If you’re tuning in for the first time, welcome, and to my longtime listeners, you know that throughout the years you’ve heard me interview some of the most iconic voices behind your favorite commercials, video games, documentaries, etc... But today, I’m pulling back the curtain on a voice that gets much less exposure—but is crucial to running a successful voiceover business as she’s the Unsung Hero of a Voiceover Virtuoso who’s all about the business of sound!

Sandra Russell may not be a name that you’re familiar with, or have a voice you recognize—but her fingerprints are all over the success of one of the top voices in the VO industry; that of her multi award-winning husband Ian Russell, aka The British Voice, who as a side note, joined me as a guest on my other podcast, ‘The Voice Kitchen: where recipes and voice talent blend! Where he shared his recipe of a very British staple, Raised Pork Pie.

Sand ra joins me today to talk about what it’s like being a voiceover wife and mum and how she’s applied her education and business acumen to being Ian’s business manager and creative consultant. Add to the mix, the award-winning voiceover careers of their two daughters, Eva and Lauren, and occasionally when Sandra steps in front of the mic, and you’ve got quite the family affair!

We’ll hear how a Christmas present for a one-day class, launched a lucrative international voiceover career for Ian, to co-running a thriving studio from their family home. Sandra’s story is one of quiet leadership, business savvy, and possessing a keen eye for the right opportunity. Someone we’d all be so lucky to have in our corner, no matter what creative endeavor we’re pursuing.

Join me as I welcome Sandra Russell to 19Stories.

You can contact Sandra, or Ian,or Eva directly via the followng:

Sandra's Business email Address: brillbrits1@gmail.com

Sandra's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brillbrits/

Ian's website(s): ianrussellvoice.com

Eva's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/evarussellvoiceactor/

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to follow 19 Stories wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. It would be greatly appreciated if you gave a nice review and shared this episode well :-)

To give feedback or a story idea: 19stories@soundsatchelstudios.com

To listen to my demos: https://www.cherylholling.com/

To contact me for voiceover work, or to host your podcast, reach out to me at: cheryl@cherylholling.com

Follow me on Instagram: @cherylhollingvo

Theme Song Credit: 'Together' by For King & Country

Outro Insert: "

Proverbs 23:18

"Surely there is a future, and your Hope will not be cut off."

Today marks a very special anniversary in that on June 28th 2020, a year we definitely all remember, I launched this podcast as a way of initially addressing and combating the fear so many creatives were feeling during the pandemic by talking about the tools and or faith they used to move into Hope. These days, I’m still talking with creatives in all mediums about challenges they’ve faced while celebrating their successes and offering some pearls of wisdom for listeners to implement into their own lives.

Speaking of which, I’d like to give a huge thank you to the listeners in the following countries, who as of this date, have downloaded ‘19Stories’ close to 11,000 times; the United States, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Canada, Australia, China, Norway, France, Bangladesh, Spain, Japan, India, Mexico, Kenya, Germany, Switzerland, Hungary and Tunisia. I’d like to give a special thanks to my incredible guests that have been so generous in sharing their stories over these past 5 years. Your trust and openness have been the heartbeat of this podcast.

So, here's to you, and to us, and to many more years of '19Stories: from Fear to Hope'. Thank you for being a part of my podcasting journey. And remember, Like, Follow and share, and of course, stay healthy and Hopeful!

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to follow 19 Stories wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. It would be greatly appreciated if you gave a nice review and shared this episode well :-)

To give feedback or a story idea: 19stories@soundsatchelstudios.com

To listen to my demos: https://www.cherylholling.com/

To contact me for voiceover work, or to host your podcast, reach out to me at: cheryl@cherylholling.com

Follow me on Instagram: @cherylhollingvo

Theme Song Credit: 'Together' by For King & Country

Proverbs 23:18

You may have heard me quote a former acting coach a time or two on this podcast, that “if you want to bring life into your characters, you have to first live a life in order to have something to pour onto the stage, screen or microphone.” I’d say the same holds true for any good author or storyteller.

Today, I’m incredibly honored to have as my guest, Alex Poppe, the multi-award-winning author renowned for her compelling literary fiction that delves into themes of resilience, identity, and social justice.

After graduating at the top of her university’s undergraduate business school, Alex began her professional career as a business analyst for Mobile Oil and quickly became disenchanted with the corporate culture after, she, and I quote, “hit my head too many times on the glass ceiling and exchanged my corporate life to pursue an artistic one.”

Poppe moved to New York to enroll in the ‘Circle in the Square’s’ two-year professional actor training program. It’s where Alex honed her observation skills and enabled her to quickly identify and address individual student learning challenges after she quit her acting pursuits, got certified to Teach English as a Second Language, moved to Poland for her first teaching assignment, and then eventually to the Middle East spending almost a decade there as an educator in several prestigious public and private universities.

Her experience as an actor, world traveler, humanitarian aid worker and educator in war-torn conflict zones, before coming back stateside to work for USAID, is what Alex pours onto the page.

Alex joins me today to talk about her forthcoming memoir, Breakfast Wine: A Memoir of Chasing an Unconventional Life and Finding a Way Home, which chronicles her transformative journey from that disillusioned corporate professional in the U.S. to an educator navigating cultural complexities and personal upheavals.

You can contact Alex Poppe directly via the followng:

Business email: sallya.poppe@gmail.com

Business website: www.alexpoppe.com

On Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/alex_poppe_author/

On LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/sallyalexpoppe/

Order Breakfast Wine at Bookshop.org or your local indie bookstore.

Alex will be speaking and doing a booksigning of Breakfast Wine at the following locations:

Magic City Books in Tulsa, Ok on June 10, 2025 at 7:00pm pm

The Book Cellar in Chicago, IL on June 12, 2025 at 6:30 pm

Boswell Books in Milwaukee, WI on June 13, 2025 at 6:30pm

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to follow 19 Stories wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. It would be greatly appreciated if you gave a nice review and shared this episode well :-)

To give feedback or a story idea: 19stories@soundsatchelstudios.com

To listen to my demos: https://www.cherylholling.com/

To contact me for voiceover work, or to host your podcast, reach out to me at: cheryl@cherylholling.com

Follow me on Instagram: @cherylhollingvo

Theme Song Credit: 'Together' by For King & Country

Outro Insert: "Titantium" by Sia

Proverbs 23:18

"Surely there is a future, and your Hope will not be cut off."