Meet White Yardie from St. Elizabeth

Speaker 1 0:00

Hey everybody , welcome back to another episode of Carry On Friends , the Caribbean American podcast . I am excited , yes , me excited for everybody , but this one I'm really , really excited . So welcome to the podcast . White Yadi and you know why this is different . I don't have to ask which part him come from , because Yadi in I'm name . So , white Yadi , welcome to the podcast . How are you ?

Speaker 2 0:24

I'm good . Thank you for having me as well , man . I appreciate it , you know .

Speaker 1 0:28

All right , so let's get right into it . So you are the White Yardie , which part of Yardie you actually come from .

Speaker 2 0:35

St Elizabeth , Black River .

Speaker 1 0:36

Lord Jesus , I'm St T . We don't know about chatting and red dirt , no , but you see people always say that you know , no , no , no , no .

Speaker 2 0:42

But you see people always say that no , no , no , you know what I'm talking about . You know , you have some people who come from way over here and there and they talk worse than we , you know .

Speaker 1 0:50

But guess what ? I'm on your side , you know , because you know Jamaica has two places town and everywhere else's country .

Speaker 2 0:57

Yeah , I come from Moby , so a lot of times I get the Moby is to go down . I want to go down . I think , moby , I go down with things . Yeah , I know , moby , moby , I pick the cover from Kingsdown for how much time now , man , come on that's because the Kingsdown people they run . Come on , moby , yeah yeah , but I'm not going down . Moby is nice man . I mean , remember I'm so glad when for going to Moby listen , man , listen , I love it .

Speaker 1 1:25

Apple Valley Farm . I love check out Apple Valley Farm . It's just we don't have everything .

Speaker 2 1:29

We don't have KFC . We have it now , but we never used to have them . Kfc . Moby and Mandeville , them two places closest places was his place . Yo , I like nigger little subliminal .

Speaker 1 1:44

Yes , yes , yes oh my god , it's so good . So you come from saint elizabeth , and what was it like growing up in saint elizabeth ? And at what point you decide say you go live a foreign growing up .

Speaker 2 1:58

That's a nice man , you know I mean countryside , nice , and I have freedom . You know we are , we you not for worry about certain things like what them have . Now it's built up city that we have more . You know , like we can go climb tree and pick fruits and or we can go fishing and catch fish and go cook with cell phone , things like that . So it was , it was good to grow up man , um in in that area . You know um loads of friends at evening time we're gonna kick ball , play , play cricket , we have something to play a load here , play some domino . Some hours are gone in the area and we make most of what we have when we don't have as much , you know , so I enjoyed it when I miss it . Sometime I wish my children could experience it too , you understand , especially growing up in where they grew up in england . So sometime I wish them could have really got there and experienced some of them things . I think those are things that make you who you are as well , certain experiences you go through and I give thanks .

Speaker 2 2:52

I had the opportunity to go there with my children many times and they went there and I remember bringing them to my school , where I went primary school , I went high school . I went high school . I met them . See , and go back into my own classroom there , man , remember , I'm going to my grade six classroom . I'm sitting in there , man , I say yo , like I show them , say yo , I'm just a daddy used to that . You know I get troubled and get beat in front of teachers and things like that . And I say you used to get beat and them start beating them in Jamaica now in school . Me couldn . I couldn't believe it . I said wickedness , keep going . It never did with no wrong .

Speaker 1 3:26

Listen , we used to get lit because you used to wear the tunic , and if you run up and down too much on the sweat forming at the back of the tunic , we used to get lit for it .

Speaker 2 3:34

Yeah , man , no flicker thing , yo , if we have t-shirt , be too weak man , but I appreciate them because they are part of who I am and made me who I am today and you know the person who I am . So , yeah , man , I was there up until um coming up to 18 and that's when , when I got to 18 , because me come from black river , which is a very quiet area , you know , I mean it's not as busy like the town , and so on .

Speaker 1 4:00

So most of my friend when they were done with school .

Speaker 2 4:03

Some of them moved to Mandeville and Kingston , some fly to Canada , some fly to America , england and all that . So it's like my daddy and me .

Speaker 1 4:11

I said yo what do I do ?

Speaker 2 4:12

I want to do something . I want to leave and at the time my father was there in England quite a lot , so I left and ended up in England .

Speaker 1 4:27

So , before you got to be the comedian , what was life like moving here ? Because I know , when I first came here from Jamaica , I mean , the winter situation did different . First of all , the time fall back All of a sudden , four o'clock , pitch black outside , and it was just an adjustment for me . So what was that adjustment for you when you came over , and , in terms of going to school or working , what was that transition like for you ?

Speaker 2 4:57

well , definitely the weather was a different thing for me because when my first father would you , I was there in Jamaica for like 18 years . So when I was born , people saw me and thought I was a mixer or something , because my son was 18 years old , well , tanned up over , tanned like proper . They didn't even know I was white . They said no man , you mix , you mix . And a lot of people said you mix . Both of my parents were white . I said no man , you mix , you mix . And no people just say you mix .

Speaker 2 5:26

I said what am I ? Pure as white , like I don't know what like ? They said no , man , but who are you , your skin ? I said sun , sun , you know , I've been in there for a long time . So when you're in the fridge for a while , the tan fades away and you start to like . So that's it . That's just what happened . But ,

Growing Up in Jamaica vs England

Speaker 2 5:47

um , the weather definitely was a challenge at first because I never used it . The good thing is I actually came over when it was summertime in england , so it did hot now england hot , different . You know , probably see him like over new york and in place there .

