Today we’d like to introduce you to Bernice Ye.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Born and raised in China, I never imagined being a stand-up comedian growing up. I mean, the art form of stand-up comedy did not exist in China back then. Since I was a child, I’ve always been a “rebel”. I was not afraid to speak the truth, even when it wasn’t popular – and that didn’t go well in China at all. Painful childhood, but it gave me the strength to never give up the fight as an underdog. Although I loved art and dance as a child, my family didn’t allow me to pursue anything creative. For me to express myself, I had to first beat the odds of 4 out of 300,000 students to get into the #1 university in China. I came to the US by myself to pursue my Master’s Degree in Computer Science at Purdue, but more importantly, my freedom.
It wasn’t until after working in the tech industry for 15 years that I discovered my talent and passion for stand-up comedy.
After I was promoted to a leadership position at Hulu, oftentimes I found myself feeling so proud of and grateful for my team members that I wanted to make a speech, but I had this visceral reaction of being uncomfortable and feeling fake. I hired a career coach and we dived all the way back to my childhood and unpacked a “story” that I told myself:
When I was a kid, my mom would take me to her work lunches, and on the spot, the kids were asked to make a toast to all the adults. To me, I never liked these lunches and didn’t have anything nice to say to these people, and my mom would shame me after in front of everyone saying that I was terrible at public speaking. So for a long time, not only did I think was terrible at public speaking, I also had the association of public speaking and being phony and dishonest. But now that I can look at this story as an adult, I realize that it wasn’t that I’m bad at public speaking, if anything, I have a strong opinion about speaking the truth.
The coach suggested I try ToastMasters. At each meeting, they have a Humorous Speech Contest that people can spontaneously join, so I challenged myself – and I won every single time. Looking around the room, I was also the only one for whom English was a second language. Through that, not only did I gain confidence in public speaking, I learned that I was naturally funny. At the same time, Netflix Comedy Specials had become a thing, and I realized the things comedians talk about are the thoughts I was having in the shower, but I thought were too weird. In 2018, I set a New Year’s Resolution to just do one open mic at the end of the year, but because I started to say my goals out loud, I had my first showcase in March and never looked back. That November, I was also accepted to perform at the Northwest Women’s Comedy Festival in Oregon, which was unheard of for someone so new.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Haha, smooth road… a clueless immigrant in Indiana, or a woman in tech, then a woman of color doing standup in a second language… you tell me 😉
The truth is, in the beginning I didn’t see the struggle. Partly because I was so used to adversity and everyone being so critical around me, I immediately felt free and loved America. Of course, it was intimidating to come to a completely different environment and culture, everything was new and fresh. It reminded me of a Chinese phrase, “new born calves are not afraid of tigers”. My English wasn’t good enough to order food in a restaurant, so I just went to places where I could point, only to learn that ordering at Subway was much harder than it looked. It actually turned into one of my jokes. My natural reaction to setbacks is always to laugh – finding humor in misfortunes was how I survived any adversity.
It was a surprise to many people that I’d never experienced “Imposter Syndrome” until I started in stand-up comedy. While there is plenty of sexism and microagression in the tech industry, I knew I was really good at what I do. I had an unshaken confidence. But comedy is a whole different game. There’s no HR department or corporate training, a lot of assumptions and judgments are being made without me saying a word. I actually had pretty quick success early on, got into some big comedy festivals, but got a lot of comments like, “they hired you only because you are a diversity hire”, and that really got into my head. I felt that I was just getting lucky, not because I was talented. Because of that, I put too much pressure on myself to perform, which is the most counter-productive thing for comedy.
Then I reminded myself, “confidence comes from repeated success”. I worked really hard on my craft and celebrated each time when things didn’t go well as lessons to learn. I also think this is why comedy is so rewarding because the audience can’t fake it. When you are undeniably funny, you know you’ve earned it. Now, the biggest obstacles are actually the gatekeepers. Because if you worked in this industry for a long time, and you look at someone like me, it’s easy to assume that I’m not relatable to the middle of America, I’m not a “safe” choice. So I decided to create my own path. I started touring in my own RV, and I proved to the bookers who gave me a chance I can slay anywhere, whether in a small town in rural America or a metropolitan city. When I started to post my comedy on social media, I gained a massive following in the US and around the world, further validating my universal appeal.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a standup comedian.
Fans often refer to me as the “Jackie Chan of Comedy,” not only because I’m a martial artist with a great sense of humor but because I also share my culture in a way that’s universally relatable without being raunchy. I leave those who I represent feeling proud and empowered and is faithful to my voice as a first-generation immigrant.
During my 17 years living in America, although I saw so many other first-generation immigrants around me (after all, we compose almost 15% of the American population), I recognized that our stories are rarely told authentically. We often feel invisible. I hope by sharing my voice and story, it can shine a light into our world and also empower immigrants to be visible and do what might seem impossible.
I went to my first standup comedy show to see Jim Gaffigan at the Paramount Theatre. Everyone around me was laughing, having such a great time. I didn’t understand it. “What’s a hot pocket?” I felt stupid. It took me years to realize that my lack of understanding is exactly what makes me unique. Being an outsider and underdog all my life allowed me to look at everything with a fresh eye. In my standup comedy, I made a conscious decision to use as few specific culture references as possible, so first-gen immigrants won’t have barriers to enjoy it. I recall once an Indian lady came to me after a show and said, “OMG I never come to stand up because I don’t understand it… but yours, I relate to everything you said, and I was laughing the whole time.” It further validates that there aren’t enough voices like mine but they are much needed. I also realized the power of humor to act as an escape from the struggles confronted daily by first-generation immigrants, revealing an even greater purpose to my work.
But my comedy is not just for the immigrants. One of the biggest challenges in my comedy is to find a common relatable entry point to let everyone into our world. I pride myself on my ability to identify our shared emotions and struggles to connect, no matter how different we are. The fact that I don’t use many American-specific references also allows my comedy to have a broader global audience. During the pandemic, I have performed to audiences from the UK, German, Spain, and Singapore and all the jokes hit. Audiences appreciated hearing something they’ve never heard before while learning something new about my culture.
I became a proud US citizen 4 years ago. Like many naturalized citizens, I love America and I don’t take our freedom for granted. At a time when the world is more divided than ever, I want to share our immigrant stories – we are Americans and we are united under one nation. My standup comedy bridges cultures and empowers immigrants through humor and my personal stories of coming to America by myself. Through my work, I look to bring understanding and hope.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Finding the right mentor is so crucial, it can make or break you. I think the right mentor is someone who is able to see something special in you (maybe a part of themselves in you), have the right knowledge and communication skills to nurture your talents, and have the connection and trust and your best interests at heart.
One mentor who made a huge impact on me is Nate Jackson. Not only is he a seasoned comedian and accomplished actor, he is also the owner of Super Funny Comedy Club, one of the four black-owned comedy clubs in the nation. After killing it at their open mic, I sent a tape and asked for a booking. He booked me as the feature act for 5-weekend shows. That was the biggest gig I had gotten to that point. Most bookers wouldn’t give me that opportunity. At the very first show, I bombed. But instead of being disappointed in me, Nate said, “F**k them. These guys got free tickets. You are funny, Bernice. Trust yourself.” That was huge and really helped me center myself. I went back out, and each show I killed harder than the previous one.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.berniceye.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bernicecomedy/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BerniceComedy
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/bernicecomedy
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bernicecomedy
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@bernicecomedy
Image Credits
Keida Mascaro Kevin Ryan Mike Bryk Richardson Reigart
