Writing

I was listening to Seth Meyers a few weeks ago and he was talking about his writing process. He spoke of the insane amount of focus it takes to write and deliver jokes. I tend to agree with him on this. This process for "Comedic Revival" right now is a mixture of thoughts, jokes, music, and things that are happening in my life. Giving an in depth look at how things are done in my head from thought to final product. A lot of my problem used to come from focus. I used to apply it to things that didn't interest me or sounded good. Sometimes I wouldn't focus and found it easy to just tune out and let my mind wander. Then I woke up and realized that wasn't any way to live. Every one of us has an ability to do whatever it is we want to do. I truly believe that. If you want to create something that you believe in and have always loved, there's no reason not to put everything you have into it. I genuinely enjoy the process of creating something and hoping I connect with people. I hope that they connect with me in a way they never were able to. In this case, the process of writing jokes and hoping they're good for everyone else is something I've stopped trying to do. I fell into a trap of trying to please everyone else. Trying to make sure I don't offend or hurt any feelings. It is never my intention to do either of those things. At the same time, a lot of what I was thinking was lost because I was too concerned about how someone would react. Which is why for some time I didn't focus on stand-up. I turned my back on it because I found the whole process of trying not to offend too much. Now I focus on jokes like I used to, and I'm not afraid of trying new things anymore. I've also lost that fear of voicing an opinion in my jokes because why shouldn't I? Just a quick thought. More to come of course. Check the Louis C.K video. interesting stuff on his writing process.

Louis CK at Montreal's Just for Laughs Festival from Splitsider on Vimeo.

I Will Survive

1.) Hurricanes? Check.

2.) Tornadoes? Check and double check.

3.) Rapture? Whooped it.

4.) Earthquakes? Yep, I'm happy to add that one to my list of "beat that"

Gotta admit, this was pretty dang good on the person who came up with this

Music and Race Pt.1 {Material from upcoming Stand-up "Comedic Revival" 2011}

****Some of the more serious thoughts on music and race. More to come!****

People are always surprised by my taste in music. It's not everyday you see a black guy pull up next to you playing The Republic Tigers, Guster, My Morning Jacket, or Portugal. The Man. Sometimes In that order. I used to be guilty of changing my music to something more hardcore or turning it down altogether when I pulled up next to some people. make it seem like I'm a little more gangsta than I actually am. But music (or anything else for that matter) isn't something you can pigeonhole by race. For instance, say what you will about the song "Hey Ya" by Andre 3000/Outkast but I have heard multiple covers of the song since its release in 2003. Are they better than the original? Stop kidding yourself because that rarely (if ever) happens. It's just different. It's an interesting and newer take on how that song touched someone who may not use the same process as another artist. As such he is delivering it to an audience that otherwise never would have enjoyed it. I don't want to be stuck listening to Soulja Boy because he raps and I'm black and I listen to rap. I would rather listen to the "Reading Rainbow" theme song on a continuous loop to be honest. Besides the fact that is a great theme song, this is not to say Soulja boy isn't a nice person. I'm sure he's a very pleasant man. Nor am I saying that his music hasn't inspired someone else. It is just not the kind of music I would catch myself listening to by choice. no crime in that, right? The real fault is when someone tells me I should be listening to it because it is "my music." Well, with the key word being "choice" in my prior statement I'll choose what I listen to and what I find to be good music for me and my personality. This is not even saying I dislike hip-hop. I love hip-hop! But I should be allowed to listen to whatever else I want as well without getting dirty looks at traffic lights. There are a lot of people who classify things as either black or white music. That's crazy talk! I'm not a fan of Country music. In fact I can go as far as saying I won't be buying a country music album in my lifetime unless it was as a gift to someone. Even then I would probably just as soon buy a different gift. I do, however, respect what they do in their field of music and know for a fact that Blacks, Whites, Latins, Smurfs and anyone else who wants to listen to country music can listen and feel some sort of connection to it because music is universal. Tim McGraw is no less of an artist than Jay-Z and Nelly isn't less black for featuring him on a song. people with different views on their life are going to express those views differently. This notion that music is restricted to a color is a ridiculous one. Growing up my mom introduced me to Elton John's greatest hits. I now, with no shame or embarrassment, can sing just about all of his songs word for word. That makes me feel happy and accomplished. It probably makes you feel uncomfortable and confused. The point is don't let someone bind you to a particular thing for any reason, especially race.

Music gets me through it:

William Fitzsimmons-More Here: http://www.williamfitzsimmons.com/

Kanye: http://kanyewest.com/

The Republic Tigers: http://www.therepublictigers.com/