The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz - South Beach Sessions - Jo Koy

Episode Date: August 21, 2025

Jo Koy makes moves and always brings the laughs. He has sold-out tours, sets new records with the upcoming first comedy event at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles (with Gabriel 'Fluffy' Iglesias), and even has holidays named after him... but what he really wants to do is make people laugh. From a hilarious story about betting on himself and producing his own special despite being told (repeatedly) no one wants it... to now multiple Netflix specials, breaking barriers in Filipino representation in entertainment and his pride in his cross-cultural comedy, Jo finds the ultimate joy in connecting with his audiences. Jo also gets real about his family: he tells Dan all about his military brat upbringing to working in entertainment just like his mother, and how humor got him through it all. Jo is currently on his "Jo Koy: Just Being Koy Tour", for upcoming dates, tickets, his bestselling book, and more, visit JoKoy.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You're listening to Draft King's Network. Searchlight Pictures presents The Roses, only in theaters, August 29th. From the director of Meet the Parents and the writer of Poor Things, comes The Roses, starring Academy Award winner, Olivia Coleman, Academy Award nominee, Benedict Cumberbatch, Andy Sandberg, Kate McKinnon, and Alison Janney. A hilarious new comedy, filled with drama, excitement, and a little bit of hatred, proving that marriage isn't always a bed of roses. See The Roses, only in theaters, August 29th. Get tickets now. This winter, take a trip to Tampa on Porter Airlines. Enjoy the warm Tampa Bay temperatures and warm Porter hospitality on your way there. All Porter fairs include beer, wine, and snacks, and free fast-streaming Wi-Fi on planes with no.

middle seats, and your Tampa Bay vacation includes good times, relaxation, and great Gulf Coast weather. Visit flyporter.com and actually enjoy economy. Welcome to another. Welcome to another version of the west coast south beach sessions joe coy is with us you can check out all of his comedy his book his tours his dates everything at joe coy dot com also he's got five netflix specials another one coming out soon and you're going to become the first comedian or second comedian depending on who opens uh with gabriel iglesias to sell out the local football stadium uh what is your relationship and thank you for joining us what is your relationship with understanding how

awesome weird it is that you're selling out stadiums with just your talent that you're selling out the forum uh madison square garden that's crazy right it's still a pitch pinch myself moment i think uh walking in it's like these arenas um like the kid the inner kid comes out of me and i just start looking at the pictures on the wall and i'm still in awe and uh yeah it's still just just like this these butterflies in my stomach i still haven't put a grasp on it still it feels like success though right you enjoy it as success what is your relationship i think i think well success is just being able to do what you want to do and this is just one of those things where it's like i can't grasp it it's like if i go to a comedy club that's a comedy club that's what i'm supposed to be i'm supposed to be

anywhere but i'm just saying like when you walk into an arena you're just like wow this is this is nuts So it's beyond anywhere where your dreams or expectations were. Where were your dreams? Like you're starting out and where was it? I started in Seattle. Well, Tacoma, Washington. But when you're from Tacoma, you say I'm from Seattle. It just makes things easier, right?

And then I saw Eddie Murphy delirious. I started listening to Richard Pryor tapes. And then I saw Eddie Murphy delirious. There's just something about that performance, you know, especially my age and hearing what he was talking about. I just related to it more. I just enjoyed it more. I thought the guy was Superman.

You know, I think I was 11. And I was like, I'm going to be a comedian. I'm going to be him. I can't wait to get out of high school. Is it just the funny or is it the prowling of the stage? Is it the way, the confidence that he had? Yeah, he was 21 when he was doing that. And he was acting like he's been doing it for 40 years, like the confidence on stage.

And the look on his face, like his facials, his act outs, his just everything about him. I just thought like, man, I want to be this guy. And then I went to CMLI when I was 15, like four years later, I'm in, or five years later, I'm in, it was called the Seattle Coliseum back then. It's called, it's called Climate Pledgerina now. But back in the day, it was called the Seattle Coliseum where the Sonics play. It was called Raw. That was the name of the tour. This was back in the day where you had to buy tickets on the phone.

They didn't have a ticketmaster.com. And you're too young to be at that show. Way too young. And I used my mom's credit card. You know, this is when people on the phone had to have this incredible talent to know the voice would match the name of the card. You know, they just trust you. It's like, what's your name again?

Josephine. Okay, this is you for sure. And then my name was Joe. And I remember I bought the tickets. The kiosk for Ticketmaster was in this department store called Bomb Marche. And I had to go there after school. I picked up my tickets at this at this kiosk and I had tickets to see Raw. And my mom drove me to Seattle that night.

Well, not that night, but months later drove me to see Eddie Murphy life. I was in awe. I remember sitting there and just looking up at this Coliseum like, what? but everyone's here to see this guy and you knew right before then that it's what you wanted to do what was attracting you to prior and Eddie Murphy these are outside did they seem like foreigners to you give you the way you were growing up I think what it was was I was so funny and uh like I was a military kid so I traveled a lot and I always had to rely on my funny to meet new people like I remember I moved from the Philippines to Tacoma And I remember my friends I had in the Philippines. I was so sad that day. But I remember telling myself when I get to Tacoma, I'm going to be so funny. Like, I'm going to be so funny.

Everyone's going to think I'm so funny. Everyone's going to want to be my friend. Like, I remember saying that to myself as a kid. You know, and that's the sixth grade. You know, like I remember at that point already, I was funny. And then when I moved to Tacoma, our neighbors that were down the street, even they were like, oh my god you're so funny and uh you should be a comedian i didn't know what a comedian was and they were like have you ever heard a prior and they took their dad's prior tapes and that's how i got

the prior tapes and i would listen to him in my room didn't know what stand-up was until that day and that's when i kind of like fell in love with the art the art form of being a comedian and then of course that's eddie murphy eddie you know here's another thing that i loved about Eddie like like I was already struggling with identity right like I'm half white half Filipino I'm just trying to figure out who I am you know every time everyone would ask me what I was no one knew what a Filipino was I had it was hours of describing what a Filipino was what the food is and but for some reason when I would watch like Eddie talk about his aunt bunny or his uncle Gus like for some reason I was like identifying I was

like that's kind of like my family you know like this is I'm getting this and I don't know that's what made me gravitate like gravitate towards Eddie you know what I mean just hearing like those stories and describing how the aunt would act or how the uncle would act I was like yeah I got aunts and I got uncles that act like that so I think that's what drawed me into Eddie so much so funny got you through childhood though all the transition oh big time yeah we it It was, it was, it was a lot of, a lot of, uh, uh, dysfunction in our family, you know, so comedy helped me, uh, um, um, um, deal with it, deal with like the trauma, you know, like that's, that's, those are my best memories is, uh, laughing as opposed to what was

happening in the house. What was happening in the house? What was happening in the, you know, we, we had a, my brother, he, you know, he had a, you know, he has mental problems you know what I mean he's he's in a hospital but when he was a kid it was it was pretty bad you know he was in and out of you know his mental hospitals you know he had a lot of problems growing up with my my mom and my dad a lot of cops you know what I mean a lot of uh my sister and my mom didn't get along so there was a lot of that a lot of fighting going on there so it was just it was just a very uh oh then my mom and dad divorced so there was just

