In her stand-up comedy, Melissa Villaseñor often begins her shows with a warning.
“I hope you know what you’re getting into,” she tells an audience at this summer’s Just For Laughs festival in Montreal. “This is my voice.”
Villaseñor is very proud of what she describes as her Kermit the Frog voice, or sometimes a Mickey Mouse voice.
But Villaseñor’s voice is unrecognizable when she inhabits the sounds and mannerisms of famous figures, whether it’s the charming eccentricity of Bjork or the hearty laugh of Hillary Clinton. From Gwen Stefani to Pokémon’s Ash Ketchum, Wanda Sykes to Steve Buscemi, her output of celebrity imitations is vast and varied.
Her talent for impressions helped to earn her a spot as a featured player on Saturday Night Live. And when SNL‘s new season premieres tonight, Sept. 29, this will be Villaseñor’s first as a full cast member.
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