ABOUT THIS EPISODE:
Kirsty Carr is a comedian, coach, and mum who won the 2023 Australian Roast Battle Championship and is now president of Roast Battle Australia. But her story isn't just about standing on stage making people laugh... it's about taking something that was a survival mechanism at age 8 and alchemizing it into her genius, her truth, her gift to the world.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:
Recorded between Sydney, Australia and London, England. We acknowledge the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation as the Traditional Custodians of the land where Sydney stands, and the colonial histories of both Australia and the UK.
🎁 FREE GIFT FOR LISTENERS:
Download your free Joy Hour resource at www.mayagandaia.com/joyhourgift
IN THIS EPISODE:
How imposter syndrome stops us seeing that we have made it
How career desires shift over time and what relevance means when you stop striving
Juggling multiple identities: comedian, coach, consultant, mum
Can you integrate spirituality, psychology, neuroscience and comedy into one path
Fear doesn't go away, it just gets easier and the stakes keep rising
Defense mechanisms becoming your greatest gifts
The lesson of clinging to safety and getting pulled back to your real path
Motherhood as forced slowing down and boundary creation
Being yourself without the fear of judgment or exclusion
TIMESTAMPS:
00:01 - Welcome and introduction
01:53 - What's a recent joy: booked at the Comedy Store
03:00 - Do you feel like you've made it
04:28 - Relating to dance and shifting desires over time
05:39 - Journeying: not having the same desire to train
07:11 - What are you journeying right now
09:14 - Fear of being seen and getting over yourself
10:47 - Stakes rising as you get better
12:17 - Roast battles and the fearlessness required
13:00 - Strategic preparation for roasting
14:05 - Separating the personal from the performance
15:27 - The duality of being lovely and mean
16:13 - Dance as opposite expression
20:40 - Following your true path not the money path
23:32 - Operating from fear and lack
24:06 - Getting back on your right path
25:49 - Your spirituality and coaching all weave together
27:37 - Alchemizing suppressed voices into creativity
30:23 - Balancing comedy, coaching, mum
ABOUT THE GUEST:
Kirsty Carr is a comedian, roast battle champion, and coach based in Sydney, Australia. Known as the Roast Queen, she won the 2023 Australian Roast Battle Championship and is now president of Roast Battle Australia, producing shows across the country. A regular in the Sydney comedy scene, she's performed at Sydney and New Zealand Fringe festivals, conquered the legendary Comedy Store in LA in late 2024, and had sellout shows at the Tokyo International Comedy Festival in 2025. Her debut stand-up hour, Me and My Drunken Inner Child, premiered at Sydney Fringe Festival in 2025 to rave reviews, and she's touring across Australia in 2026. Beyond comedy, Kirsty works as a consultant and coach, integrating her passion for psychology, neuroscience, spirituality and personal transformation.
RESOURCES & MENTIONS:
Roast Battle League
Roast Battle Australia
Yeah Mad TV
Sydney Fringe Festival
Tokyo International Comedy Festival
Comedy Store Sydney
Pen Game Rap Battle
youtube.com/@PenGameRapBattle
CONNECT:
Kirsty Carr
Instagram: @_kirstycarr_
Google: Kirsty Carr Comedian
Also on: TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ella Mesma
Website: www.mayagandaia.com
Book: https://mayagandaia.com/journal-to-joy/
Current offers: https://mayagandaia.com/links/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ellamesma/
LISTEN & SUBSCRIBE TO THE JOY HOUR:
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-joy-hour/id1849505845
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1e2AslgK9q1hnEimdgQHzr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4ybUzyvIV4PVoZ3S9ZK1pEGKuY7XcY8M
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS & THANKS:
Music: LamRock
Everything else: Brought to you by Ella and guests ❤️
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