Speaker 2 6:02

You know , it's like human city , yeah , yeah man , you like , you know an oven peter , come from every angle , eat a box of private angle . You feel , eat the can't get you no breeze , kind of no cool side , nowhere . You understand me . Not even I sit in , no more . My mother I sit in last year but then I conscious , I know me get breeze right now and I'm all scorned . So we lock the window , kind of call right now I get sea breeze . I have sea there down the road , so I get nice breeze when I'm there . Before I was sitting there dead .

Speaker 2 6:29

But when you realize , even when the sun is hot like this , when it's summertime , so when you start to touch the evening and the cold breeze starts , yeah man , you realize I'm not making for this , so you have to adjust to it . And over time , time , you get used to the weather and things like that . And , just like you said the same thing , you start to realize how it's so dark outside , like right now , after 8pm , with me there Bright , but watch the winter come , like 3pm , 4pm , it's pitch black . I don't get it , I don't understand it , I don't get it , I don't get it . So , yeah , man , definitely a lot of those challenges you know are new experiences you get used to . Yeah .

Speaker 1 7:14

Yeah . So I want to talk about the thing the white Yadi and how I remember I loved watching Lunatic with Paul Campbell . I loved watching Lunatic with Paul Campbell and when Masa , the character in there , was white and I can't remember his name , but he was deep in the pot Somebody was like , is he really talking Jamaican ? I said yes , he's a really popular actor in Jamaica . So what is the reaction when people see you and you're talking Jamaican , you're explaining that . No , both my parents are white . I'm white , I'm fully white , but I'm also Jamaican . Talk to me about those encounters .

Speaker 2 7:53

Well , the thing about it is most of the time these questions are coming from people who either don't have Jamaican or Caribbean backgrounds or any relation with it , any connection with it . Most of the time the question comes from those people and a lot of the time the negative comments come from people who do have the connection , but they never born or been to the Caribbean or Jamaica . They always live in foreign . So it's almost like they are upset because they look at me as more Jamaican than them because I'm from there . But they should be more , you know . I mean like that's where it comes from . So it goes many different ways . For me , it it varies on the questions that I get asked . So for me I don't mind somebody asking a question because I get it . I get it .

Speaker 2 8:44

Jamaica is a country where , to the world , it is promoted and it's a black country predominantly because majority of the people there are black . However , we who from jamaica and go school in jamaica and grew up there and everything we look around and also when we did school , we have Indians in our classroom . We call them cool at the time and that's what we call them , but they're Indians . We have Chinese , we have everybody there . You know there's a mixture , so we don't look at it . We know , growing up we used to say manly and then manly . You know what I mean . So it's not unusual for us because we know it , so we grew up with it .

Speaker 2 9:25

The ones who don't know it now and they ask I don't mind . People ask me no , like oh , how come you talk like that ? Why is that ? I'm cool with that . It's when somebody comes in and say why are you talking like that ? What do you mean ? Why am I talking like that ? That's not a question . You know what I mean . Like you should come and ask me oh , how come ? Like not , you know we have . Like you don't believe that I should be talking this way , or it's wrong for me to talk like this and people come say well , why are you trying to talk like a black person ? What ?

Speaker 1 9:53

Well , I think to some people they see people like um Tom Hanks son who parades raids around with it . So , yeah , yeah , notice , I'm in a carlinium . So when they encounter you , they automatically , you know , think that way because they see this character who is trying on jamaicanness and caribbeanness and and thinks he has it , but he doesn't . And I think I wish we all would stop supporting or or even engaging with the post like , don't even like it , don't forward it , don't bex with it , nothing , just ignore it , you know , just let's move on .

Speaker 2 10:33

So me it's always one of these ones where I look on it like there's no problem I don't see with people embracing other people's culture . You understand , if you travel to china , you're not supposed to expect for god . They don't want upstairs , right , some piece , yeah , but god if you experience their food right you understand you , you know you're gonna put on there .

Speaker 2 10:52

The other thing if you there's certain places where you go , and even in dubai and egypt , and when you go off on the camels and stuff like that , they offer you the head wraps and things that they put over their heads , what they traditionally wear . They offer it to you to wear on these things because you're there , you're embracing their culture while you're there . But people now who take the culture and take it to a next level , where it sounds like they're trying to say , oh , I make this fashionable , I am making the , the , the egyptian culture , or the , the the more popular no , you're not . So when he went on , I'm not too much on him anyway , but he went on a show and me and my dad were popular . What the Indians are a fool , which one there ?

Speaker 1 11:35

can't be two of them , you have to pick one . Well , in the case , I'm the fool and the conversation that I've always had and I remember the story . I tell everybody this story . When I was interviewing many years ago this young man you know , I asked him his strength , his weakness , and him said his accent was his weakness and we got through the interview and at the end of the interview I said your accent is not a weakness and I want people to understand . They're paying a lot of Hollywood actors to have a terrible version of what we have .

Speaker 2 12:02

Naturally , of course , man , come on , yeah , come on . I see it all the time . Listen in England it's worse .

Speaker 1 12:09

Let me tell you something it's worse over there .

