Speaker 1: Welcome to Behind the Influence, a production of I Heart
Speaker 1: Radio and t DC Media. And I kept working, working, working,
Speaker 1: got an opportunity to be at the Laugh Factory, hosted
Speaker 1: my own show. Then that became two shows, and now
Speaker 1: I am responsible for two of the most popular nights
Speaker 1: in Los Angeles. This isn't me being arrogant saying, oh,
Speaker 1: look at me, appease me. No, appease yourself. This is
Speaker 1: a job. This is a career show up. I will
Speaker 1: be honest with anyone that asked me a question, but
Speaker 1: sometimes they will not appreciate or expect my honesty. So
Speaker 1: many people are so willing to change the world, so
Speaker 1: few people are just simply willing to change themselves. Yeah,
Speaker 1: that was That was interesting. That was real. That was real.
Speaker 1: That's the nitty gritty part of Hollywood that people don't
Speaker 1: know where the talent spit up their gum in the
Speaker 1: hand of the assistant, and that assistant had to take
Speaker 1: with jewel. There wasn't that wasn't just gum. That wasn't
Speaker 1: hard gum. That was wet, chewed up gum. And then
Speaker 1: it was and it was thrown in the trash. It
Speaker 1: was small, but it was big. It was a small thing,
Speaker 1: but a big I felt really doing that. I could
Speaker 1: have just grabbed the trash can and brought it over,
Speaker 1: but likes, you know, you put in, you put in effort.
Speaker 1: You didn't even you were like, no, this is immediate,
Speaker 1: I will take it in my hand. And because you
Speaker 1: took spit gum instant promotion in your hand and put
Speaker 1: it out in the trash can, alright, you know that's Victoria.
Speaker 1: She just took my gum straight out of my mouth
Speaker 1: for this interview that I'm so excited. It's the first
Speaker 1: one that we're doing on the first interview of twenties,
Speaker 1: which would sound great if it wasn't such a horrible year,
Speaker 1: right because started out like all this promise and then
Speaker 1: Day one Australia is on fire Day two, World War three,
Speaker 1: Day three, rent was due like just craziness. Four Tatiana
Speaker 1: has lost all use of hand. It's the weirdest thing.
Speaker 1: We were talking about this before we started recording, but
Speaker 1: I just want to fill you guys in, not that
Speaker 1: it matters, but maybe during this episode some weird feeling
Speaker 1: will come back. Both of my hands have lost all feeling.
Speaker 1: I cannot spread my fingers apart use them, and just
Speaker 1: I want everyone to just think real quick, how often
Speaker 1: you use your hands and your fingers and what you
Speaker 1: use them for, and imagine no longer having use of
Speaker 1: those things. Okay, so the comedian and me automatically went
Speaker 1: to the worst, most dirty things. You like. Everything you
Speaker 1: said just sounded like married to a good man, great
Speaker 1: man who has surgical gloves on hand. Great guy. Yeah.
Speaker 1: So al right, guys, we are sitting here with Tehran.
Speaker 1: He is by far one of my favorite humans on planning.
Speaker 1: Thank you. You are also one of mine. I've been
Speaker 1: trending this year and you didn't. I've been trending Tehran
Speaker 1: not for the best things. You know, I'm named after
Speaker 1: the capital of Iran. So awkward, awkward, But you know what,
Speaker 1: it's not about that. It's about you. You know, we're
Speaker 1: here with you. I've interviewed Toron a few times before
Speaker 1: and in different contexts. You know, are as a comedian,
Speaker 1: all the success that he's had so far. This show
Speaker 1: focuses obviously on influence, and Tehran is no exception to
Speaker 1: the word influence because he's essentially a gatekeeper tastemaker within
Speaker 1: the comedy world. Um, and we'll get into his background
Speaker 1: a little bit so you can understand why and how.
Speaker 1: But basically Tehran he books shows, he hosts shows, So like,
Speaker 1: if you're funny and he thinks you're funny, he'll feature
Speaker 1: you on his show. I definitely will. I give a
Speaker 1: space for people who I think are talented or up
Speaker 1: and coming talent, especially in the Los Angeles area. So
Speaker 1: the major hubs of comedy in the United States are
Speaker 1: going to be in New York, l A. And there
Speaker 1: of course Chicago and places like that, but New York
Speaker 1: and l A or where it's at. And New York
Speaker 1: is where you get good, but l A is definitely
Speaker 1: where you come to get famous. So the people who
Speaker 1: control comedy in l A control if you're gonna make
Speaker 1: it big or not, if you're going to be famous.
Speaker 1: This is where it happens exactly. And when I say
Speaker 1: that Tehron hosts shows, he's not hosting, I'm like random
Speaker 1: and no shade to this, but not some no name,
Speaker 1: random back room bar whatever. So and obviously that's iconic.
Speaker 1: A laugh Factory has broken every single major comedian in
Speaker 1: this world was broken there well, comedy store in the
Speaker 1: lave Factory. And I would say the Seller are the
Speaker 1: three top comedy clubs in the world, not just in
Speaker 1: the United States but literally in the entire world. And
Speaker 1: being at the Laugh Factory, I have my own two shows,
Speaker 1: and I obviously have a lot of influence on the
Speaker 1: lineup overall, and at the Comedy Store and at the Improv,
Speaker 1: so I do shows there as well. And being in
Speaker 1: that position, not only do I see everyone I know
Speaker 1: who's going to be tomorrow. And there's a lot of
Speaker 1: talent coming through as we speak. Jack Knight, Renee Vodka,
Speaker 1: Sam j Sam Jay is brilliant, She's hilarious. Renee is
Speaker 1: this up and coming Latino comedian who is just very
Speaker 1: funny and charismatic. Jack Knight is the next Dave Chappelle.
Speaker 1: You're watching this happen. Where does Jack Knight find you?
Speaker 1: How does that connection happen? Circle of influence, So the
Speaker 1: best way to get connected, it's not just what you know,
Speaker 1: it's definitely who you know, and who you know will
Speaker 1: depend on how good you are. People will talk about you.
