We’re looking forward to introducing you to Andrew Joseph Perez. Check out our conversation below.
Hi Andrew Joseph, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What is a normal day like for you right now?
This is such a fun question for those of us self-employed artists. These days, I’m up at 5:30 or 6am, I have breakfast, do some morning meditations, and clean out my inbox of a few newsletters I’ve signed up for (a couple just for fun, a couple of financial and AI news). I’m usually either at my desk or in my VO booth by 8am or so, and I work until 5pm. I’ve been cooking a lot more recently, so I’ll whip up some dinner and then have the evening free. I’m finally catching up on a lot of movies and TV I’ve missed over these last few years of rebuilding a career ravaged by the pandemic and as always escaping into the world of Skyrim. Then in bed with a book by 10, lights out by 11, and I’m up to do it all over again the next day! One upshot of my life overhaul is that I have actual weekends for the first time, really in my entire life. Growing up my disabled brother took up most of our weekends, and then I was in theatre from middle school until 2020, so weekends just weren’t something I had access to. Now, though, I get out to the archery range, the beach, or a trail for a hike, and it’s pretty great. I can see why people like this whole weekend thing!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
The tl;dr that brought us to where we are today is that I studied Drama and Creative Writing at Seattle U, graduated in ’09, wound up stuck back home in Sacramento for a couple of years where I worked in the local theatre scene and earned my Equity Card (at the time, actors and stage managers generally had to accrue 50 worked weeks in Union theatres in order to qualify to join; that requirement was cut in half in the post-pandemic years, and has since been entirely done away with). I spent from 2014-2019 making my living in live performance between regional theatres across the US and in Los Angeles and edutainment shows, and then came along Miss ‘Rona. Overnight I went from being booked for most of 2020 to having no work whatsoever. A few friends and colleagues recommended I look into Audiobook Narration and here we are today!
I did my first title in 2020 and now have over 100 titles between those under my own name and my spicy pseudonym, Julio Maxwell. I get an especially eclectic mix of work; under Julio it’s a lot of “Why Choose” Romance (one woman with several men), but under my own name I found niches in Latin American Studies, Anthropology, Economics, AI Technology and Usage, and a smattering of Literary Fiction. I’d say that what sets me apart from many narrators is that range of genres, but possibly even more so my technical experience.
I studied audio engineering for a couple of quarters in college, ran sound for bands, and have toyed with digital audio production for years, so when I transitioned into the audiobook world. I was also able to dive in as an engineer. It’s meant that I’ve had more opportunity than I otherwise would to work on independent projects since authors who aren’t traditionally published can come to me for one-stop shopping for the full audio production instead of having to piece together a team.
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
I think I’ve got two stories that fit this.
I was working on a show at a regional theatre in California and it was not going well. The direction was weak, the production was lackluster, and the mood was pretty grim. This was at a company I’d worked for numerous times and it was always at least a bit troubling, but this show was especially problem-ridden. On one particularly rough day, I was backstage and turned to one of the older actors who’d been at this company for years. He’d been massively wronged by this company and yet still came back to do their shows. In my frustration, I asked him how he managed to ignore all the crap, all the mistreatment, unprofessionalism, negligence, etc. How did he not get pissed off at it all? He slowly turned to me, looked me in the eye, and told me never to lose that fire; to never let myself get to where he felt he was at. He told me to keep fighting and standing up for better treatment, equitable practices, and safe conditions. And when I think about throwing in the towel, which is a lot, I still think of that.
The other story was from when I was doing a children’s show traveling all over to schools. No mics, no lights, just a set we carried on top of a van, five people, and a lot of energy. I played one character who we really struggled to figure out until I tried him as an over-the-top Cheech Marin kind of guy one day and it stuck. It was ridiculous and hilarious. I’m out there doing this wild voice, playing guitar, just chewing the hell out of the scenery. One day, we’re packing up after the show and this trio of maybe 8-year-old boys comes over to me. Their leader goes, “Um… excuse me?” I’m like, “Yeah, bud, what’s up?” He goes, “So like… was that you on stage just now?” I’m like, “yeah.” “And were you really playing the guitar?” “…Yeah.” “And are you really Mexican?” I’m invested now, really interested in where this is going. “Yeah…” He pauses, really thinks about it, and then with absolute certainty looks me dead in the eye and says, “I wanna do what you do.” I see it on his face that this is the first time he’s ever seen himself reflected by someone on stage. That he didn’t know a little Mexican kid could grow up to be a professional actor and musician. I dropped everything I was doing and told him to believe in himself, to fight for that dream, and to never listen to anyone who told him he couldn’t do it. And again, every day when I feel like giving up and just getting a job at a bank for the stability and regularity, I think about that kid and I keep going.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Literally every day. LOL. But actually, though…
I once had the chance to see a youth master class taught by Kristin Chenoweth, and one of the kids (she had to be like 12 maybe) asked her this same question. Chenoweth leveled with this group of kids in a way I totally did not expect. She told them that performance is a hard life and a hard job. It’s unforgiving, it’s unfair, it’s inconsistent, and it’ll beat the hell out of you. So if you can imagine doing literally ANYTHING else and being happy in life, go do that and let acting be a hobby. Do it for fun, and don’t make it your life. But if you really cannot imagine being happy doing anything else, then you pursue it with everything you’ve got and don’t give up.
The pandemic was brutal in so many ways, and one of the biggest was losing my sense of self when the entire industry just ceased to exist for the better part of a year. I’d managed to stay on my health insurance through theatre. I made my living doing theatre while living in Los Angeles (a nearly unheard-of undertaking). And suddenly, I wasn’t a theatre actor anymore. I’ve only done one full Union production since the shutdown, and that was 2022. But I found another avenue to keep performing. The world hasn’t beaten me into submission yet!
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What’s a belief you used to hold tightly but now think was naive or wrong?
My senior year of high school, our AP English and Theatre teacher, Mr. Ed Trafton, gave us an assignment. We were to write our future selves three letters; one he’d send to us at the end of that Summer, one he’d send to us over Christmas Break our Freshman year of college, and one he’d send at the end of that first year. All three were delivered just as he said they’d be. I don’t remember much from any of them, but I remember one line from the first one; the one I got from Past-Andrew right before going off to college. I told myself: Be yourself… just not all at once.
I could spend a year unpacking that sentence with a therapist, but suffice it to say I had been so conditioned to believe I was simply “too much” from so many sources that I really believed that for a very long time. Whether it’s age, experience, or whatever else, now I look at that statement and feel so sad for that kid who believed he needed to hide like that.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What will you regret not doing?
Continuing competitive tap dance. My team took 1st place in all but one competition from when I was about 4 years old until I was about 11. I was really good and could have kept going. It didn’t hit me until years later when I saw a production of 42nd Street, but it is one of my biggest regrets letting the bullies win and giving up that path. Who knows where or who I’d be by now if I’d kept at it, but I deeply regret not staying true to myself and giving that up.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.andrewjperez.com
- Instagram: @andrewjosephperez and @juliomaxwellaudiobooks and @andrewjosephperezphotography
- Twitter: @andrewjperez
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AndrewJosephPerez
- Soundcloud: https://on.soundcloud.com/fCpWTIFs1ngk32XHTY
Image Credits
Seri DeYoung
