Today we’d like to introduce you to Keturah Hill.
Hi Keturah, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
To be honest, I was in Kindergarten when I knew I wanted to do commercials, I just didn’t know what it was called back then. I would pick up random things sitting on the bathroom counter and read the boxes to make them sound like commercials. I would secretly do this in the bathroom because I had a horrible stuttering problem. However, the speech therapist found out that as a kindergartener, I was reading on a 5th-grade level, but most amazingly, I wouldn’t stutter whenever I would read. It was my senior year in high school and we had to do a shadowing program. I chose the local gospel radio station because being a preacher’s kid was all my father was going to allow me to do. The DJ and soon after my mentor Andrea “Pinky” Ward asked me to read a PSA and that’s when my voice was discovered.
It really wasn’t until after I moved to Dallas in 2006 that I started to pick up voice-acting. I enrolled at Eastfield College. I wanted to study broadcasting but at that time, I took Journalism courses. The school started using my broadcasting and voice-over skills for campus events. I earned my Associates in Journalism in 2015. I then did a couple of commercial demos and posted them on SoundCloud. I received a message from a comic producer overseas inviting me to do some voice-over work for YouTube. I have voiced Miles Morales’s mother from The Amazing Spider-Man comic series along with Jezebel Jet, and most recently both goddesses in Killmonger from the Black Panther series. It has since then gone viral and will become a motion comic movie. I also have done work for Bank of America. I just signed with PowerPlay Radio and the first show will air on May 8th. For the past 3 yrs, I have also been in radio and I have a podcast on Apple called, The Cussing Christian. I did attend UTA and received my bachelor’s in Broadcasting/Communications in 2018. That was the birth of, The Cussing Christian- where a time when I wanted to quit but my husband (Raymond) would not let me. He was my biggest support.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Definitely not! After high school, life took a twist for me. I moved from Virginia to Atlanta and then to Dallas. I made some horrible decisions. Before I knew it I found myself in a homeless shelter with a three year old child. It was the most horrible but humble experience. I was in a shelter called, The Center of Hope. The director-Ms. Hazel saw something in me and she called me into her office. She opened the Bible and turned to Jeremiah 29:11, and told me to read it out loud. Being a preacher’s kid, I already knew what I was about to read. With tears stinging my eyes, I began to read, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
At that time, I was about to give up hope and on life. My self-worth was about to walk out the door, I thought God had forgotten me. Now, my struggles with voice-over… I have been rejected so many times because either I didn’t sound urban or urban enough for some companies. It has been hard with finding representation for voice acting. I will never forget when someone asked me what I was going to school for and what I wanted to be. I told them I wanted to be a news anchor. This professional doctor looked me in the eyes and said, “Well, the young lady, you certainly have the voice for it, but not the look. You need to be blonde and blue-eyed.” I looked at him and replied,” You must have never heard of Oprah.” I started out recording in a closet in my home that I tried to soundproof with blankets and audio foam.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
On top of all the broadcasting and voice-over work, I have been a substitute high school teacher at West Mesquite. for the past two years. I am currently getting my teacher certification. I’m most proud of going back to college and getting 2 degrees after overcoming homelessness. In addition, completing my internship at The Tom Joyner Morning Show and then being hired was a great experience for me.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
I would give the advice of not waiting until you are in college to learn your craft. Reach out to someone locally who is already in the field doing what you want to do and schedule a time to meet and talk. You would be surprised who would be willing to share their craft with you. You might find out that the career you think you may want may not be what you thought. Also, watch YouTube videos and do research.
Contact Info:
- Email: thecussingchristianklh@gmail.com
- Instagram: the_cussingchristian
- Facebook: The Cussing Christian
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/keturahj
