Arts
Sohrab Forouzesh engages in a socially-distanced performance review on a set from Strip Joker in 2019. He performed this set wearing a speedo, sunglasses, pasties, a fez, and nothing else. Sohrab is a comedian, producer, and writer. You may recognize him from The Love Below comedy show, or his work on Group Therapy and 'Hello, It's Hobert!' Find out more about Sohrab on his website sohrabisbrown.com Time Stamps: 01:00 – Strip Joker Set 16:04 – Early Influences (ugh, including Seinfeld) Mentions of Jerry Seinfeld, The Simpsons, Comedy Central, Mitch Hedberg, Jim Gaffigan, Dane Cook, Carlos Mencia, George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Paula Poundstone, Maria Bamford, Marc Maron, Patton Oswalt 18:51 – Starting Stand-up in College Mentions of Dave Chappelle, The Chappelle Show, Nick Swardson, Michigan, The Michigan State Theater 22:50 – Academic Troubles 33:28 – Quitting Comedy in Chicago (and getting back in) Mentions of Facebook, New York, cliques 26:12 – “When you first move here [Chicago], it’s intimidating” 27:25 – “You’re being defensive because it’s difficult to accept a compliment” 28:53 – “I have to drag myself to mics” Mention of Winslow Dumaine 30:03 – The Science of Stand-Up Mentions of Mitch Hedberg, Steven Wright, Andrew Dice Clay 31:30 – “Your goal should be to do as many mics as possible until you don’t have to do them anymore” 34:35 – “Host your own show. That’s the best advice I was ever given” Mention of ‘The Love Below’ comedy show, Hannibal Burress, Cole’s Bar 36:53 – Getting into the set 36:58 – The Speedo 37:55 – “I wasn’t even born here” 38:12 – The Fez 38:28 – “My mom is the most badass person I know” Mentions of Marxism, Persians, Iraq, Prison Gangs, Unions, Unionizing, Government Oppression 40:26 – “Jared Kush-ner” Mentions of Marijuana, Jared Kushner 41:29 – “White people” and crowdwork Mentions of Zanies, Zookeepers, Trader Joe’s, Word Economy 46:46 – “You’re bad at racism” Mentions of Indiana, The N-Word, Michigan 48: 35 – “Don’t call Amish people ‘Farm Jews’” Mentions of Fundamentalism, Robin Williams, ‘Live on Broadway’ 50:20 – “Amish people are just cute fundamentalists” 50:34 – “If I was a terrorist, I would have screwed everything up on September 8th” 51:57 – The greatest gift you can give a comedian is material 53:29 – [Factual Error: There were no dinosaurs during the Paleolithic Era] 53:45 – Folding the Flag 53:54 – The Pasties Mentions of Strip Joker, Burlesque 54:32 – “I need more fat friends” 55:35 – Reading the Room 56:29 – “No exit strategy” 56:55 – “Wares, silks, and spices” and “Please, my friend, buddy, come on…” Discussion of reclaiming Middle Eastern stereotypes Mentions of Nintendo Switch, Mario, Mexican Twitter, Sombreros, Best Buy, Amazon, Code Switching, 9/11 1:01:30 – Advertisements in Pornography 1:01:43 – Big Dick Pills Mention of ‘Big D”k Pills’ track from the album ‘Shiny Happy Jihad’ by Joe Rogan Joe Rogan promotes alt-right and neo-nazi figureheads, while feigning ignorance of their darker motives. I don’t care if he once hosted Bernie Sanders and Neil DeGrasse Tyson on his show. He consistently gives fascist wing-nuts (Alex Jones, Ben Shapiro, Jordan Peterson, Gavin McInnis, and Stephen Molyneux to name just a few) a platform on the biggest podcast in the world. I do not support, endorse, or respect Joe Rogan’s flawed logic and terrible opinions. And I certainly don’t respect the way he sidesteps any criticism by saying “I’m just a stupid comedian.” [End Footnote/Rant] Mentions of NACA, Insecurity, Punching Down 1:04:20 – “Middle Eastern people can’t lose their temper at airports” 1:04:57 – “I want to hire a white Sherpa” Mentions of the film ‘Sherpa’, Instragram 1:05:58 – “One titty out on an airplane” Mentions of Mardi Gras, Breast Feeding 1:07:24 – The Set Revue Instagram: @Sohrabisbrown, Youtube Channel 1:09:25 – Final Words