Speaker 2 12:11

Yeah , it's worse over there . It's worse over there , yeah , because you know what them them will hire anybody apart from a Jamaican to do a Jamaican role over there . Wow , idris , do a movie . Yeah , I'm in a . I'm telling you with me , I'm a big man , me not afraid Me . Talk my mind , say what me want , say . If somebody don't like it , we can have the conversation . It's fine , I'm not lying , that's the difference . And then you're in a run . But when you speak the truth , speak the truth and that's it . Idris , I film a movie called Yadi and you get a white man , english white man , to play a role as a white Jamaican in there .

Speaker 1 12:57

I never have your number , bad man , I'm from England .

Speaker 2 13:00

Bad man . I'm from England . When I hear a good friend know me too . You could have called me if I did it originally and proper . Why don't I always want water , though ? Why do they never want to give it ? They'd rather give somebody else the opportunity . Every time they always do it . I see it so much happen . I mean , I say yo like what does it take for us ? So I don't get it . I honestly don't get it . It's so terrible over here , man , like they want yo some things on , mr Majestic . Yo is what it is .

Speaker 1 13:32

I understand the frustration still because you see it every day . You know I've heard stories of somebody pitching a pilot or a show around a Caribbean . You know lifestyle , family and they don't want to . They will relegate us to being the nanny in some other sitcom or something else , which is why I love what Sherri Lee Ralph is doing in Abbott Elementary because she played the teacher , but every now and then the accent just chippy .

Speaker 2 13:57

Yeah , yeah , yeah , you understand yeah .

Speaker 1 13:59

Exactly , and when you think of it , you know that's how a lot of us interact . We go to work and something happened , and you know where we get excitable , the accent come out and this is our real life experience . But I'm of the position that you know , maybe we just need to stop waiting for them to do it and we should go out and do it ourselves . Definitely , I have a theory that the internet age kind of impacts Jamaica movie .

Speaker 1 14:28

So you see , before the

Breaking Barriers as a White Jamaican

Speaker 1 14:29

internet we'd watch Dancehall , queen , third World Cup , all of them Shaka's all of them right , they have DVDs to this and since then we don't really have anything that proliferates or really captures the hearts and minds of the people .

Speaker 2 14:44

And I said this funny enough , when I live there . That year I said this , I said yo , right now , if you're asking anybody about jamaica movie , the matilda shatters dancer , we third world cup .

Speaker 1 14:55

That's all I'm gonna tell you are , we still at top . But the harder they come , harder they come like you know , smile , our age .

Speaker 2 15:02

People still talk about oliver , like don't disrespect Oliver , but people still that's the only comedy . We are talking about Lion Tree , liam , like what else ? We don't have nothing else . We don't have nothing else . You tell me , say all of the talent we have in the world . Yo , I said this .

Speaker 2 15:22

In Jamaica the population is like 3 million . There is a report the other day that in America alone there's over a million Jamaicans living there who born from Jamaica . That's not counting people who born from Jamaican parents or anything like that . That's just Jamaicans left and gone . That's just in America . England , canada , canada have a whole heap of Jamaicans over there . Canada have a whole heap of Jamaicans over there . England have a whole heap of Jamaicans over there . The Caribbean as a whole population must be anywhere over 50 million . Easy , easy , easy . And you tell me , say yo , we cannot get our own things on platforms . We can't have a Netflix , we can't have Amazon , we can't have them thing there . But every other continent , every other country has it . African have them thing , african them have have Netflix . You go on Netflix right now I am , but you got your own section with them one the wooden program , the funding .

Speaker 2 16:15

You look for Asian Learning program today . Look for American English . Everybody the funding , everybody . They put all the alien the panty . I will not different TV and we can't come on the earth . You know what you hear in a movie . You watch a doppie show and you see a doppie with dead and gone movie and we can't get to movie .

Speaker 1 16:34

It's true , it's true . The last sitcom that I remember is Desmond's Films in the UK itself .

Speaker 2 16:42

And that was a mixture , and that was a mixture . Yeah , and that was a mixture of um , I don't even think Desmond was Jamaica , I think .

Speaker 1 16:47

Desmond was Guyanese . Guyanese , yes , and I think Popeye are Bajan .

Speaker 2 16:53

And me , I tell you , say yo , you tell me , say we care about Desmond . That's the question I asked too . My thing is this it's funny , you said , because I recently noticed this conversation I come up a lot and I'm always a part of this conversation when I'm talking is my aim when I first started to do comedy was always get on TV , get on TV , get on TV , get , get , get me a dead , forget on TV . And then after a while I start to realize they're not familiar . I go to many meetings , I go to many interviews with them to discuss stuff . But the problem is they see me as a gimmick . If I was a gimmick , like a chet or a kank , I wouldn't have had the whole empathy to show back . The problem is when they come to meet me or when we go meet them , they must say , oh , you're real . I say of , of course , this is me . Oh , we thought it was like a act that you put on . No , it's not . This is genuinely me . They're not interested in generally , they want a act . They don't want that because they want you to water down and want to be able to control what you're doing . Right , we're not doing that .

Speaker 2 17:58

I've been on tv and I actually got an opportunity to go back on the same show again this year . Unfortunately , unfortunately , I cannot make it . I had to turn it down because I've been in St Martin's doing a show , which is blessed that you have these opportunities and you have to be turning them down . But also it's like me . I look at it and say yo .

