Drew Nickens pulls up to Only Bombs and we get into all of it. 💣 Drew is originally from Washington but made his way to the DFW comedy scene where he spent years grinding, figuring out his identity on stage, and doing everything right without getting booked. After weeks of showing up, he finally got pulled on Kill Tony and everything changed. 💥
What makes Drew special isn't just the laughs though. Dude dealt with a brain injury that made the whole journey that much harder and still figured it out on his own terms. Now he's a nationally touring comic with fans all over the country who know exactly who he is.
Smart, hilarious, and genuinely one of the good ones. Glad we got to sit down and chop it up. Thanks for coming on Drew! 💣💥
- Trey
Follow Drew:
https://www.instagram.com/the_drewnickens/
Only Bombs! Links:
00:01:29 --> 00:01:32 Hey Drew, thank you for doing Only Bombs, dude.
00:01:32 --> 00:01:34 Hell yeah. Yeah, this is going to be a good time.
00:01:35 --> 00:01:37 Yeah, man. Yeah, it's going to be a lot of fun,
00:01:37 --> 00:01:40 dude. So I wanted to start by kind of telling
00:01:40 --> 00:01:42 you, I've been telling my girlfriend, this is
00:01:42 --> 00:01:45 kind of a full circle kind of moment, because
00:01:45 --> 00:01:49 a few years ago, it was back in like 24, I think.
00:01:49 --> 00:01:51 That was your first appearance, right? 6 '65,
00:01:51 --> 00:01:57 I think? Yeah, yeah. So my appearance was 6 '70.
00:01:58 --> 00:02:00 Right. And, but prior to that, I remember telling
00:02:00 --> 00:02:02 my girlfriend, I'm like, yeah, I want to go on
00:02:02 --> 00:02:04 Kill Tony. So she was like, well, what's Kill
00:02:04 --> 00:02:06 Tony? And then we watched the episode and it's
00:02:06 --> 00:02:10 the episode that you, you were on. And she really,
00:02:10 --> 00:02:12 she, she was like, I really liked this guy. And
00:02:12 --> 00:02:14 I was like, yeah, man. I'm like, we really, like,
00:02:14 --> 00:02:16 I was like, we, we just do, we loved you. You
00:02:16 --> 00:02:19 came in at the right time in our lives. Cause
00:02:19 --> 00:02:21 we were just like blossoming. We were just starting
00:02:21 --> 00:02:25 off. And so, like, so she sees Kill Tony. She
00:02:25 --> 00:02:27 sees you. She loves it. She loves the show. And
00:02:27 --> 00:02:31 then I go on Killtony, dude, and I get off Killtony
00:02:31 --> 00:02:34 and you're actually like right behind the curtain.
00:02:34 --> 00:02:38 And I was like, oh! Drew Nickens. I was like,
00:02:39 --> 00:02:41 Oh my God. I met, I kind of met Drew Nickens.
00:02:41 --> 00:02:44 He said, he said my set was good, babe. And then,
00:02:44 --> 00:02:46 uh, and then so I went back home and I was like,
00:02:46 --> 00:02:48 I told her and then so fast forward a few years
00:02:48 --> 00:02:51 later, you know, and here, here we are now. And
00:02:51 --> 00:02:54 I was like, babe, this is crazy. I'm like, dude,
00:02:54 --> 00:02:57 we got Drew Nickens. Can you believe it? Like,
00:02:57 --> 00:02:59 you know, but what, but man, what I loved like
00:02:59 --> 00:03:02 right off the bat was. was, of course, your positivity.
00:03:03 --> 00:03:05 And it also seemed like you were just extremely
00:03:05 --> 00:03:08 fearless in everything, like with the way that
00:03:08 --> 00:03:11 you did your jokes. Man, I just really thoroughly
00:03:11 --> 00:03:14 enjoyed your character as a person. So I'm really
00:03:14 --> 00:03:16 happy to have you on. So thank you so much for
00:03:16 --> 00:03:18 coming on. Appreciate you. Yeah, this is going
00:03:18 --> 00:03:22 to be... I like doing these type of things because
00:03:22 --> 00:03:25 they get to see a little bit more than just what's
00:03:25 --> 00:03:30 on Giltone. So it's like... you get to see more
00:03:30 --> 00:03:33 where I don't have all that adrenaline and there's
00:03:33 --> 00:03:36 350 people and moving pieces around and you've
00:03:36 --> 00:03:39 got to kind of zone in and you have this brand
00:03:39 --> 00:03:42 that you're identifying with and everything of
00:03:42 --> 00:03:46 that nature. So, yeah, I like these things. Hell
00:03:46 --> 00:03:49 yeah, man. So, like, have you always, like, sort
00:03:49 --> 00:03:52 of had that sort of onstage persona? Like, is
00:03:52 --> 00:03:53 that, or is that something that kind of developed
00:03:53 --> 00:03:56 over time? Okay. So I was dog water the first
00:03:56 --> 00:03:58 four years of standup. I was not very good. And
00:03:58 --> 00:04:01 it was also because I didn't have an identity
00:04:01 --> 00:04:05 at the time. And I was, I was doing mics in DFW
00:04:05 --> 00:04:09 and I wasn't getting booked, but I was working
00:04:09 --> 00:04:11 on material, trying to find my identity, trying
00:04:11 --> 00:04:16 to find exactly where I was. And I wasn't getting
00:04:16 --> 00:04:19 any shows. So it didn't feel like I need, I was
00:04:19 --> 00:04:23 motivated at the time to like really try. And
00:04:23 --> 00:04:25 then I. it clicked, I was like, you know what,
00:04:25 --> 00:04:27 I'm really going to try this stand -up stuff,
00:04:28 --> 00:04:30 really going to figure it out. And that's when
00:04:30 --> 00:04:33 I started doing like really high energy. And
00:04:33 --> 00:04:35 once I started doing that high energy and that
00:04:35 --> 00:04:41 fun, happy, I'm glad to be on stage, which I'm
00:04:41 --> 00:04:45 always am, but I feel like I've made it to where
00:04:45 --> 00:04:50 I personify that a little bit more on stage.
00:04:50 --> 00:04:54 And by doing that, The audience is now like,
00:04:54 --> 00:04:57 wow, okay, this guy wants to be here. He's having
00:04:57 --> 00:05:00 fun and he's for us. And once I realized that,
00:05:00 --> 00:05:03 and I started really clicking with that for a
00:05:03 --> 00:05:05 year, I started, my, my sets started taking off.
00:05:06 --> 00:05:07 My material started getting better because I
00:05:07 --> 00:05:11 found out that's where I wanted to be. When it
00:05:11 --> 00:05:13 came to the energy level, the mood level of when
00:05:13 --> 00:05:16 I'm, when I'm performing and kind of how do I
00:05:16 --> 00:05:20 get this audience to want to rock with me? And
00:05:20 --> 00:05:23 once I felt that and I understood that, everything
00:05:23 --> 00:05:27 started clicking. And then about a year in of
00:05:27 --> 00:05:30 doing that, so five years in, I started signing
00:05:30 --> 00:05:32 up for Kill Tony because I couldn't get booked
00:05:32 --> 00:05:36 in Dallas. I couldn't get a show anywhere except
00:05:36 --> 00:05:40 for Noah Shark Robinson. Shout him out. He's
00:05:40 --> 00:05:44 one of the only guys that gave me time to actually
00:05:44 --> 00:05:47 get on stage and be in front of a real audience.
00:05:47 --> 00:05:50 And I developed through there. But I was like,
00:05:50 --> 00:05:52 you know what? No one else is taking a look at
00:05:52 --> 00:05:54 me. I'm going to the mics. I'm doing the hangs.
00:05:54 --> 00:05:57 I'm trying to do everything right. I'm just going
00:05:57 --> 00:05:59 to go to kill Tony. And that's when I started
00:05:59 --> 00:06:03 going for about 48 weeks. And after 48, week
00:06:03 --> 00:06:07 48, I got pulled and everything kind of, everything
00:06:07 --> 00:06:10 just went, whoa. It went a little crazy after
00:06:10 --> 00:06:13 that. So. Dude, I can only imagine, man, like.
00:06:14 --> 00:06:16 And, uh, and unfortunately, like, I don't really
00:06:16 --> 00:06:19 have the same story you do, like, cause my experience
00:06:19 --> 00:06:22 was that I got pulled like right at my first
00:06:22 --> 00:06:24 fucking time I signed up. So I was like, I was
00:06:24 --> 00:06:26 like one of those kinds of people. And so I didn't
00:06:26 --> 00:06:30 really have the, uh, the, I guess, um, what do
00:06:30 --> 00:06:32 you say? Like, but basically I didn't have like
00:06:32 --> 00:06:34 the. the thing that people have like when they're
00:06:34 --> 00:06:37 just trying for so long, you know, to get on
00:06:37 --> 00:06:39 the show. And you're not the only one with that
00:06:39 --> 00:06:40 story. There's a ton of comics out there. Like
00:06:40 --> 00:06:42 you've been trying for like a year, like two
00:06:42 --> 00:06:45 years, that kind of thing. There's a guy named
00:06:45 --> 00:06:49 Joe Newcomer who's been signing up for 109 weeks.
00:06:49 --> 00:06:51 He hasn't gotten on. But whenever he gets on,
00:06:51 --> 00:06:53 I think it's going to be a really special one
00:06:53 --> 00:06:58 because he's a Barker slash store guy. He's always
00:06:58 --> 00:07:02 coming. He's been, he'd lived a full life. Very
00:07:02 --> 00:07:04 interesting. So you see guys like that. You see
00:07:04 --> 00:07:08 guys who've been trying and you know, they understand
00:07:08 --> 00:07:12 how important it is because they haven't been
00:07:12 --> 00:07:15 pulled and they finally get that shot. They're
00:07:15 --> 00:07:17 like, okay, I can't miss. When you, when you
00:07:17 --> 00:07:22 get on the first time, you don't have that same
00:07:22 --> 00:07:26 appreciation because you didn't slum it in Shakespeare's
00:07:26 --> 00:07:29 or poor choices with everyone else. You weren't.
00:07:29 --> 00:07:31 you're in a bad mood, but you still got to be
00:07:31 --> 00:07:34 around a bunch of craziness and everything of
00:07:34 --> 00:07:41 that nature. But how did you feel about your
00:07:41 --> 00:07:46 interview and everything? So I didn't really
00:07:46 --> 00:07:48 prepare at all for the interview, so I didn't
00:07:48 --> 00:07:51 feel like it went well at all. But it was kind
00:07:51 --> 00:07:54 of interesting because I played music and that
00:07:54 --> 00:07:56 wasn't really anything that I was expecting to
00:07:56 --> 00:08:00 do. It just, uh, you know, like I wasn't like
00:08:00 --> 00:08:02 a super fan of Kill Tony. It just, it was something
00:08:02 --> 00:08:04 more like my, at the time, like more my brother
00:08:04 --> 00:08:07 was into. I just kind of did it. Like, you know,
00:08:07 --> 00:08:10 and, and then, uh, Shane Gillis was on there.
00:08:10 --> 00:08:13 Um, and that was really cool. Uh, was it the
00:08:13 --> 00:08:16 Shane Gillis, uh, James McCann? Yeah. Oh, okay.
00:08:16 --> 00:08:18 That's a good one. That's a good episode too.
