Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dan West. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Dan thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. One of our favorite things to hear about is stories around the nicest thing someone has done for someone else – what’s the nicest thing someone has ever done for you?

When I first started taking comedy seriously, I was very green and had a very inflated sense of my own importance and skill. I made plenty of rookie mistakes and dug in deeper when people cared enough to give me feedback. That set me back some when I was actually starting to improve, so a lot of bookers and other comedians were nervous about taking a chance and putting me on bigger and better stages.

I met Kris Shaw when he was working a comedy club I bartended, and we hit it off right away. He’s incredibly funny, but also super kind and generous. He saw me do an emcee set and we chatted for a while, and he told me that he would both vouch for me with venues and (more importantly) take me on the road with him. He was the first comic to ever taken me on the road for paid weekend work, and that both showed me what I should be aiming for and opened a lot of doors for me. I’ll always be grateful to him for that, and nothing I can do will ever be enough to pay him back for it.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I started doing standup about three weeks after I got out of the Army. I was in a bad place mentally, but I went to an open mic to watch a buddy from high school. After the show, we were talking and he suggested I get onstage the following week.

It went very badly. I told a lot of dark “coping with trauma” jokes that people were very uncomfortable with. The first joke I told onstage, the punchline was “I’m just saying that means God wanted you to die.” But I got one very good laugh on a self deprecating joke, and it made me hungry to keep going.

I kept at it over the years, and honed my voice to be more positive and silly, while still sharing important stories about who I am and the life I’ve lived. I talk about my Army experience, relationships I’ve had, and what it’s like being a civilian now . . . all with plenty of scattered 90s references.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

Be an advocate, even if they’re not famous. While we absolutely want you to buy tickets and merch, money isn’t the only thing. Share the social media post instead of just liking it. Tell your friends about the cool comic you saw. If you do buy merch, wear it! Word of mouth is a super powerful advertising tool, so please tell your friends.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I think it’s a lesson that a lot of comedians need to learn or re-learn.

The show is about the audience, not the comedian. You have some wiggle room if the people are there specifically for you, but even then it’s about them. My job is to make people laugh, and the easiest way to do that is to tell a funny joke. If a crowd doesn’t laugh at a joke, it’s not their fault (usually). It might be the wrong crowd for that joke, I might have told the joke wrong, or any other number of factors (like it not being a good joke). But blaming or attacking the audience is not a valid solution.

I wanted to be one of the “edgy truth tellers” when I first started. I remember doing a bunch of jokes making fun of addicts and homeless people, and multiple crowds made it very clear they were not interested in what I was saying on these subjects. I dug in and got mad, and got more aggressive, and the crowd responses got worse. Finally, another comedian I’d been seeing at the mics for the past few weeks pulled me aside and said “hey man, you know these jokes aren’t working, right? How long are you going to keep punishing the audience instead of finding something that does work?”

If you’re making people mad, you’re doing comedy wrong. It has nothing to do with “you can’t say anything anymore,” or “woke is destroying comedy,” or anything like that. The point of comedy is to be funny, otherwise it’s just a lecture. And if people aren’t laughing, the comedy isn’t working.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.DanWestComedy.com
• Instagram: @danwestcomedy
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/danwestcomedy
• Twitter: @danwestcomedy
• Youtube: @danwestcomedy
• Other: TikTok – @danwestcomedy