He inspires hockey fans to “rock the red” as the arena announcer for Washington Capitals.
Starting Friday, Wes Johnson hosts the virtual “Voiceapalooza” from June 17 to June 26.
“You sometimes hear me say things like, ‘Capitals goal scored by No. 8 Alex Ovechkin!'” Johnson told WTOP. “Fans, it’s time to head out to Voiceapalooza! We’re going to put down the gloves, drop the gloves on Alzheimer’s! I want you to unleash the FUNDING!'”
Proceeds will benefit the Alzheimer’s Association for Alzheimer’s Awareness Month.
“By 2030, 78 million people will be living with dementia, that means 11 million people in the United States alone,” Johnson said. “It’s not just those suffering from dementia, it’s their families, it’s their caretakers. This disease devastates entire lives. It’s the only disease that I know of that takes someone away from you before it finally takes them away.”
It’s a personal cause for Johnson, whose family has been rocked by the disease.
“It’s touched me personally with my mother, my grandmother and my uncle,” Johnson said. “It doesn’t matter what your age is, it doesn’t matter your gender, it doesn’t matter where you’re from, Alzheimer’s touches everyone. We’ve had enough and we’re fighting back.”
The 10-day virtual event will feature leading voice actors from hit video games.
“Over 100 gamers will stream at the same time,” Johnson said. “Voice actors from games like ‘Elder Scrolls,’ ‘Oblivion,’ ‘Skyrim,’ people from the game ‘Steve’ … Matthew Mercer from ‘Critical Role,’ Jon St. John, the voice of ‘Duke Nukem,’ Ellen McLain from ‘Portal,’ John Patrick Lowrie of ‘Team Fortress 2,’ and Mike Rosson & Jan Johns from ‘Fallout.'”
The lineup will also feature voice actors from popular movies and television.
“We have people from television shows such as ‘The Wire,’ ‘Homicide,’ [‘Veep’], people who have done movies and films,” Johnson said. “This is going to be a smorgasbord of voice actors and stars that you’ll be surprised to have all in one place for one cause.”
Listen to our full conversation here.
