Greetings NERDS,
Boy do I have a treat for you, especially to all our DBZ fans out there. I was able to get Josh Martin, the voice of Buu, to sit down and answer a few questions. Hell, he even agreed to come back and do a podcast with us in the future, so we are excited about that. For those of you who don’t know, I am a huge Dragon Ball Z fan and I just absolutely love the Majin Buu saga. When I was able to contact Josh and he said yes to an interview, to say I was on Cloud 9 was an understatement. But enough rambling, let’s just get right to the interview.
Derf: You are a man of many voices. How did you discover you had a knack for voices?
JM: First off, thank you for the interest to interview me and for the compliment! Next, I discovered a knack for voices by 2nd or 3rd grade. By then, I figured out I was pretty good at mimicking some of the cartoon characters I loved; like Scooby Doo, Snaggle Puss, Pinky and The Brain, Pillsbury Doughboy, and others.
Derf: What was your first project?
JM: My first paying voice-over project was performing Majin Buu for Dragon Ball Z in 2000. Before that, I toured the world in a giant purple dinosaur costume, preceded by performing in improv comedy troupes.
Derf: You have been the voice of Majin Buu in DBZ as well as Commander Red in Dragon Ball. Which character was the most fun to portray?
JM: Honestly, I love both of those characters. Though, I would have liked to have done more with Red, Majin Buu was my first. Buu also continues to keep me relevant, and it is ridiculously enjoyable to perform.
Derf: You were the voice for each phase of Majin Buu, which one was your favorite?
JM: To be accurate, I voice all Buus except Super, voiced by Justin Cook. However, Fat/Big Buu is my favorite.
Derf: While on the subject of animated classics, what other shows/films were you a part of? Which one was your favorite?
JM: I’ve been fortunate to be a part of numerous productions such as Full Metal Alchemist as Mason, One Piece as Yosaku, Lupin the 3rd as Donald Hibler, YuYu Hakusho and many more. My favorite is undoubtedly Big Buu from DBZ!
Derf: Do you have anything you would like to promote?
JM: Why thank you! I also perform as MCA in THE Original Beastie Boys Tribute Band-Rhymin’ N Stealin’. Check us out everywhere-Facebook, Instagram, Twitter…rhyminnstealin.com. Also be on the lookout at my Facebook page JoshMartinVoiceActor for a brand new original animation from yours truly called “THE BAKERY-featuring the Pilzberry Homeboy and the Old Durty Bakery”.
Derf: If you could lend your voice to any animated character or series, who or what would it be and why?
JM: Though I appreciate the value of a paying gig, I’m mostly a purist when it comes to characters’ voices. Since these two franchises seem to be existing without the original actors anyway, I’d pick Shaggy from Scooby-Doo and the Pillsbury Doughboy; if I got the opportunity. Shaggy is pretty close to my sensibilities, and I like to the character. The Pillsbury Doughboy is an icon, cute, and national voice-over commercials pay well.
Derf: Do you have any advice for newcomers to the wonderful world of voice actors?
JM: I have three pieces of advice for aspiring voice actors. 1. Learn to be an actor. Take classes and perform as much as possible. 2. Be present. This is also the #1 rule for acting; Be Present. 3. Hustle. No agent, agency, manager, friend, family member or combination thereof can nor will do for you what you MUST do for yourself.
Derf: Besides voice acting, I understand you are a comic. How often do you do stand-up?
JM: You know, I’ve thought many times before and still sometimes have thoughts of doing stand-up, but I never have. My background is improvisation, sketch and musical comedy. I started with some friends from acting school in Dallas in 1995. We changed names and line-ups over time, until we settled on Section 8 Comedy and performed for 10 years straight until 2013. We’re always talking about doing another one.
Derf: Do you have any hobbies? If so, what are they?
JM: These days, I don’t have many hobbies. If it doesn’t involve being a father to three beautiful daughters, husband to an amazing woman, homeowner/operator, or performing, I don’t do it. Some of my outside interests are- wrasslin, hip-hop, car racing video games and nice dinners.
Derf: Where can our fans keep up to date on your adventures?
JM: Please keep up with me @facebook.com/Pilzberryhomeboy, /RhyminNStealin/, /joshuamartinva/, /A-Rare-Fan-Experience; Instagram@originalbuu, Twitter@JoshMartinVoice.
Derf: Getting back to your music, you are in a Beastie Boys tribute band known as Rhymin’ N Stealin’ as mentioned before. What is your favorite song to perform?
JM: I have a Top 3 List- 1. Sabotage- 3MCs and 1DJ play live instruments, I get to DJ and it’s the most hype live experience I’ve witnessed; 2. Paul Revere-Classic and CLOSE 2nd most hype number in entire set; 3. Gratitude- That BASS line!