00:08:18 --> 00:08:20 It was a good episode. It was a lot of fun. And,
00:08:20 --> 00:08:22 um, and yeah, dude, like they were like, is there
00:08:22 --> 00:08:24 anything else about you? And then I said, you
00:08:24 --> 00:08:26 know, I played music and then I get up there
00:08:26 --> 00:08:28 and I played music and. you know, that's no big
00:08:28 --> 00:08:30 deal. But at the same time, I was just kind of
00:08:30 --> 00:08:32 like, like, whoa, man, like, what the hell just
00:08:32 --> 00:08:35 happened? You know, like I couldn't believe it.
00:08:35 --> 00:08:37 And, you know, I was like, wow, this is this
00:08:37 --> 00:08:40 is insane. You know, but I also walked away thinking,
00:08:40 --> 00:08:41 I'm like, man, I have a lot to learn. That was
00:08:41 --> 00:08:43 not as easy as I thought it was going to be.
00:08:44 --> 00:08:47 I think I think one thing is to is like people
00:08:47 --> 00:08:49 don't understand the magnitude of it when you're
00:08:49 --> 00:08:52 on stage. Right. Like when you understand that
00:08:52 --> 00:08:54 two million to three million people, especially
00:08:54 --> 00:08:58 at that time, it was about 1 .7 to 2 .2 million
00:08:58 --> 00:09:05 average during 670. Like those cameras, there's
00:09:05 --> 00:09:08 millions of people watching in there. And so
00:09:08 --> 00:09:10 you don't understand it and you get off and you're
00:09:10 --> 00:09:15 like, well, that's 2 .2 million are going to
00:09:15 --> 00:09:19 see my face on this show. And like, I can only
00:09:19 --> 00:09:21 imagine how many people are watching Netflix
00:09:21 --> 00:09:26 and like how much has grown from there. It's
00:09:26 --> 00:09:30 such a weird feeling when you're like, I just
00:09:30 --> 00:09:33 played music in front of 2 .2 million people.
00:09:33 --> 00:09:37 Yeah, dude, it was jarring. Yeah, man, it was
00:09:37 --> 00:09:42 jarring. Like, I remember, so I remember, I was
00:09:42 --> 00:09:44 out in poor choices at the time, and I remember
00:09:44 --> 00:09:47 walking across the street, getting to behind
00:09:47 --> 00:09:49 the curtain, and I forgot the fella's name who
00:09:49 --> 00:09:52 was there, but he was very, very nice guy, you
00:09:52 --> 00:09:55 know, being very encouraging to me. And I guess
00:09:55 --> 00:09:58 I didn't realize, like, what I was walking into.
00:09:58 --> 00:10:02 Oh, Billy, yeah. Billy. Shout out Billy Shields.
00:10:02 --> 00:10:04 Billy Shields? Hell yeah. Billy Shields, that's
00:10:04 --> 00:10:08 the man. Yeah, he was really cool. And he was
00:10:08 --> 00:10:11 being very encouraging to me, even though he
00:10:11 --> 00:10:13 had no idea, like, what my comedy was or anything.
00:10:13 --> 00:10:15 He's like, dude, you're gonna do great. All this
00:10:15 --> 00:10:17 stuff. And I'm sitting there like, okay, I'm
00:10:17 --> 00:10:19 gonna do okay. I'm gonna do great. And then fucking
00:10:19 --> 00:10:22 Joe Rogan walks in. And then I was like, I'm
00:10:22 --> 00:10:25 fucking freaking out. I'm like, dude, this isn't
00:10:25 --> 00:10:28 good. This isn't good. I'm like, oh, no. I'm
00:10:28 --> 00:10:29 like, I'm going to fuck this up so bad, dude.
00:10:30 --> 00:10:33 And I went out there. And fucking, dude, I barely
00:10:33 --> 00:10:36 remember my set. But I do remember just the first
00:10:36 --> 00:10:38 thing I thought. And I don't know if you thought
00:10:38 --> 00:10:40 the same thing. But I do remember being like,
00:10:40 --> 00:10:45 damn, this stage is fucking small, dude. The
00:10:45 --> 00:10:48 first thing that I thought was, okay, let's get
00:10:48 --> 00:10:50 through this minute so we can get to the interview.
00:10:51 --> 00:10:55 Because I was like, the minute might be okay.
00:10:56 --> 00:10:58 It just depends on if that first punch lands
00:10:58 --> 00:11:05 and my first punch did not land. And I've watched
00:11:05 --> 00:11:09 my first minute because... My first joke is always,
00:11:09 --> 00:11:11 I got a brain injury. That's why I sound like
00:11:11 --> 00:11:13 I took a lot of Benadryl before I came on stage.
00:11:14 --> 00:11:18 Usually really hits. But what I realized is with
00:11:18 --> 00:11:21 Kill Tony, they didn't know what I was doing.
00:11:21 --> 00:11:23 They didn't know if I was a character. They didn't
00:11:23 --> 00:11:26 know if I was faking it. They didn't know how
00:11:26 --> 00:11:31 to read me. So that whole minute they weren't
00:11:31 --> 00:11:34 there to laugh. They were like, what the fuck
00:11:34 --> 00:11:37 is this guy? And so once I got into the interview
00:11:37 --> 00:11:40 and they got to know, Oh, that's not a character.
00:11:40 --> 00:11:42 He actually is the way he is and everything in
00:11:42 --> 00:11:45 that nature of the interview. I feel like the,
00:11:45 --> 00:11:51 the minute is the chore. The interview is the
00:11:51 --> 00:11:54 reward. Cause you get to have fun. You get to.
00:11:55 --> 00:11:58 Like Tony will drive the interview, but you get
00:11:58 --> 00:12:01 to show your creativity. You get to show how
00:12:01 --> 00:12:03 your comedic instincts, everything in that nature.
00:12:03 --> 00:12:07 I enjoyed the interviews. I dreaded the minute
00:12:07 --> 00:12:11 sometimes, but I knew the interview, something
00:12:11 --> 00:12:15 magical could happen. So it was like, that's
00:12:15 --> 00:12:19 how I kind of view it. Now I focus on the minute.
00:12:19 --> 00:12:22 The minute is my job. The minute is I got to
00:12:22 --> 00:12:24 figure everything out. I got to figure out punches.
00:12:25 --> 00:12:28 I got to figure out timestamps on, on tags. I
00:12:28 --> 00:12:30 have to figure out, okay, what am I, what am
00:12:30 --> 00:12:35 I going to do to get this audience to wake up?
00:12:35 --> 00:12:37 Because what if there's somebody crazy, like
00:12:37 --> 00:12:40 the last minute I had where there was a literal
00:12:40 --> 00:12:45 stalker arm right before me. What do I have to
00:12:45 --> 00:12:48 do to wake this audience up and get them to not
00:12:48 --> 00:12:53 think about that? Right. because I know, and
00:12:53 --> 00:12:56 for the first couple months, I was bomb squad.
00:12:56 --> 00:13:00 I had to go in right after someone ruined the
00:13:00 --> 00:13:04 room, where it was awkward. So now my thinking
00:13:04 --> 00:13:08 is how can I wake this audience up? What material
00:13:08 --> 00:13:11 can I do? How do I get it down to a science?
00:13:12 --> 00:13:14 And like the way that I do my minutes now is
00:13:14 --> 00:13:18 I literally will put a timer up. And I will go,
00:13:18 --> 00:13:21 okay, here's a tag at seven. Here's a tag at
00:13:21 --> 00:13:25 14. Here's a tag. Uh, here's my setup and punch.
00:13:25 --> 00:13:28 Okay. That's 15 seconds. Uh, it might be 17 if
00:13:28 --> 00:13:31 I put a pause in there. Do I have enough time
00:13:31 --> 00:13:34 for that pause? What, how do I keep it moving?
00:13:34 --> 00:13:36 Oh, I feel like I might lose them here because
00:13:36 --> 00:13:39 when I do it out in the real audience, I've,
00:13:39 --> 00:13:43 I've lose them 30%, 40 % of the time that I'm
00:13:43 --> 00:13:45 doing that joke. What can I do to shore that
00:13:45 --> 00:13:48 up? And so the, the, there's so much work in
00:13:48 --> 00:13:52 the minute now, uh, that people don't get to
00:13:52 --> 00:13:55 see when it comes to that type of stuff. Yeah.
00:13:55 --> 00:13:58 I guess they don't see how many minutes go into
00:13:58 --> 00:14:02 that minute, you know, but, um, Did a, so there
00:14:02 --> 00:14:04 are jokes that you told on Kiltoni and the jokes
00:14:04 --> 00:14:06 that you prepared like now for like any kind
00:14:06 --> 00:14:08 of minute or anything like that. Like do you,
00:14:08 --> 00:14:11 uh, like how do you find your jokes? Is it all
00:14:11 --> 00:14:13 like a personal kind of experience? Do you always
00:14:13 --> 00:14:16 hit on that personal thing or? I have a lot of
00:14:16 --> 00:14:18 personal experience. Uh, sometimes I'll have
00:14:18 --> 00:14:23 like, uh, silly, silly stuff where I'm like,
00:14:23 --> 00:14:26 Oh, I have a shower thought. That's funny. How
00:14:26 --> 00:14:28 can I make this into a joke? How do I set it
00:14:28 --> 00:14:31 up? How do I get a punch? Like, uh, stoner thoughts,
00:14:31 --> 00:14:34 uh, the one where I came back in October, the
00:14:34 --> 00:14:37 stoner thoughts thing was like, man, I was watching
00:14:37 --> 00:14:39 a craps video and I was like, I was looking at
00:14:39 --> 00:14:43 the dice and I go, dog, that's a 3d domino because
00:14:43 --> 00:14:47 it's just like, it's a cube, but it's dominoes.
00:14:47 --> 00:14:51 That's insane. So dominoes are just flat dice.
00:14:51 --> 00:14:54 Boom. Whoa, that's funny. What else can I think
00:14:54 --> 00:14:57 of? Oh, trans man has a better beard than me.
00:14:57 --> 00:15:00 He's cheating because he's using performance
00:15:00 --> 00:15:03 enhancing drugs. Oh, boom. Like, like finding
00:15:03 --> 00:15:05 those little funny moments where you're like,
00:15:05 --> 00:15:08 oh, wow, that makes sense. How do I set it up?
00:15:08 --> 00:15:10 How do I make it funny? How do I, how do I set
00:15:10 --> 00:15:13 her up? How do I have the punch? And when I'm
00:15:13 --> 00:15:16 doing like longer sets or like a longer joke,
00:15:16 --> 00:15:20 how do I keep them entertained? Where do I, where
00:15:20 --> 00:15:23 do Where can I differentiate where they don't
00:15:23 --> 00:15:25 know where it's going? Because you want that
00:15:25 --> 00:15:29 surprise finder. So I do a lot of personal stuff
00:15:29 --> 00:15:32 because my life is kind of crazy and I have a
00:15:32 --> 00:15:37 lot of unique things about me that people don't
00:15:37 --> 00:15:40 know. Like I was Mormon until I was 13, you know,
00:15:41 --> 00:15:43 little things like that that people don't know
00:15:43 --> 00:15:46 about me that I think, Oh, how can I make this
00:15:46 --> 00:15:50 funny? How can I? give them a little peek into
00:15:50 --> 00:15:54 my life, but also make them laugh while I do
00:15:54 --> 00:15:59 that. Yeah. Because I feel like when they know
00:15:59 --> 00:16:04 it's real, the funnier it is. Because people
00:16:04 --> 00:16:08 can smell out a lie. Yeah. They really can't.
00:16:08 --> 00:16:11 Right. There's one thing I kind of learned from
00:16:11 --> 00:16:13 the show. I think in like listening to comedians
00:16:13 --> 00:16:16 explain their experiences, it's usually be authentic.
