I first heard Darren Carter on the now defunct All Comedy Radio station. I had no idea what he looked like, but I had a picture in my head from the descriptions of himself in his jokes. He looked exactly like I imagined. He had such a silly style that had me laughing out loud in the car. When I heard he was coming to Kansas City, I had to meet him.
Darren Carter, the Party Starter.
Darren Carter
I met up with Darren before he took the stage at Stanford's Comedy Club in Kansas City. I just got off stage after finishing my set and saw him in the Green Room talking with the club owner and Andrea Caspari. Perfect timing. I wanted to know how he prepared for a show, and particularly his technique for 'winning' over a new crowd in a new city.
Andrea Caspari, Darren Carter, Brad Meehan
Darren is great at really pumping up the crowd. He comes out to his own theme song written by Kansas City rapper "Big Fluff Nickolantern." It takes him less than two seconds to get an entire room on his side and really involves the crowd throughout entire the show - something I haven't seen to that extent. As the music blasted from the speakers, he showed that this is his party and we were all invited.
Darren Carter "The Rooster" and Big Fluff Nickolantern
Taking the Stage
AGR: What are you doing right now? How are you preparing for your set? Do you have a set list you write out?
Darren Carter: For stuff that's really important, I'll write down a set list. On the road, I have a lot of material and it's all floating around in my head - I want to be able to grab on to this joke and that joke.
AGR: When do you work out new material?
Darren Carter: I usually just throw it in the mix. Sometimes I'll even open with new material. Seinfeld said, "Never open with new material." But on that last set, I did my first two minutes and got them on my side then tried [a new bit]. And it worked. That was all new. I've probably done it less than ten times.
AGR: When do you decide if it works of if you're going to throw it away?
Darren Carter: Most of the stuff I do works. But if it doesn't I'll put it away and bring it out later. Some stuff I'll throw away. But honestly, it either works really well or it will barely work. You have to believe in it.
I look back at jokes I wrote like five years ago and I think, "That's kind of funny." Then I'll deliver it. I'll bring it out and actually do it. But because I don't believe in it anymore, I can't sell it. It used to kill for me because I used to believe in it. Like some of your stuff, the stuff that you love, it may just kill now. But then five years, ten years from now you're going to be like, "This is not my big bit anymore." But someone that saw you tonight will remember that joke. And in 2017, they'll see you and they'll [quote the joke]. Then you'll think, "I should do that joke again." And you'll do it, but if you don't believe it's funny, it won't work any more.
Be Yourself
AGR: Are you 'yourself' on stage?
Darren Carter: Yes. I'm a heightened version of myself on stage. Obviously I don't walk around 'beat-boxing' or doing weird shit like that. Sometimes I do. I'm the type of comic that likes to joke around. Some comedians when they're not performing they're quiet, they're bitter, or they're angry. But they find a away to bring comedy out of that. I'm personally not like that. I like to go for the silly. I always like making people laugh - even if it's just one person.
Just Follow the Rules
The one thing I learned early on is that there are no rules in comedy. Some guys say 'don't yell.' Well, there are guys that yell: Dane Cook, Sam Kinnison. Some guys say 'don't do sketches'. Well, guess what? The first time you audition for SNL or another sketch show they're like , "Bring in three characters and you wear costumes." Some guys say, 'Don't use props.' But look how far some of the comics can go with props. There are really no rules.
Two for One Special
AGR: What's the one thing you learned where you thought, "I wish someone would have told me that"?
Darren Carter: Try to write your jokes both clean and dirty. Don't only have the dirty version. Because when opportunities come up to get on TV or radio and they're like, "What do you got?" 'Well, I can't do that bit, or that bit...I have nothing.' You want to have two different versions.
AGR: Do you think you even need the dirty version?
Darren Carter: Dirty does get you the big laugh, but you don' want to rely on it. My dirty isn't that dirty. You don't want to do it so filthy that people are like, "Eww".
You can' tell when the crowd doesn't 'give it up' like they should because you crossed the line a little bit. It's good to get right out of it and let them trust you again. You don't want to get to a point where they don't trust you.
AGR: How do you build trust?
Darren Carter: Just be confident, likable.
Attitude of Gratitude
Darren Carter: No matter where you're at. Be in the moment and give it your all. Even it you're in some crappy gig in Idaho, or wherever. You have to have an "attitude of gratitude". Look at these country stars or rock stars who have long careers. They're out there at meet-n-greets , and they embrace the fans. Even when I'm going to do some crappy AM radio, I get up and take a shower and get pumped up. I'm like, "Yeah! I'm going to rock this show!" I never want to get to a point where I'm like, "F*ck this. This means nothing. Who's listening anyway?"
On Advice
Darren Carter: Don't always listen to other comics all the time. This advice they're giving you - some of it's good, but some of it you have to weed out. Find out what's pertinent to you.
Fatherhood and career keep comic Darren Carter a busy man
By Aaron Davis
Special to The Record
May 22, 2008 6:00 AM
While fatherhood is no laughing matter, it certainly helps to find the humor in it, especially when humor is your business.
"I like to joke now that the other day my wife came in and she changed my diaper," said comic Darren Carter, who became a father eight months ago. "When the time is right, (fatherhood) is great. It's every cliché you've ever heard."
Not surprisingly, the comedian has found a few ways to sneak the joys of being a dad into his stand-up routine, from the birdlike noises his son makes to choosing a name that's not as common as his old high school buddy's, Jose Garcia. Central Valley audiences can catch Carter's act when he performs Saturday in Modesto and May 31 in Tracy.
COMEDY PREVIEW
Darren Carter
When/where: 7 p.m. Saturday, State Theatre, 1307 J St., Modesto; 8:30 p.m. May 31, Grand Theatre Center for the Arts, 715 Central Ave., Tracy
Admission: $29; $30-$95
Information: (209) 527-4697; (209) 831-6858
The redheaded Fresno native returns to the area after winning new fans with his 2006 appearance at the Latin Kings of Comedy tour stop in Stockton. He's particularly looking forward to playing Modesto's State Theatre and Tracy's even more intimate Grand.
"(The venues are) small enough to where I can interact and really reach out and grab (the audience)," he said. "I once did the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Irvine, and there was like 15,000 or 20,000 people. That's a show where you really can't talk to the crowd."
For the record: Darren Carter "The Party Starter" (as he calls himself) is certainly no "Latin king," although he grew up in a predominantly Latino neighborhood in Fresno. That hasn't stopped him, however, from "spreading the red" on shows such as "Que Locos."
Carter has been busy since his previous Stockton appearance. Aside from being a dad, he's appeared in the movies "Uncle P" and "Who Made the Potato Salad" (which he describes as a "black 'Meet the Parents' "), his "Shady Side" CD is on iTunes, and he did some voice work on Tony Hawk's "American Wasteland" video game.
"They hired me to do one voice, and then I did, like, four more voices for it," Carter said. "Unfortunately, I'm not very good at video games, so I can't get past the first level to even hear my voice."
Carter will be doing a "Comedy Slam" on Showtime in July, and he's got a few other projects in the works. But with a well-tooled stand-up routine featuring a dead-on Snoop Dogg impression, Carter's focus remains performing live.
"I get the most joy out of doing stand-up. That's just pure adrenaline," he said. "It's like being a rock star without a back-up band. I'm living the dream."
