EAST TEXAS UNFILTERED w/J. Chad Parker: Featuring Ed Moore

On this episode of East Texas UNFILTERED, J. Chad Parker sits down with Tyler native Ed Moore. Ed is a former Division I basketball player who decided later in life to try stand-up comedy. He talks about walking into Rose City on his birthday and signing up for an open mic with nothing but a few ideas and a lot of nerve. The conversation covers the grind of late nights, driving to Dallas and Austin for stage time. It is an honest look at what it feels like to start over and chase something new.

This episode is about growth. It is about having the courage to step into the arena, risk falling flat, and keep showing up anyway. Ed’s story is not just about comedy. It is about betting on yourself, pushing personal boundaries, and refusing to let one bad night define you. If you have ever wondered what would happen if you took a chance on something new, this conversation will hit home.

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:00

Tell us about the uh the roughest crowd or the worst outing uh that you had and where it was. I set it up for it. And so what do you what's happening today? I just read the crowd. What kind of crowd did we have in 34?

SPEAKER_01 0:15

It was uh it was a uh Okay, I thought I had some pretty good material.

SPEAKER_03 0:22

You weren't progressive enough where you didn't understand the situation and none of your stuff was kidding. Welcome to another episode of East Texas Unfiltered. I'm your host, J. Chad Parker. Today uh we're gonna have a few laughs, hopefully. Um we're gonna learn uh about something that many of us have privately uh thought to ourselves. Could I ever get on stage at an open mic and do a stand-up comedic routine? Well, today we're gonna talk to a man who late in life, about two years ago, decided on this course. His name is Ed Moore. Ed Moore, thanks for being with us today. Thank you for having me. Uh Ed, I want to know a little bit about you. Um I've learned about you just meeting you, but you grew up in Tyler, Texas.

SPEAKER_01 1:16

Born and raised.

SPEAKER_03 1:17

Um your father, I had seen in my research, was a councilman for about six years at the city of Tyler.

SPEAKER_01 1:23

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_03 1:24

Yeah, uh District Three. His name was Ed Moore as well.

SPEAKER_01 1:27

Yeah, I'm a junior.

SPEAKER_03 1:30

Um and it looked like, you know, in the bio that, you know, um your dad Ed, he worked out at Goodyear. Yeah. Um, did you ever uh have a chance to work out at Goodyear? Do you ever do that?

SPEAKER_01 1:40

Uh they did they had a a thing that they used to do where they hire children of people that worked there, and they called a summer help.

unknown 1:48

Right.

SPEAKER_01 1:48

And they only allowed us to help out during the summer for those couple of months. So I get to do that a couple times in the summer uh with them. But at that time he was uh he was union president and stuff by then. He was in the office all the time. He didn't do any actual work, he just sat and talked to people. So that was fun.

SPEAKER_03 2:06

We had Chris Cooper, uh the builder on the podcast, and he talked about that, you know, he had uh de uh uncles, father, people that worked out there, and he eventually went out there for a while because it was a big place, it was a good job.

SPEAKER_01 2:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 2:17

Um, but you other than that, you that's not not anything you ever did.

SPEAKER_01 2:21

No, because uh by the time it was time for me to do that, they had shut down. You know. Where did you go to high school? I went to John Tyler, my freshman sophomore year, uh graduated junior senior year from Gorman, TK Gorman.

SPEAKER_03 2:34

What was it that uh I guess caused you, your parents, or whatever to make the move over to TK Gorman?

SPEAKER_01 2:40

Uh it was athletic based, you know. I was uh I was at John Tyler, uh on varsity, playing ball, and uh been playing ball over the summer with AAU and different teams and Team Texas and everything, and they say you need to get more time where you are at home, you know. I mean, and I was good with Joey. I played Joey Martin. Uh Chris Lowe, they had a great team. I work out with those guys all the time, and it was just a little easier for me to just go in and head over there with them.

SPEAKER_03 3:09

Yeah, because I mean, but John Tyler historically, it was called John Tyler then, it's Tyler High now. Historically, there were some great basketball athletes that came through that program. Yeah, yeah. I mean, I don't know if you know a guy named Chris Bates. Chris Bates? Yeah. I've heard of. In the old days. Chris Bates was the first guy to start for John Tyler at the time on varsity as a sophomore when they were loaded every year. I mean, he could touch the top of the backboard. It made me think of you when I saw some of your highlights. Now you get up there back then. I don't know about now, but yeah, I could get up there a little bit back then. You also mentioned Joey Martin. That's funny that connection. You know, Joey Martin's sister, one of them is Randy Martin, which of course is Randy Mahomes, Patrick Mahomes' mother. Right. And I knew Joey. Joey was a good coach, and uh um, you know, we had some contact with him, but he coached over at Gorman, didn't he?

SPEAKER_01 4:03

Yeah, he was uh he coached at Gorman. Uh at the time he was young. I don't want to speak on him now, but he would still get out there and play ball with us and beat up on us at practice. So it was it was fun.

SPEAKER_03 4:14

He played some college ball, I thought.

SPEAKER_01 4:16

He did play some college ball. I don't think I'm not sure if I remember where.

SPEAKER_03 4:20

Yeah, I I can't either. But anyway, it looked like that you were uh I mean, if I had to guess, you'd probably be first team all district, all state or something in that in that private school league, right?

SPEAKER_01 4:32

Uh-huh. Got um I got first team all district state. Um, I got East Texas MVP. Um, so uh that was that was pretty cool.

SPEAKER_03 4:43

And that includes all the schools. Right. I mean, because you were uh you play in size, you were six, what? What are you, six two, six three? Six two. All right, and you could dunk, obviously. I mean, when I if anybody ever uh Googles your YouTube videos, I mean that's what you sent me.

SPEAKER_01 5:00

Yeah, that just uh someone had sent it to me, and I was like, no way. I this looks like it was filmed with a potato. But you know what I mean, uh I mean it looks like old film. Yeah, it's old, you know what I mean? It was old film. I was like, I don't know who did it, man, but appreciate it.

SPEAKER_03 5:15

But as far as your uh your education over at TK Gorman, do you feel like that was a pretty good one that prepared you for the college you ultimately went to?

SPEAKER_01 5:23

Uh yeah. Yeah, it was a lot of things um different, you know what I mean, uh that we focused on that that really helped us out a little later, helped me out. It's a religious school, yeah. Yeah, it was yeah, it was a religious school. Um it would really benefit you if you went to a religious college, you know what I mean? But uh they still uh just the the teaching uh yeah, you would you were on. I don't want to say that they were a little more focused than it will it was just less kids. We had less kids. My graduating class was 34 people.

SPEAKER_03 5:55

The teacher ratio over there to student is much smaller. There's much more attention, probably. Uh you probably learned how to uh sign the cross and do the rosary. Did all of that.

SPEAKER_01 6:05

You went to mass. Went to mass and still had to go to my own church on Sundays with my parents.

SPEAKER_03 6:12

But you know, the experience at TK Gorman helped you, uh did it not? Did you get a scholarship to play somewhere after?

SPEAKER_01 6:18

Yes, yes. Uh I went to TJC, played under uh Coach Marcus, Mike Marcus under his second season. Yeah. I mean, yeah, under his second season, and later went on to Charlotte.

SPEAKER_03 6:28

And uh Charlotte, would that be a Division I school?

SPEAKER_01 6:31

Yes, sir. All right.

SPEAKER_03 6:33

So you played Division I ball, basketball. Did you get to play?

SPEAKER_01 6:36

Oh yeah. I mean, yeah, uh you got yeah, we played. Um I played uh point guard. Did you ever start? Yeah, started. Started point uh I actually went there to be a two guard. And once I got there I mean, could you shoot? Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 6:49

I mean, because a two is a shooter.

SPEAKER_01 6:51

Man, listen, I I I held the record at one point down here. I don't know if it still stands, but I dropped 56 in a game.

SPEAKER_03 6:59

I mean, I don't know, Pat Mahone Sr. I think he dropped 50 or 60 somewhere back in the old Lindale days. Yeah, it was just practice, probably. Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 7:08

It was probably a practice.

SPEAKER_03 7:10

All right. So you go on to Charlotte. Did you graduate from there?

SPEAKER_01 7:12

Yeah. Got a degree?

SPEAKER_03 7:14

What'd you get your degree in?

SPEAKER_01 7:15

Psychology.

SPEAKER_03 7:16

All right. Uh I guess that was a different experience being in North Carolina.

SPEAKER_01 7:21

Oh, yeah. I'd uh I chose that because it kind of reminded me of Tyler. It was, you know what I mean? It was kind of small, but it it was a lot more green. I love the trees and everything. It kind of reminded me of home. It was a bigger t bigger town, but it still kind of looked like Tyler, I guess, in a way.

SPEAKER_03 7:37

Uh did you consider any other colleges other than Charlotte?

SPEAKER_01 7:40

Uh yeah, I wanted to get away from here at the t uh as far as possible. Yeah, everybody I know. As a kid, but once I left and everything, I realized Tyler was a pretty good place to to hang out. But I could have I had offers from SFA, TCU, S SMU, those good.

SPEAKER_03 7:58

It just wasn't far enough away.

SPEAKER_01 8:00

Wasn't far enough away. My sister uh went to school down at Baylor, and my parents used to pop up on her all the time, and I wanted to be out of the way so that wouldn't happen to me.

SPEAKER_03 8:10

All right. So uh you go out there and when you graduate, I mean, do you know what you're gonna do next?

SPEAKER_01 8:17

No, you want to stay in the game as long as you can, but uh sometimes you get a little burnt out. We ran we went through a lot of coaches, you know, to a point where it's like, man, I'd rather, you know, just kind of work out players. I started doing uh training, just started training players.

SPEAKER_03 8:33

Did you ever go to the NCAA tournament in the years that you played up at Charlotte?

SPEAKER_01 8:38

We got one. We made it one year.