a lot of things that a that a kid has to deal with and see and kind of just uh kind of bury it and not really see it in their head anymore right so we would go to i would go to comedy a lot that was kind of like my escape and laughter uh is something that you were taking out of the home and it was medicine like yeah how do you separate these two things you're living in a place that yeah that's hell unsafe it was yeah it was crazy because i grew up with it and so it wasn't i felt unsafe i just felt like that was what a house was like you know so i've i've saw it ever since i was a kid like you know i can go all the way back to illinois when we first started experiencing problems with my brother so i and i was only what for then but like for some reason i still remember everything

vividly in my brain you know so it's always been a part of my life so I it wasn't that I thought that my house was unsafe I just thought that was my house that's just how it is that's what families do and uh and comedy was just my escape you know I was the youngest so my mom kind of let me

be me I'll move away from this in a second and a relationship with your mother specifically but when you say you have stuff burned in from four years old at this time is the family community Does this stuff have a name at the time? Like a diagnosis of what it is that you're dealing with? That at that point it was just drugs when I was, you know, when I was four, you know. And that's that's my last memory of Illinois.

And this is back of the day where they would give like these like foam slippers when they would check you in. They would give you the foam slippers and they just had small medium and large. And I, you know, I always thought that was a cool thing because my brother would always like, hey, I got you some slippers. got you some slippers and he'd give me some slippers so I always remember that too so yeah it's just I don't know I don't know how to explain it you know that was just my life and uh and comedy helped me not think about it you know so you're traveling around a lot yeah your father's uh air force and discipline a lot of discipline is no no we were we were kind of a cool relaxed family my mom was cool my dad was really cool by the way in no way am i like saying that it was like

bad parenting you know what i mean it was just it was just we were dealt a a serious hand you know and and we had to we had to deal with it so i always tell my dad this i always go you know i you know i get mad i i'm mad at you for leaving you know what i mean but i also understand you know now that i'm a father i see i can i can see just like how hard it was for him to be a a young man at that time at 24 you know he was 24 25 when he married my mom and yeah it was a lot it was a lot a lot so i get it it's a lot but uh we're here well i should make the clarification for you when i said unsafe it's just dealing with mental illness in home you you've described your father as your hero and you are pure to be closer to eat to your mother

yeah yeah even stills oh for sure yeah and and so i mean that was you know you got to remember like you know like it's hard to explain to these kids now like i hate when people say that older people i was it's hard to explain to these kids now but it is it's like you know now like you can you can you can move anywhere you want in this in this world and and you can literally go to Facebook and just type in I'm a young half white half blah blah blah I would love to meet other people you know where can I go and it computer will tell you where people are where you can go get your kind of food at and you know what I mean uh it could it can help you build your your community right whereas my mom you're talking about

an immigrant that came into this country in the 60s, you know, where the climate, the racial climate was really hard and tense. And on top of that, here she is trying to find, you know, people that look like her, talk like her. I need friends that I used to have when I was a kid. And like I do this joke on stage where my mom would literally go to church and just look around and just try and find people that look like her and walk up to them at the end of church. you know what I mean and talk of Filipino you know like as funny as that is as a joke but I saw my mom do it you felt like outsiders we always felt and I felt even more outside because I was half you know I mean and here I am walking around with my my Filipino mom and you know I got all these different looking

features but it's like this is my mom so so it's like it's it's it's tough to be in a in that situation where you know she's just trying to find herself and then I I'm also trying to find us. Where are we? So that's why I always gravitated, like, to an Eddie Murphy talking about his aunt because I felt like, okay, that character's in my family. She's not black, but that obviously we can relate on that level. You know what I mean?

Like, that black family has a funny, crazy aunt. I have a funny crazy aunt, too. So, like, that was my way of identifying. Was there anything that gave you the conversation? confidence during this time as an outsider more than being able to make people laugh? Was there anything more? No, laughter was everything. Dance, you know what I mean? It was always entertainment for us. You know, my mom used to like I go right back to the church again, but that's where she found a lot of Filipinos. You know what I mean? A lot of Filipinos and they all became friends.

They're friends to this day, you know? And like my mom's best friend to this day is where she met at the church. and what they would do is every Sunday connected to the church was this thing called Knights of Columbus Hall so it was like this hall that was like

you could rent it out you could throw parties and they would rent it out and you know there were no Filipino restaurants in town so they would all bring potluck you know what I mean so we'd have all these

like different Filipino food you know cuisines on the table and then they would make the kids perform you know what I mean then they would play mahjong like it was this whole night of being filipino you know what i mean and i loved it and it was so cool because you're like oh this here we are and and it was kind of like our thing every like not every sunday but like it would be sunday of us just being us and feeling you know uh seen you know what i mean and then like meeting these other families and my mom would always make me

dance and my sister sing and yeah that that was that was uh that was kind of like my introduction into like performing so what was going on with mom that she was putting you in talent shows is it because you wanted to be in talent shows well she saw that I dance I was a B boy when I was a kid and you know I'd always dance in the living room and she's like oh yeah do that let's do that at the uh you know nights of calmes and she'd make me dance and make my sister sing because my sister always loved to sing and that was it that was kind of like our intro to performance because my sister became a singer you know she went to Vegas and she became like a like a lounge act you know she was

singing every single day like that was it's it's also uh it also helps you in your romantic partnership so yeah you gravitate toward uh you you're you gravitate toward people who like arts yeah yeah like i don't understand uh people that don't like uh people that don't like entertainment you know what I mean like I'm in love with all all of it and uh so it's kind of hard to date someone that's not into what I do like I got a especially laughter man laughter's so important to me like I just I can't I can't understand I don't understand how people just don't like to laugh I'm friends with John Lovitz and I used to open for John and we were eating at the this restaurant on Melrose and he just looked at me he goes you

know what I don't understand. I go, what? He goes, you know, I don't see how people don't see things funny. Like if someone falls, it's funny. If someone dies, it's funny. I immediately go to the funny. Don't you?

And I was like, yeah. He goes, I know, we're not weird. They're weird. And he's right. Like I always, when he said that, I was like, yeah. man like I I guess it's like our our coping device I guess I don't know but like when someone if some some bad trauma like if I see something on the news I immediately

think of the funny I don't go to the oh like I'll do it but like in my head I'm like oh I got this one and would you call it a coping mechanism would you I don't know or or a blest I like to say a blessing as well because I don't want to sit in that spot. I don't want to be in that mindset, you know, like, I'd rather think of the funny. And I, and I even think, like, someone that is hurt or injured would also like to think of the funny. Because, like, when I got hurt, like, I literally just got into an accident, you know, I'm, I have like this electric motorcycle. I don't even like to say motorcycle because it's an electric motorcycle. So I don't even say it's a motorcycle. But it's a step beyond scooter.

It's a, it's a, it's a, it's a little bit faster than a VESPA. You know? But you don't want to say that either. But I don't want to say that either, even though I have four of them. So I really do, it's ridiculous. Why do you need four of them? Because all of us like to ride them. Okay.

