Speakers

Speakers are labels in the script that distinguish speech in your recorded media. They:

  • Ensure proper organization of your script text among multiple speakers.
  • Are necessary for generating AI speech.
  • Will be copied along with the media they are associated with when you copy and paste them into different compositions and projects.

Adding a Speaker

Automatic Speaker Detection

When you transcribe a file in Descript, the app automatically analyzes the file and adds speaker labels for each voice detected in the audio. Once you add a file to your composition's script, you can simply rename the speakers in the script editor.

Manually Adding Speakers

  1. Click in the script where you want to add a speaker label.
  2. You have two ways to add a speaker label:
    • Type @ on your keyboard.
    • Select the text you want to add a new speaker to, in the menu click the three dots on the right, choose Change speaker.
  3. Choose or create a speaker; you can:
    • Create a New Speaker: Type their name and select Create speaker 'name'.
    • Use an Existing Label: Select from your previously added speaker labels.
    • Add an AI Speaker: Pick from your AI speakers or choose one of our AI Stock speakers.

Moving a Speaker

Sometimes, your speakers may need to be repositioned to ensure that all of the text is attributed to the correct voice. You can move a speaker label by hovering your mouse over the Speaker and clicking the reposition icon to the left, then dragging and dropping it to a new location in your script.

As you drag the label, you'll see words in the script become highlighted in blue. Dropping it on one of these words will place the speaker before that word in the script, causing it to appear on a new paragraph line.

Move Speaker.gif

Changing a Speaker

If you want to change an existing speaker label in your script:

  1. Highlight the selection where you want to add the new speaker.
  2. Press @ on your keyboard.
  3. Select a speaker or create a new one.

Renaming a Speaker

To correct the spelling of a speaker in your script:

  1. Click any instance of the speaker you would like to rename.
  2. Start typing the exact name of the new speaker you would like to change it to.
  3. In the dropdown menu that appears, click the option "Rename (old speaker) to (new speaker)".
    Rename Speaker.gif

Alternatively, you can also select the speaker options button, rename the speaker, and press Enter.

Rename Speaker Menu.png

Replacing a Speaker in a Project

To replace (or merge) all instances of a speaker in your project with a different speaker:

  1. Ensure the speaker you would like to change it to has been added to the project (is listed in the "In this project" list).
  2. Click any instance of the speaker label in the script.
  3. Select the speaker options button to the right of the speaker.
  4. Select Replace in project with... then click the new label you would like to replace it with.

Enable Speech Generation

To upgrade a Speaker to an AI Speaker:

  1. Click any instance of the speaker label in the script.
  2. Select the speaker options button to the right of the speaker.
  3. Select Enable speech generation.

Change Label Color

Each speaker label is automatically color-coded for visibility in the script. To change the color of the label associated with a speaker:

  1. Click any instance of the speaker label in the script.
  2. Select the speaker options button to the right of the speaker.
  3. Select Change label color then choose the new color from the list.

Remove Speaker from Project

To remove a speaker label from a project:

  1. Click any instance of the speaker label in the script.
  2. Select the speaker options button to the right of the speaker.
  3. Select Remove from project.

The label will be removed from the list, as well as all instances of it from any script in the project.

Set a default AI Speaker

You can set a default AI speaker label for new projects when you start in Writing mode, which automatically assigns a default AI speaker for your new content. This is particularly useful if you're consistently using the same AI speaker, helping to streamline your workflow. Note that this setting applies when beginning with a blank project rather than assigning a speaker in pre-existing files. To do this:

  1. Open Descript and go to the app settings.
  2. Navigate to the General tab on the left hand side.
  3. Then, find the Default Speaker option.
  4. Choose the speaker you want as the default.
  5. Once you select one, it will automatically save.

 

Now, whenever you start a new project, your selected speaker will automatically be assigned as the default.