How to Get Paid as a Beginning Comedian

Video Transcript

"CHRIS MURPHY: Hi. On behalf of Expert Village, this is Chris Murphy. I'm here at the New York Comedy Club in New York City. Today we're going to talk about how to have a career in comedy. All right, here's what you've been waiting for, getting paid to work. Well, in the beginning, getting paid is probably the least of your worries; getting good is your priority. But once you have gotten good, what you want to do--well, you want to use those open mics to your advantage; you want to emcee the open mics as much as possible because on the road, the emcee is usually the low man on the totem pole. So, that's where you're going to start out. So, emcee open mics. Also, ask the manager, "Hey, I'm out of friends on these pre-shows. Can I emcee a pre-show?" You'll gain valuable experience. So, what you'll do from the pre-shows, you'll have that DVD all waiting for the booker. Then you'll have your experience as an emcee by, once again, doing open mics and doing the pre-shows, so you'll have all your skills down pat. And that's how you'll start to get your work as a comic."