Comedy Salad with Buddah #14 Brian Hicks

It is time for a Sunday morning edition of Comedy Salad which takes us back to Chi-town to visit with my buddy, Brian Hicks. A lot has happened for Brian in the past year. He is fresh off the annual Comedy 10k competition (field of 72 comedians) and takes away with him...a 1st place finish! Brian also finished 2nd in the Chicago regionals in the World Series of Comedy in 2012. Yes, standup comedy has a World Series. It's not every standup comedian that accomplishes feats like these with just over 12 years of experience in the game. One thing I have noticed about Brian is that he is always dressed for success every time I see him at a comedy club. And success is finding him...or is it the other way around? Brian and I haven't spoke in a while and I thought it would be tough for me to nail down a half dozen questions for him but it turns out I was wrong. So here they are...



BUDDAH: After doing standup all these years do you solely write your own material or do you get together with a comedy friend sometimes to write jokes?



BRIAN: Actually both, I do not get together with my friends nearly as much as I did in the beginning, but still try to do it once every couple months. It always helps to have a few funny people riffing with each other to get the most out of a premise...



BUDDAH: Congrats on winning the Comedy 10k. Has winning this competition opened other standup comedy doors for you?



BRIAN: Thanks Buddah. Actually it has, I got a chance to co-headline the Funnybone in Omaha. The club manager was one of the judges and asked to have me out at the club. I have also been pushing for more headline work. I have headlined in the past and I certainly do not think I am a headliner just because I won the competition. I always felt I could do a good job, however I never really pushed myself to do it!



BUDDAH: What are a few of your favorite comedy clubs that you enjoy performing at and why?



BRIAN: The Jukebox Comedy Club - Peoria. I have been working there for about 10 years. It was the first club out of town I featured at. I have always had good sets there and the crowds have always been fun.



The Improv - Schaumburg, IL. It seats about 500, just a beautiful venue for comedy.



Barrel of Laughs - Oak Lawn, IL. no longer there, but the club I cut my chops at, so many distractions in that room. I learned so much there from open mics to weekend gigs. I really believe learning to do well in that room made it easier to do well in other rooms.



BUDDAH: Do you have any pre show routine you do before you take the stage?



BRIAN: I like to stand outside and hold the door for people. When they say "thank you!" I make eye contact so when they see me on stage they think "that's the nice guy who held the door", it gets them to like me, and makes them more likely to laugh at my stuff...



BUDDAH: What television shows no longer on the tube to you miss?



BRIAN: Simon and Simon, Dukes of Hazzard, The Flinstones (that Barney Rubble, what an actor.....)



BUDDAH: If we road tripped together to a gig and had several hours to kill before our show, what would you want to do during our down time?



BRIAN: I like to catch up on movies when I am out of town. Sometimes I will see two or three on a weekend.....



Well, that was fun but we are not quite finished yet, as it is time for Buddah to field one question from Brian...What is the one single most important thing you have learned in comedy by watching someone else?



BUDDAH: I will go with the first answer that popped into my head and that is...it's okay to bomb on stage. It helps build character and I have even seen headlining comics bomb a few times, and if it's good enough for them...well then...I can't wait to get on stage soon and let the jokes fly and the audience response fall where they may.




Brian Hicks is a working comic and you can find him on stage dedicating himself to the art of standup comedy on just about any given weekend. His website is funnybrian.com. I hope my Peoria friends caught Brian at one of his favorite clubs, the Jukebox last weekend. He just finished this weekend at Riddles in Chicago. But you can catch his act at Zanies in Rosemont Aug. 21-24 or Zanies downtown location on Wells Aug. 27-Sep. 1st. Look at the guy holding the door open for you the next time you walk into any comedy club. It just might be Brian Hicks.

Brian Hicks

Is that a harmonica joke B is telling?