Almost everyone ‘hears’ voices if they are an active thinker where one actually forms words in their minds, which, as far as I know, everyone does. Usually these words are in your own voice as you hear it when you talk, and soft and under control. The second level of thinking is without verbalization, consisting of impulse, almost quantum leaps in logic, connection, understanding, and action. Like a guy looking at a pretty girl and having a ‘flash thought’ about how he would like to screw her, or a woman having the same about a guy. Impulsive, nonverbal, virtually vicarial.
Almost all people, to my understanding, can occasionally ‘hear’ a familiar voice call their names at odd times, usually the voice is a parental figure and it might happen at ood times, often just prior to a person going to sleep or fully waking up. It can happen when a person it in that state where one is not awake and not asleep, but lightly ‘dozing’ or ‘resting one’s eyes’. The voice is very clear and might seem like it comes from several feet away or just down the hall, like Mom calling a kid to get his things picked up.
Depressives in certain states, may hear occasional voices but they are not schizophrenic. The voices will go away as treatment progresses. Often they arrive unexpectedly, sound familiar, can be soft and are not very complimentary to the person, telling them that they are bad, they are worthless. At times, if the person gets active and does something, he or she can ‘silence’ the voice or voices. On one occasion that I am familiar with, a girl who was depressed, would suddenly get a distracted look on her face and go somewhere quiet, like a bathroom or other empty room, so she could listen to what the voices were saying. I observed her walking around an empty, unfurnished bedroom, pausing now and then to look off attentively into space as if listening hard to something.
Her voices went away shortly after she started therapy and never returned, though I never did figure out just what situations would cause them to start. They were not constant, just starting up unexpectedly and remaining for maybe 15 minutes or so maybe a couple of times a day. As a point of interest, she never reported hearing voices when she was drunk.
Initiating the mental ‘playback’ of voices from people you’ve heard in the past is not unusual, especially those from singers or actors you like. Unlike the infamous ‘repeating song’ most people experience; that tune you just can’t get out of your head for a few hours, these voices can be turned off at will. The exception might be if you suffer from any form of anxiety affective disorder where you are afraid that they will not stop and so you actually try too hard to stop them and they continue and you get panicky and actually encourage them to remain. They stop anyhow, but by then you’ve gotten yourself worked up over them and scared.
Eventually, the person, over a period of time ‘forgets’ to encourage them and it doesn’t get out of control again. Tranquilizers or a couple of stiff drinks usually can quickly alleviate the temporary ‘panic’ and allow one to ‘shut them off.’
Almost everyone can recreate, mentally, the voice of their favorite singer, though the recreation might be very soft and easily overwhelmed by outside noises of the real world.
A real common episode that many people experience is suddenly snapping out of a sound sleep because they distinctly and loudly heard their name called by a parent, even if they are alone and miles away from them. It can be startling, but it is basically just an auditory hallucination caused by dreaming. It happens rarely.
Since many people who suffer from auditory hallucinations have very specific mental or emotional illnesses, it depends on their up bringing, or personal beliefs as to whether or not such voices will appear to be of positive or negative religious context. Most of the voices will be slightly familiar, yet unfamiliar. Some will be angary some will not. Some will be commanding and some will not.
Some will whisper and some will seem like the ‘person’ is standing right next to them, off to the side, or somewhere close.
Many experience the noise of a large amount of people, like a crowd, speaking, but nothing is understandable and the volume varies. Some will experience one or more clear voices. I’m not sure if they can determine the sex of the voices.
Today, therapy and treatment can eliminate most auditory, verbal hallucinations in certain forms of mental illness. Schizophrenia, in many levels, can even be treated to eliminate them. Often, especially in depressives, therapy alone can cause them to stop.
The voices and their context are generated from within the brain. Remember, the brain has the capacity to recreate favorite songs, favorite voices and more upon demand. If something happens to it, like mental illness or damage, like from a growing tumor, it can start recreating things from the subconscious.
There are other theories as to why some people suffering from the auditory hallucinations experience certain types. Now and then, someone appears who has mild auditory hallucinations that they do not mind.
Got it? 