Speaker 2 18:15

My aim right now is to keep making nice for the Caribbean islands and keep hopefully expanding , helping young comedians come up on the scene , helping young comedians get platforms where they can perform on stages , because that's another thing we don't have as much as we want TV and we want this , we want movies and that at the same time we're still fighting to get venues to let us in to do shows as well . So we have a lot of battles , uphill fights that we have to go through and I'm trying my best to open up doors and get things happening . And if I can help a young comedian and along the road who just starting come true , let's go together and do it together . And one day I would love to be able to secure a deal with one of these big platforms where it is a way I'm saying like let him say secure the bag , I get a proper , get a good payment for the one of these big platforms and use that payment to then invest into the jamaican film somehow , whether it's filming , movies , filming and a sitcom , getting writers , getting the right , paying a production company , not your brother , you can't film . Come film , no , proper , proper , something that is my aim now to one day hopefully can do .

Speaker 2 19:28

If I cannot do it , I hope that by me making nice , somebody else can get through the door and then do it because we need it . We , we can have action movie , love movie , we can't have doppie show , we can't have everything , but when are we gonna have it ? It's like every time it's like we are weird , but like you say why , why we are weird people start weird people . We going to have it . It's like every time it's like we are weird , but like you say why , why we are weird from people , start weird from people . We shouldn't have to do it ourselves . We have a lot of influence on the world as jamaicans .

Speaker 2 19:53

Jamaican music alone is probably , to me , is the biggest and the most influential music in the world , as much as people don't want to talk about it , because the facts is there , yeah , b's there . Yeah , burn Up Boy , the biggest African artist right now , used to be a dance hall artist . He used to be an African dance hall artist , right , and I tease him . I say punch , sure , when I do my show to him , sometimes I tease him . I say yo , enough of him new song , enough of him song we're big Jamaican song . And I don't even know it . I'm going to have to break it down to them and tell them yeah , yeah , yeah , yeah , yeah , yeah , yeah , yeah , yeah . Where did it come from ?

Speaker 2 20:28

Yeah , yeah , yeah , yeah , yeah , yeah , yeah Come on , come on , but one day we just have to keep working and keep fighting these battles and one day , one day , hopefully one of us gets through and hopefully it's the right person that gets through , that can bring other people through , and not the one that goes through and lock the door behind .

Speaker 1 20:48

I think that point is just so important because , from my observation is um , we all have to decide that we're in a cooperation . Right , we're competing , but we have to cooperate in the competing because we're all trying to build something and build it forward , and I just don't think a lot of people have that mindset to understand this is what we have to do , do you know why ?

Speaker 2 21:13

Do you know why ? Tell me why . I can tell you exactly why I don't . I agree with somebody who said I'm not competing , I compete with myself when I mean competing , no , no , no , it's competitive in a way . Yeah , I get it , but I think we have to clarify I don't compete with somebody who says yo , yo , you are selling out a show . I'm going to sell out a bigger show than you .

Speaker 2 21:44

Yeah , no , that's not what I mean . I'm not doing that . I used to be like that . We are very competitive . If one comedian do this me one , do this , the next comedian do that me one . But when I look at him and say , yo , yeah , I'm happy I come in there because by you doing that , it shows that it's possible , it can be done . So I would like to one day be able to do similar to that or close to that . That's how I look at things , and the reason why people are like that is because they're insecure of their self yeah that's what it is a lot of insecurities the example I was going to use was with motown .

Speaker 1 22:06

Technically , all of those artists , they're trying to reach a similar audience , but the way how all the motown artists them kind of mobilize , move forward to push Motown as a label , the premier label . That's the example that I use because in their mind , if the Supremes do good , everybody else behind them are going to do good .

Speaker 2 22:28

I will do good , exactly , exactly . But you know , a problem is in a few industry where we have is nobody look upon it like yo , ifes do good , we all , everybody want to look at me , want me the supremes if they do good . And who , no , follow me . Everybody want to be the man . That's the problem . Everybody

Caribbean Entertainment Industry Challenges

Speaker 2 22:48

wants to be . Oh , that's him , he , he's the guy , he . No man like you shouldn't be like that , though .

Speaker 2 22:54

Yo me never once in my career ever stopped somebody because me wanted that job or me wanted it . Never , it wasn't for me . That's why I didn't get it . I don't look on something like oh , oh , yeah , you only get that because of this . No , it wasn't for me . If me help somebody right , and this person within a year has gone off and gone to movies , gone to that , and I helped that person along the way and they got there me . Now I'm gonna say yo me never help you that , never that me never know that . That always was set to happen for you in life . It was gonna happen . So me , just have a focus on what me I do yeah me , I feel happy with what I am doing , you understand .

Speaker 2 23:36

So I agree , if one of us can get that breakthrough , it shows that it can happen . The problem is , like we said , it's all about who gets that breakthrough . We have to make sure it's the right . Well , we can't make sure , but we just have to hope it's the right one that gets that breakthrough , that has the right mentality to know that . Yo , we know , you know this crab in a barrel mentality , that's it . We need to skip that . We need to help each other come out of the barrel and make it on top of the barrel . You understand , that's what we need to do Stop all this push . But problem is , like I said , too much competition with each other . Everybody wants to be the man . Everybody wants to be the supreme .

