What you need to know
- Issa Rae is the second celebrity cameo voice for Google Assistant.
- This free addition is available only in the United States.
- Cameo voices for Assistant only work for specific replies, not for every response.
Google is bringing comedy gold to its Assistant with Issa Rae's voice, starting today. The comedian and actress who gained fame from her YouTube series, Awkward Black Girl, can now be heard on any device with Google Assistant built-in. It's as easy as flipping over to the Issa Rae cameo voice within Google Assistant's settings on your phone, or just by saying "Hey Google, talk like Issa".
Issa's voice will be available for free in English on any US-based Android, iOS, smart speaker or smart display that has Google Assistant packed inside.
Earlier this year, Google added a number of additional voices to Google Assistant, all color-coded and in blissful harmonious order. Issa's voice join's John Legend as the second celebrity cameo voice to replace those built-in Assistant voices. That totals 12 voices in all, with 10 being original Google-built voices.
Just as with the John Legend cameo voice, Issa's voice will only be used for specific replies, while the standard Google Assistant voice you choose will be used for all other queries.
Amazon recently announced that it, too, would be bringing celebrity voices to its own virtual assistant Alexa later this year, starting with Samuel L. Jackson.
As with any Google product, you'll find a number of Easter eggs as you interact with Issa via Google Assistant. Some suggestions include "Hey Google, do you love Daniel or Lawrence more?" or "Hey Google, tell me something awkward." Folks who are familiar with Issa Rae's work will surely understand the references here. Google will be posting more Easter eggs on its Instagram account today, and there will undoubtedly be plenty to find in the months to come too.
