We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Rena-Marie Villano. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Rena-Marie below.

Rena-Marie, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I should have known I’d be a voiceover artist when I grew up because, as a child, I could never shut up. I talked to bugs I saw on the sidewalk; I spoke to my schoolmates during class (made my teachers crazy) – I couldn’t help it. I was full of words. As a young girl, I dreamed of becoming the next Connie Chung or Diane Sawyer. By 16, I had my plan: finish high school, then college (I would major in Mass Comm, minor in Spanish), and then go into broadcast journalism.

But, in early 1990, a suggestion from my mom changed everything.

Rena-Marie, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Rena-Marie Villano, and my hyphenated first name has a fun backstory.

When my mom was pregnant, she was a beautician in Chicago. She watched “The Sonny and Cher Show” to get inspiration from Cher’s various hairstyles, representing the latest trends. At the end of her pregnancy, she’d begun writing down name choices for me, settling on 3 or 4 possible options: Jillian, Elise, Gina, and Marie. One night, in the 8th month of her pregnancy, she watched the credits to see who Cher’s hairstylist was. As the words scrolled up, she saw Cher’s stylist’s name: RENA. No last name, just RENA. She loved it. After trying it out with her other favorites, Marie won. My mom chose to hyphenate it and forego giving me a middle name. It’s unique, and I love it.

Born in the Chicago suburbs and raised in Temecula, California, with my parents and two younger brothers, I attended school at Vail Elementary. My parents divorced when I was nine, and in the years after, my mom married my stepfather, who owned a construction company. His work took us to many different places: Las Vegas, Nevada; Menifee, California; Dillon, Montana; and then to West Dover, Vermont. Moving was always an adventure for my family, and we embraced it. Acclimating to new towns and schools was hard, but it taught me adaptability and resilience.

My inroad into my industry began one day when I was 16 in my little ski town of West Dover, Vermont. My mom came home from the local radio station—100.7 WVAY-FM—after recording a commercial for her job. She said they were looking for an intern and wondered if I’d be interested. Initially, I resisted because it wasn’t television (snob!), but then I came around, and as it turns out, I loved it.

Before long, the station owner asked me if I wanted to start doing air shifts. I said yes! I waited a few months for my 17th birthday and applied for a broadcaster’s license from the FCC. A few weeks later, it came in the mail, and I was off to the races. For the next year and a half, as I finished high school and waited for college to begin, I worked overnights and weekends “ON THE AIR,” playing smooth jazz and talking to New Englanders. I’m a Gemini; we are born to communicate. Let me tell you, I was in heaven.

A few weeks before leaving for college, I learned my family would be moving to Bozeman, Montana. My mom (at it again!) casually mentioned that Bozeman had a ton of radio stations. Curiosity got the best of me. I researched the market, threw together a resume and an aircheck, and was hired at 95.1 KMMS-FM, “The Moose,” a classic rock station. But college! I pivoted quickly, deferred my schooling, and moved to Bozeman with my family to take that radio job.

It was the best decision of my young life because I began learning audio production in addition to my on-air duties. I spent hours voicing commercials and producing entertainment segments. It brought me profound joy and a deeper sense of purpose, and that was when I knew I wanted to pursue a voiceover career. 34 years later……I’m so glad I said yes to that radio internship. :)

After many years of living and working in different U.S. markets – most recently Los Angeles for 14 years – I relocated to Boise, Idaho in 2023.

I have a broadcast-quality voiceover studio and work with clients daily, voicing scripts and editing audio using software like Pro Tools, Apogee Control 2, and Source Connect. My agents and managers are on both coasts. I voice projects in all genres: Commercials, Promos, Radio Imaging, Narrations, Video Games, Podcasts, TV Affiliate Branding, and Audiobooks. Visit my website to see examples of my work.

My adaptability and willingness to take direction are my strengths. I come from a long line of tenacious women who will stop at nothing to pursue what they love; in this business, that steady mindset helps me weather the uncertainty of freelancing and the rejection inherent in the entertainment industry.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is when clients are happy with my work—being able to help them bring a concept to life by giving them what they “hear” in their heads still means everything to me. My favorite thing about my work is that it’s constantly changing. There’s always something new to learn and discover, so my opportunities to evolve in my craft never cease. The nomad in me still desires change, and every day, I get that from my craft.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

To take my voiceover career to the next level, I had to “unlearn” and break free from the announcer delivery I had mastered in radio. Commercial voiceover trends used to want an announcer-y sound, but I needed to pivot when buyers began to desire a more natural, unpolished delivery. That involved letting go of my perceptions about the sound of my voice and what constituted professional voiceover. It’s been very freeing!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://renamarievillano.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/renamarievillano
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RenaMarieVillanoVO
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rmvillano
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/rmvUtube2
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/rmvillano

Image Credits

Photographer of both photos in front of The Game Awards step-and-repeat: Roberto Quinn, taken with my phone.