Starting Out

This week on Starting Out it’s another just incredible comedian who loves talking comedy, as you’ll hear, it’s Thomas Calnan! I have gotten to know Tom a bit from Absolute, but we’ve never had the chance to have a deep comedy talk and we do talk a lot about his jokes, so please seek him out and hear this amazing storyteller. We have so much in common in our starting out stories, so that was cool to learn. We talk about him winning the 2016 Windsor Comedy Fest, a lot about his start at Yuk Yuks, and having a mix of confidence and fear at all times and how you can benefit from it. You can check out Tom’s website at thomascalnan.com. 

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Music by @debateson
All episodes here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1632913 

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This week on Starting Out it’s another double down as I have my friends and Toronto-based comics Ian Fergus and Daniel Sanker on. We talk starting in Niagara and Brampton, the big move to Toronto, and when it felt like things were maybe coming together for us. There’s a lot of self-consciousness talk on this too. Ferg and Sanker are 2/3s of the hosts of the podcast Flicks with Dicks, maybe the best name of a podcast, you should check it out. Check out Fergs show @dirthousecomedy and follow Sanker @danielsanker.  Thanks for listening, thanks to those that reach out and give feedback. I’ll be in Kitchener doing the Rusty Nail show July 8th, and of course if you have a golfer in your life, share my other pod, Where’s That Bar Cart? with them. Music by Devin Bateson. 

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Music by @debateson
All episodes here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1632913 

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On this week’s episode of Starting Out it’s Niagara Falls comedian and all around great person, David Green! David is the creator of the Garden City Comedy Festival, and is an incredibly successful, self-admitted, stubborn, word-smith comedian originally from the UK. David has been referred to as the “Punniest Comedian in Canada” and we talk about what it was like starting in the UK where pun-based comedy is quite popular, and bringing that to Canada where not only the puns but his accent proved to be a challenge with audiences. This is an episode about bombing, forging on, and being so focused on a goal that you don’t get dissuaded by anything. It’s a pretty incredible thing. If you’re in the Niagara Falls or St. Catharine’s area you can check out the multitude of shows David produces. Please continue to rate, review, and share the pod with someone, I appreciate it. Music by Devin Bateson.

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Music by @debateson
All episodes here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1632913 

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This week on Starting Out it’s the amazing Toronto-based comedian, one of the most unique acts we have, Mr. Ernie Vicente. We do start on a somewhat sad note as Ernie recently lost his father, and he talked about it extensively on his podcast BFF Episodes, and I wanted to hear what that experience of talking about loss so openly was like for him. We then talk about him bombing in front of friends in a basement, his first set ever (which is included in the standup portion of the pod), bombing in front of family at a Filipino Culture Centre. Ernie is part of the Flip Mode Comedy Tour that will be in Toronto tonight, June 15, Winnipeg June 25 and finally Montreal June 30. Check out his pod BFF Episodes. Thanks for listening, please share the pod with someone will ya??!!

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Music by @debateson
All episodes here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1632913 

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Full disclosure - I sound very confused at the outset of this week’s episode, but there’s a very good reason for that. There are two Matt Carters in the comedy scene, one from Ottawa that I’ve worked with, and another I knew by the name Charlie Carter. It turns out that Charlie is a Matt and he’s the one on this week’s episode, not the Ottawa one. Make sense? No of course not. But I was so happy to have this Matt Carter on - he’s a young up and comer who asks a lot of questions and really respects standup and the process. This was a really good chat about comedy classes, being a class clown and harnessing it, he even explains Twitch to my old ass. If you’re under 40 and on Twitch, you can follow Matt at CartacusTV. Thanks everyone for listening, please share the podcast with one person!

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Music by @debateson
All episodes here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1632913 

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Episode 69 of Starting Out features a guest that's been on my list for so long, and as I admitted to him I was intimidated to ask because he’s so good, one of the truly best standups in the country. But it made absolute zero sense that I’d be scared because he’s also one of the truly best people out there, it’s Nick Reynoldson. Nick has done literally everything you can do in this country - SiriusXM’s Top Comic, Just For Laughs, Kevin Hart’s LOL Network, JFL42, the Winnipeg Comedy Festival, and NXNE. We talk big first steps, Comedy Records, hating yourself but also being quite sure you’re the best at the same time. If you're a basketball fan, check out his podcast Talking Raptors with Barry Taylor, and continue to support Comedy Records by buying Nick’s record “I’ll Be Fine”. Please rate, review, and share the pod with someone. 

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Music by @debateson
All episodes here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1632913 

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This week on Starting Out it’s comedian and all around awesome person, Jen Sakato! I’ve known Jen since I started doing standup as I used to watch her web series "ComInk" to learn about local comedians. Jen is a fantastic comedian, who is also married to another fantastic comedian Patrick Hakeem. We talk about that dynamic a lot. We also talk about bombing in front of an ex, and how coming up in the punk scene helped Jen navigate the open mic scene when she started. Jen will be part of a CASC (Canadian Association of Standup Comedians) compilation show recording alongside myself and Monty Scott May 24-29 at Absolute Comedy Toronto, so please come out and support that. Check Jen out on youtube or even better in person, and her husband, but they are not a package deal. Thanks for listening, and go find Jen on show!

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Music by @debateson
All episodes here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1632913 

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My guest this week on Starting Out is another one of my comedy brothers - we started around the same time doing similar shows, only he is so naturally a standup and so good that he is now the regularly touring comic and opener for episode 49’s guest Jeff Leeson, it’s the lovely Tige Wright. Tige talks about growing up as a Jehovah’s Witness and how that prepared and dissuaded him from comedy, and we spend a lot of time talking about his partnership with Jeff Leeson, all the tours it’s led to, the growth of Tige as a comic, and where it’s leading him. Somehow this was Tige’s first Zoom experience, 2+ years into a pandemic. Please follow Tige at @tigewright and rate and share this episode. Music by Devin Bateson.

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Music by @debateson
All episodes here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1632913 

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This week my guest is comedian and writer, Keith Andrews. I have always appreciated Keith’s hustle and approach to standup as a relatively newer comic like me, and one of the things I was excited to talk about is he comes from a standup lineage. His father, Jim McAleese was one of the six original Yuk Yuks comics back in the late 70s and early 80s, and we talk about what it was like growing up with a comic as a dad, and how it helped Keith mine starting out, and especially how to deal with the first five years of standup which frankly can be brutal.  Keith runs a bi-weekly show called Comedy Night Tonight, at Tonight Bar on Queen St. here in Toronto, always with amazing lineups so go check it out. You can follow Keith and see pictures of his bird at @yesikandrews. Thanks for listening and supporting. Remember to check out a new episode of my other pod - Where’s That Bar Cart - each Sunday.  Music by Devin Bateson.

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Music by @debateson
All episodes here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1632913 

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My very special guest this week on Starting Out came requested! He's someone I've wanted to have on from the start, but he is one of my two favorite comedians in the scene, and frankly I was nervous to ask him. But I did and it's Todd Graham!! Todd has come up several times on this pod, he’s an artist, a comedian, as you’ll hear he’s been referred to as the Grandaddy of Mashups. Todd has a record out with Comedy Records called "Bustin’ Loose", I highly recommend it. You can follow Todd at @idiotgallant on Instagram, and again, do yourself a huge favor and seek him out. You can also find "Apocalypse Pooh" on YouTube and it is very much worth 8-minutes of your time. At the time of recording Todd was about to jet off to perform in the Winnipeg Comedy Festival for a second time.  

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Music by @debateson
All episodes here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1632913 

Thanks for listening. Especially you...