00:16:17 --> 00:16:20 You know, what was your, um, like how do your
00:16:20 --> 00:16:25 jokes differ now than back then? Like when you
00:16:25 --> 00:16:27 first started kind of thing. I'm more methodical.
00:16:27 --> 00:16:30 I know what I know how to set up and punch. I
00:16:30 --> 00:16:35 kind of mechanically. I'm getting better at the
00:16:35 --> 00:16:40 mechanics of joke writing and finding how to.
00:16:40 --> 00:16:44 Get an audience in then relieve the pressure
00:16:44 --> 00:16:48 building tension finding Finding how to utilize
00:16:48 --> 00:16:51 silence finding like the little things about
00:16:51 --> 00:16:55 being a comedian that you don't learn Until you
00:16:55 --> 00:16:57 start getting to the upper upper level where
00:16:57 --> 00:17:01 you're doing shows and showcases And you're around
00:17:01 --> 00:17:02 some of the best comedians in the world where
00:17:02 --> 00:17:06 you're learning Wow Silence is a weapon. It's
00:17:06 --> 00:17:09 not you're doing bad. Sometimes silence is because
00:17:09 --> 00:17:11 they want to know what's going to happen next.
00:17:11 --> 00:17:15 So you have their complete attention. So sometimes
00:17:15 --> 00:17:17 like learning little things like that. So now
00:17:17 --> 00:17:21 my joke writing has become, okay, I have this
00:17:21 --> 00:17:25 premise. How do I punch it up? How do I keep
00:17:25 --> 00:17:28 their attention? How do I get the biggest last
00:17:28 --> 00:17:32 pop laugh possible at the end? So it's, it's
00:17:32 --> 00:17:36 all. Trying to figure out how to give the audience
00:17:36 --> 00:17:39 the best experience Yeah, yeah, and you mentioned
00:17:39 --> 00:17:41 like a moment ago about how you throw your tags
00:17:41 --> 00:17:44 in and like specific times and everything like
00:17:44 --> 00:17:46 that and And it's like a part of the it's part
00:17:46 --> 00:17:48 of the rhythm of like joke -telling You know
00:17:48 --> 00:17:50 you can tell like you know like okay cool. They
00:17:50 --> 00:17:53 haven't had a laugh in a while You know, but
00:17:53 --> 00:17:55 what I love that you mentioned is I love that
00:17:55 --> 00:17:58 you mentioned the silence, you know, it's um
00:17:58 --> 00:18:02 Because that is almost equally as important as
00:18:02 --> 00:18:05 having you know is having those tags in there.
00:18:06 --> 00:18:09 Sometimes I could see a comedian who is not doing
00:18:09 --> 00:18:11 as bad as they think they are, and then they
00:18:11 --> 00:18:13 feel the silence, and then they panic, and then
00:18:13 --> 00:18:16 they're like, oh yeah, sorry, that wasn't so
00:18:16 --> 00:18:19 good. It literally breaks my concentration when
00:18:19 --> 00:18:21 I was actually paying attention to them initially.
00:18:21 --> 00:18:26 Well, it's that anti -meta, okay, let me - Um,
00:18:26 --> 00:18:29 you remember WCW in the 2000s? Do you watch pro
00:18:29 --> 00:18:32 wrestling at all? Um, no, I didn't really watch
00:18:32 --> 00:18:36 it. So, so WCW, the 2000s, they, they started
00:18:36 --> 00:18:39 doing this thing where they started pulling the
00:18:39 --> 00:18:41 curtain a little bit, where they started using
00:18:41 --> 00:18:44 terms like shoot and kayfabe and all this where
00:18:44 --> 00:18:47 they were peeling back. Well, this is a show
00:18:47 --> 00:18:50 and what's happening right now is real. It's
00:18:50 --> 00:18:54 not, this is off the cuff and it wasn't authentic.
00:18:54 --> 00:18:57 And so. When you do things like that, like, oh
00:18:57 --> 00:19:00 man, that didn't do well. You're peeling back
00:19:00 --> 00:19:05 the curtain of, okay, things aren't going well.
00:19:06 --> 00:19:09 I'm having, I'm panicking right now. And instead
00:19:09 --> 00:19:12 of sticking to your material and understanding,
00:19:13 --> 00:19:16 cause like my buddy, Matt Hector, he said, silence
00:19:16 --> 00:19:20 is a weapon. They're paying attention to you.
00:19:21 --> 00:19:24 Sometimes you just have to embrace it and and
00:19:24 --> 00:19:27 use it as a weapon. Use that tension so when
00:19:27 --> 00:19:30 you relieve that tension, man, that joke's gonna
00:19:30 --> 00:19:34 be even better because they're locked in. And
00:19:34 --> 00:19:39 I think a lot of younger comics don't understand
00:19:39 --> 00:19:43 that some audiences, they are gonna be silent
00:19:43 --> 00:19:46 until you can relieve the pressure once they
00:19:46 --> 00:19:49 see the punch, once they feel that punch. So
00:19:49 --> 00:19:54 don't panic. Don't go anti -meta and... Oh man,
00:19:54 --> 00:20:00 this and that or like acknowledge a train wreck.
00:20:00 --> 00:20:05 Like keep going and put your effort, put a lot
00:20:05 --> 00:20:09 of effort in so they know, okay, he's really
00:20:09 --> 00:20:12 trying to make us laugh. Let's be more open to
00:20:12 --> 00:20:14 this. And you might be able to turn them around.
00:20:15 --> 00:20:19 Yeah. Yeah. So to kind of go back a little bit.
00:20:21 --> 00:20:25 touch base on it. Was doing comedy something
00:20:25 --> 00:20:28 that you knew you wanted to do for a long time?
00:20:31 --> 00:20:36 I loved stand -up comedy for a long time. My
00:20:36 --> 00:20:39 favorites were Like It Seasons, Ari, Wanda Sykes,
00:20:39 --> 00:20:44 Sinbad, David Spade, Jaboukie and White, Sam
00:20:44 --> 00:20:47 Jay. A bunch of different type of comics that
00:20:47 --> 00:20:52 I love to watch. as you could see, a lot of different
00:20:52 --> 00:20:56 types of styles. And so I have always kind of
00:20:56 --> 00:21:03 been a funny guy. I'm a very extrovert. So I
00:21:03 --> 00:21:05 was like, you know what, let's give it a try.
00:21:05 --> 00:21:09 And I did a mic and I did a long five minute
00:21:09 --> 00:21:16 story that was terrible. But I got hooked on
00:21:16 --> 00:21:19 it. I was like, I want to kind of do this. I
00:21:19 --> 00:21:23 want to explore this. And the growing pains weren't
00:21:23 --> 00:21:27 easy because I wasn't developing at the pace
00:21:27 --> 00:21:31 as most people develop at because I, you know,
00:21:31 --> 00:21:33 my brain injuries. So it took me a little bit
00:21:33 --> 00:21:37 longer to grab hold of some concepts that most
00:21:37 --> 00:21:42 people grab hold of a lot sooner. But I like
00:21:42 --> 00:21:46 to call myself good barbecue because it's a low
00:21:46 --> 00:21:49 and slow process. Right. And I'm figuring it
00:21:49 --> 00:21:57 out as I go. And I've really, so I, I'm glad
00:21:57 --> 00:22:00 I did this, you know, I'm glad I stuck with it
00:22:00 --> 00:22:03 because there were some times where like three
00:22:03 --> 00:22:06 years in I was doing one mic a month just because
00:22:06 --> 00:22:12 I, the grind was so... tough and trying to, oh,
00:22:12 --> 00:22:14 I'm not getting any shows. I've been at these
00:22:14 --> 00:22:18 mics for two years. Everybody knows me. I'm a
00:22:18 --> 00:22:21 staple at this mic. Shout out to Mad Hatter and
00:22:21 --> 00:22:26 Fort Worth. I was a staple at that mic. I love
00:22:26 --> 00:22:29 that mic. It was a little bar mic at 10 PM. And
00:22:29 --> 00:22:32 if you were funny, you were funny, but if you
00:22:32 --> 00:22:38 weren't, it was brutal. Wow. So what is something
00:22:38 --> 00:22:41 that you kind of learned that was sort of like
00:22:41 --> 00:22:45 a pivotal moment in your comedy. Energy, man.
00:22:45 --> 00:22:48 Like, understanding that if you act like you
00:22:48 --> 00:22:50 want to be there and that you're happy to be
00:22:50 --> 00:22:53 there and you want them to have a great time,
00:22:53 --> 00:22:57 you're not just doing it so you can get to point
00:22:57 --> 00:23:01 A to point B because you're trying to get noticed
00:23:01 --> 00:23:04 by this scout. or you're trying to go viral,
00:23:04 --> 00:23:07 but you're there to just have a good time and
00:23:07 --> 00:23:09 tell jokes and make sure that the audience is
00:23:09 --> 00:23:14 giving the best experience, then you're not going
00:23:14 --> 00:23:17 to be successful. It's all about putting your
00:23:17 --> 00:23:21 full effort in to what you're doing. And I think
00:23:21 --> 00:23:24 that's when I learned that and because I'm a
00:23:24 --> 00:23:27 high energy guy and I started utilizing that
00:23:27 --> 00:23:37 energy. It made me a lot more successful on stage
00:23:37 --> 00:23:39 and getting pops and getting, oh wow, this guy,
00:23:40 --> 00:23:42 we really like him. And I see it all the time
00:23:42 --> 00:23:48 now. I went up at a Sand Jack on Saturday and
00:23:48 --> 00:23:51 there were seven people, but I gave my heart
00:23:51 --> 00:23:53 out to them. I was sweating and I was having
00:23:53 --> 00:23:56 such a fun time and I could tell they were enjoying
00:23:56 --> 00:24:00 it too. And I was like, okay. No matter what's
00:24:00 --> 00:24:04 going on if you if you especially Every time
00:24:04 --> 00:24:07 you go on stage and put in that effort then you'll
00:24:07 --> 00:24:11 never have to turn it on Because it's already
00:24:11 --> 00:24:13 your muscles already flex. You're already like,
00:24:14 --> 00:24:16 oh man, I'm gonna give him my all here Gonna
00:24:16 --> 00:24:21 give him my all here You know, so yeah, I remember
00:24:21 --> 00:24:23 going up quite a bit I still I still have issues
00:24:23 --> 00:24:25 I kind of with this like I remember going up
00:24:25 --> 00:24:28 quite a bit and like it wasn't necessarily like
00:24:28 --> 00:24:31 the nervousness for telling the jokes. It was
00:24:31 --> 00:24:34 more like the nervousness for like, uh, just
00:24:34 --> 00:24:36 like, I guess, like not telling a joke the way
00:24:36 --> 00:24:40 that I wanted to tell it. Right. So what is like
00:24:40 --> 00:24:42 some like kind of fears that you like still are
00:24:42 --> 00:24:46 trying to overcome on stage? Uh, some of the
00:24:46 --> 00:24:50 fears I do is like, uh, if the material isn't
00:24:50 --> 00:24:55 landing and I have to carry, I still have to
00:24:55 --> 00:24:57 have that same energy because I've been, I've
00:24:57 --> 00:24:59 been closing secret show. for the last couple
00:24:59 --> 00:25:03 months now. Red Band's been giving me that privilege.
00:25:04 --> 00:25:08 And there have been some nights where they're
00:25:08 --> 00:25:13 tired and I say a punch line and I don't get
00:25:13 --> 00:25:18 the same response. And my biggest fear is, well,
00:25:18 --> 00:25:25 now I'm not going to be successful because now
00:25:25 --> 00:25:29 I'm showing weakness. then they can see it on,
00:25:29 --> 00:25:32 I know they can see it on my face because I can
00:25:32 --> 00:25:34 see it on my face and I'm not even looking at
00:25:34 --> 00:25:38 myself. I know that I'm giving an adverse reaction.