SPEAKER_03 8:40

How far to end did y'all make it? First round.

SPEAKER_01 8:43

First round. Who beat y'all? George Mason.

SPEAKER_03 8:45

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 8:46

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 8:46

Um, all right, so you come out, you've obviously got talent, you know the game, and so uh you figure, hey, uh I can probably do better financially doing that than using a psychology degree.

SPEAKER_01 9:00

Uh yeah, well, I first what what made me kind of step back, uh my first job was CPS, child protect the psychologist. Okay, yeah. And that's ugly. Yeah, right? It got yeah, it got especially at 24, 25 years old. Yeah. I was uh I was like, I'll come back to it in a few years. I told myself I was gonna do it at 40. Then 40 hit last year, and I was like, I still don't feel like going back over there. I don't know if I will.

SPEAKER_03 9:26

I mean, you probably saw some things that, you know, uh really cause you to lose faith in some of the people that are alive.

SPEAKER_01 9:33

Uh-huh. Yeah. Mm-hmm. I didn't want to go through my parents saw me going through that at a year, yeah. Like, man, just wait, you know, give it some time.

SPEAKER_03 9:41

So you went w what did you do next? Did you train people somewhere?

SPEAKER_01 9:45

Uh I came, I was in initially I moved down to Charleston, South Carolina. I started training down there. I wanted to still be kind of on the coast. Uh met up with uh I had my son. My son lives in Atlanta, Georgia. Um, so I'm there a lot now seeing him. Um but I was there for a while. And then my father and some people in my family got sick and needed some help around these parts. So I came on back a few years before um his passing. Have you ever been to New Orleans? Yeah, I've been.

SPEAKER_03 10:15

Doesn't Charleston uh remind me.

SPEAKER_01 10:18

Yeah, kind of a cleaner, uh cleaner New Orleans? It's cleaner. Uh they they have that same, you know, same vibe. That coasty, you know, it's right there on the beach. It's old, it's one of those old cities.

SPEAKER_03 10:29

Right, like old, like, you know, French, yeah, you know, way back.

SPEAKER_01 10:32

Right. It was a yeah, it was a city before we were a country type thing.

SPEAKER_03 10:37

You know what I mean? Way back then.

SPEAKER_01 10:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 10:39

All right, so um when do you come back to Tyler?

SPEAKER_01 10:43

Oof. I don't remember the the actual year now. Um it was when my my dad uh he was diagnosed with cancer. So uh I would say 2013, maybe.

SPEAKER_03 11:00

Because I know Ed, it looks like he died in 2020.

SPEAKER_01 11:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 11:03

December of 2020. Uh-huh. Um and uh you know what kind of cancer did he have? Uh uh was that a fight or did it go away and come back?

SPEAKER_01 11:11

It was on and off. Uh he had pancreatic.

SPEAKER_03 11:14

Golly, that's I mean, that's one of the toughest ones to have. Uh-huh. Because they really don't give you much of a chance, do they? No, uh, he yeah, he fought though.

SPEAKER_01 11:23

You know, he stood in and fought pretty, pretty hard pretty long.

SPEAKER_03 11:26

We talked about this before we started, you know. We had done some research on the cut, you know, in North Tyler. And what came up was a video of a man named Ed Moore who was touring through the cut area pointing out the Alfredo Hotel, which was, you know, during segregation, uh-huh. You know, it's an all-black hotel, right? And there was restaurants and and it was much more vibrant over there back in the old days, if you will.

SPEAKER_01 11:53

Yeah, yeah. He's told me about yeah, all those stories that was on the cut, I heard those a hundred times before. The cut was a documentary or whatever. I heard it all. Uh, but yeah, hearing those stories of like the celebrities that used to come by a Tyler and you never know about it. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_03 12:11

Because they weren't allowed to stay at a hotel. Yeah. And so um, you know, there was a movie out, I don't know, several years ago that I watched that I didn't know much about, and it was called The Green Book, right? Yep. Uh and in that, you know, an Italian guy uh is hired to drive around a uh classic pianist. Uh-huh. And they go on a tour in the south. And of course, you know, they don't realize or they start to realize that there are only so many places that they can stay, right? Right. And that's kind of what your dad got into a little bit about the performers and the celebrities that stayed at the Alfredo Hotel. Yeah. Because it was the only place they could stay.

SPEAKER_01 12:52

They they called it the Chitland Circuit.

SPEAKER_03 12:54

I was about to say that.

SPEAKER_01 12:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 12:55

Uh was that the Chitland Circuit, right? Yeah, it was, yeah. It was it was in the book, I'm sure it was in that green book. Uh the green book, though, I thought was kind of a guide to African Americans to go. Let them know where they they could go stay and they could count on it, right? Yeah. And your dad must have, you know, obviously he had a uh, you know, had a heart for service and and and progress, or he probably wouldn't have served or tried to serve as a city councilman. Right. Right? I mean and in growing up, did y'all ever have conversations? Did he talk to you guys kind of about, you know, his philosophy or what he believed in, or you know, why he did what he did?

SPEAKER_01 13:36

Uh I got that all my life. So every it seemed it always seemed like anytime we talked, it was a meeting. You know? It was like, all right, what what do we gotta do? And uh, but yeah, he was he was always uh, you know, keep your word, you're man be a man of your word, you know.

SPEAKER_03 13:52

I assume he he wanted more for you than he had an opportunity for at the same age.

SPEAKER_01 13:58

Yeah, that's why yeah. I mean, I I wouldn't be I don't know what he would say about me doing comedy right now. Yeah. I mean Right.

SPEAKER_03 14:05

I mean, because I can just think about the seriousness of people, uh African Americans specifically, who all the opportunities were not available when your father Ed was coming up. Right. And then he's raising you, you know, you're going over to private school, you're getting a degree from, you know, uh a D1 college, he's probably thinking, you know, hey, everything's wide open in front of you. Or at least he's preaching that, I bet.

SPEAKER_01 14:31

Yeah, that's yeah, he was uh but he yeah, he he was good at you know teaching me and and raising me right and still giving me the freedom, I guess, to make my own decisions and mess up.

SPEAKER_03 14:43

Well, you know, um like your dad, my dad passed away. And uh, you know, it wouldn't be truthful if I said it was always just a great relationship all the time.

SPEAKER_01 14:52

Right, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 14:53

I mean there were highs and lows.

SPEAKER_01 14:55

Yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_03 14:56

And uh but you know, we were you know, we were really solid towards the end, and uh hopefully you and your dad were as well.

SPEAKER_01 15:04

Oh yeah, I can't um man, I don't I don't even say this much, but once I I realized once he passed, like that was probably my best friend, you know, that like looked out genuinely, everything that he said was for me, you know, right for my benefit. And I didn't think about that until I didn't have it.

SPEAKER_03 15:27

And then you there wasn't somebody saying that.

SPEAKER_01 15:29

Yeah, so I was like, oh man.

SPEAKER_03 15:31

I mean, there's so many things that, you know, that pop in my head that my dad once said that I either halfway was not that excited about or didn't even believe was true, that I now think, you know, that was some wisdom.

SPEAKER_01 15:46

I don't no, I don't want to take anything away from my mom. Great lady, but she was uh she was she's a mom, so she was gave me the you can do anything you want to and everything, but then my dad would be like, I don't know about that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 15:59

Okay, so your mom was she gave you a lot of freedom.

SPEAKER_01 16:02

Yeah, yeah. She she was just supportive in whatever I wanted to do.

SPEAKER_03 16:05

You have l any brothers and sisters?

SPEAKER_01 16:07

I have one sister, an older sister, uh Rebecca. She lives in Burlesson, uh Burleson or Crowley. I think that's kind of the same area up there in Fort Worth area.

SPEAKER_03 16:17

All right. Any in your background, any comedy, uh, anybody in the family's done comedy, anything to get in your mind that this might be something to try later on?

SPEAKER_01 16:30

My uh family-wise, my mom was the kidder. She was, she would always, you know, just kind of mess with people, do little pranks and things like that, and made it, you know, kind of cool to unwind and be cool around her. Uh family-wise, big family. So yeah, we got some I don't know about getting on stage, but yeah, it was always some clowns around.

SPEAKER_03 16:51

All right, so you got nobody in the family that's done an open mic night, got up there that served as any kind of inspiration for you. Not that I know of no. Then you when you're back, when you come back, uh when your dad was sick, I'm assuming you have to work or do something around here.

SPEAKER_01 17:05

Oh yeah. Uh I worked for a logistics comedy company, uh, just uh forklifting and and loading up trucks and stuff.

SPEAKER_03 17:13

All right. So we've got this time frame when you've come home, uh, and then that time period up to 2023, two years ago, when comedy becomes a reality. Is that is that the right timeline?

SPEAKER_01 17:29

Yeah. Uh actually this week, I would say um either Wednesday or Thursday would be the two-year anniversary for me. Um also my birthday. So I started on what happened, I started on an open mic on my birthday two years ago, just going up on stage. I had nothing prepared. I really uh some friends have signed me up, and I just went up there and did a a couple lines, got bit by the book, didn't get booed or anything, and said, All right, man, I can actually go write some stuff down now and maybe keep trying this thing and uh just kept getting better with the the reps that I got up.

SPEAKER_03 18:03

It's a little different from karaoke, right?

SPEAKER_01 18:06

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_03 18:06

I mean, you done karaoke? Oh yeah. I mean you get up there to karaoke, it's like, okay, the music's behind you, there's the words. Yeah. You just go along. You're either not.

SPEAKER_01 18:14

You're not supposed to be good. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 18:16

I mean, there's the expectations are so low when you start. If you're halfway good, I mean, people are clapping when it's over, right?

SPEAKER_01 18:23

Yeah, uh well. Yeah. Yeah. Maybe when I've done it. I've seen some karaoke that I've walked in what I've walked out of because it was so good. I was like, this person shouldn't be here. Right.

