Who is Kat Callaghan? Well, if you’re a TikTok user, you definitely know her voice. This week, Canadian radio host and podcaster Kat Callaghan unveiled herself as one of the text-to-speech voices on TikTok.
The host of Scott & Kat After 9 on Corus’ radio station 91.5 The Beat posted her very own TikTok, according to Global News, where she acknowledged questions from some of her listeners that pointed out similarities between her voice and the text-to-speech voice.
Related: These Canadian small businesses blew up – thanks, in part, to TikTok.
In the video – which at the time of writing has over 20 million views – there is some narration from her very own text-to-speech vocals until Callaghan exclaims, “Finally, I can tell you guys, it is me!”
“For a long time I didn’t say a word,” Callaghan reportedly wrote in the caption. “But … yes it’s me and yes I have an ongoing awesome relationship with the folks at TikTok. The coolest part for me is watching the creativity and awesome content that people are putting out there using my voice.”
So, who is Kat Callaghan exactly?
She’s a “radio girl in Canada”
Callaghan is a self-proclaimed “radio girl in Canada,” according to the Daily Hive. As mentioned earlier, she currently works at 91.5 The Beat in addition to working in podcasting and as a voice over artist.
According to her voice acting biography, “Kat started her professional radio career in 2006, and has had radio shows on various stations including 104.5 CHUM FM Toronto, Z103.5 Toronto and her current home at 91.5 The Beat.”
Related: Corus Entertainment is launching radio and TV scholarships for underrepresented students.
She’s from Cambridge, Ontario
When it was announced that Callaghan would be joining 91.5 The Beat, Callaghan talked about how she was from Cambridge, so returning to the station was like coming home.
During Callaghan’s time at Z103.5 in Toronto with her co-host, Scott Fox, they received numerous awards and honours. They’ve been honoured in the Toronto Sun Readers’ Choice Awards Best Morning Show category four times, and they won the GTA Top Choice Awards’ Top Choice Morning Show three times.
How did Kat Callaghan become the TikTok text-to-speech voice?
According to Global News, Callaghan became the new text-to-speech voice last year, “after another Ontario voice actor sued TikTok for using her voice in the function.”
The actor, named Bev Standing, claimed that she had recorded 10,000 sentences for the Chinese Institute of Acoustics research body in 2018. She sued TikTok, claiming that clips using “foul and offensive language” with her text-to-speech voice caused “irreparable harm” to her reputation.
TikTok has since settled the lawsuit.
See also: I tried TikTok sleep hacks – this is how it went.
Kat Callaghan addressed the TikTok reveal on-air
According to The Londoner, Callaghan and her co-host Scott Fox dedicated their morning show to an hour-long “Ask Us Anything Special.”
In response to questions about claims that Callaghan is lying about being the text-to-speech voice, their guest on the episode, Dave Blezard, said, “There was people in there saying ‘nope, that’s not true, you’re a liar, you’re just doing it for clout,’ and I just started getting super defensive, and I’m replying to people being like ‘no, this is actually Kat,’ like your spokesperson.”
Through laughter, Callaghan revealed that she’d prepared a statement.
“Let me start with yes, it’s me. No I didn’t lie… I’ve been doing radio for a long, long time, voice over work for many years as well. If I lied about that, that would be, again, a very sad thing to do. I will not be telling you how, or how much I get paid. Whether it’s TikTok, whether it’s radio or elsewhere.”
You may also like: Does TikTok’s viral frozen cucumber skin hack really work?