00:25:38 --> 00:25:43 Now this set can go downhill. And my worst bomb,
00:25:44 --> 00:25:48 I was three months into comedy and I was in Cherie
00:25:48 --> 00:25:52 Port, Louisiana and I did a show at a casino
00:25:52 --> 00:25:57 called Sam's Town and I was doing 30 minutes.
00:25:57 --> 00:26:03 Whoa, and they and and they didn't tell me Ten
00:26:03 --> 00:26:08 until 20 minutes before hey, this is a PG -13
00:26:08 --> 00:26:13 show. Oh, no, you get one f -ball. Oh No, dude.
00:26:13 --> 00:26:17 Yeah And let me tell you, there was a senator
00:26:17 --> 00:26:20 having a birthday party there. There was 250
00:26:20 --> 00:26:23 people in this lobby. Oh, yes. This is fucking
00:26:23 --> 00:26:27 awesome, dude. And when I tell you, you know,
00:26:27 --> 00:26:31 it was my worst bomb for a long time until the
00:26:31 --> 00:26:35 Trump -Biden episode came up and the minute didn't
00:26:35 --> 00:26:38 go well. In the interview, I salvaged it with
00:26:38 --> 00:26:40 me and Adam Ray. Adam Ray, one of the best in
00:26:40 --> 00:26:43 the business. We had a dance battle. We, we kind
00:26:43 --> 00:26:46 of picked it up, but I was so upset with my minute
00:26:46 --> 00:26:48 and I was like, man, 6 million people are going
00:26:48 --> 00:26:51 to watch this. And now it has almost 30 million
00:26:51 --> 00:26:54 views. That's wild, dude. That is wild. But,
00:26:54 --> 00:26:58 but, but like, I always flash back to it because
00:26:58 --> 00:27:01 it felt like once you lose the crowd, it's like
00:27:01 --> 00:27:04 how my biggest fear is I'm never going to be
00:27:04 --> 00:27:07 able to get them back because I've had to happen.
00:27:07 --> 00:27:10 Sure. And when you had that happen, now that's
00:27:10 --> 00:27:12 like your biggest fear is like. You lose them
00:27:12 --> 00:27:15 for a second and you can't get them back. You're
00:27:15 --> 00:27:18 like, Oh no, I failed. Right. And that's my biggest
00:27:18 --> 00:27:21 fear. It's like, I trust my material. I trust
00:27:21 --> 00:27:24 the work I'm putting in. I trust, uh, my instincts
00:27:24 --> 00:27:28 being able to be in the moment. But if I lose
00:27:28 --> 00:27:31 them and I keep, and I can't get them back, that's
00:27:31 --> 00:27:35 my biggest fear. Wow. Yeah. Yeah. I've seen that
00:27:35 --> 00:27:37 happen like to myself, like so many times, you
00:27:37 --> 00:27:40 know, where it just kind of like. I'm not the
00:27:40 --> 00:27:43 comic that these people want, you know what I
00:27:43 --> 00:27:45 mean? I'm like, because I'm also kind of the
00:27:45 --> 00:27:48 same way. I'm like, I'm very, very animated on
00:27:48 --> 00:27:50 stage and everything like that. And so sometimes
00:27:50 --> 00:27:52 there's like, I have to give myself like pep
00:27:52 --> 00:27:54 talks, like, all right, come on, give it your
00:27:54 --> 00:27:56 all, that kind of thing. Do you have any like,
00:27:56 --> 00:27:58 sort of like... like pre -show ritual that you
00:27:58 --> 00:28:00 do to kind of help ease your mind for those kinds
00:28:00 --> 00:28:03 of things. So I do, I bounce around like, yeah,
00:28:03 --> 00:28:06 you ever watch amateur wrestling, you know, the
00:28:06 --> 00:28:08 college and high school wrestlers? Yeah. I always
00:28:08 --> 00:28:11 bounce. I would bounce. Bouncing, getting into
00:28:11 --> 00:28:14 the groove and understanding, okay, I'm about
00:28:14 --> 00:28:18 to get on stage. Yeah. Nothing else matters for
00:28:18 --> 00:28:23 this five, 10, 15, 30 minutes, 45 minutes. All
00:28:23 --> 00:28:26 that matters is what's going on on stage. Yeah.
00:28:26 --> 00:28:28 and kind of just locking into the fact that this
00:28:28 --> 00:28:31 is what, this is my art form. This is what I'm
00:28:31 --> 00:28:33 getting, you know, this is what I'm getting paid
00:28:33 --> 00:28:36 to do, or this is what I was invited to do. That's
00:28:36 --> 00:28:38 all that matters right now. Yeah. Everything
00:28:38 --> 00:28:42 else zoned out. And so once you understand it,
00:28:42 --> 00:28:46 that's my mindset is what's going on on stage
00:28:46 --> 00:28:52 is the, is the, is, is the only thing that matters.
00:28:52 --> 00:28:56 Now I'm ready to roll. Hell yeah. Oh yeah, dude.
00:28:56 --> 00:28:59 Did, um, so like, how is, uh, how has your life
00:28:59 --> 00:29:04 like changed? And did you see that change? Like,
00:29:04 --> 00:29:06 did you, did you, like all the stuff with Kill
00:29:06 --> 00:29:10 Tony, did you foresee that happening? I, I, uh,
00:29:10 --> 00:29:12 so I didn't know if I was going to be an old
00:29:12 --> 00:29:15 ticket or regular or anything. I didn't know.
00:29:15 --> 00:29:17 I, I was just trying to have a really, really
00:29:17 --> 00:29:20 good appearance. So people would book me in Dallas.
00:29:21 --> 00:29:24 That was the main goal was. to get on a platform
00:29:24 --> 00:29:27 that I can show my talents and to get a little
00:29:27 --> 00:29:30 bit more, to get a couple of followers and to
00:29:30 --> 00:29:33 get some people's attention in Dallas to be like,
00:29:33 --> 00:29:35 Oh man, that guy's funny. Let's get him here.
00:29:35 --> 00:29:37 Let's get him there so I can get booked more.
00:29:38 --> 00:29:40 That was my main goal of getting on Kiltunny
00:29:40 --> 00:29:43 was so I can showcase my skills because people
00:29:43 --> 00:29:47 weren't letting me get on stage places. Yeah.
00:29:47 --> 00:29:50 or putting me on shows and they were putting
00:29:50 --> 00:29:53 on one year comics and I was a four or five year
00:29:53 --> 00:29:57 comic at the time, six year comic. I was like,
00:29:57 --> 00:30:00 I can't get a five minute spot here. I can't
00:30:00 --> 00:30:02 get 10 minutes over here. Okay. Well then I'm
00:30:02 --> 00:30:06 going to try and make my own thing happen by
00:30:06 --> 00:30:08 going here on Kill Tony. And there were a couple
00:30:08 --> 00:30:10 of Dallas comics that were like, why are you
00:30:10 --> 00:30:12 going to Kill Tony every week? You should drive
00:30:12 --> 00:30:14 two and a half hours to McKinney and come hang
00:30:14 --> 00:30:17 out here. And it was like, no, because I'm not
00:30:17 --> 00:30:19 trying, why would I drive two and a half when
00:30:19 --> 00:30:22 I could drive three and get on Killtonia and
00:30:22 --> 00:30:25 maybe something even crazier could happen. And
00:30:25 --> 00:30:28 so I didn't foresee like a golden ticket or a
00:30:28 --> 00:30:30 regular ship or anything of that nature. I thought
00:30:30 --> 00:30:32 it was just going to be a good fun moment and
00:30:32 --> 00:30:38 I was going to have a great time. And from there,
00:30:39 --> 00:30:41 maybe I was going to get more bookings and I
00:30:41 --> 00:30:43 was going to keep signing. I wasn't going to
00:30:43 --> 00:30:45 sign up as often. I wasn't going to go every
00:30:45 --> 00:30:48 week. I was going to maybe go once a month and
00:30:48 --> 00:30:49 then I was going to try and go to Dallas and,
00:30:49 --> 00:30:52 you know, try to work the scene that I was at.
00:30:53 --> 00:30:57 So I didn't foresee any of that happening. And
00:30:57 --> 00:30:59 maybe I was thinking small, but I was just like,
00:30:59 --> 00:31:02 you know, I just want to get up on stage and
00:31:02 --> 00:31:06 get booked. Right. Yeah. And now I'm a working
00:31:06 --> 00:31:09 comic and it's like, that's... That's the goal.
00:31:09 --> 00:31:11 Everybody wants to be a working comic. They want
00:31:11 --> 00:31:13 to be able to go on stage. They want to go do
00:31:13 --> 00:31:16 shows, showcases, everything of that nature.
00:31:16 --> 00:31:18 That's the goal. There you go. It seems like
00:31:18 --> 00:31:21 now you're just living the dream, man. You're
00:31:21 --> 00:31:27 doing your thing. What lessons are you learning
00:31:27 --> 00:31:32 each show now? Is it just honing your craft continuously?
00:31:32 --> 00:31:36 Is it the constant search for new material? How
00:31:36 --> 00:31:38 is it different? Living in Austin, what I've
00:31:38 --> 00:31:41 realized is you have to be doing something new
00:31:41 --> 00:31:45 every couple of months. You can't do the same
00:31:45 --> 00:31:49 10 minutes everywhere. If you do the same 10
00:31:49 --> 00:31:52 minutes, People will stop booking you because
00:31:52 --> 00:31:55 you have to keep evolving. You have to keep pushing
00:31:55 --> 00:31:58 yourself. So I'm always trying to do new material.
00:31:58 --> 00:32:01 I've also learned that there's another, the business
00:32:01 --> 00:32:04 side of things. Cause I handle my own bookings.
00:32:05 --> 00:32:08 I negotiate my own percents. I'm handling my
00:32:08 --> 00:32:11 own merch. So I'm doing all that too. So I'm
00:32:11 --> 00:32:14 learning the business sense of comedy because
00:32:14 --> 00:32:15 they don't tell you about any of the business
00:32:15 --> 00:32:17 stuff. I was just about to say that very same
00:32:17 --> 00:32:21 thing, dude. You learn on the fly. You take the
00:32:21 --> 00:32:28 losses. I did a gig in my hometown. I sold it
00:32:28 --> 00:32:31 out. I was supposed to get a bonus and he withhold
00:32:31 --> 00:32:38 $300 of my $500 bonus. And it was a learning
00:32:38 --> 00:32:41 lesson of, okay, now that that happened, now
00:32:41 --> 00:32:43 I'm never going to let that happen again. Right.
00:32:43 --> 00:32:46 Let me figure that out. So I'm learning on the
00:32:46 --> 00:32:49 fly when it comes to bookings, to dealing with
00:32:49 --> 00:32:52 club owners and bar shows and produce a lot of
00:32:52 --> 00:32:54 independent producers. Cause I do a lot of independent
00:32:54 --> 00:32:57 shows and I love it across the country. It's
00:32:57 --> 00:33:02 great. But I've learned so much in. in doing
00:33:02 --> 00:33:05 that, and I'm constantly trying to get up 90
00:33:05 --> 00:33:08 minutes a week of stage time. I'm constantly
00:33:08 --> 00:33:11 trying to figure out, you know, I did a kill
00:33:11 --> 00:33:14 to any minute, it bombed, but now I'm a better
00:33:14 --> 00:33:16 comic. How can I circle back and make this a
00:33:16 --> 00:33:19 better minute? How can I make this one minute
00:33:19 --> 00:33:21 into a three minute bit with a lot more laughs
00:33:21 --> 00:33:25 and a lot more structure? Because I think that's
00:33:25 --> 00:33:28 the problem that I had when it came to a lot
00:33:28 --> 00:33:32 of my minutes. earlier in my Killthorne career
00:33:32 --> 00:33:34 was there wasn't a lot of structure. There wasn't
00:33:34 --> 00:33:38 a lot of set up, knock down, because I was still
00:33:38 --> 00:33:41 learning that. I was still kind of getting the
00:33:41 --> 00:33:45 mechanics of the, of joke writing. Yeah. And
00:33:45 --> 00:33:48 so now I'm doing stuff that I, that had been,
00:33:48 --> 00:33:51 has been in the attic for a while. And I'm like,
00:33:51 --> 00:33:54 wow, there's a whole other angle here I can find.
