Comedian and actor Jo Koy recently delivered a performance in the Bay Area that was almost as much a therapy session as it was a comedy show. Dressed in his typical down-to-earth attire, Koy took to the stage at the hustle and bustle of Chase Center. This event marked his fifth stint there. He is dominantly popular among the Filipino American collective in the Bay Area, which may explain the relative comfort that made him open up about deeply personal affairs involving his family.
“I love that I have all these specials out there, representing my mom,” was Koy’s heartfelt confession, referring to his mother, a running real-life character in his Netflix specials. This intimate reveal possibly explained why Koy appeared a bit more on edge than usual throughout his over 90-minute set; the intense emotion was a running undertone of his latest tour – the “Just Being Koy” tour.
Koy’s performance teetered on the edge of his comfort zone, oscillating between laughter outbursts and controlled distress. He took to humorous sparring with audience members, and even toyed with their drinks, much to the crowd’s entertainment. Koy leveraged the presence of a family in the crowd, using them to drive home hysterical bits about sex, identity, and parenthood. The energy in the room was electric, reflective of the crowd’s engrossment with Koy’s set.
The stage routine was peppered with Josep’s thoughts on living a life unbound by trivial troubles that breed unnecessary tension. Interestingly, he steered clear from discussing politics, his Golden Globes hosting debacle, or his publicized break-up with comedian Chelsea Handler. Yet, it seemed that the weight of the past two years of happenings subtly amplified the passion of his performance.
Unleashing a downpour of hilarity, Koy touched upon various topics — from sex and aging to ethnic jokes, though less focused on Filipino and Asian themes than expected. He also took the audience on a nostalgic journey, reminiscing about his grandmother, and their life in Las Vegas in the ’80s. These tender recollections were interspersed with edgy jokes, setting a one-of-a-kind, yin-yang atmosphere that enthralled the audience.
Towards the end of his performance, Koy loosened up under the influence of five drinks and indulged in an impromptu session of karaoke. Accompanied by DJ Turbulence, he exhibited his fondness for Black music, and stirred the crowd’s interest with his all-time favorites. He vocally recognized his love for tracks by artists such as SWV, Keyshia Cole, Bobby Brown, TLC, Guy, and Brian McKnight. Enthused by the lively atmosphere, he even retracted his “no videotaping” rule, encouraging the audience to record and widely share his performance online.
Throughout the performance, Koy navigated his way through personal pain, using the stage not only for delivering a memorable comedy act but also as an outlet for dealing with his personal ordeals. He used the microphone as a tool, not just for generating laughter, but also for expressing his humanity, for engaging in open dialogues with the audience, and for making sense of the complexities of life. Despite his status as an established comedian, audiences that night caught a glimpse of Jo Koy as a simple, relatable human.
