Recently, Jaleel White, who played Steve Urkel on Family Matters, reflected on how playing the role damaged his voice for several years.
White said, “I spoke to a doctor, and what happened is during puberty I spoke at the same pitch for extended periods of time. If the pitch had been going all over the place I wouldn’t have damaged it quite as much.”
He continued, “It’s been in remission, and I’m fine now. I felt like I was really losing it. I would constantly get network notes like, ‘We can’t hear him. Please be more clear.’ It was kind of a scary thing for me to go through.”
He added, “I wouldn’t do anything differently. It was a great experience and it was a small sacrifice to make for one hell of a legacy.”
