On the “City Lights” series “Speaking of Comedy,” Atlanta’s funniest locals share insights on the perks and perils of their profession. This edition features Atlanta-based comedian Joel Byars.
According to his mother’s account, Byars first got into comedy when he was in a church play as a child. He stole the microphone from the adult in charge and started doing a made-up routine, apparently slaying the audience.
“It’s still my best show to date,” the comedian notes. “The moment I realized I could become a comedian was a few years later when I saw Sinbad’s ‘Afros and Bellbottoms’ comedy special on Comedy Central, and I remember him in this funky one-piece jumpsuit just being silly and having fun, which is what I always enjoyed doing. And seeing Sinbad to that on television made me realize, ‘Oh! I can be silly for a living!’”
Byars finds one of the comedy profession’s challenges to be finding opportunities.
“So, I was forced to create my own opportunities, whether that was live shows, my own comedy tours, or even my podcast called ‘Hot Breath,’ where I have since interviewed over 400 comedians all about comedy.”
