The Most Terrifying $100 I Ever Made

yep that’s me and you’re probably wondering how I got in the situation….

well ya see it’s sorta a long story…

long story short below:

About two years into doing stand-up, I got offered $100 to perform at a nightclub in Gary, Indiana.

At the time, $100 for comedy might as well have been a Netflix deal.

They found me on Facebook, which should have been my first warning.

I reached out to get some details. They told me there would be around 30 people at a nightclub they had rented out. Sounded normal enough.

Then I asked what the occasion was.

One of the guys said, “One of my best friends is getting back from prison.”

Okay.

Then came the question:

“You’re still coming, right?”

“Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.”

I hung up and immediately thought: Am I?

I spent the next four hours debating whether $100 was enough money to potentially die in Gary, Indiana.

Apparently, it was.

I drove there and sat in the parking lot for an embarrassingly long time. The “nightclub” was tucked into a sketchy strip mall, with an empty bar in the front and the actual party hidden somewhere in the back.

Eventually, I forced myself inside.

There weren't 30 people.

There were about 11 guys, three women, and me.

They'd rented out this tiny club, but it felt less like a comedy show and more like somebody's living room where everyone had collectively agreed to stare at me.

And I had to do 30 minutes.

Remember: I was two years into comedy. I didn't have the experience to handle a room like that.

I also didn't have 30 minutes of good jokes.

So, naturally, the welcome-home-from-prison party spent most of my set roasting me.

I finished, took my $100, and got the hell out of there.

To this day, I couldn't tell you whether I was hired as the entertainment or the sacrifice.

But I got paid.

And technically, nobody went back to prison.

So I’d call it a successful show.

Thankfully, the gigs have improved since then.

I’ve got some upcoming shows where, as far as I know, none are prison-release parties in Gary, Indiana.

Come see me live. I promise the room will be slightly less terrifying.

Upcoming Shows → [bradkofman.com/shows]

— Brad