00:33:54 --> 00:33:57 And oh, here I can do this and this and this
00:33:57 --> 00:34:01 and oh. You know, now I can enter, I can do crowd
00:34:01 --> 00:34:05 work with this and interject crowd work and then
00:34:05 --> 00:34:08 interject it into the material and do little
00:34:08 --> 00:34:11 things like that. So it's like I'm learning day
00:34:11 --> 00:34:18 by day how I can improve. My, um, how good, uh,
00:34:18 --> 00:34:23 by my, my act, my, my headlining shows, my 20
00:34:23 --> 00:34:26 minutes, my 15, you know, cause A lot of what
00:34:26 --> 00:34:28 you're doing, you're not doing 45 minutes sets
00:34:28 --> 00:34:31 all the time. You're doing a lot of 15s, doing
00:34:31 --> 00:34:35 a lot of 20s, a lot of 10s. How can I maximize
00:34:35 --> 00:34:37 the amount of fun that the audience is going
00:34:37 --> 00:34:40 to have with me any time limit that they give
00:34:40 --> 00:34:44 me? Yeah. Do you ever try to do like crowd work
00:34:44 --> 00:34:46 or anything like that to you? So the way that
00:34:46 --> 00:34:50 I do crowd work is I have, I'll ask people questions
00:34:50 --> 00:34:55 that pertain to the material I'm doing. I'm working
00:34:55 --> 00:34:59 on a joke that involves Harry Potter, and I ask
00:34:59 --> 00:35:02 people what their favorite characters are. Whenever
00:35:02 --> 00:35:05 they say their favorite character is, I have
00:35:05 --> 00:35:08 a tag for that. I have something I can riff off
00:35:08 --> 00:35:13 of or I have some idea to get a laugh, to get
00:35:13 --> 00:35:19 a pop. I was doing an open mic in Tulsa, Oklahoma
00:35:19 --> 00:35:22 and I did. I did a, hey, who's your favorite
00:35:22 --> 00:35:25 character to this girl? And she said, well, I
00:35:25 --> 00:35:28 love Neville Longbottom. And I said, oh man,
00:35:28 --> 00:35:32 you must fuck anyone, man. And it worked because
00:35:32 --> 00:35:35 it was like, okay, boom. That's funny because
00:35:35 --> 00:35:38 she likes the most weebiest dude in the world.
00:35:39 --> 00:35:42 I love Neville as a character, but man, okay,
00:35:42 --> 00:35:45 I can connect that or hey, what do you do for
00:35:45 --> 00:35:48 a living? How did you get your girl? What pickup
00:35:48 --> 00:35:50 line did you use? Cause I have a pickup line
00:35:50 --> 00:35:55 joke. And so I'm able to interject it and move
00:35:55 --> 00:35:58 it towards my material. And I'm able to get an
00:35:58 --> 00:36:00 extra laugh through that crowd work. I'm not
00:36:00 --> 00:36:02 doing, Hey, what's your name? What do you do
00:36:02 --> 00:36:05 for a living? I don't do that. Right. Because
00:36:05 --> 00:36:07 I feel like that's, that's basic. But if I can
00:36:07 --> 00:36:13 tie a crowd work question into my material. It
00:36:13 --> 00:36:16 makes it even more authentic because then you're
00:36:16 --> 00:36:18 still getting those magical moments of crowd
00:36:18 --> 00:36:21 work, but you're also relying on your material
00:36:21 --> 00:36:23 and trusting your material. Yeah. And you're
00:36:23 --> 00:36:26 using it as a tool instead of a copy. Yeah. Yeah.
00:36:27 --> 00:36:30 I, um, I love doing like crowd work. uh just
00:36:30 --> 00:36:33 like that i had this dude um once who had like
00:36:33 --> 00:36:38 um a tie -dye shirt on and instead i'm the same
00:36:38 --> 00:36:39 kind of way like because that was like when i
00:36:39 --> 00:36:41 do crowd work or if i do kind of any kind of
00:36:41 --> 00:36:42 crowd work i'm not going to do the whole like
00:36:42 --> 00:36:43 you know what's your name where do you work you
00:36:43 --> 00:36:46 know like are you guys on a date You know, because
00:36:46 --> 00:36:48 I just, you know, I find that beat the hell,
00:36:48 --> 00:36:50 but, you know, I basically just made up this
00:36:50 --> 00:36:52 whole thing around him just having a tie dye
00:36:52 --> 00:36:54 shirt and me being colorblind. And so looking
00:36:54 --> 00:36:57 at it is like a fucked up Rorschach for me. And
00:36:57 --> 00:36:59 it just basically just going off on like this
00:36:59 --> 00:37:01 whole thing and be like, dude, I don't know,
00:37:01 --> 00:37:02 but you're kind of making me feel weird emotionally.
00:37:02 --> 00:37:05 And then this dude like lifts up his shirt. Like
00:37:05 --> 00:37:07 literally in front of everybody and says got
00:37:07 --> 00:37:10 LSD and I was like, wow That's exactly what I
00:37:10 --> 00:37:12 thought would happen to somebody with in a tie
00:37:12 --> 00:37:15 -dye shirt. That's it. I am so not surprised
00:37:15 --> 00:37:18 right now And then he rode off on a scooter.
00:37:18 --> 00:37:21 It was just it was that tiniest so it was outside,
00:37:21 --> 00:37:24 you know Like threw a possum on his back But
00:37:24 --> 00:37:26 um, but yeah, man, it's kind of like yeah what
00:37:26 --> 00:37:28 you were saying like just rolling with the punches
00:37:28 --> 00:37:30 and just kind of like, you know, just going with
00:37:30 --> 00:37:33 what you learned kind of thing. And I like doing
00:37:33 --> 00:37:36 like fun roofs too. Like I'll see someone and
00:37:36 --> 00:37:38 I'll be like, man, you guys look like you guys
00:37:38 --> 00:37:41 met at the farmer's market. Or, Hey, you look
00:37:41 --> 00:37:45 like you fuck at corn concerts. You know, little,
00:37:45 --> 00:37:47 little things like that where I'm getting them
00:37:47 --> 00:37:49 involved. And then like, I'll have characters
00:37:49 --> 00:37:52 throughout my set. Like, Hey, what's up Taekwondo?
00:37:52 --> 00:37:56 Hey, hey, team Joe Biden. What you think about
00:37:56 --> 00:38:01 that? Well, yeah. I try to world build a little
00:38:01 --> 00:38:04 bit during my shows where I have these characters
00:38:04 --> 00:38:07 that people can relate to during the show. Especially
00:38:07 --> 00:38:10 like a 45 minute show where they're like, whoa,
00:38:11 --> 00:38:14 this is fun. This is a magical moment that only
00:38:14 --> 00:38:17 we are going to have. And then, you know, a year
00:38:17 --> 00:38:19 later they're like, Hey man, I was this guy.
00:38:19 --> 00:38:22 And I'm like, Oh snap, what's up? Because they
00:38:22 --> 00:38:24 were characters. So you're world building throughout
00:38:24 --> 00:38:28 the show. So every experience is different. Yeah.
00:38:28 --> 00:38:33 And so that's really what I've been working on
00:38:33 --> 00:38:38 when it comes to crowd work and getting the audience
00:38:38 --> 00:38:42 involved in that regard. Do you have a particular
00:38:42 --> 00:38:46 comedian who inspires you to do things like that?
00:38:46 --> 00:38:48 Or inspires you at all, actually? Do you have
00:38:48 --> 00:38:49 any kind of comedian who inspires you at all?
00:38:49 --> 00:38:54 So a lot of my inspiration, I love Ralphie. Ralphie
00:38:54 --> 00:39:00 May. Oh, yeah. I love Ralphie, I love Aziz, Sinbad,
00:39:01 --> 00:39:03 Juan de Sykes, David Spade, that's kind of my
00:39:03 --> 00:39:08 top five. And then Patrice, Jaboukie Van White,
00:39:09 --> 00:39:14 he's incredible. He's Aaron Chan, another incredible
00:39:14 --> 00:39:16 comedian. And then there's guys that aren't my
00:39:16 --> 00:39:19 style, but I can learn from them the way that
00:39:19 --> 00:39:24 they're, like Joe Para is very. Low energy, very
00:39:24 --> 00:39:27 methodical, very slow with his delivery, but
00:39:27 --> 00:39:31 he's amazing too. So it's like, I learned from
00:39:31 --> 00:39:35 a lot of the, and then we have so much talent
00:39:35 --> 00:39:37 in Austin. We have one of the best comedians,
00:39:37 --> 00:39:41 I think in the country or, you know, in the world
00:39:41 --> 00:39:45 and Derek Poston and Assan Ahmad, Dylan Sullivan
00:39:45 --> 00:39:48 and Genevieve Oland. And you know, we have all
00:39:48 --> 00:39:51 these. great comedians that you could just sit
00:39:51 --> 00:39:55 and watch and learn so much from. And I love
00:39:55 --> 00:39:57 that I'll have to follow like Ari Mati, who's
00:39:57 --> 00:40:00 one of the greatest, one of the best comedians
00:40:00 --> 00:40:05 in the world. And we debuted as rotating regulars
00:40:05 --> 00:40:08 the same episode. And I always think, I always
00:40:08 --> 00:40:12 think about it as like LeBron James and Galanari,
00:40:13 --> 00:40:17 the white mama. debuting the same episode. It's
00:40:17 --> 00:40:19 like you have one of the greatest world talents
00:40:19 --> 00:40:25 and then you got me. But like, we have so much
00:40:25 --> 00:40:30 talent in Austin and people that come through
00:40:30 --> 00:40:33 that you just get to learn from, like Ray Lau
00:40:33 --> 00:40:36 and like Ron Taylor. Oh yeah, he's just here,
00:40:36 --> 00:40:39 Ray Lau. Sorry. Yeah, Ray Lau's amazing. And
00:40:39 --> 00:40:42 then you got guys that come through like Andre
00:40:42 --> 00:40:48 Kim and It's just incredible. Like learning.
00:40:48 --> 00:40:51 I love Austin because people want to shit on
00:40:51 --> 00:40:54 it because I think it's all edgy humor. And that's
00:40:54 --> 00:40:56 because you don't look at it. Everything going
00:40:56 --> 00:40:59 on. You see kill Tony and you just want to say,
00:40:59 --> 00:41:01 well, that's, that's all Austin offers. And I'm
00:41:01 --> 00:41:04 like, I can show you so many great, talented
00:41:04 --> 00:41:09 comedians like Freddie Dulles, like, uh, uh,
00:41:09 --> 00:41:13 my buddy, Dusty Carter. Uh, my, my buddy Sam
00:41:13 --> 00:41:17 Hunter, Alex Olinger, Robert Tabbitt, uh, Matthew
00:41:17 --> 00:41:21 Waymost, like a bunch of talented comedians that
00:41:21 --> 00:41:24 you haven't seen that are, that are very technically
00:41:24 --> 00:41:26 sound, that don't just rely on shock humor, that
00:41:26 --> 00:41:29 are very funny. I mean, and then you got some
00:41:29 --> 00:41:33 guys like Hans Kim, Enrique Chacon, David Lucas.