Speaker 1: There's a comedian right now, Chapelle Lacy. I heard about
Speaker 1: him for months before I actually even interacted with him,
Speaker 1: simply because people were like, this kid is on the
Speaker 1: up and up. He's up and coming. He's hilarious, and
Speaker 1: so I heard about him and now I'm trying to
Speaker 1: place him. We just had him on Fresh Faces at
Speaker 1: the laugh Factory. So that's how it works. Is who
Speaker 1: you know is very important, a lot of connections. Comedy
Speaker 1: is full of politics, the way politics is right now
Speaker 1: full of comedy. But what if you don't know anyone there?
Speaker 1: You just you know when you're screwed. If you don't
Speaker 1: know anyone, then you better start making friends quick. It's
Speaker 1: not a coolincidence that Adam Sandler and Rob Schneider are
Speaker 1: best friends, and Judd Apatow and Seth Brogan and that
Speaker 1: crew are all closely connected, and that Judd Aptal and
Speaker 1: Adam Sandler are buddy buddies and Judd is directed all
Speaker 1: the move That's not a coincidence. These are people who associate,
Speaker 1: they connect, and they definitely your social inventory is everything. Okay,
Speaker 1: So talk to me about somebody in Alabama whose social
Speaker 1: inventory is not going to be as robust as Tron
Speaker 1: living in you know, the hottest city in the world. Well,
Speaker 1: here's here's the good and the bad news. If you're
Speaker 1: in Alabama, by the way gas in Alabama is at
Speaker 1: like two dollars and fifteen cents, that's amazing. So if
Speaker 1: here in l A it's at like four dollars and
Speaker 1: fifties cents, which means that for two dollars and thirty
Speaker 1: five cents more, you can be successful. And I guess
Speaker 1: you need to take You need to move, You need
Speaker 1: to leave Alabama and get there. And Dean Delray makes
Speaker 1: a point of that when he says like things like that,
Speaker 1: like the concept is if you're in Alabama, that's not
Speaker 1: the place. Now, that doesn't mean I'm a person in Alabama.
Speaker 1: I will never make it. Thankful, Lea, the Internet has
Speaker 1: made entertainment into a democracy. You can find anywhere, anytime,
Speaker 1: any place in the world. But at the end of
Speaker 1: the day, you can be in Alabama streaming your content
Speaker 1: or like whatever. But at the end of the day,
Speaker 1: you've got to be you have You're going to eventually
Speaker 1: have to move. And there are people that are like,
Speaker 1: well I don't want to move. Well that's fine, you
Speaker 1: don't have to do this. None of us have to
Speaker 1: do this. We get to do this. This is a
Speaker 1: decision that we made. L A in Hollywood did not
Speaker 1: call a single person and say, oh my god, we
Speaker 1: need you, we need it. So you're gonna have to
Speaker 1: sacrifice and know that the ends justify the means. Get up,
Speaker 1: get out, and get something. Okay. So initially when we
Speaker 1: open this, you were talking about like New York is
Speaker 1: where you get good and then la is where you
Speaker 1: in my opinion, because New York you can hit as
Speaker 1: mini mics. In New York you can definitely hit three
Speaker 1: to six mics a night, which is virtually it is
Speaker 1: a lot. Even something like forget the politics. Geographically, it's
Speaker 1: difficult to get to six mikes in l A. Geographically
Speaker 1: people will be like, oh, I'm only staying two miles
Speaker 1: away from you, is like you might as well have
Speaker 1: just stayed in Alabama exactly Exactly. In l A, you're
Speaker 1: going to be like going to Long Beach to one
Speaker 1: of them. That doesn't make it. It's your whole day
Speaker 1: you planned. Like if anytime I have to go to
Speaker 1: Santa Monica, I just know that's Monday and Tuesday. That's
Speaker 1: my whole Monday and Tuesday. That's the end of that.
Speaker 1: So the concept is in New York you can hit
Speaker 1: three to six mics. Just an average person can hit
Speaker 1: three to six mics every single night, and practice makes perfect.
Speaker 1: There is no secret get off on mics, practice, practice practice.
Speaker 1: So one question something that I might have like it
Speaker 1: might be a stereotype that I'm falling into, but not
Speaker 1: all blacks are like that. How many times do I
Speaker 1: have to tell you what's wrong? Question? So New York
Speaker 1: and l A have this like constant rivalry rivalry, right,
Speaker 1: would someone argue that the crop of talent coming out
Speaker 1: of New York who are doing stand up like their
Speaker 1: real goal is stand up versus l A. You've got
Speaker 1: this like entire crop of actors and like influencers and
Speaker 1: want to be famous for whatever, and no shade is
Speaker 1: the pool a little more flooded here. That's not to
Speaker 1: be very honest, that's not a very nice thing to say,
Speaker 1: but it would be so true. That's the case. In
Speaker 1: New York. You have people who are specifically there for
Speaker 1: stand up. If you ask one of them what their
Speaker 1: ultimate goal in life would be if they could be
Speaker 1: the most decorated actor, the most decorated stand up comedian
Speaker 1: of all time, they would most likely choose decorated stand
Speaker 1: up comedian. I do not feel the same about a
Speaker 1: lot of the talent pool that's in Los Angeles. Now,
Speaker 1: does that mean that there is not talent in Los Angeles? No,
Speaker 1: there is clearly talent in Los Angeles. This is where
Speaker 1: every prom queen and football star in the country comes
Speaker 1: here to become a hostess at Catsuya. That's how it works, right,
Speaker 1: So there's a lot of talent here. However, it does
Speaker 1: become oversaturated and since there are only certain spots that
Speaker 1: make it once again the store, laugh Factory of course,
Speaker 1: and improv, and there's some outskirt places, flappers and hop
Speaker 1: but no one's really going to those places to be big, right,
Speaker 1: There's limited space, limited place, and an oversaturation of people
Speaker 1: trying and flooding trying to do this. And every actor
Speaker 1: feels like the easiest way to break through because it
Speaker 1: makes you feel like you're doing something as opposed to
Speaker 1: just sitting around and waiting for auditions. Try stand up
Speaker 1: and it makes sense. I mean, there's so many benefits
Speaker 1: to stand up. Your building confidence, you're getting reps in
Speaker 1: your practicing. I feel like you find your voice. In
Speaker 1: many ways, actors like to have their own niche personality
Speaker 1: or whatever. So I could definitely see the benefits of it.
