Daily Inspiration: Meet Maggie Maye

Today we’d like to introduce you to Maggie Maye.

Hi Maggie, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I’ve always wanted to be a performer and there has never been a period in my life where I wasn’t performing. When I was small my mom would catch me acting out scenes with my toys or changing the channel from Sesame Street to Hollywood Squares so I could marvel at Joan Rivers’ quick wit. Comedy was my goal because I love making people laugh. Very few things ignite my soul like causing someone to belly laugh. Laughter is like a quick human connection wrapped in an involuntary reaction.

I started out writing sketches for school projects and acting in skits at church. I wanted to be like Whoopi Goldberg. I went to college with the hopes of finding a stable “Plan B” career but spent a lot of my time in the theater department doing plays. After I graduated I studied to become a pharmacist but had a Come to Jesus moment that made me realize I really didn’t want that life. I decided to go for what I’d always wanted and began taking acting classes. I had teachers who’d let me submit sketches for my scene partners and me to perform. I was always more interested in doing comedic scenes, so it gave me a sense of accomplishment when I could get the class howling with laughter. When I saw an advertisement for an introductory improv class on Craigslist, I went to see what it was about. The owner of the theater had two classes at the time, a beginner and advanced class. After the intro class, he thought I could keep up with the advanced class, and I ended up studying with him for about a year and a half. From there, I finally took the leap and started doing standup, which I’d wanted to do ever since I found out what it was. And to me, it lived up to how much I’d hyped it up in my head.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
I’m not even sure there is such a thing as a smooth road in comedy. If there is one, I’d love to sign up for it.

I always say anyone who describes their comedy career as “smooth” is either super rich, delusional, or lying. There are a lot of ups and downs along the road, and those can bring about a lot of stress and pressure. Hoping people are amused by the things that come out of your brain can be hard enough on its own, but this industry is truly not for the faint of heart. There’s no clear path to success. There’s no “right” way to do things that will guarantee that you succeed, but there seem to be a lot of wrong ways. Rejection is just par for the course, but hearing “no” as often as you’re bound to can take a toll on your self-esteem and lead to self-doubt. And you have to experience all this on top of all the regular stresses of being an adult. It reminds me of a quote by Randy Pausch, that brick walls are not there to keep us out but to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Comedy can be really taxing if you don’t love what you’re doing, so you have to have a clear idea of why you’re doing it. You’ve also got to be able to hear no a lot without it shaking your faith in who you are. At the end of the day, you’ve just got to be committed to working really hard, staying honest to the good in yourself, and not giving up. And being kind: You don’t want your stank attitude to be the reason you never get anywhere.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a standup comedian, but I also do sketch, improv, and comedic writing. I got into comedy to make people laugh and I’ll use any method or media to do that.

I think I’m known as a geeky comic, which is interesting because I’ve never referred to myself as such. I’m choosing to take it as a compliment (and it had better be). It has to be because I like to make people think while they laugh. That, and I guess I do talk about a bunch of nerdy stuff. Making the truth funny makes it more palatable and if it’s funny enough, people are more likely to remember it. When I started out, one of the comedy veterans in my scene encouraged me to continue to write to the top of the audience’s intelligence. I like to do this because people can be smarter than given credit for. I once did a show in my hometown and a guy came up to me afterward and said, “I’m not used to thinking when I watch comedy, but you made me think and I really liked it.” Those moments make me proud. Or when people tell me that my comedy helped them in some way. I had someone tell me that he and his wife had lost their jobs earlier in the day and that they had really needed the laugh. Accomplishments are great, so is having the respect of comics whose craft I admire, but there’s something about making someone laugh despite their situation, if only for the duration of a show. That makes me feel like I’ve done my job thoroughly and as if I’ve put good out into the world. They say laughter is the best medicine, so technically I’m a doctor.

What sets me apart is my perspective. My upbringing, identity, experiences, and even my thought process are apparently unique, which I find both thrilling and entertaining.

Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up I wanted to do everything. I was in so many clubs, from speech and debate to cheerleading to an environmental club called Trashbusters. which my mom never understood since my room was often pretty messy. “Why don’t you go bust some trash in your room?” she’d say. When asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I’d rattle off a list of jobs I wanted to do. I never felt like I had to do or be just one thing. I mean, if Barbie could be a doctor and a punk rocker and an astronaut, so could I. I was a little weirdo, but also wicked smart. I could read at three and in pre-K they wanted to skip me to 2nd grade. When my parents declined (it would have been a bad idea), teachers just tried their best to keep me busy. In 1st grade, my teacher would give me a book to read to the class and just . . . leave. When she came back she was shocked that I could read the book upside down so the class could see the pictures while I read (I was shocked that she couldn’t). Another time she brought another teacher to come peek in and witness how she was able to finagle a break during the day. I felt so mature, instead of feeling like I had to do extra work so my teacher could take a little nap in her car, or whatever (no shade, honestly, good for her). I’m still that little girl. I still feel like I have a lot left that I want to do. When I opened for the late Paul Mooney he called me “Black Barbie,” and I like to think that I am. I could have a pretty extensive doll line based on all my temp jobs alone.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @maggiemayehaha
• Twitter: @maggiemayehaha

Image Credits
In order: Andrew Max Levy Monique Hernandez Self Monique Hernandez Andrew Max Levy Matt Misisco Matt Misisco Elizabeth Viggiano Monique Hernandez