These two photos are from a shoot I did back in 2015 for a GQ article about how I took a dive into the world of stand up comedy. It’ll be a challenge just to get you to read this caption let alone the article, so I’ll give an abridged version of the story.. Basically, 2015 was a rough time for me on the career side of things. I was back in NY at the time and fully enjoying the blessings of family life on a healthy, daily basis. Yet, I was in a complete state of disarray as it pertained to my career and artistic future. I had put more effort and passion into a music project than ever before in the album I dropped the previous year (XIV:LIX which is streaming on iTunes btw), which didn’t take off how I had hoped it would. Un-admittedly discouraged and overtly uninspired, I needed something to breath life into the creative within me. And that’s where stand up came into play. It started with an open mic, which lead to classes, then more open mics and eventually working my way to showcases. I’ll never forget my first actual paid gig which was for 20 dollars. There were exhilarating times when I had complete strangers come up to me after shows and say how much they enjoyed my set. Then there were also dreadful sets where I could feel the crowd slipping away by the second and all I wished for was that I would just evaporate into thin air. Financially, I’m pretty sure I spent way more than I earned while pursuing this newfound path, but I enjoyed and cherished every bit of the journey. Fast forward to summer of 2017, I end up going to China where things took off beyond my wildest imagination and ended up shifting my focus to all the new and current opportunities. Reading some of your encouraging and loving comments under the last two clips I posted really reminded me of how much I enjoy doing stand up and it being an artform I hope to continue to hone and grow in. Maybe next Friday (and every Friday after) I’ll post some more clips! In the meantime, if you do find it worthy of being shared, make sure to tag friends and fam as I express my gratitude in advance. ??