Speaker 1: But on the same token, I could see how someone
Speaker 1: who's main goal to be comedian and they they're flooded
Speaker 1: with all this, all these other people, I could see
Speaker 1: how that could maybe offend. Maybe not offend, isn't it? No,
Speaker 1: it is offend is the correct word. When you see
Speaker 1: someone that's doing something that you take seriously and this
Speaker 1: is your passion, and they do it once a month
Speaker 1: and they call themselves the same thing, it's offensive. You're
Speaker 1: looking at it and you're saying you don't have the
Speaker 1: right to use this term in reference to you when
Speaker 1: you literally put in the least amount of effort and
Speaker 1: here I am busting my ass to do the do
Speaker 1: the thing that I say I do so as a gatekeeper,
Speaker 1: do you take that into conederation when you are booking.
Speaker 1: In fact, recently had a conversation with a comedian who
Speaker 1: was telling me how, oh, I just like doing comedy. Well,
Speaker 1: then no, I'm not going to give you the opportunity
Speaker 1: on the most famous stage in the world to perform
Speaker 1: when there are other people who this isn't their hobby,
Speaker 1: this is their life passion, this is their goal. That's
Speaker 1: who I'm going to give an opportunity to especially personally,
Speaker 1: I like giving opportunities to a diverse field of voices
Speaker 1: because that's what comedy ultimately is. It's a platform to
Speaker 1: be heard. And while I am all for there are
Speaker 1: people like, oh no more white men. I think white
Speaker 1: men have a space in comedy, and they have a
Speaker 1: huge one. But I do feel that transgender and and
Speaker 1: l g B t Q and black and brown and
Speaker 1: yellow and purple and everyone else has a space as well,
Speaker 1: And so I will look for that. Not that I'm
Speaker 1: going out of my way for diversity, it's that I
Speaker 1: feel like inclusion. I will always go out of my
Speaker 1: way for I can't stand that, by the way, when
Speaker 1: people are like no white girls or no, and I'm like,
Speaker 1: what that's that's that's just here. Of course, that's as
Speaker 1: that's as oppressive. However, at the same token, it shouldn't
Speaker 1: be just white girls or just white males. But let's
Speaker 1: be honest, there's nothing funnier than a corny white dude, right,
Speaker 1: A dad, A corny d love that ship. Okay, So yeah,
Speaker 1: I don't know. I think my friend in the background,
Speaker 1: because he is a white dad, white dad. What do
Speaker 1: you call a fish with no eyes hilarious, Right, you
Speaker 1: got it, that's yours. Okay. So, so Toronto, we have
Speaker 1: talked about him being a gatekeeper. I'm sure you guys
Speaker 1: are wondering how does one get in this power position. So, Toron,
Speaker 1: if you could just give us like a high level
Speaker 1: of how you got to the place. Obviously you're wildly
Speaker 1: talented and in the owners of these comedy stores are
Speaker 1: trusting you, but you didn't get there overnight. Talent is
Speaker 1: a word we often used to attribute to people to
Speaker 1: deny ourselves where we are like, well, they're talented, so
Speaker 1: that means I don't have to do it. No, what
Speaker 1: it was is I got very lucky because I worked
Speaker 1: very hard. I worked very hard and got very lucky.
Speaker 1: And when those two meet, all of a sudden, it
Speaker 1: seems like opportunity. Right, that's those two collide. And what
Speaker 1: happened was I was What happened was I. And this
Speaker 1: is why I actually feel inclusion and representation is so important.
Speaker 1: I was literally in law school trying to figure out
Speaker 1: my next move in life. I knew I didn't want
Speaker 1: to practice law, that was never the plan, but I
Speaker 1: need to figure out what I did ultimately want to do.
Speaker 1: I turn on the television and this is me in
Speaker 1: my twenties. This isn't me as a thirteen year old
Speaker 1: or as an eight year old. This is me in
Speaker 1: my twenties. I saw a comedian, Mikey Winfield, who had
Speaker 1: a show on Fuse network where no one watches Fuse,
Speaker 1: and I was watching Fuse and he would perform comedy
Speaker 1: and present videos and things like that. And he's a
Speaker 1: light skinned black guy with a froe and I literally
Speaker 1: saw him do it, and I was like, if he
Speaker 1: can do it, I can do it. That's literally how
Speaker 1: that happened. That's began the path. Then comedians like Master
Speaker 1: Bonnie and Maximini gave me an opportunity to perform, and
Speaker 1: then Mas actually pulled me aside and gave me the speech,
Speaker 1: gave me the if you really want to do this,
Speaker 1: then you have to do this. This isn't just something
Speaker 1: you do once every three months and because you're funny
Speaker 1: with your friends. This is an art form. And it's
Speaker 1: interesting because we we always think that when comedians go
Speaker 1: on stage and if they say the same thing, we're like,
Speaker 1: why didn't you say something new? We just make it
Speaker 1: look so easy that everyone thinks they can do it.
Speaker 1: You would never expect a singer to go on stage
Speaker 1: and sing a brand new hit every time they get
Speaker 1: on stage. We are writing as well. We are just
Speaker 1: writing beats and merits and jokes into jokes, and they're
Speaker 1: doing it into rhythm and song. It's a very similar process.
Speaker 1: So I got I practiced getting up on the mic.
Speaker 1: I practiced finding a voice that was unique to myself
Speaker 1: when I'm on stage, and I practiced being on stage
Speaker 1: in front of people. That's people's biggest fears, and everyone that, oh, well,
Speaker 1: I can be funny. No, it's not the same. And
Speaker 1: I kept working, working, working, got an opportunity to be
Speaker 1: at the Laugh Factory, hosted my own show. Then that
Speaker 1: became two shows, and now I am responsible for two
Speaker 1: of the most popular nights in Los Angeles and I've
Speaker 1: been to both of them. Hilarious. You are a great
Speaker 1: audience member, and I feel like you're really funny. Yes
Speaker 1: you are. I don't know if you guys have had
Speaker 1: conversations with Tati and her and her personal views on things.
Speaker 1: Her take on things and the way she states them
Speaker 1: is that comedian mentality, which is a starting point you
Speaker 1: should have some here's my rebuttal. Here's my rebuttal of
Speaker 1: that I will interject my comedy into these things that
Speaker 1: are my passion. I will not pursue stand up for
Speaker 1: the exact same reason that we discussed in the beginning,
Speaker 1: because I have too much respect for the people who
Speaker 1: went to improv classes groundlings auditioned. That is their thing,
Speaker 1: and I'm just like And also it's not my passion.
