When you think of TikTok trends going viral, you’re likely to visualize dances, lip-sync challenges, or pranks.
However, lots of other types of TikTok videos have become sensations on the social media platform as well. Memes have generated trends that have lasted for years, an evergreen trend sees TikTok users making “TV show opens” that mimic the well-known Full House credits — and even new filters and effects regularly trend on the app.
“Jessie” fits into that last category.
In 2020, TikTok added a text-to-speech feature that let TikTok content creators convert typed narration into automated digital voiceovers. All sorts of options are available, ranging from deep-voiced narrators and cartoon characters to people speaking with an echo or through a microphone.
One of the voices, though, began trending on the app shortly after it was added a few years ago, and it became even more popular after it also became available as a TikTok voice filter. Meet Jessie.
Who Is Jessie, and How Do You Get Her Voice on TikTok?
First things first: the voices you can add to your TikTok posts are all generated and supplied by artificial intelligence.
That doesn’t mean they’re not based in reality, though. Many of the “AI narrators” were extensively trained on specific broadcasters’ and voice actors’ voices; those real people recorded thousands and thousands of lines of text that the AI imitates or even uses verbatim. In short, many TikTok AI voices sound like actual people, not robots or cartoons.
The most popular of those voices is Jessie, a female narrator whose sound has been variously described as captivating, peppy, sassy, expressive, or happy. The AI voice also deliberately mispronounces occasional words to make her narration a bit more distinctive and fun.
Jessie’s voice is supplied by a Canadian radio host named Kat Callaghan. She originally tried to keep her involvement in TikTok’s AI system private. But as the voice began trending and became ubiquitous in TikTok feeds, she grew more comfortable with her role — and started her own TikTok account, @voiceofkat, which now has nearly a million followers.
Want to have Jessie (or Kat) replace your own voice or narrate your TikTok video? Here’s how to do it.
- Open the TikTok “Create” screen by tapping the “+” icon on your home screen.
- Choose the maximum length of your content and record your video by pressing the red “Record” button.
- Click the red checkmark to move to the Edit screen.
- To replace voices with Jessie’s or add her narration, tap the “Voice” icon (a microphone with a plus sign) in the right-hand menu. Then:
– To change your voice (or the voice you’ve recorded): Scroll down the voice options in the lower half of the screen, and click on “Jessie.”
– To add a recorded narration: Tap the “Add narration” button at the bottom of the screen, record the narration, then scroll down and choose the “Jessie” icon to make her your narrator. - To add Jessie’s voice by using text-to-speech, tap the “Text” icon (Aa), use the keyboard to type the text you want to convert to speech, and click the “Text to speech” icon (a face speaking) in the top menu. Choose “Jessie” from the list of voices that shows in the popup.
- Finish editing and posting your video as usual.
The feature is easy and fun to use, and it will add a new dimension to your content. Just be aware: Jessie’s voice is so popular on the app that your video may not stand out in TikTok users’ feeds as much as you’d hope. Choosing a less-popular AI voice may make your videos more distinctive.
About the Author
Peter Hasselworth is a contributor at iDigic, sharing valuable insights about Instagram growth and social media marketing strategies.