Go behind the scenes of MagicWave’s MM sports romance audio drama The Final Play with Cayman Cardiff as he shares how he brought Leon, queer love, Pride Month, and immersive audio performance to life.
We spoke with Cayman Cardiff, the lead of MagicWave’s newest audio drama The Final Play, to get inside his experience bringing a deeply emotional BL/MM romance to life and what it really took to step into Leon’s world.
Interview Details at a Glance
Featured Work: The Final Play
Platform: MagicWave
Interviewee: Cayman Cardiff
Role: Voice actor for Leon
Co-actor: Dolph as Miles
Writer: Harlowe Savage
Director: Angela Liu
Format: MM / BL Sports Romance Audio Drama
Key Themes: Pride Month, queer romance, athlete pressure, secret relationship, voice acting, immersive audio storytelling
Working with MagicWave is so much fun so far. I've loved how it's been based on my preferences, my comfort, my needs, my wants, all of that. I know for a fact that I have a lot of fans and people who want just comforting, nurturing, loving... the really sweet romance. MagicWave has just made it really easy to feel comfortable and safe doing what I do feel comfortable and safe doing.
The recording session we did was so much fun. That was a really safe space. I love Angela. Her notes, everything... from her and the writer were spot on. Most of the time it was just like, "Oh yeah, there was a little sound during this bit. Could you do that again?" or "Oh, could you do this but give us maybe a little bit of a different take?" It just felt like I was back on my film sets. That was really lovely because I feel comfortable and at home on a film set. MagicWave has been really fun, exciting and engaging for me.
It was awesome. We became really good friends. We've already messaged on Instagram. She's like, "Oh, I can think of so many things to write for you." It was really cool being able to have a collaborative session. It felt more akin to being on set and filming than when I do these on my own and just record them at home, so it's just nice to have other people. It's nice to have other collaborators and creatives working together because that's kind of the whole point.
Dolph is really really sweet. He's just a really kind person. He's very humble. Dolph's voice was so sultry. It was crazy. I know how to do that kind of stuff, but [it] felt just like his natural voice and just how he talks. And for me, whenever I put on my character, that character has their own voice. It just feels like [Dolph's] voice is his character, which is really cool because he was just being him. I was like, "Whoa, your voice, it's very sexy." Let's just say that. So, it was really cool working with him - to have somebody to talk off of versus assuming there are words happening.
Like the story had a little bit more life, a little more character to it [working with Dolph]. I think that is ultimately what we were going for. So I've loved it. I mean, as far as the voiceover audio format, it's really so similar to acting because I put my character into my voice. I feel like it's nothing different than what I'm used to. I just have a microphone that I'm speaking into and my camera angle doesn't matter as much because I'm not really recording my face but I do think that it has been surprising to me how similar it is. Obviously there are some things when it comes to recording: it's very important to have a clean sound, make sure that my chair doesn't squeak or that there's no clipping and peaking. There's a lot of stuff that I've learned through doing live Zooms or going live on Instagram, Tik Toks and streaming and stuff. It really kind of fit in well, so it wasn't as difficult getting started in this space.
You can put a lot more emphasis into sounds versus words. Meaning if you're going to sigh, you can sigh a little bit more outwardly. Whereas on camera, a sigh happens. You can hear it, but you can also see it. You know what I mean? So, you have to be a little bit more distinct, direct, and intentional with the sounds that you make. If you're trying to portray a very specific idea like, "Oh, I'm fed up with this." Then there's that kind of fed up sigh that you have or if you're relieved and you want to have a relief sigh. You have to be very specific and intentional. You still have to be acting it because not all sighs are created equal.
You can you have different sounds that accompany the way that you're speaking. In film and TV, most of that's captured by body language. You don't have body language here. So, it's all sound. You have to be very intentional and direct with those sounds that you're making. I find it actually akin more to theater in which you have to be a little bit more overt with what you're saying and how you're saying it. You can be really soft, quiet and intimate into that microphone and it's captured really easily. You can tell the difference when somebody's whispering in your ear versus when somebody's speaking normally and so I think that's another thing. On film and TV sets, we're also mic'd but you can do a little bit more of the ASMR style of vocal play with a setup microphone.
I think I get a lot of inspiration from anime. Because with anime you're not seeing anything that a person is doing and so you have to have it all be audio. You've got a lot of voiceovers things happening in people's heads. You've got a lot of sounds. You've got a lot of vocal modulation that allows you to understand the type of speech that they're giving. It's very similar to voice acting in general.