So like even when I, like I have visitors come over. Yeah, we're a family, we're a family of Vespas. And yeah, but even the minute I crashed, like my whole arm is scraped up right now, my hip is killing me, but the minute I landed on the ground. And I was with my, my son's uncle. It was like a joke right away, you know what I mean? Like, it was like, how did I look?

You know what I mean? Or something, something that had nothing to do with the blood coming out of my arm and the branch sticking in my pants. Would the people who love you accuse you of using it to avoid intimacy going a layer deeper because you just, you've gotten so good at like, how do I make the funny thing, make all of this light? Because I imagine, I imagine some of the funny. that was born in your household was at least in part

because the family could use it. Yeah, I, you know what? I just, I don't care if someone just doesn't get it. You know, like, what, I think my biggest turn off is like, are you always joking around? I'm like, and I'm like, are you not? Like, yeah, man, like, yes, it's God's medicine, you know? Like, when you laugh, like, it's proven,

like you feel better. You live longer. It's the endorphins run through your body at that point. Like it's euphoric sometimes. You ever laugh so hard? It's like, man, this is better than sex, man. Like where you're crying,

you just can't control it. Like, that's addicting, man. Bottle that up and sell that on the street. So where are the places where you've felt it most, where you're moved with maximum gratitude because you can't believe you're connecting with these people. I'll give people some of the history.

You sold 23,000 tickets in Honolulu, 11 shows sold out. You sold out Madison Square Garden. You sold out what I will forever call the forum and just the forum. Yeah. Like which are the ones? Six forums. Six, excuse me. Let's go.

Forgive me. I'm sorry. Six times. So what were the, what are the ones you look at and you can be moved to tears by gratitude at the idea that the journey has ended up here? And you never, because when I was asking you the dreaming, question. I was asking you what your dreams look like, not when you're listening to Eddie Murphy, but what you thought success would look like and if you'd exceeded it. Yeah, I think the big,

the big moment that that made me really emotional is sitting in the same seat that I sat in when I watched Eddie Murphy at the Coliseum, which is now Climate Pledge. And I literally go, Joe, because I sold out Climate Pledge. And I literally took myself. onto my seats and I go Joe this is where I sat when I watched Eddie Murphy when I was literally like your age I was literally 16 I think and I was sitting right here and I remember looking up in that section going I can't believe those people are here too like that's that's crazy that they're way up there and they're going to watch this as well and uh and it was just that was that moment where I was like wow I was I was 16 looking up at that at the roof and here I am

looking up at the roof and it's my show now so that was cool and being able to share it with your son with my son yeah well who would understand or would try to understand but how could he possibly understand you've made an easier life I think he understands now but when I was coming up when he was a kid that was the heart like telling someone you're a community to this day is like man it's like saying you're I don't even know like you're from middle earth it's literally the equivalent the minute you go I'm a comedian's whole it always starts off a little chuckle oh well wow how's that going it's like it's like they you know it's like it's very well man I'll buy your house cash if you want that's aggressive

yeah but it's just it's almost like like you're laughing at my career choice it's like really like but it's it's always like that and and I get it but um you know but it's been my whole career since I started in 1989 it's I've been I've been telling people I've been a a comedian since that day and it's it's always been like oh all right well um okay where do you do this that it's like but you know now I mean it's it's different now it's like you know people know me now and you know but it's just comedy comedian when I had my son as a father it almost is like it's a it hurts it hurts when you get a response like that because it's like hey I'm providing for my son and uh and it's a really amazing job I see the world I'm going to places that people

you know, save up all year. I'm literally being flown out to tell a joke. I'm just saying. And, um, I'm just saying. And then, but on top of that, I also have a son that doesn't know what the hell I'm doing. You know, like he, here he is on career day, you know, and he doesn't want dad to come because he doesn't know what that is. You know, he's got, you know, we'll go to Target and we got, you know, customers walking up and, you know, same punchlines to my son. And my son's like, what?

Like, what is that? Like, what is that dad? Like, I remember clearly like, oh, he doesn't know what I do. I like, you know, and it hurt, you know. And then he got to this, you know, when he graduated, when he got out of high school, you know, I was just like, hey, won't you come on the road with me? I'll pay you. You know, dad needs help with the, with the merch. And he started doing it.

And then that's, that's when he saw it. That's when he was like, oh, my dad grinds. So how old is he at this point? When I took him on the road, he just got out of high school. So it was 18. All right. So the first 18 years of his life, every time you're telling someone, you're a comedian who doesn't know who you are, you're feeling their reaction requires almost an apology

from you because they're condescending you on, that's not a real job. You're not an adult. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And you're a dad, you know, and I'm also getting that for my mom as well. You know, my mom is also like, okay, when's this going to stop? Really? Of course. It's like, when's this going to?

You don't have benefits. You don't have insurance. You're a, you know, your son. Are you thinking of his future? Like, you know, I say that stuff on stage, but that's really my mom. That's literally what she'll say to me. And it's like, no, this is what I'm going to do. Believe me, this is what I want to be.

I can't be a nurse. I barely passed high school. So I'm not going to be a nurse mom. So let's get rid of that dream of your kid being in the hospital business. And now I'm now I'm in the business of sending my nieces and nephews to nursing school. I just want you to know that. Big shout out to Jamie. She graduates August 23rd.

I just want everyone to know. You've made it in a career. This comedian has paid for a lot of tuitions. Is that why you did the documentary nurse unsurred? Seen? Is it because it was close to home somewhere? Nurse and scene, well, one, Michelle is an amazing director, Filipino director, that, you know, she self-funds a lot of her own stuff. But she puts out things that, you know, that talk about our community and our culture. And I just saw a woman that, you know, put her blood and

or sweating her tears into a very meaningful project that represents not only our people, but, you know, like, I have people in my family that are nurses. I have a lot of nurses in my family. So when that project came on my table, I was like, I got to help. You know what I mean? I got the money. Like, let me help her. And so, yeah, I had to. I had to be a part of that because it's us. It's who we are. And if more people, more people see it, more people be a more and you know it's nothing worse than not being seen man like just like you ever go to work and just be like hey how are you it feels good when someone says that to you you know what I mean what'd you do this weekend like imagine like growing up in a country where your job is to save lives

help people when they're sick take care of them make sure they get their medicine on time and then you go home and you turn on the TV and you watch a TV show about a hospital and you don't see any of your people being represented on TV you know from general hospital the state almost fire to whatever it is ER like whatever it was when I was growing up

I remember just going where's the Filipinos where are they because I know I got 40 of them in my family so I just want to know why they're not here so that to me is like another reason why I was so, like, of course I'm going to support this. You know what I mean?

Like, I got to get behind this. And it's a great story, by the way. There's also a story that's told. So if you could watch it, it'd be great if you can watch it. But that's another reason why I did it. We're at the tail end of August, which means summer is almost over. Well, now that baseball is sprinting towards its playoffs and football is here, it's time to enjoy your favorite sports with your favorite light beer.

Watching sports has always been a part of middle of time. It's been that way for the past 50 years. Whether it was a long weekend or a full-on vacation, it's the perfect time to get the crew back together. And since 1975, Mill of Light has been the go-to way to stock the cooler and celebrate those moments. This year marks 50 years of miller time. 50 years of great taste, great friends, and unforgettable memories.