SPEAKER_03 18:36

I mean, you're not gonna want to follow that.

SPEAKER_01 18:38

No, I'm not following it.

SPEAKER_03 18:39

But you might have answered this because uh where I was going is when did comedy first get in your head like it might be something that you want to try.

SPEAKER_01 18:49

I've I've always been a fan of it, like a student of it. You know, I started out, my parents used to have to go to a place that doesn't exist, movies and sounds back in the day, and where you could rent Eddie Murphy's Saturday Night Lives and all of that, and I just sit up and they put it on and they keep me occupied for It was kind of like a Blockbuster Rental before Blockbuster Rental? Yeah, it was called Movies and Sounds, and I think you still may see a sign or two around here of a closed down one. I think it's one downtown, but Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 19:21

Okay, so yeah, you're coming up, you know, obviously.

SPEAKER_01 19:24

My bad to cut you off.

SPEAKER_03 19:25

No, no, that's okay. Uh you you you you grew up like we all did. Like listen to things like, you know, you you had Saturday Night Live.

SPEAKER_01 19:36

Had SNL, all of those, listen to stand-ups. I was the the I was fairly serious all the time, even playing basketball and being around my my buddies and stuff. I didn't talk a lot. So even when I do this comedy and people that have known me for a while, they're like, no way, you the you barely spoke.

SPEAKER_03 19:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 19:52

But I would be the the clown on the team and mess with people and stuff like that. So I think my dad doing the counsel and and getting up and speaking in front of people and me seeing him, that really wasn't a big issue for me. Public speaking, I understand that some people say that's that's one of their biggest fears, but I saw that with my mom and dad all the time. My mom sang in gospel groups, and getting up there wasn't an issue. I just wanted to make sure whatever I was saying was funny.

SPEAKER_03 20:22

Yeah. You know what I mean? Yeah, I mean, that is the thing, you know, uh, about a comedian. I mean, I can get up there and uh anybody can get up there and you know, introduce themselves. But after that, the people that are there, they're they're they've paid to laugh. Right? I mean, and so that creates an environment where if you're not very good, it can be a little hostile or be a little uncomfortable.

SPEAKER_01 20:46

You get, yeah. I've luckily I haven't had to that's that bad.

SPEAKER_03 20:52

Well, I'm gonna ask you that. You know, so the first time you ever did any comedy, you say somebody signed you up, and where was that?

SPEAKER_01 20:59

At Rose City, uh downtown.

SPEAKER_03 21:01

I think we got a photo.

SPEAKER_01 21:02

Is this it or is this afterwards? This after. The first, yeah, this I look comfortable there. This that's the new Rose City. But the old one, when it was downtown on Front Street, yeah. The smaller one, that's that was my first time up.

SPEAKER_03 21:16

So this is an open mic night, and Rose City primarily is open mic, right? Except for when they bring in comedians.

SPEAKER_01 21:23

Yeah, they have uh the open mic nights at Rose City, um, that's on Mondays. Um, but any other day, I believe, are just shows that you have to go and um sign up. You know, I mean I sign up, but pay for Thursday, Friday, Saturday. You know, they have big shows. So what I do usually, I I hit Rose City Monday, uh, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. I'm in Dallas or somewhere else doing some more mics. Thursday, Friday, Saturday, paid gigs. Try everything out those first few days. The new stuff and everything. If it lands, it lands. If it doesn't, take it out.

SPEAKER_03 21:57

You know when you say paid gigs, you mean you Pay to get up there or you get paid? No, I I get paid. But at Rose City on days other than open mic night, do you have to pay to go to be up there?

SPEAKER_01 22:09

Uh on stage? Yes. Now if they if they want you on stage, they'll take care of you. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 22:14

All right. Now, the first time you get up there, you get signs, you go up there. Uh, and then how long is it that you find yourself back voluntarily going up there for an open mic? Next week. All right. So I mean, you said it debug bit you, it bit you quick.

SPEAKER_01 22:28

It bit me quick. I'd uh cause I yeah, I just went up there the first time. My actual first set, I acted like I didn't know what I was doing. I I I had it planned out. I had a whole notebook and just acting like I couldn't find my jokes in a notebook and just wasting time and saying it's somewhere in here, guys, promise. And I just kind of act like I spazzed out and turned my back to the crowd. It was it was good.

SPEAKER_03 22:52

I mean, it was and that was the only comedy of the bit?

SPEAKER_01 22:55

No, it was uh it was just I would say little fillers and stuff like that, known comedy uh phrases that everybody says, time trying to feel time, so that would, you know, fill in. And then uh Yeah, I wasn't up there long.

SPEAKER_03 23:09

Well, I was about to ask you. The open mic night, they give you what, a minute, three minutes? What is it?

SPEAKER_01 23:14

Uh then I believe three or five. I'm not sure. So yeah, but that was a long three minutes. If if it was, it was a long one. I mean long for you as you were grasping for material? Well, yeah, it was I knew it, but you know, uh with nothing to say. Uh yeah, it was long. Um but yeah, I got I had kind of written that down, and uh I knew that that particular set or the way that I did that, I would only be able to do that that time because that's my first time on stage. I can't go up there at the next time and act like I don't know what I'm doing.

SPEAKER_03 23:49

So So if you had this written, did you know they were gonna sign you up?

SPEAKER_01 23:53

Did you know you were going up? No, I kept it. We've had discussions because uh uh there were comedians too. So I was just going and I was they were like, man, we go sign you up.

SPEAKER_03 24:01

And you're gonna eventually have to get up here, and you're thinking eventually I might have to get up there. Yeah. All right. So the first three minutes of your life at Rose City Comedy, the first time you've ever been up, um, when it's over, um, are you relieved or do you say that's not as bad as I thought it would be? How do you feel about that?

SPEAKER_01 24:21

Uh all of it. Still now to this day, I have to calm myself down because it takes a lot still. I'm nervous anytime I'm up. Uh it's been fun because once you get off stage, people want to, you know, give you fist bumps and everything. Hey man, that was a good set. Because it it's kind of a camaraderie of almost a team, but you're all playing individually. Right, yeah. But as soon as I get off stage, still to this day, I have to run outside and just get some fresh air and just hang out there for myself, and then I'll come back in and say, hey, what's going on?

SPEAKER_03 24:53

I mean, you think it's just anxiety? I think so.

SPEAKER_01 24:55

Maybe undiagnosed.

SPEAKER_03 24:57

I don't know. Yeah, I mean, just kind of have you have you conquered it uh as time has gone on with, you know, either breathing or thinking or just doing something to make it where you're not so nervous?

SPEAKER_01 25:08

I've noticed that, I mean, I think that's just normal.

SPEAKER_03 25:12

The more you get up, the you know I mean, the more I would think there'd be a curve that, you know, maybe even the people that you've seen as comedians do some of them seem nervous too?

SPEAKER_01 25:23

Yeah, I uh when I ask them, because they say that it won't stop. Okay. So yeah, it's not gonna end.

SPEAKER_03 25:30

All right, so you do Rose City uh for how long before you ever branch out and try someplace new?

SPEAKER_01 25:38

Uh it's I mean, as long as you got that bite in and that drive in you, you're gonna just keep going up. Um I stay, I've learned to just continuously write. So I want to get up everywhere. You know, I go to Dallas, do open mics up there. Uh it's been times I've gone to Arlington and they uh they say, Man, where are you from? I said, I'm from Tyler and they're impressed that I drove up. They're just uh, you know what I'm saying, a big fight.

SPEAKER_03 26:07

Here here here's one in Dallas. Like, I mean, it looks good. It looks like a little bit more of what people think of a comedy club. But I mean, how long is this from the day that you were signed up and went to Rose City? I'm saying, how quick are you up in Dallas giving it a try up there?

SPEAKER_01 26:23

Uh giving it a try, probably the next month or two.

SPEAKER_03 26:28

Okay. I mean, you didn't sit around and think about it. I mean, you actually started saying, Hey, I'm gonna look around and go out there.

SPEAKER_01 26:35

I I was taught, and I think this comes from me playing ball and everything. You get out of it, what you put in. So I would go even though Tyler would only have one mic uh at the time, um, Road City. That was on Mondays, Tuesdays. I'm trying to figure out where else I can get up and go up Wednesday and I drive right back home.

SPEAKER_03 26:55

Are you working at a job or something at the same time?

SPEAKER_01 26:58

Yeah, I still uh I'm still with, you know, the logistics, I'm still with them now. Okay. They allow me to my schedule, I go in pretty I go in really early in the mornings, and I'm usually done around one, two o'clock in the afternoon.

SPEAKER_03 27:11

Do you remember when this was in this photograph? By the outfit, by whatever.

SPEAKER_01 27:18

Yeah, this was this past year. I would say uh this is this is paid, so this was I would say maybe September.

SPEAKER_03 27:27

I mean, I'm not sure you have anything other than overalls and Stanley's uh clothes. It's it's I mean there's a Stanley shirt underneath there, and later on we'll see a Stanley's hoodie.

SPEAKER_01 27:37

Well, see, I work security at Stanley's when they uh when they have concerts. So I'm I do that too whenever I'm not on stage or something and they have a concert. I'm I'm at Stanley's. But it it keeps me relaxed.

SPEAKER_03 27:48

Well, there's another overall set, but there's uh um you know, there's no Stanley shirt there, but that's the big laugh. It looks like another comedy club somewhere. Yeah, that's in Fort Worth. Uh and you remember how long ago that was, right?

SPEAKER_01 28:01

Uh that was probably over the April, Mayish over the summer, I think, up there.

SPEAKER_03 28:07

All right. And so, you know, you're you're hitting different audiences. Yeah. I mean, you know, Tyler's probably different maybe than the audience that comes out in Dallas or Fort Worth.

