We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Joshua Lay a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Joshua, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
The earliest memory of wanting to be a comedian is from when I was about four or five. My parents were typically busy working multiple jobs to make ends meet, which left me either under the watch of my older brother and sister or alone entirely. As a result, I was pretty much allowed to watch whatever I wanted, age restrictions be damned.
I was born in 1992, so I was lucky to (somewhat) live through the 90s comedy boom spearheaded by the likes of Jim Carrey, Adam Sandler, Chris Farley, Pauly Shore, In Living Color, the resurgence of Saturday Night Live due to the legendary 90s cast, etc.
Another stroke of luck (or misfortune) was that my father was a massive stoner. My father would unwind and relax from his grueling welding jobs by loading up bowls and watching comedy movies and shows – often with me right by his side.
Witnessing the enjoyment and pleasure these comedy movies and shows provide enamored me. This power comedy can possess, combined with my less-than-conventional upbringing and general shyness around others, controlled my brain and way of thinking. Realizing I could make up for the lack of attention received at home, make others feel good, AND overcome my crippling shyness at the same time was transformational.
Joshua, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I was born and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Not exactly a comedy hotspot. I had no clue where or how to start performing comedy. I knew no one with similar aspirations. I had friends who were also comedy nerds, but none of them were too interested in trying it out ourselves. It also did not help that I was too clueless and shy to perform within my public school’s theatre program. As a result, my main “comedy performances” occurred during school lunch. My best friend Andrew Chernisky did entertain my comedy love early on, though, by joining me in writing silly “sketches” and random goofy ideas we found funny. Never to be seen by anyone else, mind you.
I never did an actual stand-up set until around 2013 or 2014 in college at Oklahoma State University. I saw a flier for an open mic on campus and finally gathered the courage to give stand-up a shot. My decision to perform at the open mic is all the more ironic given that I was minoring in theatre and still had immense stage fright. Why would an introverted and anxious person minor in theatre, where it was required to take acting classes and audition for performances? I simply thought you HAD to have a minor to graduate. I was (and still am) pretty dim. Nonetheless, the theatre minor paired well with my creative writing major. Both immensely helped shape my comedy.
After college, Teach For America accepted me into its program and sent me to northern New Jersey. Finally, I was going to live in an area with comedy every night. However, it would take an additional two years to muster the courage to even sign up for another open mic.
Finally, in 2016, after abandoning numerous open mics before the host could call my name, I endured my nerves and anxiety and stayed around long enough to hear my name. I sheepishly “performed” my three-minute set, got one semi-decent chuckle from the audience, and then did not perform again for about another year.
Hopefully, this long-winded answer exemplifies that I am most proud of never letting my lack of self-esteem and confidence keep me from doing what I have always wanted to do.
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
Regarding comedy, I wish I had realized sooner that if your hometown doesn’t have a comedy scene, then start one. Reach out to local coffee shops, bars, stores, and other venues to pitch running an open mic in their space. Follow the words of Oasis, “You gotta make it happen.”
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
The only goal/mission driving my comedy is to continue to grow inwardly. My personal growth ultimately feeds into my development as a comedian. The more I read and try to learn about the world and others, the more opportunities I give myself to improve my comedy performances and writing.
If asked this question earlier in my life, it would likely have been about getting accepted into comedy clubs or something of that nature. Through self-reflection and more life experiences, I thankfully learned not to measure my comedy successes by others’ affirmations.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://joshualay.com
- Instagram: @joshualay
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JoshuaLay
Image Credits
Mike Weydert