Brewed for flavor with simple ingredients like malted baldy. It delivers that rich, balanced coffee flavor and golden color that just hits different. Miller Light, great taste, 96 calories. Go to millerlight.com slash beach. B-E-A-C-H to find the delivery options near you, or you can pick up some miller like pretty much anywhere they sell beer. Cheers to 50 years of miller time. Celebrate responsibly.

Miller Brewing Company Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 96 calories, and 3.2 carbs per 12 ounces. The rivalries, the bands, the upsets, college football is back. Think you know the game? Put it to the test with Draf King Sportsbook and turn picks into big payouts. New customers bet $5 and get $200 in bonus bets

instantly. With live betting, rivalry week boosts, and more, Draft King Sportsbook has everything you need to own your Saturday. Download the Draft King Sportsbook app and use Code Beach. That's code Beach for new customers to get $200 in bonus vets instantly when you

bet just five bucks. In partnership with Draft King's Sportsbook, the crown is yours. Gambling problem, call 1-800 gambler. In New York, call 877-8-Y or text Hope & Y in 467-369. In Connecticut, help is available for problem gamble and call 888-78-9-777 or visit ccpg.org. Please play responsibly on behalf of Boot Hill

Casino and Resort in Kansas. 21 and over, agent eligibility varies by jurisdiction, void in Ontario. Bonus bets expire seven days after issuance. For additional terms and responsible gaming resources, see dkng.com slash audio. I'm Cuban and I identify with some of what it is that you're talking about, although there was Cuban representation on television. I don't identify, though, with your mother not supporting what you were doing, even though with immigrants and exiles, often you have to choose the safer paths of law and go do something serious.

Go be an architect. Go be a doctor. Well, my mother supported it. My father wanted me to be an engineer. It's the safer route to go. But my mother supported that I wanted to do writing and the arts. And so I was allowed to do something. I got enough support at home.

I'm surprised to hear you say, as close as you are to your mother, And as much success as you've had, that she's like, when you're going to move it along and do something serious with your life, son? Yeah. Well, you know, I think that's a cultural thing, right? Like, I think just in our culture alone, I think our generation was a little bit tougher and school was more, you know, that was their way out of the situation that they're in, right? So it's like school, nursing, get out and help the family when you get out. No, mom, I'm going to drop out in jokes.

Yeah, ain't no one's going to do a joke. I didn't give birth to you to be a clown. You know what I mean? So go to college and help. And, you know, in her brain, that was, you know, you go to college. You're going to have a safe, secure job. And financially, you'll be, you know, okay. And you'll be able to help the family.

So there's nothing wrong with her way of thinking. I get it. but uh it takes someone like me to be like no i can't i can't like not do this dream you know i mean and there's a lot of people in my family that even right now i can you know i'm not going to say any names but there's people in my family right now that are you know that are very talented but they are going into the nursing business or going into the you know going to college and going deep into college and and I'm supporting it and I love it. I love you. Okay. Your uncle loves you. I'm going to support it. I love the master's program. Let's do it. I thought it was stop after the first

degree, but you want the master's. So get the masters. Does it come with a belt? Does it come with something? You are providing for everybody because the funny, um, makes for good business, but you didn't imagine sold out shows all over the world, did you? Not like this. Not like, not to this degree. I don't know, man. I was, I was, I was driven. I remember when I did the Tampa Improv.

And, uh, and this is kind of like my third year as like, like a touring improv comic. This is when I started touring heavily. And, uh, and I was at the Tampa Imprope. and it was a Thursday night and the manager held out was handing out two for ones

and I and I and this is crazy like I tell all my comic friends this but I really looked at it and I go don't don't hand those out and he goes why

and I go he goes we should fill the room and I go yeah but we're going to fill them up with two for ones which means they'll always be two for ones like I'd rather just win them with my funny

and if they come back next year they'll bring another person with them and then that's how we'll build but it'll be a slow build but if we do two for ones then I'm always going to be the Thursday night two for one comic he goes are you sure and I go don't do it all weekend don't do two for ones anymore just let me go up and do it myself if they come back they'll bring people and literally that Thursday night I think I had like I'm not even making this up probably 15 people paying you You know what I mean? And I remember the the Friday show was maybe 40 people.

Like, but I didn't care. I was like, we're not going to, we're not going to two for one. I'm going to build this on my own. And I used to make my own merch. And on Sunday, if I had leftover merch and I didn't sell it, I would give it to everybody. Because it's like, what good is it going home with me? Like, let's leave it in this town.

Let's leave my merch in this town in Tampa. Let's leave it here. Whoever these people are like me. So if they wear it, they're going to talk about me. They're going to be what. So I would literally, I would make sure I didn't go home with any merch. So I did I see this happening? I don't know if I did.

Not to this extent. But did I, do I think that there was potential of it happening by what I was doing? Yes. I knew I could build like this map. massive fan base if I just did it this way and not the other way. The two-for-ones would not sell out in an arena. So take me to 2016, 2017, where you're making the decision to pour all 27 years of your savings into, I'm going to make my own special then.

If people aren't going to believe in me the way that I believe in me, I'm just going to do it all myself. Big shout out to my manager, Joe, because don't get me wrong, I was extremely, let me Can I just let me let me let me let me there's there's some so 2017 I I decide to shoot my special myself with my own money and I had to because I had no other option Netflix turn me down and by the way I love you Netflix and you know they they don't like hearing this story but you know it's a part of my life but Netflix has been nothing but good to me they've been great to me but good to comedy and yeah they've been great

to comedy and not only that um it's also a business decision like you know why are you going to get offended when this big giant corporation doesn't want to buy whatever product that you're selling there's nothing wrong with that that's what makes them successful you can't get mad at selling for for wisely you can get emotionally hurt though you can get emotionally hurt yes I get it but it also should drive you you know what I mean like you to to think that you're uh you know just I'm entitled to to this. It's like, okay, yeah, you can say that all you want, but you don't own the company. You know what I mean? You don't. Like, you can be the best basketball on the play,

best basketball player on the planet. You can't go? Can I get to Nike's? That's eight years of perspective. It's not how you felt when you're trying to sell your first special. That's true. That's true. And so now I'm going to give you why I was upset because I'm doing these improvs and I'm breaking records. You know what I mean? Like there's plaques on the walls right now. Like to this day, if you go to certain improvs, you'll see, you go to Chicago, you can go to, you go to Irvine, Brea, Houston. You'll see like these things where they say, Joe Coy, you know, 20 shows sold out in a row, you know, 30 shows. I don't know, 107 sold out shows. So like, there were some places where I would fly there for two

weeks. Like I had to. I had to, I couldn't do just four days worth of shows. I had to do 10 days the shows and stay there on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, when there is no show, when the room is dark. And then so like, I didn't understand what, why. I was like, wait a minute, hold on, man. Like, I'm selling out the country right now. Like, and I, you don't want this and I have to shoot it myself. Like, that's why I was meant. That's what lit the fire. And yes, I was sad. Of course, who wouldn't be? You know what I mean? uh all of it i was offended i was mad i was but i took that anger and instead of like lashing out and going public i was like you know they got to have my manager you know what

mean because he even he was like am i great agent you know matt they were both like no we can do this you make it let's do it you know and and uh we invested we we put the money in got these cameras you know i don't know what this is you know what I mean you got lights I was like what and I became an editor you know we we we invited Michelle Caputo and Shannon that's my director my my my producer and they even I had to convince them to shoot me like I they in D.C so they we they came out to DC and watched me perform they walked backstage and like yeah we're gonna do this with you let's go and and that was the team and and we went shot that you know there's

another little piece of story that I'm not telling you, but there was another, you know, there was something else that happened that made me just like, wow, are you kidding me right now? And, um, come on, give it up. Can you give it up? Is it you have to be careful. You don't have to give any names. There was a, uh, there was a part where, uh, you know, everything was up and running and they were like, hey, we heard your, you know, Netflix is like, oh, we heard you, you have it that you're getting ready to shoot it. We just really want you know that we're not interested. So you know how heartbreaking that is to tell you that right now?