Speaker 1 24:17

You know what I mean . Nobody wants to take the Pips .

Speaker 2 24:20

Yeah , nobody want to do no backup dancing , you know . You know , like , come on , man , you know one hand wash one right , Yep you can't wash with one hand . In there , I tell you , I feel like I'm going to try . Well , some people want to know if wash with one hand but say , oh , is it easier . You know , let's make it happen .

Speaker 1 24:38

But again , one day , one day yeah , and the last point on this , I had somebody on the show a couple years ago and she said one of the problems the caribbean has is no one really gauges our numbers properly . Them either bulk us into latin america and they don't really know how to separate us . And to a degree degree I agree , but I think , like you said , there's enough of us in the diaspora , the Jamaican diaspora , holy Combine the Caribbean . We enougher .

Speaker 2 25:08

You understand .

Speaker 1 25:09

So we can mobilize and figure out a thing . If we can't figure out how to keep dance and party and rave and fit and done the place , we can try to do the same thing in terms of other areas of the art , diversify how we're generating income and diversify how much we are reclaim ownership of furry culture as opposed to other people around with it . I do new things with it and make it seem like oh my God , this is so new . No , hello , hello , Come over here . So that type of thing . So I'm so glad that we're having this conversation . So you've been on tour and I understand that . You've been on tour in England and Canada a lot , and you just did your first tour in the US . So now you need to put them on blast . Now , what is different about America versus the tours that you've done in Canada and England ?

Speaker 2 26:02

you know what me find . To be honest , there's difference in every , every area I go . It's not even just the country itself , it's actually because in England you have some place where you go different the vibe , just different . I live in England , so London as well . I lived in London majority of the time I've been here . It's only recently I moved out , so London gets enough of me . So it's almost like they get so much of you that you can become very diluted . They're used to you now . You know what I mean , so they don't appreciate you as much . But fortunately for me is that I've always been able to travel and do shows . Other places , such as canada , because early in my career canada was always some weird people are telling me to come and we end up going there and making it happen . So luckily for me , I can not do no london show for five , six months or as long as me want , because I have other places to go . Some comedians don't have that opportunity . You can see these comedians like every week . You can see them perform . They're not exclusive , no more . So it's very different in different places .

Speaker 2 27:05

I enjoyed coming over to America and touring . I've been to America before , but it was only a very short period . I did like three shows or four shows , I think it was at the time . That was back in 2017 , I think it was . So the American tour was really overdue because a lot more people never seen me before and you know canada has seen me many times . I've been going to canada for like the longest . As I said , um , they love me over there toronto . People show me so much love throughout my career , man like , honestly , they probably have been one of the most supportive people in my career from start till now . Like if I go up on my instagram right now and post anything for the show when you come back to toronto , I literally them kill me . Them just want me there always and I appreciate it . You know I mean . But at the same time , I have to make them know say , as much as I would love to come back every other day , I have to give no time if you miss me more . So when we come back , we can give no new material . We can't just come all the while and you know we have to get new stuff , so it take a while to go and create new material . America was very . Reception was great , managola some of the place them like , especially around the new york area , was amazing , man , you know . I mean like the reception , the feedback , like one thing I really like to hear back is when people come to me and tell me I'm funnier in person than on social media , because for me social media is good at everything , but that's not my career .

Speaker 2 28:31

The work hand in hand is part of my career , but my real work is when I go up on stage and perform and when somebody comes to a show and watches me live and then says , yo , brother , you're funny , yo yo . I have people come and show and say yo me , the funniest comedian you ever seen . I mean I said really and I'm gonna say yeah , like . It means say yo like me , have to start looking at myself . Say yo me , I do good work .

Speaker 2 28:54

Then you know I mean put a lot of time over years into this and it's paying off where people are giving me or putting me in the same categories with certain comedians who I used to look up to . You know what I mean . Like Kevin Hart , you know what I mean . He has his tour going on and I do the tour of Canada and America while he's touring and doing it and there's people who come to me and say , yo , we just watched Kevin Hart two weeks ago New , funnier than him . And I said , wow , like you know what I mean , it's crazy . So it's been good . I mean the feedback's always good and I spend time with everybody after the show . Every show I do . I always stand up and people want to talk and take pictures with me and do that . And you know feedback I get is amazing . You know what I

Touring America and Selling Out Shows

Speaker 2 29:35

mean . So yeah , it's been good .

Speaker 1 29:36

Wonderful . I am so bummed I missed the shows . They were a sellout . But when you circle back you know no it definitely has powered .

Speaker 2 29:45

Again . The thing about the tour is the US tour . We're doing it in sections , you know what I mean . So we did 16 shows the other day across , like we went to Virginia , went to Washington DC , went down Georgia , went Atlanta again , went LA . Because we did Atlanta back in April and you know the show was stellar and we said , yo , people love me . And when we announced so we had come back , people were like you have to come back to Atlanta . We went back to Atlanta , did two more shows again and sell out again and I said , yo , like Atlanta , people are showing me love . So you know , I appreciate that as well . Atlanta's becoming a place where we might have followed enough . But then followed up on New York and Brooklyn , people , them go mad . Queens , people go mad . I said yo , like Pockys , be upstate .

Speaker 1 30:31

Yo man , I said all right . But like you tell Michaela you never go to the Bronx .