Speaker 1: So if somebody were to say to me, you will
Speaker 1: become a billionaire doing a doing stand up, I wouldn't
Speaker 1: do it because it's not it wasn't my end goal,
Speaker 1: my end goal. If someone told me I would be
Speaker 1: a billionaire giving out handies on Hollywood Boulevard, I would
Speaker 1: just stand on Hollywood boulevards like I like, once you
Speaker 1: say billionaires are off, fine, I shouldn't have gone to
Speaker 1: the billionaire once you hit Billy, alright, alright, all right,
Speaker 1: I shouldn't have gone to the b club. Let's talk millions. Okay, okay,
Speaker 1: We're we're so reasonable. The point, the point being, for me,
Speaker 1: my passion would not be that right. Like, maybe I'd
Speaker 1: have a thrill and be really excited to get off
Speaker 1: stage and be like, oh my god, I just did that.
Speaker 1: That was awesome. But to your point, why would I
Speaker 1: want to take a spot potentially from someone who that
Speaker 1: is really their passion when my passion is here. I
Speaker 1: want to talk to people, I want to interview people.
Speaker 1: I'll just be funny on my interviews. And that's and
Speaker 1: that's why I applaud the fact that you and I've
Speaker 1: seen your progression in your path and you have it. Obviously,
Speaker 1: people love you and they love talking to you about
Speaker 1: She's got it and she gets you to tell secrets
Speaker 1: that you would not normally tell. That's that's a little
Speaker 1: thing she does because she loves comfortable Yeah, yeah, fun secrets. Yeah,
Speaker 1: So like I would have to I would have to
Speaker 1: murder Tatiana if I ever, like if I was on
Speaker 1: a TMZ story, I'd have to get rid of her
Speaker 1: because she would know that you're like she's gotten things
Speaker 1: out like she man, she can't move right, Yeah, I'm
Speaker 1: like a paraplegic. That just means it's easier to murder,
Speaker 1: like this isn't yeah, this isn't feel bad. This is like,
Speaker 1: am I gonna make it? And then she can bring
Speaker 1: me down secrets like you know, like she knows you're
Speaker 1: always so complimentary of me. I just feel like I
Speaker 1: need to have you every day. No, no, no compliments.
Speaker 1: It's so interesting how compliments and the truth sounds so
Speaker 1: uh similar. When you're being sincere, You're I definitely think
Speaker 1: you're being sincere because there's those people who are like,
Speaker 1: I love you, and you're like, yeah, I'm not that
Speaker 1: person at all. I'm quick to actually seen you really
Speaker 1: shade people. Yeah, I'm very upfront. You know where you stand.
Speaker 1: There's yeah, Terronto is a pretty straightforward, and I think
Speaker 1: that you need to be that type of person to
Speaker 1: be in the role that you are. So I want
Speaker 1: to ask you, like, you've got to have millions of
Speaker 1: people who are saying, hey, can I get a coffee
Speaker 1: with you? Can I have advice? Like pick your brain?
Speaker 1: I know for a fact for experience, any time I've
Speaker 1: asked you to meet with someone, you have because you're
Speaker 1: a very helpful person. However, do you draw the line
Speaker 1: with these pick your brain? You're in a power position.
Speaker 1: You know, people are not just wanting to have coffee
Speaker 1: with you because they want to have a lot date
Speaker 1: with you. They want something. How do you determine who
Speaker 1: you give time to invest time into well. I will
Speaker 1: be honest with anyone that asked me a question, but
Speaker 1: sometimes they will not appreciate or expect my honesty. I
Speaker 1: think it's every every person's responsibility to try to help
Speaker 1: the next person up the ladder. In fact, that the
Speaker 1: thought process behind oh, I want to be the only star.
Speaker 1: This is not a zero sum game. This is not
Speaker 1: a situation where I only when if you lose. The
Speaker 1: concept is even at night, if you look up in
Speaker 1: the sky and there's only one or two stars, you
Speaker 1: don't look up again. It's when the night sky is
Speaker 1: filled with stars that you stay staring up at the
Speaker 1: sky and awe. That's how I feel when it comes
Speaker 1: to entertainment. When it comes to comedy, there room for
Speaker 1: all of us. However, how do I differentiate between those
Speaker 1: who belong in the night sky and those who are
Speaker 1: simply falling stars? And that has to do with the
Speaker 1: person's ambition, It has to do with their personal motivation,
Speaker 1: and it has to do with their talent level as well.
Speaker 1: Is it does it ever have to do with you?
Speaker 1: Just somebody rubs you the wrong way, you don't like them.
Speaker 1: I don't take most things personally. In fact, some of
Speaker 1: the people that I respect the most in this game
Speaker 1: are people I do not like. I don't find funny.
Speaker 1: I also do not hang out with them outside because
Speaker 1: you would think, like if you're in a power position,
Speaker 1: you know people are catty. Of course, you would think
Speaker 1: somebody would personally block someone. A lot of that happens
Speaker 1: a lot, by the way, in comedy and comedy it's
Speaker 1: one of those things where you don't know who someone's
Speaker 1: going to become. You don't know who someone is, and
Speaker 1: you don't know how if you're rubbing someone the wrong way.
Speaker 1: I actually have a great story about Tiffany Hannish, a
Speaker 1: big name comedian, when Tiffany Addish was on the come up.
Speaker 1: Because her story, by the way, which is known now
Speaker 1: and everyone knows her and loves her, that's real. What
Speaker 1: she talks about is her truth of truth. She is
Speaker 1: a very much an open book. And I I've known
Speaker 1: Tiffany and she's been like a sister to me and amazing.
