In this interview, Susan Bennett tells us what it was like to be the original voice of the iPhone assistant, “Siri” … her fear-busting “ask” that changed everything … her experience as a backup singer for Burt Bacharach … and her thoughts on the “happy accident” of her unique place in “bot” history.
Portions of this interview appear in my forthcoming book, The Big Ask.
In 2005, voice actor Susan Bennett of Atlanta, Georgia, was hired for a particularly lengthy and demanding job by Nuance Communications, a company that provided interactive voice response (IVR) for phone answering systems, GPS, and other “bots.”
For one month, she worked from her home studio recording often nonsensical combinations of words, phrases, sounds, and numbers for up to four hours a day, five days a week.
Six years later, in 2011, a friend of Susan’s got her attention when she suggested that the iPhone assistant’s voice on the then-new Apple iPhone 4S sounded — curiously enough — just like Susan.
And it was only then, listening to the friend’s iPhone, that Susan discovered that the voice of Siri was indeed her own.*
Paul Quinn: Susan, let’s begin with the origin question: How did you get started in the voiceover business?
Susan Bennett: I was at Doppler Studios in Atlanta, recording a commercial jingle with a group. When the voice actor didn’t show up, Pete Caldwell, the studio owner, said, “Susan you don’t have a [southern] accent — come over here and read this part.” And I was able to do it easily and distinctively and thought, Oooh, I need to look into this! So, I got a voice coach and talent agent, and never looked back.
Paul Quinn: I read that when you recorded the month-long readings of words and phrases for Nuance, at your standard hourly rate, you had no idea how the recordings would ultimately be used – let alone that they’d become the voice of “Siri.”
Susan Bennett: I had done a bunch of recordings for them starting in 2005, and my voice ended up in a lot of places that I didn’t get paid for. So, I guess there was a certain amount of naivete in my actions combined with the fact that when you’re a freelancer, especially a woman, anytime you’d get a big job like that it was a big deal. Today, fortunately, there’s a lot more voiceover work for women.
But Apple has never disclosed anything about the voices they chose for Siri. There were three original Siri voices, and I was the North American English voice. I talked with the woman who did the Australian voice and the man who did the English voice, and we all had the same experience: none of us were told our voices were being used for Siri.
Paul Quinn: You didn’t make your connection to Siri public until two years after “she” became a household name. What had made you so reluctant to do that?
Susan Bennett: My attitude was, I do auditions and do the work and love my work and move on to something else. I had never really intended to be famous. I just really love doing the work that I do and interacting with other like-minded people.
Up to the point that Siri was created, IVR voices were basically anonymous. Unless it’s a celebrity voice, you’re not going to pay any attention to that voice because what you’re listening for is the information.
But when that voice is suddenly in this little computerized phone that has a persona and a personality, suddenly these people are talking to you many, many, many times a day — sometimes hundreds of times a day — and so they get used to the sound of your voice. And I felt that would have a negative impact on my voiceover career.
Paul Quinn: What did you think the negative impact might be?
Susan Bennett: That my voice would be so ubiquitous and so well known that I wouldn’t have opportunities to get other voice work.
And everyone was afraid of Apple – like, “Oh, we can’t use Susan because we might be stepping on Apple’s toes and they have nine million lawyers at their beck and call!” (laughs) So it was just a question of how it would impact my career.
My biggest issue has always been fear, and I think it’s because I was raised by very cautious, fearful people. But they were born in 1912. They lived through a flu pandemic, two world wars, and a major depression, so it makes sense.
I grew up around that attitude of Protect yourself – be careful. And, of course, for a performer that’s not necessarily great advice, because we have to put ourselves out there and take chances.
Paul Quinn: So, how did you get past the fear of letting it be known that you were the voice of Siri?
Susan Bennett: My husband and my son were both pestering me about it and said “You are missing out on a unique opportunity. You’ve just got to forget about all that other stuff.”
Paul Quinn: The “other stuff” being the fear of typecasting?
Susan Bennett: Yes. And another thing, too. In one episode of The Big Bang Theory they were talking to Siri and of course when “Siri” shows up, she’s this gorgeous, voluptuous redhead … and I’m just this little 60-plus woman! (laughs) And I’m thinking, Hmmm, I just don’t know if I can handle all this.
Paul Quinn: So, when you finally decided to announce your Siri identity, what was your first step?
Susan Bennett: I have been very fortunate in my life, and don’t recall having to ask for all that much. But my biggest ask was asking my son to help me figure out how to make being the voice of Siri work for me. I had finally decided to reveal myself, but I wasn’t sure how to go about it. He really came through for me.
He was living in Los Angeles at the time, and I didn’t know anyone there. I asked him to do a little networking for me and find some people to help me promote my voice.
Through a friend, he found an agency—Vox Inc, run by Wes Stevens and Tom Lawless—and they were perfect for me because as great as they are at negotiations, they’re very down-to-earth people and not what you think of when you think of an LA agent. With Vox’s help I did a lot of TV appearances — CNN, To Tell the Truth, The Queen Latifah Show, radio and podcast interviews, etc.
