We recently connected with Ian Goldstein and have shared our conversation below.

Ian, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you wish you had started sooner?

I sometimes wish I had started sooner. I’m always obsessing about time. Even when I was 10 years old I remember watching the oscars with my brother and thinking “I need to be the youngest person to ever win a best a screenplay oscar.” I often look at the ages of people who are successful and at what age. Bob Dylan was 20 when he came out with this album or Paul McCartney was not even 22 when he appeared on Ed Sullivan or Aretha Franklin was barely 20 when she got her first deal.

I was scared to pursue comedy throughout college so I pursued music instead and while that was enjoyable I didn’t see it going anywhere and with comedy I didn’t have the never to actually just try standup or go to an open mic until I was 24, which is still young but even then it felt too late. Eddie Murphy was a teenager when he was doing mics on Long Island (where I’m also from). Starting sooner would have been taking classes earlier and meeting peers at a younger age so we would climb up the ladder together.

In all honesty I don’t think much would have changed since I now realize how much success is based on luck and also I’ve been realizing that maybe “making it”isn’t what I thought it meant. I realize Fame also is dangerous goal. Now I’m just enjoying what I’m doing and relaxed knowing that.

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?

Sure! I am a writer/producer based in Brooklyn. I produce and host random events around the city and occasionally write for sites like Vulture, New York Magazine, the New Yorker, and McSweeney’s.

I got into producing comedy shows when I was playing music and started doing shows for a platform called Artery which was sort of a precursor to Sofar sounds. Artery would connect artists (performers/producers) with hosts (people who wanted to share their space for an evening for an event) and I realized I could have more creative control over the event more than if I worked with a venue and I could put on the event sooner. So in 2017 I started producing tons of apartment shows around the city, sometimes they were music tribute concerts (like Prince and Fleetwood Mac) and other times I bought doughnuts for the crowd and booked variety acts and called the show “Doughnuts and Comedy” I just tried everything I could and this made me comfortable on stage (definitely more than the open mics). Jo Firestone was my North Star. She always put on hilarious shows that were so unique. It wasn’t just straight standup.

I’m most proud of the recent shows I’ve put on. One of them is called The Autoimmune Saloon where I book comedians with chronic illnesses (I myself have Crohn’s Disease). It’s a way for catharsis through comedy and also a way for me to rant about how terrible U.S. healthcare is (insurance companies, drug manufacturers, specialty pharmacies, etc)

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Yes, that can do what you want on your own terms, you don’t have to be at the whim of a venue or a boss. Just do the thing you want to. If you want to put on a weird comedy show find a friend with an apartment, book some performers you like and do it!

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Yes, to be funny and to keep calling out the healthcare industry in the United States.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ianscottgoldstein.com
• Instagram: @iangoldsteinyes
• Twitter: @iangoldsteinyes
• Youtube: igoldg

Image Credits

Mike Bryk
Ian Goldstein
Amanda Lehr