Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Crawford
Hi Chris, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
In 2015 I was still a relatively new Tech School instructor for the USAF. I was starting to get a pretty good grip on public speaking and loved using humor in the classroom in order to better engage / relate to my students. During this time, I had a chance to read Howie Mandel’s book “Here’s The Deal Don’t Touch Me”. The story was fascinating, and it really made me want to start my journey as a stand-up comedian. There was no opportunity for this in the town that I live in, so I made a trip to Austin, Tx to try my hand at an open mic. It was terrifying and exhilarating at the same time. I knew that I had to bring this home with me and I did by starting my own open mic at (Stango’s Coffee Shop) in San Angelo, TX.
The show at the coffee shop was wildly popular and another opportunity presented itself, a chance to run comedy showcases at a small performance venue associated with a local music store (BackBeat Music Company). This venture also turned out to be truly successful right from the start.
Fun comedy shows draw a crowd; crowds draw better comedians, and comedy shows become even more fun. So, comedy was now in the town that I call home and a part of my life.
Through my “if you build it they will come” approach a lot of comedians did come. Through the connections I made, opportunities to travel and grow my craft as a comedian presented themselves.
Now, after roughly nine years of this journey that has taken me all over the place, working with comedians of all levels to perform in front of diverse audiences from all backgrounds, I have become a competent comedian. I continue to learn and grow every day and though I have come farther than I could ever have imagined, I intend to go so much further,
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Becoming a stand-up comedian is a very tough road. The diversity of the people / audiences that I have stood in front of made it clear that humor is subjective and that the quest to be universally funny is maddening.
You can have a run of shows that really make you feel as if you have it all figured out and then have the kind of night that makes you second guess everything.
We all want to believe that if we work hard and are good at what we do we will have the chance to truly be noticed, for the vast majority of us this is just not true. A working comic does not mean rich or famous and we are forced to acknowledge this, yet still chase the dream.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am best known for being able to perform clean material that is appropriate for family and or professional settings.
I love to perform and rarely shy away from the opportunity to do so, but I truly seek out the shows that contribute to the community in some way.
Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
Contributing to the community / helping others is so important to me. Comedy is fun, but it is way more satisfying to me when I know that I have had a genuine impact that reaches beyond the moment of laughter that we share and into the community that we live in.
I am looking to work with organizations that could see a night of laughter as a way to impact the community in a positive way or agents that specialize in pairing performers with such organizations.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://chriscrawfordscomedy.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/christopher.m.crawford1/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ccrawford/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGfKOiPVxYZ-KwTlbUeI9pA
- Other: [email protected]