Speaker 2 30:38

Yeah , you never go to the Bronx . Yeah , you never go to the Bronx . You never go to the Bronx . People cuss me about the Bronx . They say you don't come to the Bronx , so them people are noisy . Give me your house . I'm going to do a show in the house . I can't find a thing . But what the point is , what I'm doing , is that . So we did that section there , we did Boston and Philly , jersey , and then we have to circle back and go to Florida and Texas and we might even try Long Island and some other places up there as well .

Speaker 1 31:07

Yeah , you might even want to try Chicago . Our family in the Midwest and our woolly pajama can over there .

Speaker 2 31:12

Yeah , definitely , like I was saying , like we were saying earlier , it's like we even struggle to find places that want us to come and perform . You know , I mean , and that's the truth , that's a , that's , that's the reality of it that people don't like , like what many people don't talk about . You know , I mean , and and knowing that is that again , it's about making sure the right person get through that can help everybody . Or sometimes people go through doing them lock the door upon you . They're not trying to bring in like .

Speaker 2 31:37

Like in Atlanta , we managed to get the Atlanta Comedy Theater , which is a very popular comedy place where we are talking . So you know , like , every comedian for our show , every comedian we are , the show got it . Like all of the top US comedians got here and they gave us a Sunday night , which is normally a slow night , and we sold it out . So now it out . So now , based on , it's like we have to go down , yeah , perform , yeah , once you know we've done that , I have opened the door there . We are now other comedians from the caribbean can now go in there and do a show based off of you know why , you are the link , so it got you and I don't mind , I'm cool with that . You understand me because I want the scene to grow and develop . But we are struggling for fine places and nobody not wants to give me a venue .

Speaker 2 32:22

When I was in Virginia . We had locked in . Let me tell you exactly what happened . We locked in and booked in with a comedy club Popular big comedy club in America . We were so excited . We got this based on the fact of what I did in Atlanta Comedy Theater . They recommended us , got it Cool . When we get it now excited . We got this based on the fact of what I did in atlanta for atlanta comedy theater . They recommended us , got it cool . When we get it now , boom , we are too sure . One in richmond and one in virginia beach . Now we're using both their venues . They advertise the wrong dates . Are they locked in the dates ? And for the wrong way around ? And we are advertising the dates , them for the other way around .

Speaker 2 33:00

So when we start it cause confusion , now them end up canceling the show upon we . One week before the actual show for happen , I start email people and tell people say we cancel upon them . But Mr La Advertiser , how me cancel ? So me say you know people , it's cool Me have to go online and search and message them but Mr Lava ties home you can . So some say you know people is cool .

Speaker 2 33:20

Method method top online and a search and a message and I email find to venue I will made the show still happen anyway and to be fair , or today , the 16 shows that I did , those are probably the only two shows that never sold out . All of the rest sold out and it's based off of the fact of what happened , that conclusion , so it was cool anyway . We move on from that . We , you know we do what we have to do . But again it's like me . I said these places it's hard to get venues . So it's not like I wouldn't want to go to Chicago , I want to go everywhere we can go where people want me to come . But if we can't find a venue , we just can't find a Wow .

Speaker 1 34:04

Thank you for sharing that . So while we're on that , you know which joke is the one . So the other day I was watching a special with Deon Cole and he talked about his little thing where he used to write him jokes on a paper and every time people request that little bit , is there a particular joke or something that you do on stage that people say , no man , tell the joke there , tell the joke there , tell the joke there .

Speaker 2 34:22

That's the joke ? No , not really . You know why ? Because I , I'll be honest , I try my best to always be delivering new material . You know what I mean . So every time people see me , it's like I always try to make sure I have new material for them and give them like . And that's something that made me really proud that I have managed to do over the years . I take this thing seriously . We write our material and that hour I will tour with it . It will be all over the UK , all over Canada , all over America . And once I've done a tour with that for a year or two and I've been to almost everywhere . All right , here's a new hour and I go again with that for a year or two . And I've been to almost everywhere . All right , here's a new hour and I'll go again with that .

Speaker 2 35:02

But sometimes we get people request like then we say , oh , the video . And they like when we start , bring up something similar to something we talk about in a video because they can relate to it like . I think one of my first even videos that kind of went viral was a container video for me to talk about . Yo , like the top of where the container them . So me I say yo , like me , I do a lesson . Like me . I say yo , it's when a christmas time , when you're going to your family , them for dinner , like I , start giving them rules .

Speaker 2 35:30

And me I say yo , when you bring container , you know you have to know what kind of container we have to bring . You know you can't just bring any , any container , it's true . True , bring the big ice cream dish . They want a whole heap in there . You have to bring different ones . When you pack , put rice and gravy meat in the same one , you keep them separate Because you might not want the rice and the gravy together . They go so up together . You don't want them separate .

Speaker 2 35:57

The greatest tip of all I can give don't bring no lid for the container . What do you mean ? Don of them something there that is separate . And I say yo , the greatest tip of all I can give , you know , not bring no lid for the container there . I say what do you mean ? Not bring no lid , five people ? I say yo , five people , I'll clean , clean that . The lid only restrict how much you can put in there . It's true , just when you hear artists perform a song . So there's nothing wrong with that . But me , always , I make sure me I bring new material all the time . So one thing we can't tell you why daddy ?

