Fil-Am does good
Kababayan comedian Jo Koy is on a roll. Aside from his new special on Netflix, he has a tour, a book and an animated TV show on the way.
Turn away those tears.
Filipino-American Jo Koy tells you so – and he wants you to laugh instead as “Jo Koy: Comin’ In Hot” is made available on Netflix.
It is his second comedy episode on the streaming giant, after “Jo Koy: Live From Seattle” in 2017.
His latest special was shot at Blaisdell Arena in Hawaii and on the video, he gives candid take on cultural curiosities, filter-free fatherhood, how to raise a millennial, and the intricacies of Filipino traditions.
On the side, he gives a dazzling
display of hula dancing. Haha.
In an exclusive interview with
Bulletin Entertainment, Jo Koy explained the title of his latest offering.
“Comin’ in hot is one of the jokes that I’d been telling my son. I always tell him he was coming in hot,” he said, referring to his 16-year-old son Joe.
Apart from “Jo Koy: Comin’ In Hot,” the comedian has a tour, a book and an animated TV show on the way.
Backtrack
Jo Koy has come a long way from performing in small markets in Last Vegas.
In 2005, he had the “opportunity of a lifetime,” when he performed on “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno.” He became one of select standup comedians to receive a standing ovation on the show.
Since then, he has had two highly rated and successful comedy specials on Comedy Central, “Don’t Make Him Angry” and “Lights Out.” Two years after, the comedian broke the record for the most tickets sold by a single artist at The Neal Blaisdell Concert Hall in Honolulu with 11 sold-out shows. What’s next?
“It’s been 30 years of doing stand up so you know, I got jokes on top of jokes on top of jokes,” he thought out loud. “I’ve got so much material that I was kind of like wanting this special to come out last year so yeah, I’m ready for the next one after this.”
For someone who took his destiny in own hands, Jo Koy believes success is simply doing whatever it is you love.
“You know, I never put an amount of money on success. As long as you’re happy, you’re chasing your dream, you’re successful.
If you’re living something that you’re passionate about, and something that you’ve always wanted to do in life, that’s successful to me.”
Meet the mom
As mentioned, Jo Koy is known for family-inspired humor.
He, whose real name Joseph Glenn Herbert, is the son of an American father and a Filipino mother. He was only 10-years-old when his dad left them, leaving his mother Josie to raise her four children. Thus, it’s not surprising to see Jo Koy channel this experience in his sketches.
For one, the comedian made a joke about how his mother thinks Vicks VapoRub is the cure for everything. Then he imitates the way she pronounces his name “Josep!” – a big hit with the audience. How does his mom feel about the jokes? Well, Jo Koy said she enjoys her piece of sky. “Oh, yeah, she loves it! And it’s cool to see my mother happy in that sense. A lot of people recognize her now,” he said.
It’s been two years since Jo Koy visited the Philippines. He looks forward to come back soon. “What do I miss the most in the Philippines? I miss the culture and hanging out with people, it makes me relaxed... I just love being out there. You know, I got my family out there. And it’s just, it's a lot of fun to be out there and experience a lot of things with them.”
As long as you’re happy, you’re chasing your dream, you’re successful. If you’re living something that you’re passionate about, and something that you’ve always wanted to do in life, that’s successful to me.