00:41:33 --> 00:41:37 I mean, I can, I can go on and on about all the
00:41:37 --> 00:41:40 funny people that are in Austin that people just
00:41:40 --> 00:41:42 don't. understand how great they are because
00:41:42 --> 00:41:47 they, they watch a minute clip and they, they
00:41:47 --> 00:41:49 think they know what's, what they're all about.
00:41:49 --> 00:41:53 Right. Yeah. Shout out Colin Sledge and timely
00:41:53 --> 00:41:57 rain and JJ Alexander. Uh, we all went on tour
00:41:57 --> 00:41:59 and Tony Scott, we all went on tour together
00:41:59 --> 00:42:02 and we were doing 15s. And it was so much fun
00:42:02 --> 00:42:05 just seeing us develop new material and see new
00:42:05 --> 00:42:09 strategies. It was awesome to just see. We were
00:42:09 --> 00:42:12 doing eight shows and seven days, and we were
00:42:12 --> 00:42:17 just rolling. Just going and flowing, dude. Yeah.
00:42:17 --> 00:42:20 Man, that is awesome, dude. Is there an area
00:42:20 --> 00:42:22 of the country that you like to perform in the
00:42:22 --> 00:42:25 best? I love the Midwest. Midwest is probably
00:42:25 --> 00:42:28 my favorite. They must love you knowing that
00:42:28 --> 00:42:31 you come from Washington, huh? Well, the Midwest
00:42:31 --> 00:42:33 and the South love kill timing. So that's where
00:42:33 --> 00:42:36 I get the majority of my bookings. is in those
00:42:36 --> 00:42:38 two areas. I haven't gotten the West Coast looking
00:42:38 --> 00:42:41 really other than like my hometown and Seattle
00:42:41 --> 00:42:46 and Tacoma. But like the Midwest is always fun.
00:42:46 --> 00:42:49 The South is always fun. I've done a couple of
00:42:49 --> 00:42:54 shows in Ohio and Michigan and I did the Upper
00:42:54 --> 00:42:56 Peninsula of Michigan and that was fun. There
00:42:56 --> 00:43:01 was like four feet of snow. Wow. And we were
00:43:01 --> 00:43:06 all. My AirPods got ran over at the gas station.
00:43:06 --> 00:43:10 Oh, shit. I was fighting a headache and then
00:43:10 --> 00:43:13 I had an energy drink and there were a couple
00:43:13 --> 00:43:15 of people before me and I was like, I'm about
00:43:15 --> 00:43:18 to have the set of my life. Then I had one of
00:43:18 --> 00:43:21 my favorite sets I've had in the last year or
00:43:21 --> 00:43:27 so. Oh, wow. I've had a lot of fun doing the
00:43:27 --> 00:43:31 Midwest and the South. Then when I get to go
00:43:31 --> 00:43:33 to New York every once in a while, it's always
00:43:33 --> 00:43:36 fun. It's always fun to go to a new area and
00:43:36 --> 00:43:39 just see the different types of comics that are
00:43:39 --> 00:43:42 there too. I like to hang. Do you do anything
00:43:42 --> 00:43:46 in a newer area to scope out the crowd that it's
00:43:46 --> 00:43:48 going to be or anything like that, or do you
00:43:48 --> 00:43:51 just wing it and just feel them out as it goes,
00:43:51 --> 00:43:54 as you go? Well, if I'm not opening the show,
00:43:54 --> 00:43:56 I'm watching the show, I'm seeing what's hitting,
00:43:57 --> 00:44:00 what's not. Okay, this crowd likes dark humor.
00:44:00 --> 00:44:03 I can go dark Oh this crowd wants something fun
00:44:03 --> 00:44:06 and more family -friendly and more. They're not
00:44:06 --> 00:44:10 They're not that type of audience Okay, I got
00:44:10 --> 00:44:12 a couple things for there. I got a couple jokes.
00:44:12 --> 00:44:15 I think that'll really hit Yeah, so it's like
00:44:15 --> 00:44:18 you you kind of I just pay attention during the
00:44:18 --> 00:44:21 show Yeah, paying attention during the show if
00:44:21 --> 00:44:24 you're an experienced comic you should be able
00:44:24 --> 00:44:29 to adjust to what they want Yeah, yeah So, man,
00:44:29 --> 00:44:31 like, so me, like, growing up, I was always kind
00:44:31 --> 00:44:34 of a class clown kind of thing, like, very typical
00:44:34 --> 00:44:37 kind of kid, you know. I love making people laugh,
00:44:37 --> 00:44:39 you know, always. It's like, there's a very big
00:44:39 --> 00:44:40 difference, I think, between, like, people who
00:44:40 --> 00:44:42 are funny and then people who do, like, stand
00:44:42 --> 00:44:45 up, you know what I mean? But, like, why comedy,
00:44:45 --> 00:44:48 man? Like, why did you choose, like, this path
00:44:48 --> 00:44:51 as, like, this is where I need to go? I like
00:44:51 --> 00:44:56 making people happy. And I also, after my head
00:44:56 --> 00:44:58 injury, it was like, I didn't feel like I could
00:44:58 --> 00:45:01 be a contributing member of society at that point.
00:45:02 --> 00:45:06 And I was really having a hard time finding a
00:45:06 --> 00:45:10 place to belong. And I had been doing comedy
00:45:10 --> 00:45:12 for like three years. And at that point I was
00:45:12 --> 00:45:15 like, I don't know if I need to be on the earth
00:45:15 --> 00:45:17 anymore. And then I was like, you know what?
00:45:17 --> 00:45:20 I love comedy. I love doing it. I know I'm not
00:45:20 --> 00:45:23 getting the results I want, but if I put a lot
00:45:23 --> 00:45:26 more effort into it and really focus on trying
00:45:26 --> 00:45:30 to get better. What could happen? Right. Let
00:45:30 --> 00:45:34 me give myself two years doing that. And I was
00:45:34 --> 00:45:37 like three months away from my two -year mark
00:45:37 --> 00:45:42 when I got pulled on Kill Tony. And now we're
00:45:42 --> 00:45:44 doing what we do. So it's like I want to make
00:45:44 --> 00:45:49 people happy. I like giving people a reason to
00:45:49 --> 00:45:52 have fun no matter what's going on in their lives
00:45:52 --> 00:45:55 for that. For the amount of time I'm on stage,
00:45:55 --> 00:45:58 I'm there to let their problems go away. I'm
00:45:58 --> 00:46:01 there for them to have fun, to enjoy themselves,
00:46:01 --> 00:46:05 and kind of just understand that time is one
00:46:05 --> 00:46:08 of the greatest currencies we have. So when someone
00:46:08 --> 00:46:10 comes to see you, they're giving their time to
00:46:10 --> 00:46:14 you. And I think I take that really seriously.
00:46:15 --> 00:46:17 And that's why I think I'm really hard on myself
00:46:17 --> 00:46:21 when it comes to uh, man, I don't feel like I
00:46:21 --> 00:46:24 did great or, uh, oh man, I didn't do great on
00:46:24 --> 00:46:26 the set. I'm very hard on myself because I know
00:46:26 --> 00:46:31 they took time to see and watch me. Yeah. When,
00:46:31 --> 00:46:35 okay, so what does like a shitty set for you
00:46:35 --> 00:46:40 look like, um, you know, versus like a great
00:46:40 --> 00:46:42 set, you know, like what, what are some things
00:46:42 --> 00:46:43 in your mind that you're just like, I hope, I
00:46:43 --> 00:46:47 hope I walk off the stage with this today. If
00:46:47 --> 00:46:49 the audience is fully engaged and having fun,
00:46:49 --> 00:46:51 everyone's smiling, you know, when I get off
00:46:51 --> 00:46:54 stage, everyone's pumped, the energy's still
00:46:54 --> 00:46:58 there, then I'm happy. But like, I've had times
00:46:58 --> 00:47:03 where it's like, oh, you know that awkward energy.
00:47:03 --> 00:47:05 When you do bad, you know that awkward energy
00:47:05 --> 00:47:07 because everyone's like, oh man, we just survived
00:47:07 --> 00:47:12 that. When the comics were going on after you
00:47:12 --> 00:47:16 were like, oh. I've been there, done that, you
00:47:16 --> 00:47:19 know? Yeah, like when they're like, you know,
00:47:19 --> 00:47:21 oh, fuck, dude, they're not too good, man. Have
00:47:21 --> 00:47:23 you ever had an instance of like turning a room
00:47:23 --> 00:47:26 around who was just like cold? Yeah, I mean,
00:47:26 --> 00:47:31 I do that a lot. Hell yeah. Where, you know,
00:47:31 --> 00:47:34 there'll be less season time and they go on before
00:47:34 --> 00:47:37 me and they don't read the room or they're doing
00:47:37 --> 00:47:40 material that's not adjacent to the room and
00:47:40 --> 00:47:43 people aren't there. They're stepping over their
00:47:43 --> 00:47:46 punches. They're nervous. And then I'll go up
00:47:46 --> 00:47:49 there and then I just turn that room around because
00:47:49 --> 00:47:52 I'm giving them the energy they want. I'm reading
00:47:52 --> 00:47:55 the room. I'm having fun. They're having fun.
00:47:55 --> 00:47:59 I'm getting them involved. I'm trying to give
00:47:59 --> 00:48:01 them the best experience possible. And then I
00:48:01 --> 00:48:05 turn that room, like that launch show. There
00:48:05 --> 00:48:09 was a couple of comics that were newer and they
00:48:09 --> 00:48:13 weren't picking up. the room very well. But that's
00:48:13 --> 00:48:16 okay. You know, like being on shows, you're going
00:48:16 --> 00:48:19 to get better. And I don't get mad at that type
00:48:19 --> 00:48:20 of stuff anymore. Right. Because I understand
00:48:20 --> 00:48:23 that's part of the journey for them and for us
00:48:23 --> 00:48:26 in comedy. And it gets me better when I have
00:48:26 --> 00:48:29 to work to get them. Yeah. And carry it over.
00:48:30 --> 00:48:35 And I crushed that set. Yeah. You just walked
00:48:35 --> 00:48:38 away feeling victorious. Yeah. Or like when you
00:48:38 --> 00:48:41 follow a killer. when you follow someone that
00:48:41 --> 00:48:46 wrecks the room. There's a mothership comic named
00:48:46 --> 00:48:50 Kristoff, who's a monster. And about a year ago,
00:48:50 --> 00:48:56 I did Filthy Show at Creek and he wrecked the
00:48:56 --> 00:48:59 room. And I was like, I gotta go next. And this
00:48:59 --> 00:49:02 was right after the Nashville episode had aired.
00:49:02 --> 00:49:06 So everyone was like, oh no. And so I had a chip
00:49:06 --> 00:49:09 on my shoulder. I was like, I need to murder
00:49:09 --> 00:49:13 tonight. And he went on and killed him. I was
00:49:13 --> 00:49:15 like, how am I going to do this? And then I got
00:49:15 --> 00:49:19 on stage and I just ripped. And I just was on
00:49:19 --> 00:49:21 all five cylinders. It's probably one of my favorite
00:49:21 --> 00:49:25 sets I've ever done. following a killer like
00:49:25 --> 00:49:28 an Ari Matty or a Derek Poston or a Son of Mar.
