Reedsburg man makes national television debut

By Ken Leiviska
Times-Press

REEDSBURG — He's not a contestant on American Idol, but a Reedsburg man has gained national fame because of his voice.

Bud Higley, better known by his radio name Kyle "Buddy" Scott, is the narrator on Fine Living Network's premiere pilot show "15 Bodacious Backyards." The show first aired Monday night and will replay for several weeks late at night.

"It's kind of a big deal for me because it's just from right here in Reedsburg — not the backyards, but the studio where it was recorded — and it's a national show," Higley, who wanted to work in radio since he was eight, said.

It was a good change-up for Higley, who said each day as the owner of Jaguar Creative Audio is generally the same for him. "This is kind of a diamond in the road of gravel," he said.

Although a few Fridays had passed since he recorded it, Higley had to wait and watch the premiere like everyone else Monday. While he was interested in seeing more of the backyards he talked about, there was something else he wanted to check out.

"I'm mostly listening to the sound," he said during the premiere, adding that he likes to draw comparisons between how he and other audio editors adjust his voice.

Even though he had to stick to the script, there were parts Higley took some liberty with in his tone and pitch. He said he was surprised some of the takes were used.

"I didn't think they'd use that one," Higley said with a smile after hearing a sing-songy line. "I just kind of sang that. They must have a sense of humor over there."

As part of Jaguar Creative Audio, Higley and 20 other voice talents use a production studio in his Reedsburg home primarily for TV and radio commercials. Higley was able to get hooked up with the Fine Living Network gig through an agency he uses.

"I'm mostly known by all my peers in the industry as the hard sell automotive guy," Higley said. "This is a totally different kind of job."

Higley has 27 years of experience in the radio industry, saying he was "a radio gypsy for awhile." He starting working in Reedsburg in 1982 before moving on to Madison, La Crosse, Milwaukee, Chicago and San Diego, before settling back in Reedsburg and starting his own company, which provides services that have "anything to do with audio."

Although he's not overly optimistic that it will, Higley said narrating for a national show could really springboard his career. If "15 Bodacious Backyards" has a successful pilot and subsequent season, it could mean more and bigger opportunities for the local audio guru.

"If everything works out with the pilot, maybe I could become the voice for Fine Living Network... then I'd go on to another network until I'm on a major one," Higley said, adding, "but that's just all in my mind."

He said the most well-known voiceover artists tend to live in bigger markets like Los Angeles, much like actors looking to make it big. Higley, who has a wife and two young boys, said he is happy living and working in Reedsburg where business is doing well.

While narrating is something he enjoyed, it is an aspect of the audio business he does not have a lot of experience in. In order to become better at it, Higley said he contacted famous voiceover master Don LaFontaine before he passed in fall of 2008.

"He took me under his wing and I did some narration for him and he gave me some pointers," Higley said.

One pointer LaFontaine might have neglected to tell Higley was how difficult narrating can be. Higley said he worked from 9:45 a.m. to 8:45 p.m. to narrate "15 Bodacious Backyards."

"It was a lot more work than I thought," he said. "But it was still a lot of fun."

Higley said having to do multiple takes to make sure everything was perfect for the people at Fine Living Network was what led to the long hours. He is more accustomed to putting together his own clips or just sending away his audios to be edited by the agency and employer.

He said he had clips from the backyards he would be describing in the script, so he had an idea of what was going on during the show, but he did not watch the telecast simultaneously with his narration.

A friend who watched the premiere said he never really thought about the voiceover guy on TV shows before. Now, every time you hear that voice in a commercial or show, you might have to ask yourself, "Is that Reedsburg's Bud Higley?"