In order to title this podcast, an article was referenced on Goldcomedy.com, entitled: "How Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu can make you a better comedian", by Dagmara Citron. (Just a bit of light reading, in case you'd like to learn more.)
You see, the focus of this week's podcast is Byron Brooks; A BJJ instructor at Ground Control Owings Mills and a stand-up comedian.
It was an honor to finally talk more with Byron and learn more about his beginnings in both BJJ and stand-up. He's a very talented guy as he also is a graphic designer.
This show is so grateful for the guests, the listeners and all that's transpired in 2023. Merry Christmas Listeners! 2024 is going to be amazing.
If you have nothing to do for New Year's Eve, check out Byron at Charlie's Goodnights Comedy Club in Raleigh, NC.
~Sound Design by: Amy Nicholls who owes (Sound Wizard) Chuck Nunn (@djchucknunn) for Intros/Exits and for his years of audio support that was the foundation of this podcast. Bless you Chuck!
~New Intro and Exit Music by Chuck Nunn. "Jamuary 10" (list of Jamuary's found here at: Soundcloud.com/chuck-nunn )
~OG Intro and Exit Music (Current Black Box Music) done by: Brandon Carter at (Brandon Scott Carter Publishing). The name of the OG track is "Ink Apprentice". If you like Brandon's sound, you can email him at: (brandon.carter@outlook.com)
~ We are affiliates of Reinventing the Tattoo and if you would like to get off-the-wall value for continuing art education (from master tattoo artists) then follow this link to save 10% on a year subscription: TAD10
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[00:00:00] I'm very excited this week diary listeners. I feel like Santa came early for all of us.
[00:00:06] We have the gift of the wonderful Byron Brooks. He's a local comedian and just a really, really
[00:00:13] sweet guy. We sat, we chatted, and I have to admit that I actually pushed him ahead
[00:00:19] for reasons that you'll find out later in June. So yeah. Well, and I say that because my sincere love of podcasts really birthed around that time period
[00:01:44] because oh, nice. Yeah, I started listening to a lot more of Joe Rogan.
[00:02:49] severe ADHD. So I constantly have to do stuff and have to be involved in things. Long time ago when I moved here to the Maryland area, I'm originally from North Carolina,
[00:02:56] I was in several bands. And after getting tired of, you know, bandmates with drug problems
[00:03:04] and people not showing up and things like that, I decided, well, you don't have to have the greatest material, but it's your first time. So after a while of listening to them, I was like, you know what? I'm going to go to an open mic and then stayed there basically. That's really, I mean, you know, I feel like with BJJ and martial arts as a background,
[00:04:21] you certainly get the moxie to be like, well, if anybody cops an attitude with me after
[00:04:26] the event, I know how to slow down. Like, yeah. Or you'll just break. When I entered, they were like, so, uh, you know what? I was like, I've done nothing. I know nothing. I just, I just heard this was cool and I didn't get hit. So, yeah, there you go. I've come to find out my body's not, not even really great about that.
[00:05:44] But what I found was this natural, um, you a very real perspective of people on a physical level and kind of let you know like, oh, if I were to engage with this person, these are the things that I would have to on a physical level, this is what I'd have to worry about. Absolutely. Yeah. And I tell people all the time, you know, like, there's a huge perception now that
[00:08:04] each other. You don't care if I'm a Republican or he's a Democrat or, you know, that's a man or a woman or, you know, it's just a team that loves each other. And it's honestly the same way
[00:08:12] in comedy. There's comedians that just come from all walks of life. But we see each other as
[00:08:18] comedians. We don't see each other as, you know, this type of person or I believe in this. We're
[00:08:24] all on the same team, you know? Yeah of it, what it did was all the comedians
[00:09:41] who were active before Covid, if they really
[00:10:47] in general about COVID because I think that not enough people were really keeping death in mind as they were making choices. And I think that that helped a lot of people kind of really
[00:10:53] make some solid choices for themselves afterwards. But even in tattooing, it's the same thing. I've
[00:10:59] interviewed a few people now that were COVID tattoo babies. And they're freaking out right now because Um, so I, so I show up to this open mic. Um, you know, they, they, I believe it started eight, you're supposed to get there to sign up around seven 30. So I got there super early. I was a second person on super supportive. Always gave me like advice after I got off stage. Always told me to come back. Glad to have you here. And really, honestly, if I, she's who really kept me motivated to doing,
[00:13:43] to doing comedy. So yeah, shout your first time up, that's our hit or miss every time because you really don't know what you're doing. So what I did, which probably different than other comedians. And I took this from Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, to be honest with you. When I first started Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, people would always ask me, when are you gonna do your first competition? And you're like two or three months in
[00:16:20] and you're like, I don't know anything.
[00:16:22] Like, get out of my face bro, like this is overwhelming.
[00:16:26] My first day I had a crotch in my face a show and I was like, yes, I'll do a show. A lot, I would say almost 98 percent of the comedians, as soon as they do an open mic, they want to do a show and they get there. And I think that's where the recidivism rate comes in or they quit is because they want those shows and they want those big shows way too fast.
[00:17:40] And it's like develop, develop your comedy first
[00:17:44] because you can get a big show.
[00:17:45] And like like I said earlier signature moves and things like that. Well, you know, when you do that too quickly, first of all, you're putting yourself in a competitive field that you have no business putting yourself in, but also, right.