SPEAKER_01 28:17

Yeah, you got yeah, I go down to Austin too, try to kill Tony stuff, done all that. It's different crowds, different jokes that you can, you know, uh go on and it's some that I still haven't said in Tyler yet, you know?

SPEAKER_03 28:29

So Right, some jokes you s that you said you you wrote jokes earlier. Uh-huh. I mean, how often do you are you constantly writing something?

SPEAKER_01 28:38

I yeah, because something is like I'm somet something funny happens to me all the time. You know what I mean? Uh most of my jokes are like relatable, just certain things that we all go through, I think. And uh I mean just certain conversations that I have, I'll write something down, you know what I mean? So it written or and I come back to it. I do it like a more of a clip note type situation, bullet points. Right. And I do that and elaborate on it later. But I just make sure I don't try to forget stuff when it happens.

SPEAKER_03 29:04

Like, what's the longest routine you've done? Uh I've done 30. 30 minutes? Mm-hmm. All right. You know, and some people might uh think, I wonder how can he remember all of that? Uh I'm sure you have these benchmarks where you tell a story and you get to something and then you transition to something else. Right, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 29:24

And it kind of keeps it in your mind. That's the yeah, that's the the writing is the hardest part, I think, of it to me. And that's just keeping the transitioning, um, remembering. So I've I'm not that great at remembering or doing with scripts, right? And I know some comedians that are able to write their set down and literally just run through it. I have to do bullet points because I'm not gonna remember all of that. I'll speak on it and what I know on it, and we'll get to it. Whatever I get to on it, we'll get to it. But it just seems more natural that way. Um, I'm not doing the same thing every time. There's gonna be something different about it. So I like that. And yeah, it just helps me with like my memory. Like, all right, I know this, this. I do that, so I don't have to take any paper or anything on stage. Just remember those bullet points.

SPEAKER_03 30:16

Right. I mean, because if you're if you're getting paid to do comedy, people don't expect you to have a note card. Right. I mean, right? You're supposed to be comfortable. You're like, hey, uh welcome, ladies and gentlemen. How's everybody doing here in Austin, Texas? Or I mean, they expect you to run right into the set. You're supposed to be professional. Um you uh you mentioned uh Kill Tony, uh, and it obviously brings up The Mothership and Joe Rogan. Yep. You've been down there. Uh-huh. Um I don't know how it works. I don't know. I I've seen both of the show, you know, but you have to you have to get drawn out of a hat.

SPEAKER_01 30:52

Yeah, with uh Kill Tony Excuse me. It's you you put your uh it's a lot of comedians for one. They all put their names in this bucket, and I think it's been up to two, three hundred comedians. And if you get pulled, you get pulled. Each and every time. Right. Um they only I think maybe pull at least maybe ten. Have you ever been pulled? I haven't been pulled, but I've been I've done the mics at the mothership. So they know me and everything like that. I just hadn't been lucky enough to get the bucket pulled.

SPEAKER_03 31:23

I think that's uh and I I had to I mean they know people are starting to see you. I mean, you know, you're from Tyler, you're not from there, but I mean you've met people. Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_01 31:34

Yeah, I got friends down there that, you know, uh you you go to those mics and it's literally you just y'all, you know, want to pick each other's brains, um, get each other's stories.

SPEAKER_03 31:44

Kill Tony, is that show made at the mothership?

SPEAKER_01 31:47

Yeah. So I've gone, I've been on stage at the mothership and have to, you know, I mean, leave and everything because Kill Tony's starting up and they're about to film and everything.

SPEAKER_03 31:56

For people that don't know, the mothership is a comedy club that Joe Rogan built in Austin, Texas. Right. Uh kind of uh like he used to go to in California, like the comedy store. Yep. Right? And he said, hey, there's not anything down here, so he built it. And then Tony Hitchcliffe has that show and he makes it there as well.

SPEAKER_01 32:19

Yeah, they all migrate every it seemed like all comedians migrated to Austin as soon as that happened. I mean a bunch, right? In COVID. Oh, yeah. Right. I mean, everybody's yeah, they just went up there. Uh I enjoy it. It's the kill Tony is a little stressful because you kind of you want to stay uh prepared and ready just in case.

SPEAKER_03 32:41

Right. I mean, the anticipation has got to be uh about to kill you, right? Yeah, I think that's a good one. I mean, they can go, okay, um Ed Moore, Ed Moore, you're next. You know, you're like, what?

SPEAKER_01 32:52

Yeah, you're sitting there and hadn't thought about anything like something.

SPEAKER_03 32:55

You better have something because that's a that's a one minute. That's it. Right? Kill Tony gives you 60 seconds, and then there's a cat that's meowing. Yeah. And then it's over. That's your time. And then they go to getting you, don't they?

SPEAKER_01 33:11

The interview, yeah. The interview is crazy. I've all I think, yeah, I was I would have a minute ready, you know what I mean, down. I would if I ever put my name in the hat. Yeah, but you just be worried about the interview after. You don't know what they're gonna ask.

SPEAKER_03 33:25

Oh, no, right. You gotta be quick on your feet. Uh-huh. Have you ever met Tony Hitchcliffe? Uh not met him. Right. Have you seen him?

SPEAKER_01 33:32

Yeah, just see him walking around town or something like that. Have you seen him in the club? I mean, like the mothership. I mean, do you Oh yeah. You see, I mean, yeah, you're hanging around the mother the mothership, you'll you'll be around there. They there's so many bars and things that they uh go to and hang out before they have to do their shows or go on stage that's in the area.

SPEAKER_03 33:50

So I mean, because a couple of drinks seems like it might be helpful to the comedian. I don't know that. Uh I've learned. I've tried it. Uh I mean, right. I mean, some people uh I would think, you know, get a little bit more animated, outgoing. Other people maybe it affects them differently where they're not as good, can't remember. Uh depending on how much you use.

SPEAKER_01 34:12

Yeah, yeah, that's uh wanna wanna calm you down, I'm sure. But it depends on the the the show, I guess. I don't know. Like I have those sometimes and I like, man, I might need a need something or a beer or something before going on, but then there's some I'm like, no, I don't even want to test it.

SPEAKER_03 34:30

I mean just I mean, I'm sure you've tried it. I mean uh you can you know yourself now with one beer, two beer, three beers and doing a show versus no beers or no liquor, right? I mean who's a better Ed Moore? Uh on stage, uh comedic wise, no drinks. Okay. I think I would be funnier, honestly. Um, but you know, that's not I'm not you.

SPEAKER_01 34:55

Um uh I think it's it's the style of comedy too.

SPEAKER_03 34:59

I mean, I'm getting funnier as we go along because there's some Siraq in this cup. Oh yeah. I'm just kidding. Hey, yeah, but uh I'm just kidding. But all right. Is there kind of a is there also camaraderie down there around the mothership with everybody, even if they're not famous or even very good, but because they're trying.

SPEAKER_01 35:22

Yeah, yeah. People respect the grind. And that's what I'm saying.

SPEAKER_03 35:26

I've got to right on my paper, grinding. That's what they call it, right?

SPEAKER_01 35:30

Yeah, people grind it out.

SPEAKER_03 35:30

Grinding it out. Open mic nights, any mic you can find, bomb, bust, good, whatever. You're paying do's. That's all it is. You're paying dues. You're learning things um that maybe you can use later, right? Yeah. I mean, you get inf do you find yourself with a little your bullet points or things that you can tell a crowd thinks is funny. Yeah. And and then you can kind of use that in some of the other bits when you write?

SPEAKER_01 35:57

Mm-hmm. That's that's yeah, exactly. I learned from it. Uh add something from another joke to that, you know what I mean? That would do great or sound better. This over here sometimes. Uh yeah, yeah, that's how it's just cr trial and error.

SPEAKER_03 36:10

You know, I I could see and I've heard comics complain about so-and-so stole my material. Is that ever a thing? You know, where you go down there and you hear some joke, you come back up here, or somebody does and they kind of make it their own. That happens. Uh I guess because, you know, if it's funny, it's funny.

SPEAKER_01 36:29

Yeah, it's frowned upon. Right. I was gonna I was gonna say nobody you don't you never want to be accused of it, um, but at the same time, it's like there's nothing really there's nothing that hadn't been said under the sun. You know, I mean, there's some type of Right.

SPEAKER_03 36:46

There's some variation of almost any situation. I mean, you know. Um when you started thinking about comedy, writing, going out, I mean, did you identify with any uh particular comedian, uh uh his style, her style?

SPEAKER_01 37:02

Um, I enjoy storytelling. Um Dave Chappelle.

SPEAKER_03 37:07

Chappelle tells a story the whole time. Yeah, the whole story. It's never a quote joke, is it? Like, did you hear about the guy who came down to the restaurant? And it's never that, is it?

SPEAKER_01 37:16

No, it's never that, but he has those. You know, you want I I always keep those in my pockets, they'll come up, I'll think of them, but then I'll be like, all right, just put that to the side in case, you know, I may need an extra 30 minutes or something, or 30 seconds, I mean. Right to throw that over there. But uh Dave Chappelle, Ali Sadiq, um is a I'm a big fan of his. Uh Cat. Uh I love Tom Segir. Cat Williams. Yeah. All those guys, I pretty much I feel like there's uh there's a style of comedy for everybody. I've seen being on the road and you've seen some th stuff that I'd be like, man, that I didn't even know that existed. You know what I mean? But it would be people laughing. You know, like, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 37:57

So Cat Williams, he also talks in stories. I mean, he rambles on and tells a story for 20 minutes, you know, and and just makes something funny in it along the way.

SPEAKER_01 38:08

Yeah, you gotta uh I had uh uh uh some comedians that, you know, they've having conversations with them, they've broken it down to a science. This is how many laughs you want to get in this amount of time. Right. Early on. Yeah, to be considered, you know what I mean. If you're a f uh you're a open micer, you want to go to this level, you need to have this many laughs a minute. You want to start getting paid and doing this, you want to get this, you want to be the headliner, you need to have this. This many laughs.