00:49:29 --> 00:49:33 You're like, oh shit, I got to follow that? Yeah.
00:49:33 --> 00:49:36 Or like a Holtzman where you're like, what? I
00:49:36 --> 00:49:39 got to follow this? Dude, I couldn't imagine
00:49:39 --> 00:49:43 following Brian Holtzman. He's one of the nicest,
00:49:43 --> 00:49:48 kindest people in the comedy community. He's
00:49:48 --> 00:49:50 just a breath of fresh air. He's great. Yeah.
00:49:50 --> 00:49:53 And when he's on stage, he's just ripping. He's
00:49:53 --> 00:49:58 just having fun. He's doing the, he's, he's what
00:49:58 --> 00:50:02 I want to be in, you know, 10, 20 years. I want
00:50:02 --> 00:50:04 to be the guy who's just having fun on stage,
00:50:05 --> 00:50:08 enjoying what he's doing and just being his authentic
00:50:08 --> 00:50:10 self. That's what I want. Hell yeah. Cause he's
00:50:10 --> 00:50:14 the fucking man. He's, he really is somebody
00:50:14 --> 00:50:17 that I look up to and like Brody Stevens was
00:50:17 --> 00:50:20 the same way. I loved Brody. He, we're talking
00:50:20 --> 00:50:25 about influences. I love Brody. Uh, if you don't
00:50:25 --> 00:50:27 know who he is, look him up. He's, he's amazing.
00:50:27 --> 00:50:30 Incredible, incredible comedian. Oh, yeah, man.
00:50:30 --> 00:50:32 Well, that kind of that brings me to like my
00:50:32 --> 00:50:34 next thing. Basically, we got like, you know,
00:50:34 --> 00:50:36 this is like last like 10 minutes. You know,
00:50:36 --> 00:50:39 man, what's a do? What are your goals now, man?
00:50:39 --> 00:50:41 Like, you know, it seems like it seems like you've
00:50:41 --> 00:50:44 done a wonderful job with, like, you know, just
00:50:44 --> 00:50:46 recovering from the ups and downs and everything
00:50:46 --> 00:50:49 like that. Like, what is looking forward to?
00:50:50 --> 00:50:52 What does that look like for you? I just want
00:50:52 --> 00:50:54 to keep doing shows. Oh, yeah. I want to sell
00:50:54 --> 00:50:57 more like any other comedian. I want to sell
00:50:57 --> 00:51:00 more tickets. I want more people. to come to
00:51:00 --> 00:51:03 a show and enjoy it and, uh, be a little bit
00:51:03 --> 00:51:05 more business savvy. I want to be able to get
00:51:05 --> 00:51:09 him an manager and an agent. Um, I want to get
00:51:09 --> 00:51:12 to that, that next step of. Dude, I'm surprised
00:51:12 --> 00:51:14 you already don't have one. I'm sorry. No, but
00:51:14 --> 00:51:19 you know, it's all, it'll come when it needs
00:51:19 --> 00:51:21 to. It'll come when it needs to. And I, I get
00:51:21 --> 00:51:24 frustrated at it sometimes because I'm like,
00:51:24 --> 00:51:27 damn, nobody's reached out, but it's like. that
00:51:27 --> 00:51:30 it'll come when it needs to, just need to keep
00:51:30 --> 00:51:34 working, keep getting better, understanding the
00:51:34 --> 00:51:36 business side of things. So when I do get a manager
00:51:36 --> 00:51:39 and an agent, I know exactly where I'm at. I
00:51:39 --> 00:51:41 know what a good deal is and I know what a bad
00:51:41 --> 00:51:44 deal is. So when I do get a manager and an agent,
00:51:44 --> 00:51:47 I know what's going on and I can kind of gauge
00:51:47 --> 00:51:50 it. So I know they're not ripping me off. I know
00:51:50 --> 00:51:52 that I'm not in a bad place. So it's like, I
00:51:52 --> 00:51:55 want to get an agent and a manager. I want to
00:51:55 --> 00:51:57 be able to keep touring. I want to sell more
00:51:57 --> 00:52:02 tickets, get better shows. Um, and you know,
00:52:03 --> 00:52:06 in the next five, three to five years, I want
00:52:06 --> 00:52:09 to go to New York. I want to live the dream over
00:52:09 --> 00:52:11 there. I want to be a working comic to the point
00:52:11 --> 00:52:17 where I can live afford to live in New York and
00:52:17 --> 00:52:20 be able to fly, you know, twice a month to do
00:52:20 --> 00:52:24 gigs around the country. Be able to still keep
00:52:24 --> 00:52:28 sharpening my short. my sword and keep enjoying
00:52:28 --> 00:52:32 life and enjoying being on stage and finding
00:52:32 --> 00:52:36 new ways to create material and to be better
00:52:36 --> 00:52:38 on stage. Just keep working. Just keep working,
00:52:39 --> 00:52:41 dude. So why New York? I mean, it seems pretty,
00:52:41 --> 00:52:43 you know, but like why not LA or something like
00:52:43 --> 00:52:46 that? Because New York, the times I've been to
00:52:46 --> 00:52:49 New York, I've had so much fun. Oh, yeah. I've
00:52:49 --> 00:52:52 been to New York twice. Last year, I went to
00:52:52 --> 00:52:57 New York and I did. 25 mics in five days. 25
00:52:57 --> 00:53:00 mics and shows in five days. Dang, you did like
00:53:00 --> 00:53:03 five mics a night kind of thing? Yeah, I enjoyed
00:53:03 --> 00:53:06 that. And I enjoyed the grind of that. And I
00:53:06 --> 00:53:10 feel like that's just the next stop in my journey.
00:53:10 --> 00:53:13 I've always been kind of a gypsy where I move
00:53:13 --> 00:53:16 after a little bit of time. And so, you know,
00:53:17 --> 00:53:19 three to five years, it'll be, you know, five
00:53:19 --> 00:53:21 to seven years in Austin, and then I can move
00:53:21 --> 00:53:26 somewhere else. find a wife and a family here.
00:53:28 --> 00:53:33 Who knows, man. Exactly. It's like, I want to
00:53:33 --> 00:53:37 go there and have a good time and develop more
00:53:37 --> 00:53:40 and meet new people. It's New York City. It's
00:53:40 --> 00:53:44 the greatest city in the world. I feel like I
00:53:44 --> 00:53:47 don't want to go to LA. I feel like LA is follower
00:53:47 --> 00:53:51 focused. I just don't feel like I'd probably
00:53:51 --> 00:53:53 fit in in LA. And I want to go there and maybe
00:53:53 --> 00:53:57 I'll love LA. Right. But you never know. Yeah.
00:53:57 --> 00:53:59 I never, like, for some reason I can never wrap
00:53:59 --> 00:54:03 my head around, like, living in LA. And I don't
00:54:03 --> 00:54:05 know why. Like, I don't know what it is. There's
00:54:05 --> 00:54:06 something about it where I'm just like, dude,
00:54:06 --> 00:54:08 I don't want to go there. But I could go to New
00:54:08 --> 00:54:13 York. You know? I just, I kind of see the difference,
00:54:13 --> 00:54:15 man. But I don't know. I feel like... Because
00:54:15 --> 00:54:18 I lived in Dallas, Dallas and New York are similar
00:54:18 --> 00:54:21 in a way where if you have any sort of interest
00:54:21 --> 00:54:24 or you want to do anything, you can find it in
00:54:24 --> 00:54:27 Dallas or New York. Yeah. I don't think it's
00:54:27 --> 00:54:31 the same way in LA. In Dallas? Wow. But yeah,
00:54:32 --> 00:54:33 you don't think it's the same way in LA, huh?
00:54:33 --> 00:54:36 I don't think if I was like to really get into
00:54:36 --> 00:54:39 playing knee -geo again, I could find a... a
00:54:39 --> 00:54:43 big Yu -Gi -Oh community or if I wanted to do
00:54:43 --> 00:54:46 some, some really, really niche interest. Yeah.
00:54:47 --> 00:54:49 I don't think I could find that in LA, but I
00:54:49 --> 00:54:51 can find that in New York, because that's why
00:54:51 --> 00:54:54 I love Dallas when I lived there for five years,
00:54:54 --> 00:54:57 is because if you wanted to do anything, you
00:54:57 --> 00:55:01 could find, you could find a community of people
00:55:01 --> 00:55:05 that love doing that also. Yeah. Yeah. It's a,
00:55:05 --> 00:55:07 have you ever been to Mages over there? Mages
00:55:07 --> 00:55:12 Sanctum? No. Dude, somehow fucking place has
00:55:12 --> 00:55:16 like has come like to like it's just made many
00:55:16 --> 00:55:18 appearances here because there are a lot of people
00:55:18 --> 00:55:20 who like. I've had one who liked cards and who
00:55:20 --> 00:55:22 liked, you know, comic books and things like
00:55:22 --> 00:55:24 that. And this is totally not like a fucking
00:55:24 --> 00:55:26 plug, like a promise, it's not like a plug or
00:55:26 --> 00:55:28 anything like that. But yeah, they have this
00:55:28 --> 00:55:30 place over there, Mage of Sanctum, and they have
00:55:30 --> 00:55:33 all those cards and stuff like that, like Yu
00:55:33 --> 00:55:36 -Gi -Oh cards. I don't know anything about that
00:55:36 --> 00:55:37 kind of stuff, but I've heard you mention that
00:55:37 --> 00:55:40 before. What is it? I used to play, so it's a
00:55:40 --> 00:55:42 trading card game and it's based on an anime.
00:55:43 --> 00:55:46 uh, little Saturday morning cartoon. And this
00:55:46 --> 00:55:48 is strategy. I can't play it again because I
00:55:48 --> 00:55:52 don't, I don't have enough time. Yeah. Cause
00:55:52 --> 00:55:56 it's a lot. Like, uh, I keep up with it. I still
00:55:56 --> 00:55:58 watch like YouTube videos on it. So I know what's
00:55:58 --> 00:56:00 going on, but like, I can't play it anymore.
00:56:00 --> 00:56:02 Cause I just don't have the time. You don't have
00:56:02 --> 00:56:05 the time. Is it like, is it like, uh, it's really
00:56:05 --> 00:56:09 involved. It's so, it's so strategic and there's
00:56:09 --> 00:56:13 so much that goes into it. I, I enjoyed it. when
00:56:13 --> 00:56:16 I was playing, but I haven't played in probably
00:56:16 --> 00:56:20 six years now. Yeah. So a long time, huh? Yeah.
00:56:20 --> 00:56:24 And it's expensive. It's like three to $400 to
00:56:24 --> 00:56:26 get a deck. What? Yeah. Dude. But I love it,
00:56:26 --> 00:56:30 man. I miss it so much. And I play the mobile
00:56:30 --> 00:56:34 game on a little bit when I miss it. What is
00:56:34 --> 00:56:37 it comparable to? Like that's popular. Magic,
00:56:37 --> 00:56:40 of course I'm on. Fuck. Dude, I was like, please
00:56:40 --> 00:56:44 don't say magic. It's a better game than magic.
00:56:45 --> 00:56:46 I was like, please don't say magic. Cause I was
00:56:46 --> 00:56:48 like, dude, I don't know anything about magic.