Like, like, wait, what? We just spent so much money on this camera. You don't even want to see it. Like, so just to reiterate, we're not. We really don't want it, man, like at all. I don't know what part. We're just clarifying. And I remember backstage like what and Matt and Joe are like just go out there and kill it man like yo they if you kill it there's no denying like just go do what you do and and literally I remember I did this one joke and it was off the top of my head and I just remember I go oh I got this like it was at the beginning of my set I was like oh it's overweight like I knew right when I said nerves dissolved well yeah not only the nerves but I knew they were going to buy it I was like this is this is

this is undeniable like this is an undeniable set like I just remember I was like all everything was hitting on so like everything my routine but like my ad libs like I was making stuff up off the cuff and it was blending with the with the routine and I was like oh this is this is they have to buy and I remember I went in I even help edit I've never edited before and that's the cool thing about Michelle and Chan and they were like come in show us what you don't like and cut let's go and I was like all right and I was in there and now I'm an editor and I knew how to edit

and I started piecing things together and we put together this special and then we brought it in and literally the minute we brought it in like 30 minutes later after they watched it you know what I mean like they called like don't shop around we want it and I was like

why do you tell me that a year ago why you tell me that a year ago but they bought it and it's been history ever since and I love you Netflix thank you for making me become what I am now because if they if they would have said yes I probably would have never been this editor that I am now this you know now I know how to direct and like they they opened up a

can of worms for me I made the mistake of interrupting you you're in the middle of saying so you were going ad-liff off the top you felt something you remember thinking yeah yeah I got it first joke but was there are you remembering the joke because I interrupted oh yeah yeah no it's all good I just said elevate the feet elevate the feet and when I did that I was like oh I was like that's good when you look so when you see it I'm sorry when you see it if you watch it it's called live from Seattle I say elevate the feet elevate the feet what are you stupid when I said that I was like oh that was good that was good take me through the fear and the doubt though of the spending all the savings and having to do it

yourself yeah it was it was a lot it was a lot of uh I didn't to be honest I didn't care like like the money didn't even matter to me I knew I was going to be able to pay them back I knew I was going to you know I knew in the books already like my how much money I had you know what I mean I knew this was going to be gone now but it will come back fast you know what I mean and I had that much confidence in what you were making yeah no doubt in what you were making even though you were being told no yeah and you had to finance it yourself it seems foolhardy to not have any doubt delusional confidence and I'm not saying it's not earned but it seems foolhardy to not have any doubt yeah I had no doubt like I knew like like I knew my routine was I'm crushing everywhere you know I mean like I got to document this so I I looked at it as are you we even remember saying we'll put it on YouTube like I remember that was our option like you know what if If no one takes it, we'll put it on YouTube.

And we were like, I remember we were like, things blow up on YouTube. We'll put it on YouTube. We started, you know, looking at all the people that blew up on YouTube. We were like, oh, you blew up on YouTube and you blow up on it. Yeah, it'll be fine. Like, so I was like, you know what? As long as I can get a professionally made, like a very beautifully made special, an hour special, like, I'm going to be all right. And I knew I could pay the money back because I, I,

you know i already knew the rest of my year my calendar year i was like okay this this is what i need right here i need at least six months and i'll get it all back you guys i promise i'll get it all back but yeah it was a lot there was a lot i had zero i had you know there was nothing left after that but no fear no doubt that's crazy please explain it to me i don't understand how you're looking at a zero you're investing in your future and comedy which is rife with insecurity and a very variety of different places yeah the business of it is really hard it's three decades of your life savings that's going down to zero yeah yeah I didn't I didn't care I didn't I don't know I was always into like putting money back into the business you know I

mean so it's like even like my merch it's like I didn't care I looked at it as it's gonna it's gonna pay me back that's all that was and I knew I needed it I needed this hour, especially this one. Oh, and I knew there was a time crunch because the jokes, you know, the stories about my son, he's getting older now, you know what I mean? So it's like these aren't going to make sense. Like if I do this in two years, my son's going to be seven, you know what I mean? But right now, we're on the cusp of four or five right now, which means the two-year-old jokes are going to work.

But if I wait another two years, it's going to be like, what are you doing? But you're just telling me that you're so resolute in the conviction of knowing that the universe has ordained, this is what I'm supposed to be doing. There are no other choices for me. Lafter is what I've got to chase. You understand why I'm a little befuddled by the amount of conviction you have before others have told you. I know you got the sold out places, but you need the corporate support or could feel like comedy. to that point has always needed

corporate support because it doesn't come with health benefits. I knew how important Netflix was at that point because this is when Comedy Central was still on the air

kind of like still kind of like the stand-up capital you know what I mean like they were you know stand-up comics wanted to have a Comedy Central special

but Netflix was just coming up like 2015, 2016 they started doing this thing where they were licensing. I'm only saying this because I investigated, but they were licensing stand-up. They didn't have their own. They didn't own it. You know what I mean? They weren't in the area

of producing stand-up specials. They were licensing at that point. And I noticed that they licensed mine from Comedy Central. And Comedy Central didn't have like a streaming platform yet, I don't think. I'm talking nonsense right now. I don't know the legit. But let's just say they didn't have the platform that Netflix had. I felt like when you talk nonsense with a jazz hand in there, it's distracting. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It's magic. It's magic, man.

Logistics. So, so, uh, they, they, they got my special and they put it on Netflix, right? So they licensed my special. It was the one, it was, uh, it was, it was, don't make them angry. Yeah. It was don't make them angry. And they played it. And I didn't know what was going on, but I was, this is, I think Twitter was still

a thing back then. And I remember looking at my Twitter and I'm just seeing all these areas of the world asking when I'm coming to perform. Just saw your special. When do you come above blah, blah, blah. Just saw your special. When you come in Australia, just saw your special. When you come to Zimbabwe?