Speaker 1: I remember specifically when she was uh she was in
Speaker 1: the lobby and a big name comedian who everyone would
Speaker 1: know if I said his name, specifically told Tiffany she's
Speaker 1: not funny. She will never be funny. She will never
Speaker 1: make it. Tiffany was very upset in the lobby. Jamie
Speaker 1: Massot of the owner of the Laugh Factory, comes over
Speaker 1: and says, Tiffany, I believe in you. He is an
Speaker 1: accent and then lo and behold. Three years later, Tiffany
Speaker 1: is the most famous female comedian in the world, and
Speaker 1: she I'll never forget she she was on the cover
Speaker 1: of Vanity Fair. It said the funniest comedian live, not
Speaker 1: funniest woman, funniest comedian alive. And she simply tagged that
Speaker 1: person on Twitter and tagged them so we can verify
Speaker 1: who this I mean you and you, like everyone would
Speaker 1: know who that person is. You know everyone? What does
Speaker 1: What is the benefit of saying something like that? First
Speaker 1: of all, do you genuinely think that this comedian felt
Speaker 1: that or do you believe that the comedian felt threatened?
Speaker 1: What's the benefit of always being a good person even
Speaker 1: if you have If if you felt that way, there
Speaker 1: was no need to say it or express it in
Speaker 1: this way. There was a little bit of a conflict
Speaker 1: simply because of Tiffany being on stage when it was
Speaker 1: the other person's time and coming off. And it wasn't
Speaker 1: even that much. It was simply the person decided to
Speaker 1: go off. And and honestly, here's the thing you have
Speaker 1: to remember. You should treat the janitor the same way
Speaker 1: you would treat the general because you never know when
Speaker 1: roles will will be reversed. And more importantly, just and
Speaker 1: just be a good person. Just generally be a good person.
Speaker 1: Does that mean that I never say anything that would
Speaker 1: come off mean, that's not true. I say mean things
Speaker 1: all the time, but it's because as I believe them
Speaker 1: and I will not I don't say it in a
Speaker 1: in a way that's negative. There's a difference between critique
Speaker 1: and criticism, and critique is when you're actually trying to
Speaker 1: help the person out. You want them to be better.
Speaker 1: And there's a comedian, actually Shang who as a comedian
Speaker 1: who's been doing it a long time. I'll never forget
Speaker 1: Gerard Carmichael, who had the car Michael Show. And I
Speaker 1: mean Gerard is so famous now Jay Z and Beyonce
Speaker 1: came to the laugh Factory just to watch him perform.
Speaker 1: It was crazy to see that progression as well. Gerard
Speaker 1: car Michael, who I've always liked. I remember he used
Speaker 1: to come in and this is before he was famous,
Speaker 1: and comedians will be like, uh, there's Gerard. Gerard's not
Speaker 1: that I don't understand. And I used to think Gerard's
Speaker 1: hilarious just watching it and I could tell. And Jamie
Speaker 1: actually calls me the comedian whisper because I like pick
Speaker 1: these people and they do make it. Gerard used to
Speaker 1: come in and people would shade him. Shang, however, after
Speaker 1: watching special, specifically set it to Gerard's face and was
Speaker 1: not in a mean way. He said it and this
Speaker 1: is my opinion. I do not specifically think you're that funny.
Speaker 1: And it wasn't in a mean way. It wasn't in
Speaker 1: a negative way. It was in a this is my
Speaker 1: opinion way. That's different. And what I respect Shang is
Speaker 1: Shang didn't flip flop like everyone else who said the
Speaker 1: same thing behind his back, but then it was so
Speaker 1: nice to his face. What Shang did was he set
Speaker 1: it up front and was respectful about it and said,
Speaker 1: this is how I feel. I posted this and I
Speaker 1: feel this, and I don't mean to hurt your feelings.
Speaker 1: Everyone's entitled to their opinion, that's the thing. Everyone is
Speaker 1: entitled to an opinion a matter of taste, and my
Speaker 1: personal point of view. If you look at someone who's
Speaker 1: a great if you say things like I don't like Drake,
Speaker 1: I understand that you don't have to like Drake. But
Speaker 1: if you say something like Drake sucks, you're a hater
Speaker 1: because clearly Drake doesn't suck. You know, Kobe doesn't sound
Speaker 1: when people like Kobe sucks. I've seen you play basketball.
Speaker 1: What are you talking about? Kobe is amazing. Just say
Speaker 1: I don't personally like something. That's a matter of opinion.
Speaker 1: That's understandable. So tell me about the booking process, specifically
Speaker 1: on your end, what that looks like. Well, let me
Speaker 1: explain booking for people, because a lot of people always
Speaker 1: ask me, can I mean on your show? Where? Or
Speaker 1: they think of friends? When you watch a movie with
Speaker 1: Leonard DiCaprio, his friends are not in that movie. It's
Speaker 1: not like it's Leonardo and his best friend. And that's
Speaker 1: got to be awkward because I'm I'm guaranteeing you have
Speaker 1: friends who want to be doing what you're doing very much.
Speaker 1: So people are my friends and we're in this business
Speaker 1: and they would love a shot. In fact, I have
Speaker 1: Cold Opens by Matine Stewart and Manachem Silverstein, who are
Speaker 1: people who are not only my friends, but I also
Speaker 1: see a lot of potential in both of them, and
Speaker 1: that's why they have that spot. How do you manage that?
Speaker 1: When it comes down to is I'm very upfront and honest.
Speaker 1: It's not. There's no secret, there's no personal bias. It
Speaker 1: comes down to this. When I book a show at
Speaker 1: the Laugh Factory, Unlike the Comedy Store, which has three
Speaker 1: rooms and runs a rotating show, meaning that comedians go
Speaker 1: up each room probably has twenty comedians a night, sixty
Speaker 1: comedians in in a single night go up in the
Speaker 1: In the Laugh Factory, we do four comedians a show.
Speaker 1: So basically sixty comedians what the Comedy Store does in
Speaker 1: one night, the Laugh Factory does in a week. So
Speaker 1: you're asking to be one of sixty. When I choose
Speaker 1: my shows, this is how I pick. The first comic
Speaker 1: that I put on my show is a person who
Speaker 1: is industry favor meaning C A, W, M, ME, A
Speaker 1: manager three yards something contacts me, wants their client to
Speaker 1: get up, and because industry is coming to see them,
Speaker 1: it's the hopes that they see all of us, and
Speaker 1: so we stay involved. So that's one person. The second
Speaker 1: person is of course, a headliner. It's gonna be a Crystalia,
Speaker 1: it's gonna be a Tony Rock. It's gonna be someone
Speaker 1: who deserves that space because they've worked so hard and
Speaker 1: now they're headliner, and they are a draw. Ken Jong,
Speaker 1: who's one of the nicest human beings on the planet,
Speaker 1: Ali Wong, someone of that nature is getting She's amazing, right.
