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Joe Lala (November 3, 1947 to March 18, 2014)1 was an American musician, actor, and voice actor born in Ybor City, Tampa, Florida. He accumulated an extensive career as a session percussionist working with some of the biggest names in pop and rock music before transitioning to on-screen acting and voice work for animation. His voice acting credits include Extreme Ghostbusters, where he appeared as a guest voice in the episode "Glutton for Punishment."
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Lala was born on November 3, 1947, in Ybor City, the historic Latin quarter of Tampa, Florida, into a family of Italian-American heritage.1 His father left the family during his childhood, and he was raised by his mother, Janie Cacciatore, a passionate dancer who took him to as many live shows as she could.1 Growing up in Ybor City gave Lala fluency in both Spanish and Italian alongside English, language skills that would later open doors in his acting career.1
In 1966, Lala co-founded the rock band Blues Image as a drummer and percussionist.1 The band reached a national audience before Lala moved into session and touring work, eventually accumulating credits on 32 gold records and 28 platinum records across his music career.1
His session work brought him into the studios and on the road with some of the most prominent acts in popular music. He played congas on the Bee Gees' 1976 hit "You Should Be Dancing," contributed percussion to Barbra Streisand's 1980 album Guilty, and appeared on Whitney Houston's 1985 self-titled debut album.1 He also worked with The Byrds, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Manassas, The Stills-Young Band, Joe Walsh, and Andy Gibb, among many others.1
Severe carpal tunnel syndrome eventually ended his live performing career, though he continued studio recording work for some years afterward.1
Lala leveraged his command of Spanish, Cuban, and Puerto Rican accents to build a live-action acting career alongside his music work. He appeared in television series including Miami Vice, Seinfeld, General Hospital, and Melrose Place,1 and had film roles in Born in East L.A. (1987), Havana (1990), Out for Justice (1991), Sugar Hill (1993), and On Deadly Ground (1994).2
Lala worked extensively in animation from the mid-1990s into the 2000s. His voice credits include Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series, Pinky and the Brain, Quack Pack, Hey Arnold!, The Angry Beavers, Johnny Bravo, Ozzy and Drix, ChalkZone, Danger Rangers, and The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius.3 He also provided a voice in the Pixar film Monsters, Inc. (2001)2 and voiced the character Kun Lan in the video game Killer7 (2005).1
Lala guest-starred in Extreme Ghostbusters as a voice actor in the episode "Glutton for Punishment."
Lala married voice director Ginny McSwain in 1996; the couple divorced in 2004.1 In the mid-2000s he withdrew from the entertainment industry to care for his mother, who had developed dementia.1 During his later years in Tampa he coached young actors at the Italian Club in Ybor City.1
Joe Lala died on March 18, 2014, in Tampa, Florida, from complications of lung cancer. He was 66 years old.1
Some content on this page was researched using the Ghostbusters Wiki on Fandom.
"Joe Lala," Wikipedia, accessed 2026-06-13, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Lala. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12 ↩13 ↩14 ↩15
"Joe Lala," IMDb, accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0482329/. ↩ ↩2
"Joe Lala," Behind the Voice Actors, accessed 2026-06-13, https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/Joe-Lala/. ↩
