We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Christian Cintron. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Christian below.
Alright, Christian thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?
Coming from a family of immigrants I did everything the “right way” I went to Vassar, and chased a corporate job but something was grossly out of alignment. I wasn’t happy and something kept pulling me away. I’d much rather explore battling corrupt capitalism and create a career where I can thrive than make small talk in the break room or listen to Shelia from HR prattle on about her weekend on company time. I had a regular job and I can tell you it can rob you of parts of your soul. Since getting creative I’ve found so much more clarity in what matters and the more I hone that creativity the more I can handle the challenges whether it’s finding new clients or structuring my business.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I first did stand-up comedy in 2005. I have lived many lives and held many identities from catholic school boy to marketing professional to improviser to drag queen to spiritualist and one thing stayed the same: I was always writing and telling jokes. Thanks to my best friend, Imposter Syndrome, you may know them they’re quite famous, I was able to live in Los Angeles and play at trying to be in front of the camera. There were gatekeeping moments that might have caused someone else to rise to the occasion but honestly crushed my spirit a bit.
Being BIPOC but white-presenting, people can often misconstrue my intentions and neglect to realize I come from a different culture. I simultaneously am never comfortable and also always doing mental and emotional labor people are not taking notice of.
What clicked for me is when I worked to integrate all of the various codes I switch to and identities I embrace and have them all work together. I blended them all to create Stand Up 4 Your Power which blends comedy, intersectional politics, self-improvement,a little spirituality, and a commitment to self-love.
I help students look at how they talk about themselves and what pesky perspectives, limiting thoughts, and hidden emotions are keeping them from truly expressing themselves.
So many of our traumas and tribulations can leave us awkward, afraid, or detached. I help my students by challenging them to face one of our primal fears: the fear of public ridicule. We look at how they talk, how they write, how they engage with strangers, and what superpowers they’re flexing and vulnerabilities they can shore up.
I created 4 workbooks and I work with students in one-on-one sessions to use the tools I gained from stand-up comedy to help them feel more confident, and self-assured, and stop battling themselves and instead stand up for their….wait for it,,,,power.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
Two major goals have driven my creative journey. I have lost a lot of comedy friends to suicide, addiction, or just toxicity. I created my program in the hopes of finding a way to help those people who just don’t “get it.” The angry comics, the ones who attack, the ones who can’t see that while comedy can be edgy AF and challenging the core component is joy.
This unhappiness in the scene made it downright unhealthy for me to engage. We can only handle what we can handle and I think that our society is way too accustomed to allowing people to just leak negativity and vitriol without reprisal. Plus, I’m a Sagitarius and I just like to keep the vibe high.
The second thing was I saw so many problematic people thriving. I am all about ruffling feathers but if your work hurts people : cough: Dave Chappelle and trans people :cough: are you really using your platform wisely? It became about getting a rise out of people to get attention like the Kardashians or Donald Trump for fame and to find a base of people who will watch you than saying things that matter and better society.
Comedians claim George Carlin as a patron saint and I think his take on cancel culture would be way different than some more notable comedians.
I want to add more intersectionality, joy, and unique voices to comedy. Anyone can make you laugh and honestly, I firmly believe anything can be funny even dark topics like cancer to school shootings. Comedy adds levity to these tense topics while an opportunity to lighten the load so we can let in solutions. The issue is you have to do the work and some people would rather be outrageous and talked about than truly make the world a better place. That’s fine it’s just not me.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I’m Caribbean and the joke about us having multiple jobs is not a lie. The economy of Los Angeles is bizarre you can have a store that sells 10k rugs and gets one sale a month and they’re fine while you can have a corporate employee barely able to make their rent. I came to Los Angeles with 5 jobs. I didn’t know from burnout but they kept falling until I found myself lost, unemployed, defeated, and uninspired. Luckily, the company I worked for had been acquired by Warner Brothers. This gave me access to resources like the former Actor’s Fund, now the Entertainment Community Fund.
With their help, therapy, and following my joy I found that it was way easier for me to do what I love: write, teach, talk about social justice, and perform comedy. Out of that came the idea of stand-up for your power and a few different opportunities that allowed me to focus on incremental growth rather than get sucked into big ideas or the immensity of dreams unrealized.
I had to hit that low to really soul-search for what made me happy and now I work all the time but its what I love and my freedom is priceless. Sure, I could always use more money and clients…Call Me Now! but I am living a more aligned life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://standup4yourpower.carrd.co/
- Instagram: @StandUp4YourPower
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StandUp4YourPower/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@StandUp4YourPower
- Other: https://linktr.ee/standup4yourpower
Image Credits
Jazzy Byner & Sofia Marie Grosso