00:56:49 --> 00:56:51 Cause like it's a better game than magic. Cause
00:56:51 --> 00:56:54 there's a lot more, there's a lot more strategy
00:56:54 --> 00:56:58 to it. It's not as linear as magic. I think once
00:56:58 --> 00:57:01 there's a really, really good deck in magic,
00:57:01 --> 00:57:04 then it's just there, but you can be creative
00:57:04 --> 00:57:08 when it comes to Yu -Gi -Oh. Oh, okay. Yeah,
00:57:08 --> 00:57:10 dude, I wish I knew what that meant. You know,
00:57:12 --> 00:57:14 like the whole thing. I just never, I just never
00:57:14 --> 00:57:16 got into it. I have nothing against like those
00:57:16 --> 00:57:18 kinds of things. I just never got into it. You
00:57:18 --> 00:57:21 know, like, uh, I want to say, no, nevermind.
00:57:22 --> 00:57:23 No, I was about to say, I want to say my brother
00:57:23 --> 00:57:25 was in like Pokemon, but then I'm like, I don't,
00:57:25 --> 00:57:27 I don't know if he was like the card game. I
00:57:27 --> 00:57:30 think it was like the video game. The video game
00:57:30 --> 00:57:32 is like learning a foreign language, like trying
00:57:32 --> 00:57:35 to learn how to play the video game now. It's
00:57:35 --> 00:57:38 so complicated. There's so many like. Levels
00:57:38 --> 00:57:40 to everything and it's like you can't just play
00:57:40 --> 00:57:42 your favorite Pokemon you have to play There's
00:57:42 --> 00:57:47 like maybe 12 to 15 Pokemon that are good Out
00:57:47 --> 00:57:49 of the thousands that are on there and you kind
00:57:49 --> 00:57:51 of have to make your best team for that You ever
00:57:51 --> 00:57:53 did that go thing where like the Pokemon go?
00:57:54 --> 00:57:59 I don't want I walk but I also was like I never
00:57:59 --> 00:58:02 got into that trend. Okay when I was in the Navy
00:58:02 --> 00:58:05 dude, it was like I want to say like, oh, nine.
00:58:05 --> 00:58:06 I think that's like when it kind of started coming
00:58:06 --> 00:58:10 out or something. It was like 15 or 16. 15 or
00:58:10 --> 00:58:13 16? Yeah. Oh, they were into something, something
00:58:13 --> 00:58:15 with Pokemon. And they kept trying to get me
00:58:15 --> 00:58:17 to do it. And I was just like, I don't know what
00:58:17 --> 00:58:19 the fuck a Pokemon is, dude. Like, where do I
00:58:19 --> 00:58:23 get one? You know, I was in, I was all the, it
00:58:23 --> 00:58:25 was like all this thing, dude. But it's like,
00:58:25 --> 00:58:27 it's like the, I don't know, all those little
00:58:27 --> 00:58:29 things like that. Like that's what makes it happen.
00:58:29 --> 00:58:31 You know what I mean? Like that's like, that's
00:58:31 --> 00:58:33 the good shit right there, dude. Like. Uh, I
00:58:33 --> 00:58:36 like, as you can see, I love like little like
00:58:36 --> 00:58:38 toys, like knickknacks and shit like that. Like,
00:58:39 --> 00:58:41 I just get like little things. Like that's my
00:58:41 --> 00:58:43 little thing. This is like my Yu -Gi -Oh. Hell
00:58:43 --> 00:58:45 yeah. You know what I mean? That's always true.
00:58:45 --> 00:58:48 Yeah. What is something that like, uh, about
00:58:48 --> 00:58:50 yourself that would surprise people? Dude, I
00:58:50 --> 00:58:54 am really into boxing. Uh, I think people don't
00:58:54 --> 00:58:57 understand that like boxing is like my, it's
00:58:57 --> 00:59:00 my favorite sport. I'm really knowledgeable about
00:59:00 --> 00:59:03 it. Really? Yeah. So are you a boxer? No, no,
00:59:03 --> 00:59:07 I just like to watch it. My dream outside of
00:59:07 --> 00:59:10 comedy would be to be a commentator on boxing
00:59:10 --> 00:59:14 because I love boxing so much and I'm always
00:59:14 --> 00:59:16 watching it on the weekends. I was watching on
00:59:16 --> 00:59:18 Saturday. I did my two spots and I was like,
00:59:18 --> 00:59:21 I'm going to go home. I'm going to pay too much
00:59:21 --> 00:59:24 money for a drumstick from 7 -Eleven, like an
00:59:24 --> 00:59:26 ice cream drumstick, and I'm going to go watch
00:59:26 --> 00:59:29 the fights. And I watched the fights. I was having
00:59:29 --> 00:59:33 a good old time. So I love boxing. I'm very knowledgeable
00:59:33 --> 00:59:38 about it. I watch every weekend, and it's kind
00:59:38 --> 00:59:41 of like my little passion on the side. Hell yeah,
00:59:41 --> 00:59:44 dude. So do you have a favorite boxer right now?
00:59:44 --> 00:59:48 So my favorite boxer is this Dutch boxer. I think
00:59:48 --> 00:59:51 he's 12 and 0. He's a light heavyweight boxer.
00:59:51 --> 00:59:55 His name's Gratis Kraus. He's my favorite. And
00:59:55 --> 00:59:59 then I have guys like Moises Saitama. Um, Jai
00:59:59 --> 01:00:03 Appataya, David Benavides, um, Genevick Annamali,
01:00:03 --> 01:00:09 uh, who's suspended right now, but, but, uh,
01:00:09 --> 01:00:11 but then, but, uh, then I, then I liked Mark
01:00:11 --> 01:00:15 Chamberlain who's a British domestic boxer. Um,
01:00:15 --> 01:00:17 like I just watched so much boxing and I have
01:00:17 --> 01:00:19 so many people that I like to watch and I follow
01:00:19 --> 01:00:24 and I actually, uh, I was looking through my
01:00:24 --> 01:00:29 requests and this, uh, Polish boxer. Um, then
01:00:29 --> 01:00:33 I, then I was a fan of he, he, he was like, Hey,
01:00:33 --> 01:00:35 love seeing you get better on Kiltani. I was
01:00:35 --> 01:00:41 like, no way you like me. This is insane. And
01:00:41 --> 01:00:45 he was just like, why you? And I was like, yeah,
01:00:45 --> 01:00:47 I'm a big boxing guy and I've got to, and I've
01:00:47 --> 01:00:50 gotten to meet like Kelly Pavlik. I got to talk
01:00:50 --> 01:00:53 to him on the phone and he's, he's a man, you
01:00:53 --> 01:00:56 know, so it's like, it's so surreal. But I love
01:00:56 --> 01:00:59 boxing. Boxing is just kind of the thing I like
01:00:59 --> 01:01:08 to watch and realize. I try to do shit. I try
01:01:08 --> 01:01:10 to, like, if there's a show and I'm doing boxing,
01:01:11 --> 01:01:13 you'll see me watch a boxing before my show.
01:01:13 --> 01:01:15 I'm like, I'm watching this fight. Yeah. Hell
01:01:15 --> 01:01:19 yeah, dude. I don't think, I hope I'm not going
01:01:19 --> 01:01:22 to get this wrong, dude. But like back in New
01:01:22 --> 01:01:26 Orleans, I was like... I worked in radio for
01:01:26 --> 01:01:29 a little while, right? And they had this guy,
01:01:29 --> 01:01:32 Macky Shulstad, who's from New Orleans. And I
01:01:32 --> 01:01:34 hope that's his name. I kind of forgot because
01:01:34 --> 01:01:37 it was so long ago. But anyway, so like I go
01:01:37 --> 01:01:41 to on Canal Street and they had this guy who
01:01:41 --> 01:01:43 is boxing. It was the first time I ever seen
01:01:43 --> 01:01:45 any like boxing stuff. And it was pretty insane
01:01:45 --> 01:01:48 because they had a whole ring and... like dedicated
01:01:48 --> 01:01:50 to just him. And he was like in there just shadow
01:01:50 --> 01:01:52 boxing. That's all he was doing, I guess. And,
01:01:52 --> 01:01:54 you know, and so I ended up meeting this guy
01:01:54 --> 01:01:58 and it was, it was Bernard Hopkins. Yeah. That's
01:01:58 --> 01:02:01 insane. Yeah. Yeah, dude. It was, it was pretty
01:02:01 --> 01:02:04 crazy, but I, dude, I love boxing, but I'm not
01:02:04 --> 01:02:06 like, I'm not one of those super, super fans
01:02:06 --> 01:02:08 really. Like, I don't, I don't remember people's
01:02:08 --> 01:02:09 names and stats and things like that, but when
01:02:09 --> 01:02:12 I'm, but when it's on, you know, like I watch
01:02:12 --> 01:02:15 it, you know, like it's, it's like, it's awesome.
01:02:15 --> 01:02:17 Do you have a favorite boxing movie at all? Oh,
01:02:18 --> 01:02:21 I love Southpaw. Southpaw? Yeah. Yeah. Southpaw's
01:02:21 --> 01:02:25 so good. Southpaw's really good. I'm trying to
01:02:25 --> 01:02:30 think. There's a movie that just came out. It's
01:02:30 --> 01:02:34 called The Cut. The Cut. And it has Orlando Bloom.
01:02:35 --> 01:02:38 Orlando Bloom? Yes. And he's a boxer trying to
01:02:38 --> 01:02:42 make weight. And it's got a bunch of really good
01:02:42 --> 01:02:46 characters, really good actors in it. Huh. And
01:02:46 --> 01:02:48 it's just about this boxer trying to cut weight.
01:02:48 --> 01:02:52 And it's like this crazy, it's not like a boxing
01:02:52 --> 01:02:55 focused movie because you don't see a lot of
01:02:55 --> 01:03:00 boxing in it, but it's such a crazy, crazy movie.
01:03:00 --> 01:03:03 I think if you watch it, you'll be like, whoa,
01:03:03 --> 01:03:06 what the? What the fuck did I just watch? The
01:03:06 --> 01:03:08 cut, okay. The cut. All right, dude, I'm gonna
01:03:08 --> 01:03:10 look that up and run it down right now. Because
01:03:10 --> 01:03:13 you don't even see that Orlando, you see him
01:03:13 --> 01:03:15 and you're like, that's Orlando Bloom. That's
01:03:15 --> 01:03:19 Orlando Bloom and Onion? Holy shit. Dude, I think
01:03:19 --> 01:03:23 my favorite boxing movie is Cinderella Man. Oh,
01:03:23 --> 01:03:28 Paul Giamatti. Yeah. Man, that performance by
01:03:28 --> 01:03:31 Paul Giamatti is one of the greatest supporting
01:03:31 --> 01:03:34 actor performances of all time. Dude, I agree.
01:03:34 --> 01:03:37 Man, that's so good. So good. They both were.
01:03:38 --> 01:03:42 They both were. Russell Crowe. Russell Crowe,
01:03:42 --> 01:03:47 Paul Giamatti, Renee Zellweger. Man, I love that
01:03:47 --> 01:03:49 movie so much. It's just a good all -around movie.
01:03:49 --> 01:03:52 You don't have to be a fan of a boxing to even
01:03:52 --> 01:03:55 enjoy it. It's just a good movie. You know, but
01:03:55 --> 01:03:58 hey man, dude, that's about, that wraps it up,
01:03:58 --> 01:03:59 man. I appreciate you, brother. Thank you so
01:03:59 --> 01:04:01 much for coming on, man. Thanks for having me,
01:04:01 --> 01:04:03 man. This was a good time. Good, dude. I'm glad
01:04:03 --> 01:04:06 you have fun, dude. And keep fucking going with
01:04:06 --> 01:04:08 it. Keep kicking ass like you always do, man.
01:04:08 --> 01:04:10 But thank you so much for coming on, brother.
01:04:10 --> 01:04:12 Thanks for having me. All right. And that's it.
01:04:12 --> 01:04:13 That's a wrap. Adios.