[00:19:00] But also like there's this huge like, you know, heartbreak of like, why aren't people
[00:19:04] like wanting to do my style?
[00:19:07] It's my style. different people and different perspectives because the first person who says that to you, you're like, what is your motivations for me? Do you just want to watch me flail around for your own amusement? Like, I know this would be fun for you, but I'm going to die.
[00:24:22] No, that's cool. And what do you, I different. I and you just don't get this. You're getting last, but you don't get the same adrenaline rush is actually being in front of live people. So it was like that for a loved one. But if you've been in the dumps and it's kind of been slow when it comes to especially if you're a tattoo owner, buy it for your crew. Guy encourages people to share the login information so that the entire studio can grow together. This is a fun way for everybody to learn and you know grow. So go and do that. Don't be in the dumps spectacular products that he's already put out on horribledesigns.com. You can catch his product line there. Just look up Ken Madden. That's M-A-D-D-E-N. Then there's also Tennessee Hot Sauce Company.
[00:25:41] They make fantastic hot sauces.
[00:25:43] In fact, I'm fairly certain Rico has decimated
[00:25:46] the last of it. Okay, so it feels like a good time to tell you guys why I actually bumped a few awesome interviews with other wonderful, wonderful people for Byron. He actually is going to be performing on New Year's Eve. So I wanted to give him a platform beforehand and make sure that this episode, this diary
[00:27:02] entry of his two-parter, so come back you know, I was talking to somebody who actually does develop AI tools in our, in our industry. And cat, like, you're not even listening to the show. That's awesome. That, that honestly is like a comedy special in itself. Yeah. Like, if only, if only you could get crowd beyond the first row. Like you really can't. Yes. Yeah, absolutely. Right. There's like I said, using the port again, because I'm there, I'm actually there tonight. Right on. Yeah. It's a small like hundred seater club. But even it being small, I can't see past the second row, just with the
[00:31:03] lights and everything like that. So it's a lot older gentleman. So he has no, like he's always asking me questions about modern technology. And he's like, what
[00:32:20] are people doing? Like he's like, I'm so glad that the majority of my life was sane.
[00:33:28] I thought I would point that out because I think that, you know, I don't think people realize the beauty in being
[00:33:32] chewed out, man.
[00:33:42] You know, like if you do anything in life, you're going not to segue too much, but there's kind of a thought in biblical or spiritual terms is that, you know, you fear the person, no, you should block them. You shouldn't give them any time. I said, I block, I block like people trying to goad me into like buying their advertisement and stuff. I don't like those people. That is really annoying. But the people who take their time to be thorns on my side,
[00:36:22] I just give them a platform.
[00:36:27] Look at this person, like check this out. Do you have hopes that any one of them, or you just live in the dream right now, do you hope that any one of them will just take off? I hope my comedy crew does take off. Um, you know, any artist always gets discouraged, you know, and I stay discouraged all the time, but I always have to take a step back and say,
[00:37:42] you know, every year you've been doing comedy,
[00:37:45] you've had a better opportunity. as in my material wise or just. Yeah, like for example, me, I know this. I know that everything's better if you zoom out and you heighten contrast and you skip the details. But I love those juicy little details so much. Well, let go. Yeah, gotcha. I mean, I'm learning constantly,
[00:39:01] something new all the time.
[00:39:04] Right now when I'm working on
[00:39:06] is definitely getting my crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work. I'm going to do a lot of crowd work.
[00:40:20] I'm going to do a lot of crowd work.
[00:40:21] I'm going to do a lot of crowd work.
[00:40:22] I'm going to do a lot of crowd work.
[00:40:23] I'm going to do a lot of crowd work.
[00:40:24] I'm going to do a lot of crowd work.
[00:40:25] I'm going to do a lot of crowd work.
[00:40:26] I'm going to do a lot of crowd work.
[00:40:27] I'm going to do a lot of crowd work.
[00:40:28] I'm going to do a stage that if you brand it well, that could be really cool where, for instance, I was watching Miracle on 34th Street and there's this part where Santa Claus, he starts telling people, well,
[00:41:43] you can't get this here at Macy's, but of control. There's a lot of back and forth with one entity where you're designing something very specificmasters, for example, there's things called table topics that they would give you that were like a one or two minute, just quick, you know, like you get the comments on one thing. And that was When I first started, my first year I was doing stories. Then I started to realize that, I can't do these stories without set up punch lines.
[00:45:43] Like I was going off stories
[00:45:44] and kind of the story itself being funny to get the laugh conversation with you instead of me telling you a joke. Right. So I'm disguised, I'm learning now how to disguise that joke in just conversation type form, you know? Mm-hmm. But, you know, next couple of months, I'll probably be working on something else. I get so much inspiration from my peers. Yeah.
[00:47:00] You know, when I see one of my friends,
[00:47:03] you know, peeling on stage and, you know,
[00:47:06] he gets a great laugh, you know, I've gotten ideas from people like, Hey'll literally say, trying to do a joke about this, go.
[00:49:41] And then everybody in the green room
[00:49:43] would just start spitballing ideas.
[00:49:45] And a lot of our jokes just come from just like you know, what my thing is, I like going to lectures, I like going to public speaking venues. I think I would love to go and see you perform. And I'm happy that it happens on the two days off that I have. So that's wonderful to know. And I would love to meet more and more comedians.
[00:52:22] I mean, I really you a very, very Merry Christmas. I just hope it's a wonderful time with family and that