What did @brandnewluvr actually say?
Onyx documented their voice at regular monthly intervals over one year of testosterone therapy, starting from "my very first day of taking T" through "1 whole year on testosterone." That's essentially all they claimed. No dosage mentioned, no mechanism explained, no promises made about what viewers should expect. The video is a personal record, not a medical tutorial. The implicit claim is that voice deepening happens progressively over roughly 12 months on testosterone, and that the change is meaningful enough to recognize yourself differently in the mirror.
It's worth noting what they didn't say. They didn't claim a specific pitch drop, didn't say everyone will sound like this, and didn't prescribe anything. That restraint actually matters in a space full of creators making far bolder claims.
Does the science back this up?
Yes, broadly. Testosterone-induced voice changes in transgender men are among the best-documented effects of gender-affirming hormone therapy, and the timeline Onyx experienced is consistent with published data. Voice changes typically begin within the first few months and continue for up to two years.
A 2016 study by Azul et al. in Journal of Voice found that fundamental frequency (the acoustic measure of pitch) begins dropping within weeks of starting testosterone, with the most dramatic changes occurring in the first six months. A more comprehensive review by Cosyns et al. (2014, Journal of Voice) examined voice outcomes in 35 trans men and confirmed continued vocal change beyond the six-month mark, which aligns with Onyx's observation that their voice was still changing at month 10 and 11. T'Sjoen et al. (2006, Journal of Endocrinology) noted that vocal fold length and mass increase in response to androgens, the same mechanism driving voice change in adolescent males. This isn't fringe science. It's well-replicated across multiple study populations.
What did they get wrong (or right)?
Onyx got the basic timeline right. What the video can't convey, and what viewers should not assume, is that this trajectory is universal. Individual variation in testosterone-induced voice change is substantial and underreported in content like this.
The same Cosyns et al. study found that some trans men experience minimal pitch change even after sustained testosterone exposure. Factors including age at transition, baseline vocal anatomy, and specific testosterone formulation all influence outcomes. A 2019 study by Hancock and Childs in American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology found that acoustic changes don't always correlate with perceived gender congruence, meaning someone's voice might measure differently but not feel different to them socially.
Onyx's video, by design, only shows one person's experience. That's honest. The risk is that viewers treat a single anecdote as a predictive roadmap. It isn't one. What Onyx experienced is real and scientifically plausible. What someone else will experience is genuinely unknown without clinical evaluation.
What should you actually know?
If you're considering testosterone therapy and voice change is part of why, here's what the evidence actually supports. Voice changes are real, measurable, and begin early, often within the first one to three months. They are not guaranteed to be complete at 12 months. Some people continue to see changes at 18 to 24 months.
More practically: voice change is considered largely irreversible once it occurs. That's relevant for anyone weighing therapy. It also means voice feminization later (if circumstances change) is significantly harder than pitch lowering.
Working with a voice therapist alongside hormone therapy is supported by clinical guidelines from WPATH (World Professional Association for Transgender Health, Standards of Care Version 8, 2022) and can improve functional outcomes beyond what hormones alone produce. Testosterone formulation, delivery method, and dosing are all variables that a licensed clinician should manage, not something to calibrate based on a TikTok timeline. Onyx's video is a compelling personal record. It should prompt a conversation with a provider, not replace one.