Alexa's personality has always been a big part of what customers love most about the service. The jokes, songs, poems, and occasionally quirky responses make it fun for everyone in the family to interact with Alexa. But we know customers also enjoy hearing from their favorite celebrities. In fact, when we introduced the Samuel L. Jackson celebrity personality it quickly became the top selling digital purchase on Amazon.com the day it launched. Today, we're thrilled to announce two new iconic celebrity personalities—Melissa McCarthy and Shaquille O’Neal—are now available as part of the Alexa experience, in addition to Samuel L. Jackson.
“That’s right folks, get ready for the vocal stylings of this nasal midwestern gal!” said Melissa McCarthy. “I am so excited to join the Alexa family. It’s been such a fun experience working on this project. I hope you all enjoy all my dad jokes! Fun fact—if you hear a slide whistle, it’s my personal one that I brought with me to the recording studio!”
“It’s on! Shaq is in the house to make your speakers bounce. Boomshakalaka!” said Shaquille O’Neal. “I’m so excited to be a part of the Alexa experience.”
Melissa McCarthy and Shaquille O'Neal will bring their own unique personalities to Alexa. Just say "Hey Melissa" or "Hey Shaq" to get the latest weather report in their voice, hear a joke, or hear a personal story. You can ask Shaq to show off his musical skills by saying, "Hey Shaq, rap for me," or ask Melissa to tell you a funny story by saying, "Hey Melissa, tell me a story" to brighten up your day. To get started, just say, "Alexa, introduce me to Shaq," or "Alexa, introduce me to Melissa" to let the fun begin. For a preview of the experience, you can listen to some of the sound clips below.
"Customers have had a lot of fun with the Samuel L. Jackson experience on Alexa, and when customers love something, we look for ways to give them more of it,” said Toni Reid, vice president of Alexa Experience & Echo Devices. “We’re thrilled to add two new celebrity personalities to Alexa and had a great time working with Shaquille O’Neal and Melissa McCarthy on this project. We can’t wait to see what customers think."
In addition to two new celebrity personalities, customers can also choose between Alexa's original voice and a new voice option. They can also try a new wake word, Ziggy, with either voice option, giving them even more ways to customize their Alexa experience. Just say, "Alexa, change your voice" to choose between the sound of Alexa's original voice or a new voice option, or "Alexa, change your wake word" to select Ziggy or one of the other existing available wake words, including Alexa, Computer, Echo, or Amazon.
These new options will start rolling out to customers in the U.S. starting July 15. The new celebrity personalities are available for purchase for $4.99 each.