Speaker 2 36:37

has ever toured Anywhere and in combat him . No , come back with the same job them . So you know oh yes fresh always . But I tell you one thing I was Yo Holy , come on show last week . I mean , nobody met that . So okay , good , me can tell them week and me and nobody met . And I said , okay , good , we can't tell them joke today I've been two people met and I said just one or two alone , I'm gonna hear the joke them again . You know , we can't give just you do a whole new hour .

Speaker 1 37:10

oh my goodness , I love it . I love that container joke because I live it . So when my uncle , when I cook and my uncle come over , listen , listen to me , and he come with his little bag , with all his , he say my little bamba , if I go to work , that's it , that's it .

Speaker 2 37:25

And yo me used to travel with them , Now me care regular . Everywhere me go , people used to see me with them . Say now me , have it Me , have me container . If food good , someone come with me .

Speaker 1 37:33

Yes , it's true . It , oh , my God , that's so amazing . So , as we wrap up , I want you to tell me what your plans are for the future . I know that you're diversifying what you're doing . Stand-up is a gateway to other opportunities .

Speaker 2 37:58

What do you see for the future , not just for Jamaicans but Caribbeans , in this world of entertainment and all this other stuff that you're doing . Well for me , in the future , like I said , I would love to be able to have opportunities to do movies and more acting um , you know , comedy , sitcom , all them type of thing there . And , like I said , I would love to be able to even have the financial there . Like you know , you have a disposable income right there where you can say you know what the money , yeah , we don't need this . You know this can go to something good and and create something for jamaicans , you know , and the caribbean as a whole . Like I really like that , um , and hopefully one day that can happen .

Speaker 2 38:32

I see the entertainment just keep growing and growing , and growing . I think the work that I'm putting in and other comedians like myself from the Caribbean community are putting in is definitely going to pay off one day for somebody . And you know it's just about us keep putting in our work and I feel like I would like to see the entertainment more , more unified together and working together , stop trying to all be off separate and like just work together and build together so , you know , to make it happen . You know , I mean we're from jamaica . We don't say you're by yourself . No , everybody at some point has to work together to get somewhere . Whether you like it or not , you understand what I mean . So I mean entertainment wise . I said just more . More than just dancer . That's what I'd like to see , more than just the music . We have more to offer . There's a lot more to offer and we have so much talent from the small island . We're the biggest small island in the world . That's all you see . Jamaica is the biggest small island in the world .

Speaker 1 39:32

We conquered the world , basically .

Speaker 2 39:34

Exactly , we are so influential , you know , when you look at Bob Marley , look at UCM Bolt , all of those things , like , come on , man , from

The Future of Caribbean Comedy

Speaker 2 39:42

one little small island , we are two big legends in the world . Let's be real about it , you know what I mean . So , yeah , man , we just hopefully one day they will see that there's more to offer than just dancing and it's not just dancing , I'm just saying there's so much more I say it all the time , you know , and that's kind of why this podcast , focus on the content .

Speaker 1 40:04

There's enough gossip , there's enough meta and mix up . We need to show the different facets . And I'm not saying not to do gossip , because mainstream america tv them have tmz , them have all of that . So we just need to show that we can do different things and unlock , lock ourselves into wanting yeah , it's crazy , it's crazy , it's like .

Speaker 2 40:22

It's like if we start this podcast and it started straight away , you hear yo me not like the brother , you know , and you see that let me tell you something . You see , anytime you see them , man , they can't . These are big views . That little click there we . But you see , when you start something , you say yo people , you know , so big and serious , we need to work together yes nobody know , I see that that's what we've been experiencing the last couple years nobody know , I see that

Speaker 1 40:50

we're consistent and we're committed to it because we know that the work we're doing . There's a preservation aspect of our culture that I'm very keenly aware of , right , if if I'm gonna pass this to my kids we lose out the culture , somebody else buy out the culture , right and we . The way that we preserve it is to have these conversations . Like you said , most of us live here , so we have to do it in the environment that we are , and I wish more people saw how critical that was . Yes , we need for party . Yes , we need for run . Yes , we need for all of these things , but we need for tech up space in our newsroom everything

Speaker 2 41:33

everywhere and some of you say it's very good because do it for likes . You see that , you see . You see , you see me . Me at first , music care about likes and views . Let me realize , though , there's nothing important . So me post whenever me want post , I don't care .

Speaker 2 41:49

Some people have a set time when them post , because if them don't post it now , I will get many more people where we post a video and if it don't get a certain amount of comment and like and delete it . I mean say , because you know much with the other stuff , bro , like it's life . I know everybody out there online and watch at that time , like , keep it moving . You don't know , sometime the hundred views that you get , one person out of a hundred views is more important to sit at the video there and change your life more than the millions where I sit and now do nothing more than kick , kick , kick at home . Yeah , it's true . So enough people doing this . Only they have to have Yo . It's crazy . Enough things I've been talking about recently . I mean I say yo like too much . People are too fixated on what people want to see and like they do nothing more for themselves . No more , they do it to impress people and what they're doing .

Speaker 1 42:38

They can't see the next side of the screen now I see nothing and you are trying to burst them . I mean , I remember I recorded an episode at the podcast and I just started , you know , because january , I come ago willie by years about nine years since I've been doing this podcast , oh wow and to you , man , thank you , thank you nine year a long time that man at least .