SPEAKER_03 38:37

So, I mean, there is kind of it's been analyzed by people that decide who gets a mic, who gets paid, right? And it's mostly how the crowd reacts.

SPEAKER_01 38:48

Yes, how the crowd reacts? Uh you got pro bookers and everything that'll be at those open mics and they'll say, hey man, what are you doing this weekend, or what are you doing on the so-and-so? And like, hey, I'll be on it. Wherever it is, I'll be there.

SPEAKER_03 38:59

I mean, you you're new in this, and a comedian uh, you know, doesn't bring equipment, just brings his or herself to the show, right? Do you have to have any type of agent or manager representation? Uh I have been thinking about that lately. Because I mean, you don't want to give up 15% of any part of your money, but at the same time, if they can get you shows that outweigh that by a bunch, you don't care.

SPEAKER_01 39:26

Right. Yeah, I'm not, yeah, I'm all for it. I would more I'm open to it because I don't want to do that my on my own. I I lose track of I get sidetracked and forget about dates and stuff like that, or until this time they're like, oh dang, I did agree to that. All right, let's go and do it.

SPEAKER_03 39:42

Yeah, because I mean if you didn't show up or something, that might hurt you, hurt you, right?

SPEAKER_01 39:46

Yeah, so I always go. But I just it's a surprise. I would rather have it like written down or something popping up, like, oh yeah, I forgot. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 39:53

All right. Most of the gigs right now that you're going out and doing, are they one minute, three minutes, longer? What are they?

SPEAKER_01 39:58

Uh I haven't done anything other if it's not if it's a mic, I may do five, but anything, nothing under ten right now. Everything is over. Yep.

SPEAKER_03 40:10

All right. And is that what they expect and want when you get there? You know that going in?

SPEAKER_01 40:15

Uh-huh. At least. Uh sometimes a little more, they'll let me know.

SPEAKER_03 40:17

All right. Now that's a long time, which you know, the longer it is, the more chance you have to do well or to bomb, if you will, right? Right. Uh tell us about the uh the roughest crowd or the worst outing uh that you had and where it was.

SPEAKER_01 40:35

Uh Shreeport. Louisiana. Shreport. Where do they have a club? They had a comedy club? They had a comedy club, uh, it was a comedy club. Uh it was more of a that was an open mic.

SPEAKER_03 40:47

All right, set it up for us. You go over there, you get up there, people are there. Uh in the open mic, uh, is there an order system or do you just draw, or how how how do they line them up? Uh it depends on the venue, I think.

SPEAKER_01 41:00

Uh yeah, you have some that'll do that. When did you come up that night? Uh I was around the end, I think.

SPEAKER_03 41:08

Okay, so you're at the very end. Uh-huh. So did you recall whether the people before you were funny? Oh, uh, it was just a tough crowd. Okay. Yeah, it was a tough one. It was a tough crowd. I mean, they were and and of course the the longer you are towards the end, the more alcohol that's been consumed.

SPEAKER_01 41:22

Yeah, yeah, they're not yeah, they're not even paying attention.

SPEAKER_03 41:25

Right. I mean, this is boo, you know, I mean, right? No, I haven't got any booze. Okay. Not yet. I mean, that's what I was about to get to. I'm proud of that. I stand on that. No booze yet. This is a tough crowd in Shreeport that night. And so what do you what's happening to you?

SPEAKER_01 41:38

I just read the crowd wrong. Uh it was uh Yeah, it was I thought I had some some jokes uh that uh What kind of crowd did we have in Shreeport? It was uh it was a a club. Okay. You know? And I thought I had some pretty good material, you know what I mean, but it was I the ignorance of me is different.

SPEAKER_03 42:03

Yeah, you weren't uh maybe you hadn't you weren't progressive enough or you hadn't you didn't understand the situation uh and none of your stuff was hitting. Right?

SPEAKER_01 42:15

Yeah, it w most some of it hit, but it was just yeah, yeah, it was like oh well nobody's done anything tonight. So I was just a shot in the dark.

SPEAKER_03 42:23

It's like so it let's bl we're gonna blame all the comedians before you because you couldn't overcome how bad they thought. Okay. They were terrible? Uh most of them? No. It was the crowd. Okay. Yeah. All right. So that's the worst. Tell us about, you know, a good feeling. Like one of the best, you know, bits, routines, period of time that you got up there and you felt like you really killed it.

SPEAKER_01 42:50

Um I'm always critical of myself, you know. So it nothing is. I mean, all the greats are, Ed.

SPEAKER_03 42:59

All the greats are.

SPEAKER_01 43:00

I'm pretty critical of myself.

SPEAKER_03 43:01

So it's like, And you went 18 for 19, I know, but I missed that one.

SPEAKER_01 43:05

Yeah. I'd uh yeah, I always feel like I could do better on some point. So but people will come up and say, hey man, that's good. That was good. You did this because they've it've been other comedians that I hang out. We go out as a as a crew and go to all these mics because I'm not so I'm not alone. It's like routine. So they'll get up and be like, Man, you flowed into that one different than you did the other day, man. That was nice. It went smoother and like, all right, that's what I want to hear.

SPEAKER_03 43:27

Have you ever remember a dude named Sean Bryant? I can't. White guy. I saw him doing some comedy one time a couple of years ago, and it was local, you know, and I thought, and and I heard he was into it a little bit, but I haven't seen anything from him since. I don't know if he's still in it.

SPEAKER_01 43:44

I'm not sure. Now, if there I've heard stories of comedians, you know what I mean, that have like taken breaks since I've started that were really good. Now I want to meet those guys, but I just hadn't been able to run into them yet.

SPEAKER_03 43:55

All right. So let's say I've never gone to Rose City Comedy Club. Right. And today it's it's uh on old Jacksonville. It's in the old Laredo Cantina space. I rolled down there on a Monday night, and open mic starts when? Uh I believe it starts at 7 30. What's this place like? Do they have a bar? Do they have food? What what's going on in there?

SPEAKER_01 44:18

Yeah, they it's it's uh it's a full-on full bar uh and food. Little I don't know a full rest, you know, but they have a serve appetizers. That's what I was about to say.

SPEAKER_03 44:34

For the people who had gone to Rose City Comedy Club on Front Street and thought, uh, this isn't that nice, what they've got going now is definitely in the right direction.

SPEAKER_01 44:43

Uh yeah, yeah, it's the actual it's the comedy club that we have right now. Uh myself and a couple buddies are are working with uh a place called Sky Lounge Bar. Um that's on Broadway, and we're gonna be starting an open mic ourselves. I didn't even know if that was still open. Yeah, it's open. Uh Wednesday night starting the 21st of this month, January 21st, open mics also.

SPEAKER_03 45:06

Okay, so Sky Lounge will have a Wednesday night mic that people wanting to try comedy can go to. Yeah, we need we felt that that's right across from Bill Day Tyre on Broadway, right? Right before you get to Bergfeld Park. Uh-huh. Good location. They got a liquor license. Right. They sell food. I've been there. Um and so I guess y'all are gonna tee it up.

SPEAKER_01 45:28

Uh yeah. Good uh good staff and and ownership and everything, uh really nice people. They wanted comedy, and we with us uh with the local comedians and everything, um some of them aren't, you know, they don't they don't want to travel as much or like get on the road and things like that, or may just need to stay home for work or something like that.

SPEAKER_03 45:49

So they want to do comedy. They just love it, right? And they're not gonna make a living in Tyler, are they? I mean, they it depends on them. Like I said, you get out you get out of it what you put in. So can you make can you make decent money going and and doing these shows at at places like you know, Rose City Comedy Club around here locally?

SPEAKER_01 46:08

Uh they bring people in, I'm sure I don't know their contracts, but I'm sure they're doing pretty good. I know comedians that only do comedy right now, and I'm just I'll be there. I get there.

SPEAKER_03 46:18

I mean, that's your goal, right?

SPEAKER_01 46:19

Yeah, yeah, that's my goal to uh work for a couple hours a day.

SPEAKER_03 46:24

You know, you uh you've been to Nackerdoches, I've seen, right? There's some kind of comedy, biker bar comedy. Oh, yeah, yeah. Right? Yeah, yeah. You know I wonder the experience of the uh you know, the black comedian down in Deep East, Texas in Nacadochis at a biker bar. You know, I I mean I'm just visualizing what that crowd's looking like. What are they looking like?

SPEAKER_01 46:50

No, honestly, uh I was worried about it being a biker bar, but then I realized that every person that had a bike, nobody had a so a full set of limbs. You know? So I was like, uh they're not really good at riding bikes, so even if they're all of them together as like three guys, I can handle that.

SPEAKER_03 47:10

Uh but I mean they were injured riding it or they were veterans, or what was it?

SPEAKER_01 47:14

Yeah, they were injured riding. They were injured riding, uh uh leg hair gone, uh arm hair gone. Uh but they were really nice. I think, you know, well, I think they uh yeah, they wanted to give me a they gave me a tour, anything I wanted. I think they were they real they saw the look on my face when I pulled open the the worry in my eyes.

SPEAKER_03 47:33

But I mean, did you enjoy that? Oh, I enjoyed it. It was great. Um And they were probably glad in Nacadochious to have some different type of entertainment.

SPEAKER_01 47:41

Oh yeah, they the crowd was great, the crowd was into it. Um yeah, everyone that was on that show killed. Um I was glad that they um had me. I'll go back anytime too.

SPEAKER_03 47:51

Now, you mentioned the Liberty Theater. You uh you had a performance there, um, and uh it's over here, and it was at something called Cheese and Fest, is that right?

SPEAKER_01 48:03

Cheese and Fest.

SPEAKER_03 48:04

Uh this is you and the outfit and the Liberty.