Speaker 1: Then the third person is going to be someone that
Speaker 1: has the political connections. They are a laugh factory or
Speaker 1: a comedy store and improp favorite. There's someone who's been
Speaker 1: in the family and while they may or may not
Speaker 1: be deserving of that, but now there was a time
Speaker 1: that they were, and so they continue to be on
Speaker 1: the lineups. And the last person I bring is someone
Speaker 1: who is good good enough to be on that stage.
Speaker 1: It's not like I'm doing them a favor. They're good
Speaker 1: enough to be on stage, but they also have a draw. Ultimately,
Speaker 1: as a comedy club, you want to put butts in
Speaker 1: that seat every single show. We in comedy, they're the
Speaker 1: thing things called a bringer show, and that's when a
Speaker 1: comic gets the chance to be on the stage by
Speaker 1: being able to bring ten or twenty paying customers. Uh
Speaker 1: and those shows are looked down upon, and it's because
Speaker 1: that's for rookies and new people. It's like open micers
Speaker 1: who want a bigger shot. However, once you at a
Speaker 1: certain level, every show is a bringer show. The difference
Speaker 1: is I bring fifty and Kevin Hart brings fifty. And
Speaker 1: that's why Kevin Hart is Kevin Hart. It's butts and seats.
Speaker 1: You don't just sell out Madison Square Garden. It doesn't
Speaker 1: sell out itself. Somebody wants to be on one of
Speaker 1: your shows and they don't have a family connection, they're
Speaker 1: not a headliner, they don't have a draw. Do they
Speaker 1: not have a chance? Do they have a chance? Yes,
Speaker 1: anything within the possible realms of possibilities is possible. Is
Speaker 1: it very likely? It's very difficult. They're gonna have to come,
Speaker 1: but here's how they reach. There are people like me
Speaker 1: who are very open minded to these things. There was
Speaker 1: a time a comedian Chris Red good friend of mine.
Speaker 1: I saw him and I saw a potential and he
Speaker 1: was working very hard, and he was from Chicago, came
Speaker 1: to l A and I used to put them on
Speaker 1: my shows all the time. People like, why do you
Speaker 1: put him on the shows all time? Like that's not
Speaker 1: fair to us. Chris Red is now on Saturday Night Live,
Speaker 1: and he's like one of their premier people. You know
Speaker 1: it's because I saw that or Rammy Yusef, who's who,
Speaker 1: by the way, just won a Golden Globe and that's
Speaker 1: like our boy. These are people who you can tell
Speaker 1: this is where it's going, and so you pick them.
Speaker 1: But other than that, if someone wants to contact me,
Speaker 1: they find me on Instagram. Don't just say hey, hey,
Speaker 1: can I do your show? That means nothing to me.
Speaker 1: Everyone wants to do my show. Of course you want
Speaker 1: to do my show. Industry is at my show. Average
Speaker 1: actor might audition what once or twice a week. Comedians
Speaker 1: get to audition every single time we hit a stage
Speaker 1: because there will be someone undoubtedly at the major clubs
Speaker 1: who are there from the industry that can that can
Speaker 1: change and make our lives. So everyone wants to be
Speaker 1: on my show. Don't just say hey, can I be
Speaker 1: on your show? No, give me some give me something,
Speaker 1: send me a tape, talk to me, tell me why
Speaker 1: you feel like you deserve to be on the show.
Speaker 1: This isn't me being arrogant saying oh look at me,
Speaker 1: appease me. This is me saying no, appease yourself. This
Speaker 1: is a job, this is a career. Show up, be there,
Speaker 1: do do the little things. It's you're sending in a resume.
Speaker 1: You're applying for a job which a stage time. Do
Speaker 1: the same things. Give me, give me that cover letter.
Speaker 1: Are you actively looking for people? Do you go to
Speaker 1: Do you go to those tiny backbar shows to see
Speaker 1: who's up and coming or do you just kind of
Speaker 1: wait for people to come to you. I definitely keep
Speaker 1: my ear to the ground. I look for talent. I
Speaker 1: go to shows. More importantly, this is where it comes
Speaker 1: to the who you know if you are doing it.
Speaker 1: It's like if you build it, they will come. Exactly
Speaker 1: if you're doing it, we will hear about you because
Speaker 1: and sometimes, of course it works the other way. Nepotism
Speaker 1: is very real, right, So sometimes it's someone's best friend,
Speaker 1: someone girlfriend, boyfriend. Of course they get those roles. With me,
Speaker 1: it's not that's not uh my criteria at all, but
Speaker 1: it happens that way as well, where people get hype
Speaker 1: but they aren't they don't live up to the hype.
Speaker 1: But with me, if I hear about you or if
Speaker 1: I see you in a position even Renee Vodka, who
Speaker 1: we went to Lebanon together to do a show, who
Speaker 1: wasn't basically an open micro at that point, and people
Speaker 1: were like, why are you taking Renee? I saw him kill.
Speaker 1: Renee came to Lebanon, Beirut, of all places, killed in Beyrout,
Speaker 1: and then people were like, well, why do you And
Speaker 1: now he just won the NBC Diversity Showcase, which is
Speaker 1: one of the top showcases for comedy in the entire country.
Speaker 1: So you see that promise, and it also helps that
Speaker 1: Renee's a great guy. No one wants to be around
Speaker 1: a douche bag like no one I don't. I don't
Speaker 1: want I don't want to be around it f boy
Speaker 1: anymore than Victoria wants a date one like I just
Speaker 1: don't want to be around those people. So if you're
Speaker 1: also a person you want on your team, you want,
Speaker 1: you want this person around, it is okay. I feel
Speaker 1: comfortable with you. You are a nice person. I see
Speaker 1: you're a good person. You don't talk trash about other people.
Speaker 1: Those are things I look forward to because if you
Speaker 1: talk trash about other people, then you're gonna talk trash
Speaker 1: about me. So I don't need that. I want people
Speaker 1: who are positive. You're in the space, you're gonna go perform.
