Meet Sam Ridley

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sam Ridley.

Sam, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was in Italy still serving in the military when the idea to try comedy was given to me by another comedian on a USO tour named Paul Deese. He heard me cracking jokes with people outside and pulled me to the side to show me how people are gravitating to what I was doing. At the time, I had no idea where I would be going after my service time in Italy. He made me promise him that if they happened to send me anywhere near Hollywood that I’d try to stand up comedy.

I gave a nod, said thank you and went on with my life until I actually did get orders to Edwards Air Force Base California. It felt like I was obligated to at that point! I eventually made my way to the now-closed Jon Lovitz comedy club in Universal City and tried my hand at an open mic. I STILL almost didn’t do it out of fear. An Air Force friend of mine gave me the push I needed over the phone, letting me know I’d driven an hour and a half to “do nothing or to make something happen.” I fell in love with the stage that day.

After that, I was driving that three-hour round trip every Monday to hone a craft I knew very little about. Two months after I started I was asked to help host the show permanently which gave me a lot of time to learn and listen to those who were my senior. I’ll always say it was valuable experience I received thanks to the lead host and comedian Brandon West. Since then I’ve been fortunate to perform with many of the people I grew up admiring from Def Comedy Jam and beyond. Now I’m featuring and headlining at venues all over Southern California.

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?
Any comedian that tells you this is a smooth ride has some of the best edibles money can buy. There are so many ups and downs in this business. It’s far from smooth but every bump in the road teaches you something valuable. I live away from the action so it’s hard to build a rapport on the scene at times. I’ve had to find other means to expand my reach if I can’t physically be there every day. Thank God for social media.

I’ll never forget being young in this game and learning a valuable lesson about having a backup plan. I was invited to a comedy festival in Illinois and ended up stranded there when the entire event was more or less a cash grab to take advantage of younger comics. It costed me a small fortune to get back to California, but it was an amazing lesson learned. It was headed up by a Def Jam legend and I was so excited to meet her that I ignored the details that would have helped avoid those shenanigans.

Please tell us more about your work.
When I began Sam Ridley Entertainment I aimed to become the best stand up comedian I can be. Not to become Kevin Hart or Dave Chappelle, but the best Sam Ridley I can be. Aside from Stand-Up comedy, I create sketch comedy and aim to put out a new hour special at least every two years. I’m most proud of self-producing my own comedy special on Blu-ray a few years ago. I know to some it seemed like a very small accomplishment but to see your work become tangible and well-received is a blessing. I’ve been told one of the major things that set me apart in this business is my professionalism. I guess it’s abnormal to be consistently on time and dependable. Sad really. I would hope we all want to take this funny business seriously.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
This is something I can’t do without the people that believe in me. Fortunately, I’ve had people take notice that are willing to give me a shot. I recently had a booking company that I’ve been working with for at least four years bump me up to Headline many of the venues they book. Knowing how much work I put into it really made that a special moment. It’s easy to get stuck in your own head about the heading of your comedy career, sometimes you need those victories to keep going.

Contact Info:

• Phone: 7574488839
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: @samridleycomedy
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SamRidleyComedy/
• Twitter: @samridleycomedy
• Other: https://www.youtube.com/user/SamRidleyComedy

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