Need help from a team of anthropomorphic animals? Try Disney. They’ve got The Rescuers, Chip ‘n’ Dale Rescue Rangers, The Lion Guard, and their latest fur-and-feather brigade: The Chicken Squad, based on the children’s book series by Doreen Cronin. These friendly neighborhood tykes excel at rescuing cats from trees, solving mysteries like who trampled the prize flowers—and singing. The team includes a trio of sibling chicks, Coop, Sweetie and Little Boo, and their canine mentor, Captain Tully.

Their leader is Coop, a fledgling rooster with glasses, a ruler, and a penchant for creating gadgets. He’s voiced by Ramone Hamilton who has performed on stage and in live action—singing and acting—since the age of five. At age 15, he has already racked up an impressive array of credits doing voiceover work, as Shaun in Shimmer and Shine (2018), Axl in The Grinch (2018), Max in Summer Camp Island (2018-2020), A. J. in Blaze and the Monster Machines (2018-2021), George in the TV incarnations of Captain Underpants (2017-2020), among other roles.

I interviewed Ramone on April 26, 2021, a day after the Oscars 2021 ceremony. Pete Docter’s Soul had won two Academy Awards, for Best Animated Feature Film and Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures. Ramone had voiced young Joe Gardner, played as an adult by Jamie Foxx.

Bob Miller: So, how did you break into show business?

Ramone Hamilton: Well, I come from an entertainment family. My grandfather was an actor, Bernie Hamilton. He was a very famous actor all the way from the ‘50s through the ‘70s. His most famous project was a TV show called Starsky & Hutch in the ‘70s, where he played Captain Dobey. My uncle Chico Hamilton was also a very famous jazz drummer, played with musicians like Lena Horne, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, all the greats. So, just seeing them really inspired me and from an early age, I’ve always just been singing, dancing, performing, putting on shows, so. It was kind of natural for me to just get into it, and start taking lessons and start from there.

Ramone Hamilton

RH: Well, with my agency Osbrink I’m signed for everything. So, theatrical, commercial, and voiceover. It’s just natural as an actor just to want to branch out in all different types of fields, and voice acting was one of them. The animation world is a pretty hard world to crack into. So, I had to take some lessons, and I just started going on more and more auditions, and finally, I got one. My first animation project was the The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants.

BM: Well, now, what difference do you find in performing a character in live action as opposed to voiceover?

RH: For me, the way I approach it, there’s not really too much of a difference, because with voice acting, it’s all about your movement. And with live action, that’s all that there is. You know, you’re on camera and you’re moving and you’re acting. But when you’re in the booth, obviously you have to be able to portray the emotion that your character is feeling through your voice, so that’s one aspect that’s a little different. You have to train and work at that, because you’re not on screen. Your face can’t be shown. So, you’ve gotta be able to portray that emotion. But I try to do everything in the script that my character is doing, so if my character is running and jumping, [heavy breathing] “Alright, come on, we’ve gotta go,” that’s what I’m doing in the booth. So, for me, there’s not really too much of a difference, other than just portraying that emotion, and really focusing heavy on that.

BM: How did you get the role of Coop?

RH: Well, it’s actually a funny story. So I was actually in Iowa for my cousin’s graduation, and we got the email. We were staying in our hotel, and we got the email that my agency had gotten an email for me to audition for this project. And I recorded my MP3 from our hotel bathroom, ‘cause that was the only place that was kind of enclosed, right? And we sent it off, but my agency hit us back, and was like, “It’s too echo-ey in the bathroom. We need you to be in a more enclosed space that’s better for your voice, because we feel like you have a really good chance of getting this role.” So we were like, “Alright.” So I ended up doing it again, and we got the call that the casting really liked me and they wanted me to come back to do a callback, and the rest is history. I aced the callback, and got the role.

BM: That’s great. Well, now, what did you do about the acoustic problem? How did you solve it?

RH: Well, (chuckles) I got out of the bathroom and we went into the middle of the room that we were in, because it’s kind of like stabilized there, and the sound doesn’t bounce off walls too much. And I still gave the same performance, and mostly just about that room quality.

BM: Do you remember what kind of mic you used?

RH: I actually was using my dad’s iPad that had a recording app. And for a long time actually, for a lot of the big roles that I got, like Captain Underpants, Chicken Squad, another show on Cartoon Network, Summer Camp Island, that was all through my dad’s iPad. It was like magic. And it wasn’t until recently that we started using my mic that I’ve been using since we’ve been at home and recording virtually. The actual mic that I use now, it’s an Apogee MiC, a USB mic.

BM: Okay. Do they show you a picture of the character that you’re going to audition for, so it gives you an idea of what it’s like?

RH: Sometimes. Sometimes when we get the email that I have a call to audition, it would just be my lines, and a description of the character. But sometimes, in other instances, they give me a picture so I get to see what he’s like. If he’s running or something, I can tell if maybe he might have like a high-pitched voice or something like that, or if he’s really excitable. Pictures definitely help though, a lot.

BM: Did you get a visual reference for Coop?

RH: Yes, I did. I got the picture that he was this little chick with glasses and rulers on hand. So, seeing that picture definitely helped with my decision to come up with the character voice.

BM: Tell us more about performing on Chicken Squad.

