DIE ACTOR DIE

Josh Spector over at Whip It Out Comedy has the key, but it’s not what you think:

The secret to standup comedy success is NOT doing standup.

Wha??? Read his article to find out what the F— he  is talking about.

Josh, admittedly, is NOT a standup comedian, but if you step back, his points make a lot of sense and have some validity. The only issue I have is that you are moving from a saturated pool (comedy clubs) to an oh-my-god-help-me-it-is-so-oversaturated pool (the internet).

Breaking a video online can be tough and intimidating and not very rewarding. Face it, when you upload your breakthrough video, there are about 10,000 other breakthrough videos being uploaded at the same time. But let’s say you do break, like I did last year. My video, “The Tuberator” was a MySpace Featured Video and I had over 150,000 hits in one day (with about 1,000 on YouTube).

My next video, just cracked 48 hits.

Josh’s alternatives which include acting, writing, making dumb pop culture jokes on shows like “Best Week Ever“, podcasting, posting videos (not standup videos) online, or embracing new technology…are great suggestions, but can be just as hard to get into and not as immediately rewarding as performing before a live audience. The laughs in ana intimate club or venue can inspire you to keep working your material, while the vastness of the internet and Hollywood can leave you feeling cold and alone.

Still his overall point is valid: comedians need to start thinking of new ways to be comedians, because the old ways just aren’t gonna cut it in the 21st century.