It's probably because I'm a Gemini, but I'm not entirely sure why this stuff comes easy. I do put in a lot of work and I do try my hardest to learn, grow and learn everything I can on each set that I go to. I think that really helps because I've picked up a lot.
The basketball element is something that I love. In high school, I did play basketball. I understand that idea, that sentiment, the pressure to not be "out" on a sports team. It's kind of scary because you're in locker rooms with guys and you don't want them to think that you're checking them out or this, that, and the other. Then there's the professional aspect of it. It's like the wider public view. I mean, who watches sports? It can be scary because those are the people that support you. So, it was very interesting playing Leon. I got to put a lot of my own intentions and feelings into it, but also being an openly queer human, bisexual, out and proud about it. It's lovely to be able to portray someone as a real character... someone with a little bit of heart and depth, who is afraid of what could happen being in this kind of lavender partnership with his 'girlfriend'. It's just a really sweet story that I'm glad that I got to be a part of. I really felt like I could bring the sensuality, the connectedness, the hot breathy tension into the character. That's what I was really trying to do so that when audio listeners are tuning in, they will feel the tension, they'll feel the fear, they'll feel the excitement, they'll feel the anxiety, but all in this kind of uniform experience that they'll be able to say, "Wow, that actually made me feel something." That's ultimately what I'm trying to do as an artist.
It means a lot because it means that I can express one of the the loves that I have, [which] is for humans and honestly the love of love. I love seeing people who are connected. I love seeing people who don't care what others think and yet they still come together because there's that string. There is that tie. There is that love. It is passion. Pride Month for me, one, it's my birthday month, and two, it's become so special for me because with it comes an understanding that empathy is more important than anything. That there are so many different types of queer folk, that there are so many different ways of being loving in general. There are so many different ways to express ourselves. We can't put ourselves in boxes and that's what Pride Month is for me. That's why I like this story because it is liberation. It is that saying of "you know what, I don't care - I love this person. I'm going to love this person."
On that note, I'd love to give a shout out to my queer people of color, trans men and trans women, the people who truly made Pride Month happen, the people who truly were the pioneers at Stonewall. Their lives are not easy and are still not easy. I want to give a shout out also to all my lesbian friends because they truly get things done. They are both women and queer. That is a lot. I am so proud to be a part of this community. I want it to be an even more welcoming community. I want to create more things that show love is what matters and it's not about the people. It's not about the parts. It's not about the political ideology. It's truly just about love. I think this show is a great representation of letting love win.
Current fans, thank you so much for supporting me in my different endeavors. It's probably a different way of seeing or hearing me on MagicWave. I am so excited to bring this to you as another way that you can experience the Cay-Drama. Hello to anybody who is watching or listening to any of my new stuff on MagicWave. I am grateful to be able to say hi and welcome you into this loving community. There are so many people, not just in my fan group, but in the the vertical microdrama fan group and all of these individuals who just love this style of romance. Welcome! You are always welcome. We lead with love here. We lead with empathy as we've been talking about. If you do end up joining the Cave of Chaos on Instagram, it's my little subscription/ subscriber chat. They are the kindest and sweetest humans you'll ever meet, so I welcome you all. I'm grateful for all of you and I would not have a livelihood without you. So thank you.
Follow Cayman Cardiff
Follow Cayman Cardiff’s work through his Instagram, IMDb, or official website.
To explore the story Cayman helped bring to life, read more about The Final Play, MagicWave’s MM sports romance audio drama.
About MagicWave
MagicWave is an immersive fantasy audio platform for listeners who love romantic voice stories, emotional roleplay, fantasy, and intimate sound-led experiences.
From Boyfriend ASMR and M4F audio to MM romance, BL audio drama, spicy roleplay, comfort audios, mature ASMR-inspired stories, and audio erotica, MagicWave creates a private headphone-first space where desire, emotion, and imagination come alive through voice.
Our Originals are made for listeners who want more than a simple story summary. Through expressive voice acting, cinematic atmosphere, sound design, and character-driven storytelling, MagicWave turns romance, fantasy, comfort, and tension into audio experiences that feel close, personal, and deeply immersive.
Whether you are drawn to slow-burn romance, sports romance, queer love stories, fantasy roleplay, soft comfort, spicy audio, or emotionally charged storytelling, MagicWave gives you a space to explore voice acting fandom and discover stories shaped around intimacy, fantasy, and feeling.
The Final Play is one of those stories: a MagicWave Original that brings MM sports romance, slow-burn intimacy, queer romance, and immersive audio performance together through Leon and Miles’ story of pressure, desire, and choosing love on and off the court. Stream The Final Play exclusively on the MagicWave app on iOS or Android.
