology professor as a 21-year-old, some of my most fulfilling moments are the ones behind the microphone, with other creators, and with the people (and animals) I love, and voice over gave the opportunity to experience all those moments.
I’ll be honest; I got into voice over because I was bored and had a lot of time on my hands. But regardless, the medium intrigued me enough over the years (and came at just the right time in my life) for me to make real headway in pursuing it professionally. As I played games and watched animations for countless hours each day during my dry-period in job hunting, my over-analytical brain started to notice the nuanced performances of the actors in these projects. From the grounded reads in commercial video games like The Last of Us and Final Fantasy to the overly cartoony but vulnerable performances in animations such as Turning Red and Belle, I was continuously inspired by these stories and messages. And I realized everything I experienced was the result of someone’s vulnerability and personality solely through their voice. Acting with one of the most personal aspects of a person fascinated me to no end. If someone could capture my attention, make me laugh until my sides ached, and weep until my eyes burned, who’s to say I couldn’t do that too? Despite decades of mimicking actors, aspiring to be in their shoes, but ultimately chickening out due to fear of rejection and failure, it was time to face my demons and heal my inner child after being repressed and neglected for so long. I felt as though I owed it to her to pursue what she wanted for the longest time. Thus, I began my deep dive into the world of voice over.
I’ve been performing and creating since I was a child. From classical violin to live theatre, I have over ten years of experience in various fields of the entertainment industry, including singing, writing, directing, and research/dramaturgy. I’ve even traveled and performed all around the United States and the world for various projects. I had the training and experience that would support me in the voice over industry. I applied my experience in critical research to find any and all information available on how to become a voice actor and create a successful, sustainable career. I purchased a microphone, created a decent recording space, took classes, and launched my voice over career within a few months. And now I get to learn and grow while doing what I love every day.
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
We all need to fully embrace and embody the principles of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI), Accessibility, and social justice. Not just in casting, but throughout the entire production and creative pipeline. The world is vast and complex with many types of people and stories that haven’t been told yet in the way they should. Representation extends far beyond the faces, bodies, and voices we see and hear; it stems from the very stories we choose to tell. In order to tell these stories and do them justice, it requires resources, including proper funding, and support from communities.
We need to understand how vital art is to our lives. We need to understand how it shapes our culture, worldviews, and human nature at its core. In a world so full of negativity and hate, art can provide healing, growth, and escape. Great artists do not just live in large markets and hubs; artists exist everywhere. It is when we expand our reach to these people that we see the diversity in experience and knowledge and expression. It is when we provide resources to support specific needs and circumstances of every artist and creator that we work towards a more equitable world. And it is when we provide opportunities for these people in more sustainable work, mainstream or otherwise, that we see underrepresented voices shine. Support local artists and businesses. Support independent artists and businesses. Support underrepresented artists and businesses. It is that simple.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
The intersections of my personal life experiences were what truly pushed me to pursue this creative passion. My innate curiosity to understand the human condition and deep-seeded love for humanity led me to formally study psychology and embody the principles of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and social justice. On the other hand, creating means exploring human nature at its core and capturing the nuances that truly resonate with people. As a child of immigrants balancing a love for creating, funny one-liners, and justice, I’ve made it my life’s mission to uplift and celebrate underrepresented stories and be a voice for people like me in any medium. My goal is to do what makes me happy, put things I love out into the world, and support and inspire people with similar struggles to me to do the same.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jonnalynnalonso.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jonnalynnalonso/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jonnalynnalonso
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonnalynnalonso/
- Twitter: https://x.com/jonnalynnalonso
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jonnalynnalonso
- Other: IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm14752951/
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@jonnalynnalonso
Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jonnalynnalonso.com
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/jonnalynnalonso
Image Credits
N/A