SPEAKER_01 48:09

I like Ford. Ford is cool. Um I like how they have a situation, like a name for every situation that you can you could uh go through. You know what I mean? Like when you first get a car man, you're like a Ford Explorer. You you live on a Ford to go on Ford Expert. But you got four photos. Yeah, that's uh what's crazy is with the Cheese and Fest, uh when I was with with the crew, uh I did a lot of you know groundwork and moving around and and just running, ripping around and trying to help the production gun and and make it happen.

SPEAKER_03 49:49

Who put on I mean, Cheese and Fest must be some name for a comedy show that y'all put on at the Liberty?

SPEAKER_01 49:57

Uh yeah. Uh it was uh comedy show at The Liberty. That was the big the big fest. Uh we held open mics and everything like that at uh downtown, also at Truevine Brewery, but because of, you know, I mean construction and everything, they're gone and decided to go back over to uh Earl Campbell. But uh we started uh some friends and friends of mine uh started Cheese and Fest uh just to bring those Austin comedians and everything and Dallas comedians that we were cool with it to Tyler, so Tyler would get to to see them and everything like that.

SPEAKER_03 50:30

Well, it it seems like some of your best material uh was part of the uh show that we watched. It was about a minute and a half, and it was mainly uh about a Ford automobile. What was the inspiration for that?

SPEAKER_01 50:48

Uh bored on the road, getting stuck behind people and uh just m memorizing what kind of car they drove.

SPEAKER_03 50:55

I mean, you know, it it seems like kind of a smart, funny way to put all the models of a Ford together uh in the experiences that people might have in them.

SPEAKER_01 51:05

Yeah. It would be uh yeah, I I'm just like that when I see uh I see a Nissan rogue and it's driving crazy or something, I'll be like, yeah, that Nissan's gone pretty rogue.

SPEAKER_03 51:17

But I guess that's what you when you looked at the Ford and you started seeing all the names.

SPEAKER_01 51:21

Names, yeah. All of them made sense in a way if you just pick and put them around.

SPEAKER_03 51:26

All those Ford names were something somebody could be doing, like having an excursion, trying to escape, right? Having a fiesta. Yeah. And I thought it was a good I I I I put it in the show and you know, we looked at it because uh I think it it probably showcased one of your your best moments in comedy thus far. Yeah, yeah, I say that for sure. I mean, just your delivery, the confidence you've had up there, and the content of that bit was probably the best I I've seen so far.

SPEAKER_01 51:56

Uh yeah, yeah. I've uh yeah, that was that day I didn't have enough time to think about it. I was ripping and running so much, and I just went up there and did it. Wasn't too much in my head at the time.

SPEAKER_03 52:08

You know, I saw something more recently. It was called Mo Seasoning. It looked like it took place over at the old Emmett Scott, somewhere around there. Um what was that?

SPEAKER_01 52:16

That was a Cheese and Fest production also. Uh Who is Cheese and Fest? Uh Cheese and Fest was uh I would say myself, um young lady Tony Robinson. Uh she she runs it, I would say now. You know, I mean mostly her.

SPEAKER_03 52:31

But as a start, yeah, it was What's the goal of this Cheese and Fest company to hold events and get comics from inside uh Tyler and outside Tyler to come to them?

SPEAKER_01 52:41

Uh yeah, you know, those uh like Kill Tony fans and those guys that are, you know, doing their thing uh down in Austin and Dallas and everyone. Just people we've uh met and comedians be like, hey man, we love to have you in Tyler sometimes. Like, really, yeah, we want to come down to Tyler. Just it gives them another place just to try out new material. Right, new material. Uh just reach a different audience, you know what I mean? Um, yeah, if you want to try them new material, but yeah, you can reach a different audience uh down this way. It's we don't have, you know, other than Road City and nothing on them. Uh we're not trying to compete or anything. No, right. It's just uh we like the it's Tyler, man. Tyler's growing.

SPEAKER_03 53:21

So I mean, right. Longview doesn't have a club, do they? They don't. Um Nackerdoches really doesn't have a club, do they? No. Comedy club. No. Uh so the closest thing is Dallas. Dallas Freeport, yeah. Um have you met any comics, you know, in your trips to Austin or anywhere else that, you know, are actually, you know, really successful in a way that you you aspire to be and say, well, you know what, I'm gonna be like that if I can.

SPEAKER_01 53:52

Uh yeah, I have a few buddies. Uh some are local around here. I I think uh, well, Kevin's Kevin Hollingsworth is is a good friend of mine.

SPEAKER_03 54:01

Is he making money on the comedy circuit?

SPEAKER_01 54:03

Yeah, he he's out and about, you know what I mean? He's been doing he's done things with Jimmy Kimmel. Um, yeah, he's he's he's been in the game a long time.

SPEAKER_03 54:12

Uh so when you're trying to get noticed other than open mic nights, do you then utilize social media to try to get yourself out there to get seen by someone?

SPEAKER_01 54:21

Yeah, that that's that's it now. You know, uh it isn't like it used to be. Yeah, social media is a is a big big part of it. They're getting on they've been getting on me about being more present on social media just because I just half the time don't feel like dealing with it. And that's what I would need a manager or something like that. Yeah, right.

SPEAKER_03 54:38

How would anybody know about Ed Moore to give you opportunities outside of, you know, Tyler, Shreeport, Dallas, if, you know, how do they find you or know you?

SPEAKER_01 54:47

I've gone, yeah. Uh I It's been, yeah, you do those shows and everything uh up there in Dallas or, you know, those are the ones that I I go to a summer like that right now. But when I'm there, I do my best, I kill, hopefully. And uh someone there will be like, hey man, we want to come up to Oklahoma. We got a show in Oklahoma and just reach that crowd, and then you kill it there and you just keep spanning out.

SPEAKER_03 55:12

What's the goal? I mean, you know, what's the a realistic expectation for Ed Moore? As you go out, you're doing well, you're getting people's attention, what do they ask you to do that you're not doing now? You know, that's kind of a step up in the comedy world.

SPEAKER_01 55:28

Uh I guess the social media right now, I well, I I would say skits and things like that. I mean you're not going straight to the Netflix special in your mind. No, no, no, not at all. Uh I want to um so initially I got into it to write. Like I said, I I grew up watching Saturday Night Live and things like that, wanting to really write good material and skits for other people. Because at the time I still wasn't used to being out in the limelight.

SPEAKER_03 55:56

When you say skits, are you saying something that's physical like Saturday Night Live, or are you saying like a routine of a stand-up comedian?

SPEAKER_01 56:04

Like a that's physical, like a whole notch, just a production, like a short, you know what I mean, uh how do you little five-minute part of something like in living color?

SPEAKER_03 56:14

Yeah, something like that. Those type of skits.

SPEAKER_01 56:18

I wanted to start off and writing those, and I wanted that to be my main thing.

SPEAKER_03 56:22

Uh but There's nowhere to do that, is there?

SPEAKER_01 56:25

Right. I found out that the best way to get your material out at least is to get up there on stage and say it yourself. And then I found out that, hey, I mean, I'm not too bad at this, and the skits could come a little later, but this is this isn't too bad.

SPEAKER_03 56:38

Um I guess has there been anything uh somebody's reached out to you, asked you to come up that's kind of excited you or or felt like it was kind of a move in in in a positive direction other than just going to open mics. I mean, this you know man, I appreciate this.

SPEAKER_01 56:54

This is a big this is big time, man.

SPEAKER_03 56:55

Well, no, I mean we we wanted to have you on the show because uh we think we've caught you early. Right? Early in your career. And uh it'll be interesting to see, you know, with what your focus is, how you do from here. Uh and so, you know, if if you could have anything happen to you in the near term, what would it be? Would it be somebody from Oklahoma City call you and say, hey, come down to the uh the comedy club here and do a 30 minute gig? What would it be?

SPEAKER_01 57:22

Uh my biggest goal right now is I guess to be a headliner at a show.

SPEAKER_03 57:29

All right. And so that's good. That that gives us some perspective. You go to a show, a paid show where you're getting paid, right? Yeah. What kind of pay uh can a comedy a comic expect, you know, that goes to some of these paid gigs in Dallas and Houston, you know, Thursday, Friday, Saturday night, and you're part of a uh a series of comics, right? Right, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 57:52

And I mean what can they pay you? Well, you know, it depends on where you are on the lineup. The the headliners I always gonna get the big bucks. Um, but I'm right there in the middle, you know, right there in the middle of the yeah.

SPEAKER_03 58:04

But I mean, like, okay, for you to drive up there, have gas, maybe spend the night or not, uh huh, you know, how much they gotta pay you for it to be worth it, or do you just want the the mic time?

SPEAKER_01 58:15

You want the you want both. Um you just gotta understand early in the game like that, you're not, you know, it's gonna be a lot of it's gonna be times like that. That's what you that you're paying the dues.

SPEAKER_03 58:26

You know, I've gone, they give me is anybody paying you while you're paying the dues.

SPEAKER_01 58:30

Oh yeah. Yeah. You get paid, you get paid, but it's pretty much uh it's it's not the you can pay a couple bills with it, a few bills right now. You know, I mean are they taking it?

SPEAKER_03 58:42

At least throw in a couple of free beers at the bar.

SPEAKER_01 58:44

You get uh some tickets and everything for the bar. They'll they'll pay you. Um they pay for your your board if they if you need to stay or uh and your gas and everything to get there. So I mean you walk out with still more than you went in with, but it's like how many times do I have to do this in the week? I want to redo it, I want to do it one time and be good. Like some guys I know, they just do one or two shows in the weekend and they're like taken care of for that. I'm like, man, that's I guess that's what I want to it with I want to get it to where it just this is my job.

SPEAKER_03 59:15

Right now, in your you know, your two-year anniversary of being in comedy, what's what's the most number of shows you've done in a week? Uh six. All right. I mean, that's a heavy schedule. Unless I'm assuming you ran the same routine or bit that all six times? No. No. No? No. Was it the same comedy club?