I'm making these up, by the way. When are you coming to? Not all of them. You're not making all of them. not actually to be honest but uh but yeah that they were saying that you know when are you come into da-da when you come and i was like what is this and um and i noticed my following was getting bigger i didn't know what was going on and then i was like is comedy central playing my special again like what's going on like what is all this love and it was happening for weeks

like just this thing of people DMing me and and uh talking about don't make them angry I didn't have Netflix at the time and then my sister had Netflix and I remember when I moved into my place that's how I got the Netflix and that's when I saw my Joe Coy on and I was like oh my God

that's where this is coming from it's Netflix and then it stopped all of a sudden it just stopped like everyone stopped DMing me like I wasn't getting the following like it was and then I was like what the hell

And then I went to Netflix and it was gone. I was like, oh my God, why is it gone? Like, why did, and then I found out that Comedy Central went into the streaming world and they took their content back. And I was like, oh, man. And that's, that, that's why I knew I have to get on Netflix. I have to. This, this is a must.

So when they announced, I think it was 2016, that they were going to have original specials. They were going to make specials. I remember talking to Joe and Matt. I go, we have to be on that first leg. We have to be in the first run. It's a must. Not the second run. We need to be in the first block that they make.

And that's, sorry. And that's why it was so important to me. I think that's why it was just like this thing. There was a drive where I was like, no, I have to be in the first block and I have to be in it. What do you know about your connection with your audience? that the rest of us don't or couldn't know based on whatever is the most meaningful kind of compliment that you get most often from your audience beyond,

he's funny? I just love it when people that aren't Filipino, you know what I mean, identify, you know, with the stories that I tell about, you know, my childhood. And they go, my mom, My mom's just like your mom. I fucking, I love it, man. Like, it just, it turns me on.

It's my favorite compliment. It's because it's exactly what I wanted. Like, when I talk about my mom, I'm not making fun of my mom. You know what I mean? I'm doing the best impersonation of my mom. Like, no one sounds like my mom better than me. You know what I mean?

I have her down. I've been doing it for 50 years. I'd love to see you talk to her. Yeah, yeah. I'd love to see you as her talking to her. Her mannerisms, her facials, her hands, just everything. Her over-the-top confidence, how strong she is. You know what I mean?

She got a mouth on her. And she'll take anyone down in this room. She'll take anyone down. You can never belittle her. You can never down-talk her. She will always be the bigger person. I got all that. And when I tell those stories, they're all real stories.

Yeah, they're embellished. That's what comedy is. But like talking about my sisters, you know, you know, and her getting into a fight and her kicking my sister out of the house, that's not a funny topic. That's something I really had to witness and watch. And, you know, I had to talk about it, you know. So, you know, talking about her disciplining me, her making me lunch, like all those are real stories. Her getting into a fight with a shoe salesman. Like those are all real things.

Her putting Vicks on my eyes. you know like those aren't like i'm not making that up that's really what happened and i'm doing the best version of what happened and to hear like someone that's other you know i mean like a black woman coming up to me or a puerto rican man coming up to me or like this white kid walking up to me with a a video game controller going my mom plays video games the same way your mom plays video games that that makes me so happy because it's not about the race it's not about the ethnicity or the culture it's just a mom being a mom it's like my mom's Filipino his mom's white and they both talk shit when they play video games that's it that's what the world's all about and I was

all met through laughter that's it there's no difference there's no difference between the two they're both moms raising kids that's it that's it that's all you need to hear and that and that that's why I love when I when I look at the cosmetic makeup of my audience I'm like this is beautiful you know I mean here I am at the form you know and I see every color of the rainbow just six times sold out not once six times sold out I I am surprised to hear a couple of things in what it is that you said I would think that you understand that the greatest compliment you're getting is the origin story of where your love of comedy began, where a black

man's family is what introduced you to, wait a minute, my family's like that. But I'm also surprised that the Filipino connection doesn't resonate for you first there just because I would think you would take great pride from tattoos on being able to be representation for your people in a way that's that's hugely fulfilling beyond like laughter is one thing uh but in terms of legacy and whatnot to be representation for your people yeah is also pretty special oh i love it i love it i think you know that's my my biggest joy is you know i'm vicariously living out my mom's uh you know what how am i trying to say this her going to people and asking them Filipino is like I'm now doing that for her you know what I mean like she don't have to ask

anymore you know I mean like like they're coming out of the woodwork now mom you know what I mean like you're seeing a lot of us now and uh you know yeah you know it had to get that Netflix special out there to be able to do this but yeah I love I love being able to say I'm Filipino and and now I got people like this generation going yeah that's that's that's that's us right there that's us and instead of my mom going are you us you know what I mean like that's the difference you know she lived in a time where she couldn't turn on the TV and see someone like me doing the jokes that I'm doing. And now

she is. And not only is she, but there's a lot of people. Hey, so what did you want to talk about? Well, I want to tell you about Wagovi. Wagovi? Yeah, Wagovi. What about it? On second thought, I might not be the right person to tell you. Oh, you're not? No. Just

ask your doctor. About Wagovi. Yeah, ask for it by name. Okay. So, why did you bring me to the circus? Oh, I'm really into lion tamers. You know, with the chair and everything. Ask your doctor for Wagovi by name. Visit wagovi.ca for savings.

Exclusions may apply. I read some quotes from you that said for 14 years, you didn't discuss either your mother or very much about Filipino. Why is that about being Filipino? Because you got to look at the generations, right? Like, you know, you always see like a comic go, oh, well, you know, it was a different time back then. well it was a different time back then you know what I mean and so you know you know I came up

during a time when you know the the Friday and Saturday night show at the comedy club was labeled the white night that was called white room that was the white night that's when you know that's when the white people come out that's when the white you know I mean oh the comics are going to be white you know I mean and that's not even I'm not even making that shit up you know you can ask any comic you wanted a ethnic night you had to do an off night when they turned the lights off you know what I mean oh Tuesday night Tuesday night when there's no business here we have a black night there it's called fat Tuesdays but with a pH you know what I mean you know what I mean that's at the comedy store and that's it and we were knocking it down by the way that's one of my

names on the door like I was doing fat Tuesdays you know I mean at the store or chocolate sundays It wasn't that long ago. Yeah, it wasn't that long ago. People think, well, and now you got to remember, I started 89, so it was even harder to get in. You know, look at the, so that's just how it was to get into comedy, but just imagine what I saw on TV as a kid, you know what I mean? And what I had to sit and laugh at as a kid, because my representation with my cartoons, like I still have somewhere the old Looney Tunes cartoons. you'll see a little Asian guy holding two buckets of water on his thing with his teeth bucked out and you know glasses and just walking and then here I am watching it with you know my friends that aren't

Asian and they're laughing and of course I'm like yeah that's I guess we're laughing at that and you know sublimely I'm being programmed to think that's what that's how I'm supposed to be represented you know I mean you you take on all those things and then you know now I'm trying to get into these rooms where it's like, oh, you're Asian. Sorry. Well, then what makes you laugh? Oh, I know what makes you laugh because you programmed me to know what makes you laugh when I was a kid.

Right. So let me do those, right? Is it my fault? No. That's, that's, I mean, you can go back with any ethnicity. How are you programmed? You know what I mean? Look how Latinos were represented.