RH: I play the role of Coop. Coop is a community helper chicken that goes around with his two siblings, and they help their animal friends throughout their neighborhood. And he’s a problem solver, and he’s a real thinker, and he’s a leader, and he’s always known to carry a ruler on hand. He’s an adventurer, always creating new gadgets to help them, help their animal friends, and he’s just really enthusiastic and a great chicken.

BM: When you saw the drawing of him, how did you create the voice to fit his design, his character?

RH: Well, I just started kinda like playing with pitches, like [higher-pitched] “Hey, does he talk like this?” [normal] No, that doesn’t really work. Oh, I see he’s got a smile, I see he’s holding out his wrench and his ruler, so maybe he’s kind of thinking of something. Maybe he’s kind of this voice. So I don’t know, I was just playing around with it, trying to bounce things off the wall and see what stuck, and then finally I kinda came up with, [confidently] “Okay, well, maybe he just talks like this. I’m Coop.” And I just went with that and it worked.

BM: So you put a little confidence in the voice then?

RH: Yes, mm-hmm, yes.

BM: To show he’s a leader.

RH: Yes. Definitely.

BM: How does singing help you as a voice actor?

RH: Well, I started singing first, and just knowing the techniques, the basics, supporting your voice from your diaphragm, always taking a deep breath, knowing how to control your pitch, your range, knowing your range, knowing if you’ve got a low voice, if you’re like a baritone or if you’re a soprano, and knowing that you can do all these real high cartoony voices. So on that aspect, it’s definitely helped. A lot of roles call for singing, like The Chicken Squad. There’s a song every episode. Having that experience is very helpful.

BM: That’s great. How much time did they give you to rehearse for Chicken Squad for each episode?

RH: Usually, I get the email a week in advance. So if there’s a song, I’m just practicing all throughout that week, going over the script, whatever lines I have, and kinda go from there.

BM: Okay. So I guess they send you an MP3 to listen to with the lyrics, and you practice and practice and practice, right?

RH: Yes.

BM: Do you have any behind the scenes or behind-the-microphone stories of your recording sessions?

RH: Well, yes, actually I do. Obviously, before COVID I would always record with Maxwell Simpkins who plays Little Boo, my brother in the series, and Gabby Gray who plays my sister. And we’d always have a whole bunch of fun.

Our trademark thing on the show is like bawk bagawk, since we’re chickens. And we’d go around in a circle, kind of like just going like, “Bawk bagawk, bawk, bawk, bagawk.” And we try to rhyme different things like, “Bawk bagawk, bawk, bawk, bagawk, what can I say, it’s a beautiful day.” Just stuff like that. So that was something that I’ll take with me. That was so much fun.

And the studio that we recorded at, Outloud Audio in Burbank, the cookies that they make were fantastic. And so, before we’d all eat some cookies—well, except for Gabby. It’d be Maxwell and I, we’d be chowing down on some cookies, and just having fun and just laughing.

BM: What cookies? Chocolate chip?

RH: Chocolate chip, fresh baked.

BM: That’s wild. Does the voice director give you a chance to stray off the script a little bit and do improv?

RH: On Chicken Squad, not as much. We’ve got great writers, and we pretty much just stick to what’s written. Honestly.

BM: Okay. So you don’t do the line one way, and then try it another way, and then try it another way?

RH: Well, we definitely do that. Especially if I’m recording individually, I’ll do a line three different ways, like you said. One happy, one excited, one kind of perplexed or whatever, so in that way we do have a lot of variation with that.

BM: What’s coming up next for you?

RH: Well, Chicken Squad is coming out on Disney Junior, May 14th. I’ve got a movie that’s gonna be coming out that’s directed by famed comedian Max Amini called James the Second, that’s starring Bryce Gheisar and Isaiah Washington. I’ve got another Netflix project that’s gonna be coming out called Karma’s World. That’s created by Ludacris, also in that, that’s coming out later this year.

I’m also a filmmaker. I’ve got some short films that are already up on my YouTube, RAM ONE PRODUCTIONS. It’s my name split in half, RAM ONE. And my Instagram, make sure you follow me @iamramonehamilton.

BM: Okay. Well, Ramone, thank you so much for this interview, and I wish you all the best.

RH: Thank you so much, Mr. Miller.

The Chicken Squad premieres Friday, May 14, 2021 on Disney Jr. and DisneyNOW at 7:30 p.m. EDT/PDT. Simultaneously, Walt Disney Records will release a digital soundtrack, “Disney Junior Music: The Chicken Squad,” featuring the theme song and music. The inaugural season has 29 episodes, each with two 11-minute stories. The series is produced by Wild Canary in association with Disney Junior.

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W.R. Miller

W.R. Miller - known informally as “Bob” – has written for Starlog, Comics Scene, Animation Magazine and Animation World Magazine. Bob has been involved in animation for two decades, as a writer, character animator, special effects animator, and storyboard artist - For more information about Bob, check his website: http://wrmilleronline.com/.

He has just completed Batman: The Animated Interviews, a five-volume work featuring the executives, producers, directors, writers, actors, designers, storyboard artists and composers involved with the making of Batman: The Animated Series and its spinoffs. BearManor Media is the publisher.

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