SPEAKER_01 59:38

No. No. Uh not the same comedy club. I'm the type of person that I don't really I get weird if I say the same thing over and over again. You know what I mean? So that's why I do the bullet points and things like that. Uh none of it would be the same. Uh I read the crowd. It could be, you know, predominantly uh this is, you know what I mean, uh fancy crowd. Right. Don't talk about they they won't relate on some on certain things. So yeah, it's all it all changes. Um yeah, go up.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:09

Politics is a dud, in my opinion, on the comedy, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, because half the audience is not gonna like it, and half of it might be with you.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:18

Right. I mean, it's uh So yeah, I pretty I I don't know if I even have any political jokes. Right.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:24

I mean, I would think that would be like, you know, worse than religion in a way. Yeah. In comedy. In comedy, people can kind of laugh at religion and not be upset. But politics, it seems like people are so dead serious.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:37

Yeah, you get you my the biggest thing that I try right now early in is uh I try to make sure with the jokes that I do right or the things that I say uh that they can be repeated. You can repeat them um at work or something like that, word for word, don't have to leave anything out, and you still won't get in trouble.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:58

Right. I mean, uh and that was gonna be my follow-up question. I mean, you know, Eddie Murphy kind of well, actually, Richard Pryor. Richard Pryor kind of started the bad language. Maybe Red Fox in before him, okay. I mean, that was my favorite. Plain dirty rapper, whatever. You know, I was a little kid, and I'm used to seeing uh Fred Sanford on Sanford and Sun.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:21

I get a whole list too. I'm like, that's Red Fox. He's like, I go, what in the world? I was like, I couldn't believe that was the same guy in middle school or you know, when I heard it. But Red was funny. Richard Pryor was funny, Eddie was funny, but you know, there's a lot of profanity, there's a lot of things that you couldn't say that your coworker could repeat at work. Well, yeah, well, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:45

Right. Yeah, but it's up to them if they want to do that. They might, you know, it might be frowned upon and you might have some eyes, but now for the most part, I uh yeah, nothing too crazy. I've uh I had to take a step back and I noticed I was like, oh hey man, am I a clean comic?

SPEAKER_03 1:02:01

Are you? I was gonna ask you, I've seen that this the comedians have been categorized from Christian comic to, you know, family friendly over to, you know, adults only, uh explicit, you know, whatever, right? I mean it's it's almost like a rating for a movie.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:20

Right, yeah. But even with the clean comic thing, where I found out I don't my it's it is it's clean, it's relatable, and all it is I could add a few curse words in there. It's not a big thing. Um it's not like uh I shy away from it. But like I said, I always think about other people saying it and kind of looking out for them or whatnot. I've you know, that's easy. Filling in words and stuff like that is easy. I did a uh show, uh Mike one time, where it's called Punchlines and Punishments. And they give you five minutes, and you have certain rules for your set that you have to do, and they'll give you like a little cow like a little shock thing on you to where you'll get shocked if you curse or just say or use filler words like the word like uh you know, they'll keep you from that doing that, and that keeps your your set strong throughout it. You know what I mean? How is like the word like how's it used to kind of is it it's a filler? Yeah, it's just it's a filler, it doesn't have you know, I mean it's only a few times you can use it to like you know, like when you ever you know that's the way Yeah, like like you know, like cause we use it so much now, um, and I just everyday language, but I mean there's uh if on stage there's other words that you could use other than like. And all it did was just kind of expand your vocabulary in a way. And yeah, that's that's I enjoyed it. That was one of my favorite sets.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:48

I mean, that was a set, but it almost seemed like a training.

SPEAKER_01 1:03:51

Yeah, it was training, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:52

Training. I appreciated it. Uh you know, we don't have a lot. To make your you know, your routine tighter. Tighter and stuff, your language more precise. Right, yeah. Every every word means something. Right, instead of just talking in generalities and you know I I I think that's less funny anyway. People that just generally talking, when people get to specifics, yeah, you know, that is real life that seems true, I mean that seems to hit as funny a lot of times.

SPEAKER_01 1:04:22

Yeah, like that word was put in there for a reason, you know, on my set. So like that was there for a reason, the the more I get into it. But yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:04:31

Um how many shows, you know, individual opportunities on stage would you say you've done uh from that first night at Rose City to right now?

SPEAKER_01 1:04:42

I have no clue. I was thinking about this the other day, and that is my New Year's resolution. Actually count every time I'm up. I want to see.

SPEAKER_03 1:04:51

Your schedule um going into January 2026 is um tonight's Monday night. I guess you'll be down at Rose City? Uh yeah. Yeah, I'll go now. Um And will you be on stage or will you just be there to watch with some of the other people?

SPEAKER_01 1:05:06

Yeah, if I'm ever there, I'm getting up. I'm not there to waste no time.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:09

And is it just a sign up?

SPEAKER_01 1:05:10

Yeah, it's a sign. Yeah, you sign up for the open mics, you get there at a certain time. I think they hold the sign-ups. They either do them online or in person.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:17

How long is the open mic session?

SPEAKER_01 1:05:19

It's the whole night? Yeah, it's the yeah. It dep yeah now we have about um maybe about 15 sign up, 15 to 20 comedians.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:30

When it's over, that is the last, the 15th comic has given them their best, then what? Go home. Is it over or is it or is it a bar? People are hanging around talking.

SPEAKER_01 1:05:41

People are hanging out, you know, they're uh yeah, they'll hang out at the bar. Now, they used to uh be well, I won't say that even at Road City, right? But if you go and do a mic, uh most comedians, they're always is there's another mic somewhere, so they'll hang around for a little bit and go and push and try to get Up on stage again the next the same night.

SPEAKER_03 1:06:04

You can't do that at Rose City, can you? No, nothing.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:08

You could get up three times on a Monday. Different places. Yeah, you could just drive across town. Yeah, just and you know they in Austin I like it because everything is pretty much on one or two streets. Fourth, fifth, and sixth. Yeah, you don't have to get in your car or anything. You just walk to it, you know. But Dallas, you might have to do a little drive back. Yeah, for sure. It's still an option. You don't have that here. That's why we want to to at least build this Wednesday night back up. With Sky. Yeah. Well, where was Wednesday night before when you say build it back up?

SPEAKER_03 1:06:39

Well, that's when we had it at uh Truevine. Oh, okay. Uh-huh. And and what is it about the construction at Truevine that's to stop the uh comedy? Well, uh I don't know if it was the downtown.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:52

It was the you know, it's hard to get around there.

SPEAKER_03 1:06:55

Truevine's left, I think. I thought they were making something else out of that spot.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:58

Yeah, they've gone yeah, Truevine has left. They they're mainly over there on Earl Campbell. Right. Yeah. At the big the big place.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:05

But they allowed for an open mic and on Wednesday nights.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:09

Yeah, I believe so. I'm not sure on that that night, you know what I mean, but uh I mean that venue. Yeah. Um, but we we figured, you know, if they want to continue doing things, uh they just let us know.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:20

You know, Houston you haven't mentioned, and I would think that Houston, as big as it is, yeah, with a lot of entertainers and entertainment, that Houston would be a spot, you know, you'd be trying to get down to.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:30

I am. I got I have a few shows lined up uh at the end of this month in Houston. That'll those will be my my first paid gigs in Houston. But uh Houston is just that town scares me, man. It's just the traffic and everything, it's too big.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:45

The traffic is is tough.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:47

So I've kind of just stayed aware away, knowing that one day I am gonna have to go and everything. But yeah, it's it's fun. Houston's fine.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:54

You do you you have some booked gigs to go to? Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:58

How did you get those? I mean, uh, did you call them or did they uh uh you know contact you?

SPEAKER_01 1:08:03

They'll contact me. Um there's usually whoever's running the show, the headliner or something, he might have someone that he wants to bring in with him. Like he met you somewhere else. Uh-huh. And he'll hit me up and be like, hey man, I got this so-and-so. Would you want what you want to? I'm like, sure, I'm not turning anything down, man. Let's do it.

SPEAKER_03 1:08:23

Um would you say there's, you know, more comedy club availability than there are comics right now, or there's more comics with, you know, not enough places to go. Too many yeah. More comics than places to go. Okay. So you say there's more people that are in comedy and would want to be in it and would get up on the stage if there were more places to go.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:43

Yeah, that's what we're just trying to, we're trying to have the the local comedy scene here uh is bigger than people expect. You know, we just have Rose City or whatnot and what we have over here at uh Scott. But uh as far as the crowd, i there's been times that I've been in Dallas or somewhere out doing it. There was less people. No, well, it'd be people that I run into that are from Tyler, comedians and stuff like that. You know what I mean? I was like, I never even met you. I guess nowhere to be down there.

SPEAKER_03 1:09:12

Right. That's they were going to where the opportunities were. Yeah. But I mean, somebody who's listened to this and they don't know Rose City. They've heard about it maybe. They've never been to it, especially the one on Old Jacksonville. I mean, on open mic night, you say there could be as many as 15 comics lined up to do one minute.

SPEAKER_01 1:09:33

Oh no, they're like three to five, I believe. It depends on how many sign up. So if it's a if it's up to twenty, yeah, you're not gonna get five minutes each or anything, maybe three or four, but uh, most of the time they don't let you do anything less than five.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:45

All right.

SPEAKER_01 1:09:46

That's long enough for for them. I've almost tried to sign up as some aliases and do another five later on in the set, you know, but I don't want to do that.

SPEAKER_03 1:09:55

All right. So you got uh you got all these comics, if that's what about the people in the crowd? I mean, are there more comics than people at the show? I mean, what's it like?