We're not, I'm not mad at it, but it was like, that was the only opportunity they had to get on TV. you know what I mean they had to do it you know I mean you think they you know like it's just that that's why when you first go in it's like look I'm just happy to be in this club you know I mean you know even though Thursday night is Asian invasion night that's the last at the I'm not making this up you guys if you guys think I'm being racist Asian I'm not the one it was called Asian invasions at the at the laugh at the laugh factory or was it the improv either one it didn't matter but one of the institutions had an

Asian invasion because Asian rhymed with invasion and that and now and we're invading comedy it was just like what them yeah man so it's just like that's what that's those were the those were our boundaries those those were the doors that were in front of us that we had to knock down so it's like you're trying to you're trying to tell me to get into this room and talk about my mom at this point it's not it's not gonna work you know what i mean but i will slowly introduce asian comedy you know me i was doing it i was doing the easy asian comedy you know i mean the stuff that i grew up watching and then and it all came down to the we it was the wee controller that that set

it off i was a regular at the laugh factory right and when i was a regular at the laugh factory i think I don't know about 13 years in at that point because I started 89 and I was a regular at like 2002 so I'm not good at math so I think that's 13 yeah so right around 13 years I'm a regular at the laugh factory 2002 2003 and uh my my story's all messed up to whatever let's just say my son has a we at this point so whatever year that is 2005 I guess I'm 54 you guys chill nobody yeah nobody cares I know I'm trying to do the math right you're you're getting stuck on the math story the Wii is this is so this important part of the story is I'm a regular at the lap factory and um I buy my

son a Wii and my mom never played a video game in her life you know I mean because but this one was easy for it because it was just hand movements so she was like oh I like this and she started bowling with my son and she's killing them. Now she's playing tennis with my son. She's killing him. And she's talking. Like she's talking shit. And I'm watching my, I remember sitting on the couch watching my mom play the Wii with my son. And like my son is just like getting mad and she's talking shit. She's throwing the, she's throwing the controller down and like, oh, next game. Who's the, I need someone better, better competition. And then, uh, and I remember I went and performed. And I just

did that. I just talked about it. I didn't even like write anything. I just ad-libbed start to finish. It takes you a year to write a special roughly, right? Because you're going to be meticulous about every word. Here you're totally free. Talking about her, telling stories. And now you're listening. And I remember, I remember her doing tennis. And she said, game over. And I remember I did that on stage. And the crowd went crazy. And I was like, what? I go, really? Okay. Well, I got a lot more than that. And that's when it just started. I just started doing all kinds of stories about my mom. Just like, here, you like that one? You're going to love this one. You like that one. You're going to love this one. And then that's when that all started. It was with the we. Did it also loosen up your process where you go from, you know, sculpting every sentence to your ad liber? I was always an ad liber. I always wrote like that. So like whatever it was I was talking about, it was just like, loose. It was always loose

freestyle. Like that's how I always came out with it. But it wasn't actually, it wasn't actually loose. The performance, if it's taking you a year to write a special, it's because you're making it look natural and organic is rehearsed. It's, it's, in this case, you're talking about going on stage and feeling something open in your process. Yeah. Because you're just telling stories about your mom and it doesn't require a year of of practice yeah yeah did it open anything up there the ability to be free

i think i think that that what that oh no no i always ad-lived my routines what i'm trying to say is that that was when uh the the stories about my mom that's when that became like a thing where i was like oh we'll do more these and that process opened up because you were intentional for 14 years about not talking about that stuff, right? Well, I just, yeah, I didn't, I didn't want to do, don't even wrong, I was doing jokes about my mom, but they were the easy jokes, you know what I mean? I wasn't doing any storytelling jokes.

I was doing like, more like, Filipinos talk like this, Filipinos do that. Like, it was the easy, basic, everyone, anyone that is Filipino will do that joke. You know what I mean? Like, they do it at home. Like the uncle introduced you to that joke. you know what I mean but the stories were like this is like I would have never in a million

years talked about my mom like I just wasn't there yet I didn't know how to do that yet just like to this day I'm still struggling on my brother like people always they always go oh you got a brother and I'm like my brother's the funniest one in the family like he is so damn funny if I were to call my brother he would literally knock out two jokes and then it'll be a hard talk after that you know what I mean it'll turn into like this thing where it's hard to talk to my brother, but his initial, like the minute, like the minute he answers, it's like, Joe, I got to tell you this. You're going to love this one. And then he'll do this thing and we both die laughing. But he's always been the funny one. He's, he's funny. So he's been

the funny. He was always funny. He's just like quick witty. He's like my mom, very quick. You I mean. And I am too. I'm very quick. But it's just my, my brother just has this quick wit. and, you know, he was always cool. My brother was always cool. He always dressed fly, you know, and he was just that guy. And so I want to talk about that. I want to, but I don't know how. I'm trying to figure that out.

It's very touchy for me. You know, I've done it a couple times where I get emotional on stage. I don't want to do that. You know what I mean? I still want to make sure people laugh, but also go, hey, we have someone like that too in our family. So it can't be both, huh? What an interesting connection. point that might be in terms of vulnerabilities but you you don't want to get emotional

during i don't mind getting emotional but it's the kind of emotional that happens with my like i talk about my stepdad all the time i get emotional i love it you know and and i still knock it out the part you know his stories are great too you know my stepdad is from west virginia so i do a joke on coming in hot where i go you know he's the most indirect racist you know what i mean he's indirectly racist he'll he'll compliment you know my mom and say like the most racist thing in the world like I know I married your mom I'm like why because I love Chinese food I'm like she's Filipino whatever rass is rass like that is like that is literally Fred sergeant fred harrison he literally would say stuff like that

like that's his joke by the way rice is rice he always said that oh whatever man ross is rass but he's from the mountains of west virginia all his uncles died in the coal mine like you can't explain his journey man like you can't tell him that that's wrong he obviously loves my mom like he will kill anyone that came close to my mom like that's the man I want next to my mom you know I mean he loves sports he's a lakers fan he's a magic Johnson fan like he just says Chinese food is why he loves my Filipino mom like all right I get it you're the most loving racist I've ever met and you're my stepdad and I love you so but talking about I am like you know all get emotional you know he just passed but like but I love it because like I love talking about him but my

brother's a different kind of emotion you know I mean because I know he's you know he's he's he's been dealt a tough hand and it and it's like and it's you know I just want to be very careful when I talk about my brother because I love my brother he's he's amazing you know he bought me my first pair of Kung Fu shoes like I remember him taking me on the bus when I was like, like 11 years old, and we went downtown to Chinatown. He bought me kung fu shoes with his, with his, you know, his government money. You know what I mean? That he was getting from the government.

And, uh, yeah, I remember all those things. Talk to me about this, though, the relationship with your brother now in adulthood. Because I did it, I just buried my brother two years ago. My younger brother, an artist, never expected to have to do any of that. And at the end, we were fighting with some things that were, uh, had conflict in it because there was some mental illness stuff happening at the very end that made him somebody different than the person I'd known all my life. You now have an adult relationship with a brother that caused a great deal of turmoil, but you also have a lot of happy memories. So now, as you try to evolve your comedy, you're trying to be more vulnerable, you're trying to grow and didn't talk about mom stuff except superficially for the 14 years, but now you have this challenge in front of you.

