Category: Comedy

I grew up in the South suburbs of Chicago. I was raised by a single mom who got pregnant at 18 and who herself came from a broken home. We lived very modestly, constantly moving from one apartment to another sharing places with various roommates. However, the one thing my mom recognized early on was that I possessed many talents and she went out of her way to spend whatever she had to make sure that I had an excellent education in the arts. Piano lessons, acting lessons, singing in choirs and more guitar lessons.  

At one point, she even had to borrow money in order for me to get my own saxophone just to participate in the elementary school band. Saying my mother was “supportive” of my dreams of being a rock star would be an understatement. Naturally, this desire followed me throughout my life and as soon as I graduated from High School (and by graduated I mean, got my GED before my senior year was even finished), I packed my car and drove down to Nashville TN to become a famous songwriter. I was offered a “development deal” with a record label and thought this is it I’m on my way.

In less than 3 months, I was dropped from the label and had to come back to Chicago feeling like a failure. It was very clear that I didn’t understand “the business”.