Meet Krystle Pierce

Today we’d like to introduce you to Krystle Pierce.

Krystle, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I am comedian from Decatur, GA and at the start of my journey. I was working in retail. I was hanging out with one of my co-workers. She is one of those people who likes to try anything she can. In a passing conversation, she said wanted to try comedy. She asked me to accompany her to a comedy club. I had never really considered comedy as a profession before or even as something I wanted to do. I always felt like I was funny though, so I agreed to go.

The night of the open mic, I get to the club and it is just me, several drunkards and a handful of comedians. I texted my friend, who texted me back saying she stood me up to go on a date with a pilot. I was mad, but I understood. So, I’m standing in the club alone, just watching the show. I saw a comedian after comedian go up, and to be honest, they weren’t that good. I was like “I can do that.” I asked if I could go up. The list was full and he told me to come back in two weeks. I used that two weeks to study comedy and realized how much I always loved it. I wrote a five minute set and went over it again and again. I felt like I was ready.

The day of the show, I brought about twenty people. All the comedians I had seen before that I thought were not funny, were hilarious now. I didn’t realize that previously the comedians were just working out new material. When I finally went up, it was terrible. I got some sympathy laughs. I was drunk, it was a mess. I bombed. That night I learned that comedy is a process, some nights you hit and some nights you don’t. That was several years ago and luckily, I have been hitting more than I’ve missed.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I am a single mother who works full time. I try to find a good balance so I can be the best for myself as well as my family. I wear many hats but I want to show up and give my all for every part of my life. With my comedic career in the beginning, I struggled with just telling stories. I had to learn how to turn a story into structured jokes. With comedy, you don’t always get a lot of time. Sometimes sets are as short as 2 – 3 minutes. You have to be able to get it and get out. I have a background in sales and was able to use some of the skills I learned there and translate them to comedy.

Additionally, comedy has taken me out of my comfort zone. As a comedian, you want to be able to make people of diverse crowds laugh. So, I try to do any room that I can and try to find a set that can appeal to that crowd. It is challenging but has pushed me to be more creative and a better performer.

We’d love to hear more about your work.
Growing up, I always felt “odd”. As most “blerds”, I was ridiculed for being different, being gothic and even who I dated. Comedy gives me a chance to show people who I am. I love being able to show that black people are not a monolith. That black people come in all different forms with all different interests. There is no normal, we are all unique and I love that I am able to show this through laughter and something that I love.

I am able to speak up on cultural and social issues, not just through stand-up, but through my podcasts, my upcoming web series, writing and even through interviews like this. Being able to work in my passion, telling stories and really make a lane for black female comedians makes me happy and I can’t wait to show everyone what I can create.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
There is a podcast called “Story Party Tour” by Rachman Blake. They take people’s horrible dating stories and discuss them. It has a pretty large following and it was going to be at the masquerade. A comedian contacted me to be a part of it. I was really excited and proud because they had seen me perform and thought I was funny and would do well on this show.

I was really nervous. As I was performing, I was timing myself and knew it was almost time to get off. However, the showrunner thought I was doing so well that they wanted me to keep going. The feedback was great and I gained new followers. It was wonderful just thinking that all of the hours I put into comedy, those hours writing, that time spent at the open mics, waiting for my time. It all paid off in that moment. My other most proud moment was when my son acknowledged that he thought I was funny. Children, especially your own, are usually your most harshest critics. I love my son very much and for him to think I’m funny means more than he even knows.

Contact Info:

• Website: kryslaughs.com
• Phone: 4047549986
• Email: krystleplaughs@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kryslaughs/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Krystle-P-Laughs-1537910679768929/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/kryslaughs
• Other: https://thechicksfromzone6.libsyn.com/2020

Image Credit:
http://lolascottart.com/
https://ashtongarnerphotography.pixieset.com/prints/
https://www.happyblackchickphoto.com/

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