Louis CK once told me to never let go of a bit. I tend to throw away a lot of ideas if they're not working, but now I think I'm going to go back to stuff I once believed in, and see if I still find it funny and can maybe re-shape it into something good.
Related posts tagged 'Advice for aspiring comedians'
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Related posts tagged 'Advice for aspiring comedians'
Alright. Here would be my advice. Ok, I don't know how comedians start nowadays , right?
But what I would suggest is just start.
And once you start, you can't really stop, no matter what happens. No matter how bad it gets, no matter what people say. you know what I mean? Because comedy is weird like that.
You know why I hate watching other comedians do comedy? Not because I hate other comedians, but because I love comedy so much. Its like watching somebody else fuck your girl. And I say 'I fuck her better than that'.
Best advice was when I asked Paul Reiser, "How do you get started in comedy?" I asked him that when I was in college. He said, "Well. You've just got to do it."
Question: how do you organize and develop your material and various jokes? Do you have notebooks full of detailed notes and jokes, or do you just sketch them out and wing it on stage?
Answer: I believe in detailed notes and jokes, and also winging it onstage. But, not for your first open mic. For your first open mic, my advice to you would be to make sure you have what you're gonna do memorized, to the point that one of your friends can gently slap you across the face, and you'll still be able to get it out of your mouth.
some things don't change. You need to get on stage as much as possible and vary your stage experience as much as possible and not quit and take care of yourself and always question why you say the things you say and enjoy yourself. The context of history and technology just is what it is.
It takes 10 years to become funny, first of all. You don't start thinking about your voice until you REALLY realize that you're funny. I pretty much know who I am as a person, so that's why my voice is so real. Because I'm honest. It took me a long time to accept myself, people, and once I did, it was on and crackin.'
stop fuckin around. just get on stage. there's nothing else to do if you want to do stand up. you need to get on stage. figure that out and the rest will follow.
A lot of people want to get into comedy and talk about it, but you don’t realize the first step to getting into comedy is actually going to do it. You can’t do things that you don’t put actions behind. So sit down, take a piece of paper, write out your thoughts and then go to an amateur night and try them. If it doesn’t go well, see what worked, what didn’t work and go back and try it again. But don’t be a talker, be a doer.
I think moving to LA was huge for my career. For those young people, eventually you go to either NY or LA. Listen to your gut. If you're in NY and think it's where you should be, you should be there. Don't believe the crap about NY. LA isn't full of plastic or phony people. I've met some of the best people in LA. If you hang in and work your ass off, you'll one day pick your head up and have made progress.
Related posts tagged 'Relationship with other comics'
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Related posts tagged 'Relationship with other comics'
I would not go on twitter I would just approach the comic after the set and say something. But I knew he was leaving as I went on....
The point is, Dane Cook and I are cool. We talked it out and we are cool now and I've had a few good conversations. He and I basically put it this way: You're a comedian and I'm a comedian, I may not respect your comedy but I respect that you are a comedian. And that goes for me too.
Well, it starts with not taking yourself too seriously. I've never taken myself too seriously, which means that there's nothing I'm trying to guard or protect. I'm very honest with who I am, and a lot of times, the criticisms are spot-on. And when my friends are making fun of me, they love me. If it makes people laugh, I like it. Because it means I'm a part of the joke. That's a big thing young people should know - don't take yourself too seriously. Take your JOURNEY seriously, but not yourself. You're just a leaf on a very big tree. And your job should not be being a taker - you should rather be a giver. You should be in a position of service. If you're in a position of service - which mean...
no, a lot of people think i retired cause of Rogan. Anyone that knows me knows im not influenced very easily. even tho rogan is a super close friend. it was more the perfect storm of evrything. rogan, reebok, Dana, podcast success. just wasnt worth it to fight anymore.
We’ve always had a strange friendship, but I don’t think it was ever as icy as people thought it was publicly. We just almost never talked about it. Like, "Let’s just not. We’re just not gonna agree on certain shit, so let’s just not." It was a valuable friendship above and beyond whatever work we did together. He’s an important part of my life. So I don’t think that will ever really change.
I was closest with Mindy Kaling, and also least close with Mindy Kaling, on a minute-by-minute basis. And I wouldn't trade it for the word. Actually, I would trade it for the world. What am I talking about: I'd trade it for a more consistently positive relationship with Mindy Kaling. She's the best.
Tina Fey had probably the biggest influence on me other than my parents. She's just not afraid. I loved watching her work cause she was so brave. I was really scared when I got to 30 Rock, she was like "I don't give a fuck. Be you. If it's funny, it's in the script." and And watching 30 Rock, there's so much Tina there that it made me see how I should start being me more too. Started putting out more music and started not being as afraid to be me. Tina is a true gangsta. She don't give a FUUUUUUUCCCCKKKKKK. I put her against any chick in the game.
EDIT: "Against ANYONE in the game." She'd destory anything. If she started rapping, I'd quit. I don't want that.
OH MY GOSH. I think that there will never be anybody as funny as a standup, because he was so ACTIVE on the stage. And he did so many great impressions of real people, you know? Like the guy from the bar, all that stuff, and Richard and I were very good friends, I loved working with him, it enabled me to write one of the least attractive sketches on SNL, which was called "Job Application," in which I'm asking him a few questions as he's applied for a job, but all of my questions just break down into... what's the word? They all just become more and more racist, you know, and this is just a word association test Mr. Pryor or whatever your name is, so if I say "apple," you say "house," hahaha!...
Comedy is the weirdest thing in the world. You can’t practice it in your bedroom. You can’t explain timing. You can’t explain any of it. But it was the late, great Patrice O’Neal who said to me back then, “Dude, that’s not you up there.” I was like, “I know, I know.” Then all of the sudden I started telling my real stories and talking the way I really talked and people were saying, “What is he doing? He’s blowing it.” Twenty-six years later …
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