NBC's Keith Morrison Newest Voice For Waze App

Keith Morrison (NBC Photo)

Keith Morrison, the longtime correspondent for NBC’s Dateline crime series is a new voice to give directions for the Waze traffic app, joining other past notables including CBS’s Stephen Colbert, former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, CP30 from Star Wars and Tyler Perry as his character Madea.

Morrison, who has built a cult following online with true crime fans, with social media feeds dedicated to his TV stance (@keithleansonthings) was a dedicated Google Maps user before NBC came to him to suggest the Waze cameo.

According to USAToday, Waze sent him a long list of commands to record (“red light camera ahead” “you’ve reached your destination”) which he banked in a few hours.

Morrison recorded them in the same place where he voices the bulk of his Dateline voiceovers: in his home bedroom closet, from his iPhone.

“I do it in the closet because there’s lots of clothes in there, and no echo,” he says. “It’s the perfect recording studio.”

He uses a Beyer Dynamic microphone, plugged into an IK Multimedia iRig adapter to fit into an iPhone.

The former Google Maps user has now switched to Waze, although “I haven’t heard my voice yet. It would probably make me run in the other direction.”



To bring in Morrison's voice, go to the Tools section of the app, click "Voice Directions," and look for the option to add Morrison. This section also gives you the option of male or female voices, as well as speakers in many languages, including German, Spanish, French, Italian and Russian.

Dateline airs Friday nights at 9 p.m. ET/PT.