Speaker 1: I need to be in a positive energy space, don't
Speaker 1: f with my g I need everyone to be on
Speaker 1: the same page when it comes to that, and you're
Speaker 1: more likely to get on. Yeah. I mean, I've definitely
Speaker 1: heard of all the industries that the comedy space is
Speaker 1: probably the most brutal and throat. As far as like
Speaker 1: key that you're talking about, I can't imagine how many
Speaker 1: ugly stories you've probably experienced of backstabbing and stepping on people.
Speaker 1: How do you how do you stay? How does your
Speaker 1: skin stay thick through such a I think from what
Speaker 1: I've heard a shady industry. It's not just what you've heard,
Speaker 1: it's what I've experienced, as what every comedian's experienced. I
Speaker 1: stay in my lane. I keep my head down and
Speaker 1: I keep doing my thing, and I do my best
Speaker 1: to avoid obstacles and know that nothing and no one
Speaker 1: gets in my path. So someone else's success does not
Speaker 1: undermine mind, someone else's failures do not add on to mind.
Speaker 1: And if you stay out of the gossip, it doesn't
Speaker 1: follow you. You don't have to involve yourself and that stuff.
Speaker 1: Just keep it's one of those be good regardless. So
Speaker 1: many people are so willing to change the world. So
Speaker 1: few people are just simply willing to change themselves, Like
Speaker 1: you can just simply keep being yourself. It doesn't matter.
Speaker 1: I don't even know what quote we're going to use
Speaker 1: for the quote card. I'm like, every time he says something,
Speaker 1: I'm like, oh no, I mean I just because it's
Speaker 1: it's this, isn't I live this? Like this is how
Speaker 1: I really am. I wear a bathrobe. I mean, I'm
Speaker 1: just simple. I wish you guys could see him right now. Literally,
Speaker 1: every time I interview him, and not just interview him,
Speaker 1: he will be at everywhere. I'll be at high in
Speaker 1: the bathroom, I perform, and I'm comfortable. I just want
Speaker 1: to be definitely have a look. I love that I appreciate.
Speaker 1: So speaking of look, I kind of want to get
Speaker 1: into like a factor, right. I feel like in the
Speaker 1: comedy space, you definitely have to do something to stand out.
Speaker 1: There's so many comedians out there any space. Branding is important,
Speaker 1: right right, So you know, and I'm going to actually
Speaker 1: link you guys to a past interview I did with
Speaker 1: toront where he does talk about branding and why he
Speaker 1: has his name on his hat and it's actually very smart,
Speaker 1: Like why a Gucci when you can wear your own
Speaker 1: Like that's the whole thing. People will be like, why
Speaker 1: do you wear your name on your own stuff? It's
Speaker 1: like you're wearing right, that's someone At that point, you're
Speaker 1: wearing almost his full name, Ralph Lauren. You are literally
Speaker 1: wearing his government name. The government name is Ralph Lauren. Right.
Speaker 1: So we we had a really good conversation about that.
Speaker 1: So if you guys want to hear more about that
Speaker 1: and branding and all that stuff, I'm gonna link you
Speaker 1: guys to that interview. But so there's gotta be some
Speaker 1: things that you look for. Can you list those out
Speaker 1: of us? Just because I feel like someone's gonna be
Speaker 1: listening today who really really wants to be either in
Speaker 1: your shoes one day or just be on your show?
Speaker 1: What are you looking for? In general? When it comes
Speaker 1: to comedy, this is the thing. How do you and
Speaker 1: before people, especially when entertainment, people will be like, oh
Speaker 1: my god, that's a bad angle. That's a bad angle.
Speaker 1: You think Danny DeVito has a good angle? Danny DeVito works,
Speaker 1: you know, like he's not just works, he's a star.
Speaker 1: So whenever you question the way you look, just remember
Speaker 1: Danny de Vito is. That's all you have to remember,
Speaker 1: is that Danny, Danny DeVito, baby, Danny de Vito is
Speaker 1: at not just he doesn't just work. He's a star. Okay.
Speaker 1: So here's the thing. First, when it comes to a look,
Speaker 1: be yourself, look yourself, there is a certain genesic quality
Speaker 1: that people have, that factor where you can just it's
Speaker 1: an intangible quality that certain people have where it's very endearing.
Speaker 1: With comedy, that's the first thing. If you're yourself on stage, yourself,
Speaker 1: your truest self, you will you will ultimately do very well.
Speaker 1: Dave Chappelle is amazing at that. At this point, he's
Speaker 1: in the zone where he's literally just himself all the time,
Speaker 1: unapologetically he's himself, his special He went hard in the
Speaker 1: first two minutes. Yeah, I mean he goes hard in general,
Speaker 1: Like even when you hang out with Dave, Dave goes hard.
Speaker 1: Every time I hang out with Dave, he just like
Speaker 1: goes hard. He does. You say that, but it's like
Speaker 1: Dave goes hard like he's he's he's an interest sting, charismatic,
Speaker 1: introverted listener and he listens, and then when he says something,
Speaker 1: everyone gets quiet, and it's a bar one of the
Speaker 1: best times I've ever had in comedy. One time, Um,
Speaker 1: I get a text Dave Chappelle's like, I'm at the store.
Speaker 1: So one time he says, I'm at the store, right,
Speaker 1: So I go. I go to the store. And up
Speaker 1: to this point, it wasn't the best show. Right up
Speaker 1: to this point, it was like a lot of newer people.
Speaker 1: So it wasn't the best show. It was like a
Speaker 1: bringer show. On top of that, then Kevin Hart goes
Speaker 1: on stage okay, and like I remember this one lady
Speaker 1: like was about like basically have a heart attack. She
Speaker 1: was just like, oh, I don't know. And then and
Speaker 1: then after Kevin hartt Chris Rock goes on stage. Okay,
Speaker 1: these they had no idea this was happening. Chris Rock
Speaker 1: goes on stage and some people had left. I felt
Speaker 1: I bet they felt horrible. And then after Chris Rock,
Speaker 1: Chris Tucker, who hadn't been seen for a while, goes
Speaker 1: on stage, and then Cat Williams, Okay, look at who's
Speaker 1: done on stage all in this one show. And then
Speaker 1: Chappelle goes on stage okay, and does like an hour
Speaker 1: and a half like it's nothing. Yeah for anyone, Yes,
Speaker 1: for people who stage these people they saw and Chappelle,
Speaker 1: was he hilarious for an hour and a half or
Speaker 1: two hours that he did comedy? No, No, he wasn't.
