I know a Googler. Never to let a fleeting inquiry go unGoogled, he recently wondered who was the voice of Hulu. It turns out to be a man named Dave Fennoy. Fennoy is a wildly successful voice actor, doing work for McDonalds, KFC, and Chrysler. He’s also black. In the 1-1/2 minute clip below, he talks about being teased as a kid for “talk[ing] like a white boy” and how this caused him “identity problems.” Later he attended Howard University, where he re-thought what it meant to be black, rejecting the idea that he was supposed to talk in any which way. He doesn’t talk about how his success in The Industry (as we call it in Los Angeles) is related to his sound, though I wish he had:
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Lisa Wade is a professor of sociology at Occidental College. You can follow her on Twitter and Facebook.
Comments 11
azizi — May 14, 2011
Some people-regardless of their race/ethnicity-equate "talking like a White person"-with using "proper" English. And for those people, proper English means "correct" American English [or British English if they are in the UK] grammar, spelling, and a certain type of newcasters' pronunciation pronunciations (in the United States, that usually means the way television newscasters in the East sound).
However, using those descriptors, many White people don't "sound" White and a lot of People of Color do.
Furthermore, even when the focus is just on White Americans, there are many local, regional, class, and other differences in the way that the population of people who are now called "White" talk [note: all those who are considered White now weren't always considered White.]
For instance, in my adopted hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, there appears to me to be a distinct difference in the way certain words are pronounced by White Pittsburghers and Black Pittsburghers. There also appears to me to be certain words that White Pittsburghers use that Black Pittsburghers don't-or at least don't usually use. One example of a White Pittsburgese phrase is "red up" . Instead of using that phrase, if we use a comparable vernacular phrase, most Black Pittsburghers say "straightening up"[your house because guests are coming]. Another example of a White Pittsburghese word is "yinze". In the 42 years that I've lived in Pittsburgh, I don't ever recall any Black Pittsburghers saying "yinze". Instead, if we use a vernacular word for "you" (singular or plural) we say "ya'll".
Another White type of talking that I've read about and heard in movies/songs is "Valley Girlese". Valley Girls are known for their "like totally, for sure" phrasing. An updated form of "Valley Girlese" is actually saying the text messaging/internet term "oh m gee" and "lol". But I believe that a Person of Color who was raised around folks who spoke Valley Girlese is likely to speak that way, at least some of the time because that type of talking might be considered natural to her or his peer group.
I grew up in a working class [lower middle class for Black folks] housing project in Atlantic City. My family was very active in a middle class Baptist church.I don't recall any people in that housing project speaking African American English that is stereotyped in books and movies, and folks in our church circle didn't talk like that either. My family absolutely did not use double negatives or phrases like "be talkin". And when we used "ain't or "gonna" in some informal conversations, we knew that those words should only be used informally. When I was in school and college, I don't recall anyone ever saying that I spoke like a White person. However, I've heard that as an adult. And on another blog someone [a person who identified as a White woman] asked me do I talk like I write. My answer is "Yes, when I want to."
Which brings up another point I want to share-I think that many African Americans are bi-cultural. And part of our bi-culturalness is being able to code switch-from mainstream American English to African American [Vernacular] English when we want to. Some of us also can speak and write Jamaican Patois, and Gullah English and other languages/dialects. Furthermore, I believe that sometimes online-on more informal message boards than this one- Black bloggers purposely use Black slang. I think we sometimes do this not just because we are being informal but also to signal that we are Black, and maybe even to show off a bit around non-Black folks. I call this "putting on the Black". For instance, on YouTube video comment threads on Gospel music Black folks often write something like "Sang it, girl!". In that context, "sang" isn't a past tense of "to sing" but means "to sing very well". Another example is the word "thang"[instead of "thing".
If you feel what I'm sayin, holla [back]. And if not, it's still cool.
azizi — May 14, 2011
Please excuse my poor cut and paste job. That fourth paragraph should begin with this sentence:
That is not to say that there aren't any differences between the words that Black Americans and White Americans may use.
alex — May 14, 2011
I haven't lived in America for a few years, but when I grew up in New York City this accent to me would have sounded "black".
Meredith — May 15, 2011
i watch hulu a lot and i always thought he was black... i'm not sure what that means.
wriggles — May 16, 2011
He sounds black to me too, it's more in the sound of his voice rather than his accent.
gogo — May 16, 2011
This guy is who Ted Williams was supposed to become after his fabulous media makeover.
Whooops.
Micheal Jordan — June 27, 2023
It is a topic that deserves attention and recognition, as the voices and stories of Black artists have played a significant role in shaping the cultural landscape.
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