We were lucky to catch up with Jemischa Albo recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jemischa thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

In 2020 I was living in Maryland, where I’m from, and I was watching Wanda Sykes’s Netflix special “Not Normal”. There was something about it, maybe it was just somebody who looked like me (Afro) doing comedy, that inspired me to want to try Stand Up. At the time I was working for a company that I had been with for almost 9 years. The thought of leaving stability to pursue something that might not work out was frightening. But over the next several months, I started writing down anything I thought was funny! During my mundane days at work, or in general life, I took notes and wrote jokes in what would be my very first Joke book.

In June of 2021 I found the courage to leave my day time job. I supplemented my income with gig economy work for the few months to follow and in November I made the decision that I would move to Austin, Texas. Impulsively, I moved the first week of January 2021.

While living in Maryland, I was surrounded by the Baltimore, D.C. & Virginia comedy scenes. During the last couple of months before I moved, I would go out to open mics just to watch. One of the open mics I went to in D.C. was a ticketed event. I bought a ticket and every patron at the bar was required to show their ticket to the host before they were seated. When it was my turn to show my ticket, the host looked at me and said “You look like you belong here.”, and didn’t bother checking mine. Little drops of synchronicities like that would continue to happen during my last couple of months in Maryland. The first open mic I ever went to watch was because of a comedy page that followed me on Instagram operating out of Virginia. I had a total of 0 connections in comedy at the time, and no one except for myself knew what my dream was. So for a profile like that to follow me was really strange. The very next day one of my good friends told me I’d make a good Stand Up Comedian. He said “It’d be the most unexpected thing”. I told him about the profile that followed me the day before, but kept my secret that it was my dream to pursue Stand Up Comedy. If all of that wasn’t enough to prove to me that the stars were aligning with this dream, I remembered that Wanda Sykes and I actually graduated in different years from the same high school. I’d known that information since I was in school, but I had forgotten about it over the years. All signs were pointing to comedy.

The first week of the 2021 New Year started with a snow storm that took over the DMV. The major interstate I needed to be on to start my travels was shut down and iced over with thousands of people stuck in their cars without proper resources for about 24 hours. Though my travel date was delayed, once the weather cleared I started making my way to Austin, Texas. The day after I left I was stuck in Nashville due to another interstate being shut down. But I wasn’t in a rush. I found a hotel and kept heading toward Austin the next day. I had no clue about the “Comedy Boom” the city was having, and was clueless to the hype over Joe Rogan and Kill Tony. I chose Texas solely because there is no income tax. Maryland has tremendous comedy scenes that surround it, and I would have done just fine had I started working on my stage time there. I just didn’t want to start in an area where I knew a lot of people.

My second week in Austin I decided to go to The Creek and the Cave to watch a mic they were doing. I was still hesitant about getting on stage, but when you’re a new face, (and one of the only Black people) in a crowd of comics, people take note and ask questions. A couple of ladies encouraged me to sign up for their open mic the following day, and now it’s been a little over three years since I’ve first picked up a mic.

When I was one year in to the game, it was clear to me the comedy is going to work out. I’m not conceited, but I do know I’m funny. I drove all the way across the country just to see if I was funny and the answer is yes. But there’s a difference between being funny and doing something about it. I’ve had a pretty successful three years in the game, but I have a hard time believing in myself. Now I must buckle down and execute on the dreams I have for myself.

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’m really proud of the opportunities that I’ve been able to create for myself in the last couple of years. I’ve never been one of those people who is naturally good at something. When people see me perform a lot of my material is around my adoption. I was adopted when I was six years old and make a lot of jokes about it. If you come to see me perform you can also expect me to be a little bit raunchy as well. You can find me hosting at The Creek and the Cave quite a bit.

I’m also basing my current podcast on my adoption. It’s called Adapting Adopted and I will be releasing one new episode every month with my cohost who is also adopted starting in June. My goal is to share the struggles of adoption with other artists who were adopted as well. Content like this exists but most of it is more educational. I need funny. My podcast aims be a combination of both. I’m going to release episode 2 on Juneteenth and am hoping to produce an a comedy show for Juneteenth as well featuring the best Black talent in the
comedy scene.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding part about being a stand-up comic for me is the laugh. They say it’s the greatest addiction and I’d have to agree. Not only does it feel good to make people feel good but the air in the room and the out of body experience that happens when you are murdering (figuratively) in a room telling jokes is unmatched. I’m having an out of body experience while watching the audience have their own version of that as well.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Society can support Artists by buying tickets to local shows, and being kind to the people on the streets trying to promote and sell tickets. Rejection is the name of this game, but it never feels good. You just learn to handle it better. I can’t speak for every comedy scene, but I know here in Austin, most of the local comedy shows are worth checking out. There are just so many funny folks here now. But in any category whether it be comedy, music, or extreme hoola – hooping, take a chance on someone in your local scene if you come across them, no matter where you live.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @_Jemischa
• Youtube: @Jemischa

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