Having Vox behind me gave me a lot of confidence, but I’m still surprised when people are thrilled to meet Siri. It’s always kind of felt like a happy accident. But they’d never have known the voice was mine unless I’d asked my son for help.
Paul Quinn: There are a few stories in The Big Ask from people whose pivotal moments weren’t as askers but as the ones being asked. I read that you worked as a backup singer for two music legends—Roy Orbison and Burt Bacharach—and that Bacharach once asked you something that surprised you.
Susan Bennett: It was a huge moment for me. In 1981, Burt was starting his southern tour in Atlanta and had brought two singers with him, a couple of instrumentalists for his rhythm section, and would have the Atlanta Symphony behind him as well. I was asked to be one of the backup singers.
He was staying at a Holiday Inn in Marietta, Georgia—if you can imagine that!—because it was the hotel closest to the venue, though he did have the penthouse.
So, we all gathered there to rehearse and make sure everybody knew their parts. He’s sitting at the piano and looks around and says,
“Susan, what do you think about this part?”
And I’m looking around thinking, Is there somebody else named Susan here? (laughs) I was amazed that he knew my name, let alone asked for my input. I was really not expecting that. It was a huge moment for me.
Paul Quinn: What did that mean to you?
Susan Bennett: It meant to me that he respected the people he was working with, and it showed me how professional he was. I had heard he could be a difficult guy, but he was wonderful to all of us in that room.
Paul Quinn: For some people in powerful positions, their egos prevent them from asking others for input. That he asked you for yours was a compliment to you and to him, wasn’t it?
Susan Bennett: Exactly. And I think there are a lot of big stars that are generous in that way. Dolly Parton has a reputation for knowing all the people she’s working with and respecting them and thanking them for their work. And, you know, it’s not a difficult thing to do.
Paul Quinn: When I ask people, for the book, about their biggest asks in life, most can’t think of any. What’s your take on that?
Susan Bennett: So much of that is fear of failure, fear of being rejected. To ask, “Would you do this for me?” and hear, “No, I don’t have time” or “I’m not interested.” It’s hard.
Paul Quinn: Have you had a professional rejection that hit you particularly hard?
Susan Bennett: For those of us doing auditions, you deal with rejection on a daily basis. I auditioned for the Aflac duck after Gilbert Gottfried was fired. And I just thought my audition was so perfect. But I also understand how many millions of people must’ve auditioned for that part.
Paul Quinn: Do you mentor or coach voice talent hopefuls?
Susan Bennett: I tried to do that for a while, but I have a really tough time telling people, “Don’t quit your day job.” Today, if you’ve got a smart phone, a good microphone, a MixerFace, and a closet — you’ve got a studio. Consequently, that has enabled a lot of amateurs to get in on the business end and it’s clogged up the works.
Paul Quinn: How do you mean?
Susan Bennett: There are soooo many people doing voiceover now. In fact, I have a good friend who’s an excellent voice actor and works at an ad agency. And I said to him, “You know, years ago we auditioned against maybe 20 or 30 people, and now it’s a lot more than that.”
And he told me there was a little radio spot in Alabama that was paying $150 and was only going to run for three or four weeks. And he said, “Would you care to guess how many people auditioned?”
And I thought I was being outrageous when I said, “I don’t know, 100?”
And he said, “Try 300.”
Paul Quinn: Speaking of big numbers, I saw that you have 32,000 Facebook followers. What’s your relationship with social media?
Susan Bennett: I’m not really very attracted to social media, so I have other people help me out with it because I wasn’t raised during that time. It just doesn’t interest me. It feels like it wastes a lot of time. And there are a lot of people interacting that I’d never in a million years want to have as a friend! (laughs) I don’t mean to sound like some horrible diva for saying that, but I’m a private person. I don’t have tons and tons of friends.
Paul Quinn: In closing, I have somewhat of a philosophical question for you. Looking back at the Siri phenomenon, how does it feel knowing you occupy such a unique place in our cultural history?
Susan Bennett: You know, I don’t think I ever fully grasped the enormity of the situation. I’m still surprised when people are thrilled to meet Siri. Because I didn’t (knowingly) audition and win the role, it’s always kind of felt like a happy accident to me. I never take it for granted, but in order to deal with it, I think I disassociate from it a bit. We are who we are, right? I’m sure if I had a different personality, I would have reacted differently and made a bigger deal of the whole phenomenon.
Paul Quinn: It’s been wonderful talking with you, Susan. Thanks so much for sharing your stories and insights today.
Susan Bennett: Thanks, I’ve enjoyed it.
*Note: Though Apple has never acknowledged the identities of the voice talents behind Siri (including the original Australian and English voices), Susan’s distinction as the original North American female voice was confirmed by audio forensics expert Ed Primeau.
Susan’s Siri voice was replaced in 2013, and Apple has since used different voices for its iPhones. According to Susan, the company has required subsequent Siri actors to sign nondisclosure agreements to keep their identities secret, though at the time no such restrictions were placed on herself or her UK and Australian counterparts.
For information about Susan Bennett’s voiceovers and public speaking visit susanbennett.com. Special thanks to Mari Weiss for helping connect me with Ms. Bennett.
What a fun interview. She sounds like a normal person in real life, and in her Siri voice!