Mixing voiceover over music: the ducking checklist

Mixing voiceover over music: the ducking checklist
Muddy audio is the silent killer of Shorts. Get the levels right in 5 moves.
— Set voice to about -6dB peaks, music to -18 to -20dB under it
— Apply ducking so music drops ~12dB whenever you speak (CapCut and Premiere both auto-do this)
— High-pass the music below 200Hz so it stops fighting your voice's body
— Add a -3dB limiter on the master so nothing clips on phone speakers
— Listen on actual phone speakers, not headphones — that's where 80% watch
Tools: free tier of CapCut handles ducking; Audacity (free) for the high-pass.
Verdict: when in doubt, music quieter. People forgive quiet music, never a buried voice. Not for music-first/no-talking creators — different rules.