If you want to take a truly professional approach to becoming a comedian…

The video camera is your BEST friend. And video cameras have gotten so inexpensive that they are within the reach of most people.

Given that, I’m about to show anyone who thinks they are funny a very easy way to tell if they’ve got what it takes to continue on in their stand-up comedy adventures. And it involves using an inexpensive video camera and a camera tripod.

Don’t get ahead of me because I’m going to go step-by-step through a process you can use to find your stage voice, develop your rehearsal skills and hone your stand-up before you ever even perform at a comedy open mic night.

Here are the ingredients you will need: Read the rest of this entry

For more information about Steve Roye, author of this blog and the Killer Stand-up Online Course, click here.

For those who want to learn stand-up comedy rapidly…

I would be making use of online tools that you have at your disposal now. One of those tools is YouTube and if you know how to use it, you can really shave a ton of time off what it takes to get into your zone.

Since so many accomplished comedians have videos on YouTube, here’s how I would use these videos to my advantage…

The Process

First, you need to find a video of a comedian who’s “style” most matches your natural presentation style. You need to make sure that the comedian is getting at least 4 laughs per minute on the video (more laughs per is better). Read the rest of this entry

For more information about Steve Roye, author of this blog and the Killer Stand-up Online Course, click here.

The next time I get an email from somebody asking if they are too old to do comedy…

I’m going to point them directly to overnight singing sensation Susan Boyle.

While Susan Boyle is not a comedian, she should stand as an inspiration for every entertainer who ever doubts they should follow their entertainment dreams.

For those who may not know…

Susan Boyle is a 47 year old unemployed Scottish woman with learning disabilities who stunned the world with her first performance on “Britain’s Got Talent” TV show (the UK version of American Idol).

If you have watched the YouTube video, her performance was amazing. Here’s the link to the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxPZh4AnWyk

But what I want you to pay close attention to in this video is this:

Susan Boyle is funny — I’m sure that part of her will be overshadowed in the beginning by her amazing singing voice.

But make no mistake…

The woman has confidence and a great sense of humor, as evidenced by her initial interview responses.

Now, it was clear that she was nervous and inexperienced on stage. But it DID NOT MATTER because…

Her amazing talent was the keystone to her instant success. Not how many times she had been on TV. Not how many stars she had opened for. Not how many open mics and karaoke bars she performed at.

In my books I say “funny can’t hide”. I think I will add to that…

Real talent can’t hide. It doesn’t matter what you look like, what your background is or where you are in life right now.

Susan Boyle went out on stage with guts and passion. She knew she had talent, no matter what the rest of the world thought about her.

If you can find another performance that gets a standing ovation as fast and as long as Susan Boyle got for her performance on “Britain’s Got Talent”…

Let me know about it. But I think you may have a hard time finding it.

If you’ve got talent—I mean REAL talent—you best be doing all you can to get that talent out there.

If Susan Boyle can do it…

Let me tell you straight up—you got NO excuses now.

And my personal message to Susan would be this:

Don’t stop. Keep being yourself. Have fun.

Here is a press release I just sent out to help Susan Boyle any way I can.

Cheers,
Steve Roye
The Professor of Funny for Money

For more information about Steve Roye, author of this blog and the Killer Stand-up Online Course, click here.