Speaker 1 42:58

Yeah , man , yeah man , and you know , sometimes you feel like man . What may I do ? Because you know more people don't know it . But I remember there was a point in time when somebody had said to me no , you're Jamaican and Caribbean people not checking for you . Because the podcast now blew up and I asked myself a question If I never make a dollar , would I still want to do it ? And the answer was unequivocally yes .

Speaker 1 43:20

And so I just continue , yes , and so I just continue . And so a lot of times you just have to just lock your eye to wherever they go on the internet and just kind of do what you know , because the algorithm is like a carrot the dangle and they move further and further away , and me can't work you become slaves to it .

Speaker 2 43:38

Exactly , and that's exactly what it is . And that's the problem with a lot of influencers nowadays on social media and entertainers creators is that they're fixated on all these little things like , even though you can't go buy the blue check yeah like yo if you want to buy it .

Speaker 2 43:54

Buy it , that's up to you . You have to pay a monthly fee . It's cool , but it's what ? Who are you buying it for ? Like , realistically , are you buying it for sure ? It's not , you know . I mean , it's not earned . It's not like you're earned and say , yo , you know something , do well in a life and look there , became somebody that even social media , um companies , are now verifying me . That's good . But to go off and buy it because you feel like , no , we shouldn't have it , why should you have it ? Why you're not entitled to it ? Like , like you know what I mean .

Speaker 2 44:24

You have to earn stuff , so yeah man , it's crazy , it's a crazy world and it does not get more mad .

Speaker 1 44:29

It does not get madder . But what I love about this entire conversation is , whatever you do , you have to do it because you love it , because you see , in days when it's hard and I know you notice sometimes the creativity now run like you want it for run and you know , maybe an opportunity . Come on , boy , the phones lock up over here so you can do something you still do it even despite all of that , and I think that's that's what's lost on people that even if you love it , it's going to be hard , but it's because you love it you're going to push through .

Speaker 2 45:03

But it's because you love it you're going to push through yeah , I'll keep going enough time , I won't give up enough time . So I'm done with this . You know , like yo , mentally we can't do it no more . We suffer from depression . You know , I got through this no more . Sometime . Me , I got through some hard time and then me , I go up on stage perform the same night and me I say yo , all right , so get through it . My audience laughed . I was on stage miserable .

Speaker 2 45:27

I was in a good mood . Something happened to me in Canada that really touched me , this woman . I was going through a lot mentally at the time . I dealt with it . I didn't really show it , I carried on as normal . I did show and perform and everything good . Yeah , yeah , yeah Pretend to put on this facade of people .

Speaker 2 45:50

When everything's done , I go back to the hotel or the Airbnb and I'm there by myself with my thoughts . It kind of started bothering me , but they were showing this lady come up to me and she tell me say yo , because dream has set me at heart about like lockdown and being um , people who are essential workers and stuff like this . And she came up to me and tell me say yo , like you are essential worker , believe me , you are like through lockdown . She tell me about some , some things . When we get her through and me and say yo me , they are depressed about things .

Speaker 2 46:22

And this woman got through a loss in her life where and it's so crazy because you see me , that's why I'm saying do things just genuine from my heart you know some people where , like if they might give somebody a hundred dollar or something , they might feel me to show the world . So yo me just give that poor person a hundred , like if me give somebody something , give them a gun , they even really focus to take out a phone . You know , when people have taken them for film , every little thing and people call them , one praise . But I mean , I do it . But funny enough , the cameraman catched that moment right here and heard everything . And my guy messaged the lady and say yo showed her the clip and say yo , we caught this . Do you mind y'all the person that me ? I said yo , I'm not a , do you mind ?

Speaker 1 47:02

y'all the poor , thing , and me I said yo me not poor .

Speaker 2 47:03

Thing man , you might let us somebody want . And the woman said , no , she wants me to share because she wants the world to know that yo , you are helping people around the world in ways you don't even know . I'm a poor thing . But she said , yeah , do it . So normal me not do them something . You know what I mean .

Speaker 2 47:20

Not much time people come to me after show and yo I'm there at the airport . I go to the airport and a woman stopped me in the airline . A woman who worked for the airline stopped me . She said , no , you and thought to me about her husband in the hospital and every day I just want to watch your video . When you don't post , I say , yo , where are you going to post to them and show them all on Invex and that thing ? They motivate me to keep going . So when I want to give up , it's people like those that keep me going because I realize , say , oh alright , may I do it , may I earn a living from it . That's great , but there's bigger joy to this because you are helping other people's lives without even knowing , by just posting a video , by just doing something online . So we inspire people , you know I mean . So here's why it's one day your blessing will come .

Speaker 1 48:10

you just have to keep doing what you do and I want to say that I'm inspired by this conversation and it's it's a little top up on the energy bar to keep going , because content creation isn't easy , and so just you being here having this conversation , it's fuel for me to just go on . So , thank you so much . Tell the people that you brought them can find it on the internet , although I don't know . But just in case somebody says I never hear you said it .

Speaker 2 48:38

Everywhere on social media . It's White Yardie the Instagram . Go for social media . It's White Yardie the Instagram . Just look for the White Yardie with the blue check . You know what I mean , not the subscription one . I long time have the blue check . You know what I mean , but yeah like just White Yardie everywhere . I mean that . You know what I mean . Yeah .

Speaker 1 48:54

All right , and as I love to say at the end of every show ,