SPEAKER_01 1:10:04

Uh that's hit and miss. Sometimes it is. You know? Yeah, some it's been I've seen it. Um but you gotta give every show, you gotta treat every show the same. Give it a hundred percent every you know. You're practicing. It's practice, yeah, pretty much. It don't matter. No. Every time you get up on stage, you're gonna figure something else out, something new. You know what I mean? It's just up to you to do it.

SPEAKER_03 1:10:30

There's musicians that've talked about that where, you know, paying their dues, grinding, you know, where they play, there's ten people in there, you know, and at a show. It's kind of like that, or it can be. Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:42

The b some of the best advice I've gotten uh was hey, don't uh give it a hundred percent. Uh don't step I find your voice in comedy. It's gonna be hard to do that. That was and I'm still, I think, trying to find that. You never know. I have a I'm trying to find my style. I'm more of a calm layback guy, you know, but it's comedy-wise, you know, I've done sets where I've been real lively and nose-killed or something, but it all it kind of is weird. You got uh the other advice, don't step on my lash. Let the crowd finish laughing before I go into another joke. It just hey, just let them laugh, know that you're funny, let them get it out, and then start your next one. It goes, you know.

SPEAKER_03 1:11:26

That's part of the being a showman and a performer, right? It's to not move too quick and to kind of sense the crowd. Yeah, gotta feel it. Kind of work the crowd. Right? I mean uh and and when you sense something is working, you probably continue to head in that direction if as long as you can.

SPEAKER_01 1:11:48

As long as you can, yeah. Once you get that, you can you can tell when it's time to go and finish up on that.

SPEAKER_03 1:11:54

Now, as a comedian, you say uh trying to find your voice. Um I guess is that, you know, what's your style gonna be? Are you gonna develop a signature style?

SPEAKER_01 1:12:05

You want a you want a s a signature voice or a style. Uh you you know, people will remember you, I would say.

SPEAKER_03 1:12:13

Right, like Sam Kennison.

SPEAKER_01 1:12:14

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:12:15

Back in the old days, I mean the dude was screaming, right? I mean, that was kind of his stick. That was his, right? Um and then other comedians, you know, um, I'm trying to think of one that that was so monologue, like I'm just trying to do the you know, I mean there's some people that do like that, right? There's some people that like that. I've s you know Dave Attell.

SPEAKER_01 1:12:36

Dave Vattel, people like him. I mean he's a legend. Totally different, you know, the way he goes about it. But then you have someone like Gallagher that just comes out and and smashes watermelons into the crowd. Right. Or you got prop comics like Carrot Top and things like that, or magicians, pen and teller. It's so many different Right.

SPEAKER_03 1:12:55

I mean, I don't see I don't see you in the pen and teller, do you? I've thought about it. Do you know any magic?

SPEAKER_01 1:13:01

No, that's what I was planning on learning close magic, and then I think that if I tried it on stage, that would make people laugh because they know that I do not know what I'm doing out there.

SPEAKER_03 1:13:10

But I mean, uh could you go somewhere and learn magic tricks that you know of that people couldn't tell that you were, you know, manipulating behind the scenes and it looked funny?

SPEAKER_01 1:13:21

I'm trying to figure that out. I know that I don't I don't think I have the I don't feel like reading about it in the book. I don't want to learn magic by reading it. I would I wouldn't it wouldn't transfer away. You're hands on. Yeah, you know what I'm saying? You have to teach me and show me and what?

SPEAKER_03 1:13:37

How do you slip that card into my coat?

SPEAKER_01 1:13:40

Yeah, if I'm reading it, I yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:13:42

It'll be a good one. All right, so you're probably not gonna be that. Probably not. Your voice is migrating in the direction of what do you think you'll be your style? Are you this kind of chill, calm? You know, hey, you know, one day I walked over here and saw this guy. You know, you know, is that you? Uh I think I have that just kind of calm nature, you know, just uh your forward bit wasn't that calm, but it was kind of in that vein.

SPEAKER_01 1:14:14

It's more, yeah, it's more I'm having more of a conversation. You know what I mean? Not trying to sound too friendly.

SPEAKER_03 1:14:20

They're gonna get in their excursion to go on an excursion, you know. Mm-hmm. Right. That was kind of situational though. Life experience, it could really happen, right? I mean, that's kind of what do you write stuff? I'm sure you got a book. Right, yeah. A few of them. Uh huh. Everybody has a book, you know, they you keep good ideas written down. Right. And then you probably look at them later.

SPEAKER_01 1:14:40

Mm-hmm. Uh you'll always Yeah, the I still go back to my very first book, you know what I mean, and and s see an idea that I can't I thought of back then and just me being in it a little longer. I'm like, oh yeah, I could do something with that, or add it to something that I like, oh, that I've written that's new, you know, like, oh, I forgot I did say that or written.

SPEAKER_03 1:15:01

I mean, do you have something that you've written thus far that you feel like is your best? Is there something, is there some bullet point, phrase, bit, anything that you say, man, this is probably the funniest thing I've written?

SPEAKER_01 1:15:14

Uh to me, no. You know what I mean? All of my all all of them are my babies. All right. But uh it's been people like really, hey man, you got something with that. You really need to do that.

SPEAKER_03 1:15:27

So uh that'll be my question then. Something that's you've either experienced from the crowd's reaction or somebody said to you got something. The four thing for sure. Okay. Is that I mean, we've seen kind of your development and your probably your best part of your routine in the two years you've been doing it. We've seen it on the screen here today today.

SPEAKER_01 1:15:48

All right.

SPEAKER_03 1:15:49

I know. I mean, is that right? Because I don't know all your routines. I haven't seen you.

SPEAKER_01 1:15:53

I've done yeah, I've I've done some pretty good ones. Like I said, they're all my babies. That that was just uh I think that that actual set was uh I don't know what to even call that. Uh I mean the crowd There was a good crowd. Good crowd. Uh that was the first time I had done that joke. You know what I mean? The very first time even trying it.

SPEAKER_03 1:16:14

And you you let it out at the end.

SPEAKER_01 1:16:16

Yeah, yeah, let it out at the end.

SPEAKER_03 1:16:18

Right? I mean it was your last before you dropped the mic, you were out.

SPEAKER_01 1:16:21

That's it. If it if it don't go, I'm all I'm already gone. I'm off the stage. Yeah. I'm off the stage.

SPEAKER_03 1:16:27

Liberty, uh, you know, I haven't been in there since they redid it, but I could tell it was the crowd seemed lively in in that. I don't know how many people were in there used.

SPEAKER_01 1:16:36

Uh I don't remember the exact amount, but we had a pretty good show. Uh we had had we used two venue venues for that um for that festival, I think. We used uh we had a setup over at ETX Brewery down the street on Broadway.

SPEAKER_03 1:16:52

But I mean, like in the crowd watching that routine that you did that we've looked at part of, how many people would you say were in the crowd?

SPEAKER_01 1:17:01

Uh maybe a couple hundred. I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 1:17:04

I mean, it was that many? Yeah, it was a pretty good crowd. Well, I mean, because people that are thinking about this, maybe somebody watches this uh podcast show and they're thinking about, you know, I've always wanted to get on stage. I've always wanted to go to open mic night. But I'm a little nervous about it. People are gonna think I'm dumb. People are gonna say I look stupid. I mean They already think that before you get on stage. Don't worry about it. Nothing's new. Right. They've seen people bombing before. Yeah, yeah. You the one thing you can hold in your heart, you won't be the worst.

SPEAKER_01 1:17:38

Exactly.

SPEAKER_03 1:17:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:17:39

Is that right? I've seen, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:17:40

You've seen people that are just like the break dancer in the Olympics from Australia.

SPEAKER_01 1:17:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:17:46

I mean, is that is that a I mean, that's a perfect example of you know, it that's not breakdancing. It was cringy. And uh people could look at somebody you've seen before and go, man, that's just not comedy.

SPEAKER_01 1:17:59

You know, uh Can you be so bad that you are funny? Austin is a place that you will see a lot of that.

SPEAKER_03 1:18:05

I've seen some guys on uh Kill Tony that was like, yeah, what is this guy doing?

SPEAKER_01 1:18:10

Some people are like fans and everything and think that they can still, you know, get up there, but man, you gotta know what you're doing. You gotta you gotta be in it to you gotta take it serious.

SPEAKER_03 1:18:20

I mean, I'm serious. When I ask, have you ever seen somebody so bad that people were laughing?

SPEAKER_01 1:18:26

Yeah, yeah, they're not laughing with you. They laughing at them? Yeah, definitely.

SPEAKER_03 1:18:30

Yeah, I mean that happens. Uh and you know, people that you've seen, because I'm it this is all walks of, you know, there's no barrier to being a a a stand-up comedian. All right. I mean, there's no anybody in Tyler, Texas, the surrounding area, can drive down there tonight to Rose City, put their name on the list, and get up there and talk for three minutes.

SPEAKER_01 1:18:52

And have the support of everyone.

SPEAKER_03 1:18:54

That's what I'm about to say. No matter what it's like with the crowd, there's an admiration from the people who've tried it. Yeah, if you will.

SPEAKER_01 1:19:03

Yeah, it takes a lot to even get up there. That's most of the battle.

SPEAKER_03 1:19:07

And, you know, it's it's it's a it reminds me of uh a speech from Teddy Roosevelt that hangs in my office and it's called The Man in the Arena. And it basically suggests it's not the critic who counts, but it's the man in the arena, the man who's you know, bloodied, battled, continues to strive, failed, uh, and maybe never even been successful, but it's the cold, timid souls of the critic who's never tried, they've never known even the feeling of you know victory or failure. They're just a critic. And so uh Ed, we wish you well. Uh it's been good to get to know you here today, and we'll watch and see what happens in the Tyler and surrounding area uh comedy scene, uh, because I I imagine you're going to be a big part of it.

SPEAKER_01 1:19:57

Thank you. I won't disappoint. And I appreciate uh you guys having me looking reaching out, J Chat. My dog. Good to have you.