How could you explain it to a stranger, the entirety of it? And I'm not, I'm not, I don't know how you find the funny. Yeah, I don't know how to find the funny either, you know, but he is a funny guy. Like, you know, just the character description of my brother is fun to talk about, the things he does, the way he dances, you know, is fun to talk about. But I also don't want to leave out the fact that he's dealing with this hand that he's been dealt. you know, I want to also talk about, you know, that and get that awareness out there. Because people like to hear that, you know, I do.

You know, I always talk about, like, I go to therapy, but like my best therapy is like realizing that when I would tell my traumas to my therapist and we would always end up laughing about things and relating. And I'm like, well, I might as well tell these same stories on stage and see them laugh and relate and then respond to me, DM me and go, oh my God, thank you for telling that story about your sister. I went through the same thing with my mom, blah, blah, blah. And I'm like, well,

why am I paying this guy to hear it? When I could pay, I can tell them and they could pay me. Like, you can indirectly be my therapist. So, telling those stories on stage, people love it. And it also makes me feel good. Like, because I bottle

those things up, you know, like, who doesn't? I bottle, I'll keep it in and I'll store it. Men, men particularly get at it, and it's been culturally handed down in a lot of instances. Yeah, but I love to. Repressions to not, to not talk about that stuff. Yeah. It'll hurt you.

And so I love, I love saying those stories on stage because it's kind of like, ah, it felt good to say that, you know, that felt good, you know. So I did this movie Easter Sunday where I talk about, you know, I told the writers, I was like, You know, my mom and my aunt have not talked in like 35 years. They live five minutes. They literally live like 10 minutes away from each other, like five miles apart in Vegas. They don't talk. Just don't.

It's been so long they don't even know what they're fighting about. It's like, it's that bad. And I don't get it. And I was like, we got to write this in. We just got to show this stubbornness between these two sisters that just want to be mad but don't know why they're mad and they're just angry and they will fight and it's gonna fight till the end and literally that's what the the whole premise of that that that that that movie was was it was based loosely based on you know my mom and my and my aunt just not talking it just

doesn't make sense to me but it felt good for me to say it it felt good to put that out there felt good to share it with your audience oh yeah feels good to just put it out there Like, yeah, look at that. Because I know there's people out there. There's people that come up to me and say the same thing. Oh, my God. My mom and my aunt don't talk. And it's like, you're not alone.

Yeah. There's many years where I was alone. You know what I mean? There's a lot of years where the family was separated because of it because I was too young to make a decision. Oh, don't go over there. Why? Because I'm not talking to her.

All right. Well, then let me stay here. I can't talk to my cousins for some reason because you have a beef that I don't know why, but let me not talk to my cousin and not have a relationship with my cousin. So like if you could just put that out there and let other people go, oh, you go through the same thing. Well, all right. Well, you're on your own, mom.

I'm going to go talk to my cousin because this is something that's normal, I guess. And this isn't a personal beef between our families. It looks like this is a cultural thing or something. Like there's other people that go through this. So I'm not going to. going to deal with your BS. It's just two adults being stupid. Well, you don't do a lot of politics in your comedy, but your mom is political. She's a radio personality in Las Vegas. How do you navigate all of that? You know, she does what she has. She's her own, she's her own person.

You know what I mean? Let her speak her own voice say whatever she wants to say. I don't do it because, you know, you look at comedy the same way you look at music, right? You're not going to go to Ozzy and go when's your next rap album coming out doesn't make sense because he's a metal he's a metal god you know what I mean and he's not a rap artist it's the same thing with comedy comedy is is all based on like your own genre it's what what genre are you in are you are you are you a political comic because we have them they're all out there you know who they are you got your storytellers you got your you got your puppeteers you got your physical guys you got you got your clowns you got every single style of you got your impersonators that they

literally go up for an hour and a half and just impersonate you know um so it's the same thing we're we're not under one umbrella i mean we are comedians but we're also there's different styles there's rap country rock there's there's there's impersonators there's puppets there's political there's storytellers there's everything so it's a different genre it's like I never, I always enjoyed watching storytellers. I always tell people my favorite comics were Eddie Murphy, Richard Pryor, gosh, Louis Anderson, Dennis Wolfberg, Brian Regan, just anyone that would tell a story about their childhood and acted out for me, I couldn't stop watching it. Dennis Wolfberg was one of my all-time favorites. like he was all he would always talk about being a teacher or whatever like I loved it like

i just identified with that so much if you want his book if you want tickets if you want dates joe coy dot com is where you go uh and i had mentioned earlier you're about to sell out a football stadium and the preparation that goes into that how did that collaboration come together and what is it that you would want people to know about uh the idea that you're going to be the first comedy act ever to play sofa. That's crazy to even think about you know the first

the first like 10 days I guess I think we sold 30,000 tickets in 10 days it was it was maddening and then to see that this stadium is being shared with you know these acts that are just insane

like Green Day and journey you know what I mean just like these massive acts that are just going in there and you're just like we're doing a comedy you know what I mean like I literally bands I get it they you know we need we need two drummers we need three guitars we need blow up we need all the pyro we need everything yeah they need a stadium you know what I have a stool bro I have a stool and a microphone so I have to build this thing we have to build this elaborate stage this massive stage and and I

can't wait man is it all exciting is it 100% exciting or all of it daunting in it is there no it's all it's all it's a win no matter what I can't wait the minute I walk out it's a win like it's a win like and and I yeah because then you show everyone that it's possible you know I I said this on AOL one time I forget you remember AOL I think they had this thing where they were doing these interviews it was in New York but I remember he goes what's next I go Kevin Hart showed everyone that that you could do a stadium. Like, he showed me, you know what I mean? Like, here's a guy that I started.

I was bowling with, you know, we would do the, the comedy store. And then, and then we'd go to, we would go to, uh, Mel's and eat at two in the morning. You know what I mean? And then we go to jerry's and bowl. Like this is my,

this is my cat. This is, you know, this is my peer. This is my, my dude next to me. You know what I mean? And boom, he's in a stadium.

I'm going to be in a stadium. He showed me. We came from ground zero together. And now look, like, it's possible. So, you know, when you doubt, then you might as well not do it, if you're going to doubt it. But you should always just walk in and be like, yeah, I can walk through this. I can do this. And then if you fall, you fall.

You just get right back up. You're fine. Joe coy.com is where you go. Thank you, sir. Appreciate you sharing so much with us here. Thank you, man. That was fun. We're at the tail end of August, which means summer is almost over.

Well, now that baseball is sprinting towards its playoffs and football is here, it's time to enjoy your favorite sports with your favorite light beer. Watching sports has always been a part of the middle of time. It's been that way for the past 50 years. But it was a long weekend or a full-on vacation. It's the perfect time. to get the crew back together. And since 1975, Mill of Light has been the go-to-way to stock the cooler and celebrate those

moments. This year marks 50 years of Milletime. 50 years of great taste, great friends, and unforgettable memories. Brewed for flavor with simple ingredients like malted baldy. It delivers that rich, balanced coffee flavor and golden color that just hits different. Millerite, great taste, 96 calories. Go to millerlight.com slash beach, S-B-E-A-C-H to find the delivery options near you. Or you can pick up some Miller-Light pretty much anywhere they sell beer.

50 years of Mila time. Celebrate responsibly. Bill of Brewing Company Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 96 calories and 3.2 carbs per 12 ounces.