Speaker 1: At some points he was just talking. Some point he
Speaker 1: was just sitting there smoking a cigarette and drinking a
Speaker 1: beer on stage. But for ten minutes he was more.
Speaker 1: He was funnier than all of us put together. That's
Speaker 1: how brilliant he is. And and once again, you're in
Speaker 1: the room minutes that it makes you brilliant. And he's
Speaker 1: just unapologetically himself. But as far as a look, you
Speaker 1: should have a look. You should have a look where
Speaker 1: it's this is your look, this is who you are.
Speaker 1: And that's why we like we like Chubby Seth Brogan,
Speaker 1: but not so much Skinniers. I mean, yeah, Jonah Hillymore.
Speaker 1: Not only are you not funny, keep to these sea roles.
Speaker 1: Next role, you better have cancer because I just don't
Speaker 1: believe you, you know. So it's a look, there's a feel,
Speaker 1: and with your material, if you're saying something that someone
Speaker 1: else can say, then I'll just have someone else say it.
Speaker 1: If you sound like Kevin Hart. I will just go
Speaker 1: find Kevin Hart. That just comes down to who you
Speaker 1: are as a person. So at the end of the day,
Speaker 1: and you're saying you have to be yourself, that material
Speaker 1: has to genuinely be your life, come from your heart.
Speaker 1: It's not even not even necessarily your your life. It
Speaker 1: could be your opinion, but it's your opinion, it's your
Speaker 1: point of view, it's your writing, it's your way that
Speaker 1: you view the world. That's why when when we look
Speaker 1: at directors and we're like, oh, this director is great
Speaker 1: as opposed to this director's average. Everyone can hold a camera,
Speaker 1: it's the way you frame it where you are showing
Speaker 1: us the audience exactly what you see as the creator.
Speaker 1: That's what. That's what makes a Harry Potter book so great,
Speaker 1: whether you like Harry Potter or not. J. K. Rowling
Speaker 1: created a world in which all of us vividly saw
Speaker 1: this world exactly the way she saw it in her mind.
Speaker 1: Because we can all go up there and tell a
Speaker 1: trump joke, right of course, but it's about the delivery,
Speaker 1: and you are the perspective and the perspective and have
Speaker 1: I heard this take before? So how does one finesse
Speaker 1: that because I think we all have some level of
Speaker 1: raw talent, but you have to really work that. What
Speaker 1: would be your piece of advice for somebody. Philosophically speaking,
Speaker 1: discovering comedy is truly discovering yourself. The way you do that,
Speaker 1: and now we go bookend it. Practice practice, practice, especially
Speaker 1: on stage, literally, practice being on stage, practice speaking your
Speaker 1: mind on stage. It is one of the most terrifying
Speaker 1: things to do. Especially unlike movies or music, where you
Speaker 1: find out feedback later, comedy is instant. Yes, you say something,
Speaker 1: either they laugh or they don't. And the worst thing
Speaker 1: isn't when you get booed. The worst thing is when
Speaker 1: you hear crickets where people are just silent, So at
Speaker 1: least you've evoked some emotion exactly you get booed, at
Speaker 1: least you've you've you've created something. But when it's just
Speaker 1: silence and it's crickets and you can hear that pin drop,
Speaker 1: that's when people sweat. That's when it's like, oh, oh,
Speaker 1: I'm here all week. You know, it's just like one
Speaker 1: of those things where that that five minutes, which sounds short,
Speaker 1: isn't an eternity at that point, so you've given us
Speaker 1: so many nuggets of information, and I think that people
Speaker 1: can really learn from this interview. Is there anyone that
Speaker 1: you think we should be paying attention to right now?
Speaker 1: Since you have such a good eye that you would
Speaker 1: like to give a little bit of I will go
Speaker 1: down a list of comedians just so we can give
Speaker 1: our audience some people to check out. In a room
Speaker 1: of people whose names are being definitely kicked around. Chris
Speaker 1: red romy Yusef are definitely these names that Eliza Schlezinger,
Speaker 1: you know, but people know them. But if you're looking
Speaker 1: for like new talent up and coming, uh and Andrew
Speaker 1: Schultz by the way, because he's made it like that
Speaker 1: guy did it on his own. I respect that You're
Speaker 1: gonna look for Renee Vaca. You're gonna look for Jack Knight.
Speaker 1: You're going to look for Fox, who's a transgender comedian,
Speaker 1: very funny, Mateine Stewart, Manacolm Silverstein, Sam j very good,
Speaker 1: Audrey Stewart working very hard. These are people that you're
Speaker 1: going to be looking for. Vanessa Johnston, Lea Lamar. I
Speaker 1: like everyone to have a voice. It's very interesting. It's
Speaker 1: great to watch Tehran breaking stars and actually a star himself.
Speaker 1: I'm so lucky in the making, like because people like Tehran,
Speaker 1: Oh I have and I aren't you one the terrorist
Speaker 1: watch list? Like no, I'm gonna yeah no. But you're
Speaker 1: definitely mean, You're someone of influence, and you definitely are
Speaker 1: a taste maker in the comedy space. And I think
Speaker 1: that sky's a limit with you, obviously, And I'm so
Speaker 1: I love that we have this together, that I get
Speaker 1: to call you and we get to I get to
Speaker 1: pick your brains. You're one of my favorite people. But
Speaker 1: you know that, and you and you also have this
Speaker 1: like Armenian thing. Anyway, it doesn't matter, it's a thing.
Speaker 1: I hope you guys enjoyed this. If you guys want
Speaker 1: to check out tron, tell them we're all Your socials
Speaker 1: are where they can find you, literally at I am
Speaker 1: I A M Tehran t e h r a n
Speaker 1: I am Tehran all across the social atmosphere. So find
Speaker 1: me anywhere that you find people. Follow me, be my you,
Speaker 1: be my Joe Goldberg, stalk me, stock him. I hope
Speaker 1: you guys enjoyed it. Tolu Behind Influences a production of
Speaker 1: I Heart Radio and t DC Media