Why Getting Booed Off Stage Was One of the Best Things That Could Have Ever Happened to Me...
- R.E.A.C.H. Team
- 4 days ago
- 6 min read
Every once in a while, life reminds you that you are human, and that your pride and ego need a reality check. That reminder came for me one Saturday night in New York City.
I had been on tour performing in Los Angeles and Philadelphia, and I was ending my run at the Triad Theater on 72nd and Broadway in Manhattan. I was booked as the feature comedian for a Sunday night show, but on Saturday the owner of the theater asked if I wanted to perform that night too. I said of course. Another stage meant another chance to shine!
So now I had two shows that weekend in New York City, and I felt like I was on top of the world. For whatever reason though, I showed up late that Saturday night. I arrived and told the host of the show I was there and ready to go. He explained that since I was late, he had to let the openers go longer to fill time. I said that was fine and told him I would do whatever they needed. A few minutes later, the owner came up to me looking excited and asked if I was ready. I told him I didn’t think I would be going on because they were running out of time. He said, “Nope, you’re here and you’re getting on that stage!” Then he went over to the host and told him to figure it out.
Now the host was mad at me because I had just thrown off the timing of the show. He went over to the DJ, whispered something in his ear, then came back and said, “All right, here’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to put you on after the headliner.”
If you know anything about comedy shows, you know everything depends on energy and momentum. The two openers had crushed it, and I was ready to ride their wave. I had never performed with the headliner before, but I knew who he was. I had seen him on Def Comedy Jam and Comic View, so I knew he was going to kill it too. The energy in the room was electric, and I couldn’t wait to get up there!
What I didn’t stop to think about was that when the host told me I was going on after the headliner, I should have politely said no. Nobody in that audience had paid a single penny to see me. They were there for the headliner, and when he was done, they would be done too. But my ignorance and arrogance were about to set me up for a nice little life lesson.
What’s crazy is, about 30 seconds after the host told me I was going last, my brother Shaun Derik texted and asked how it was going. I replied, “Looks like I’m the new headliner.” Famous last words.
The headliner that night was from Brooklyn, which meant he already had home court advantage. But he didn’t need it. This man was a pro! He went up and for an hour straight destroyed that audience. People were laughing, crying, and falling out of their seats. He finished to a huge standing ovation.
Then it happened. Everyone started putting on their coats. They were done. They got what they came for and were ready to leave. But the host ran back on stage and said, “Hold on, hold on, don’t leave yet! We’ve got a special surprise for you!”
People paused, curious but confused. He kept going. He said, “Y’all know who George Lopez is?” The crowd cheered. “Y’all know who Gabriel Iglesias is? Fluffy?” The crowd screamed even louder. Then he said, “Well, so does this guy! Give it up for Javier.”
That was my intro. No last name. No music. The DJ had already packed up and gone home. I walked out to a few polite claps from a tired audience that had no idea who I was. I was supposed to do twenty minutes. I probably lasted about three before the boos started. If they weren’t booing, they were leaving. If they weren’t leaving, they were booing louder.
After those few painful minutes, I just walked off stage. It was the worst feeling I had ever experienced as a performer. I went to the back room and decided I wasn’t leaving until every single person in that building was gone. I didn’t want to face the audience, the staff, or the other comedians.
When the coast was clear, I left and went back to Harlem where I was staying with Shaun. He asked how the show went, and I told him it was terrible. I said I was done with comedy. I told him I hated how it felt and never wanted to feel that way again. At that moment I felt like the only way to guarantee that was to quit doing comedy all together.
Shaun listened, then said two things I will never forget. The first thing he said was, “Bro, if the only time you can do comedy is when it’s easy, then you’re not a real comedian. How can you get better if you’re never put to the test?
That hit me. He was right. That’s not just comedy though, that’s life. You don’t become a better athlete by only playing people you know you can beat. You get better by competing against people better than you. The same goes for life. You can’t build resiliency, grit, frustration tolerance, coping, and problem solving skills if everything about your life is easy and safe.
Then he asked me a question, “What do you want to be remembered for? Do you want to be remembered for your last show, which was your worst show? What do you want the owner, the host, the other comedians, and the audience to remember you for?”
As much as I hated it, I knew he was right again. I probably didn’t fall asleep until six or seven that morning. But before I did, I made a decision. I was going back the next night.
I woke up a few hours later and started working on my set. I even wrote new jokes about getting booed off stage. I said, “After the show last night, some dude wanted to fight me. I told him, bro, I’m too old to fight. If you step to me, you’re not getting fought, you’re gonna get tickled!”
The more I worked on my material, the more excited I got. I mostly wanted to make things right with the owner. He had given me a chance, and I felt like I disappointed him. I didn’t want to leave New York with that as my story.
That night I got to the theater before anyone else. The sun was still out, and the doors were locked, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t going to be late again. The show was fire! Everyone was killing it. When it was my turn, I went up with the same jokes as the night before plus the new ones, and this time it was completely different. The laughter came. The applause came. By the time I was finished, the standing ovation came too. It was exactly what I needed. The sting from that Saturday night stayed with me for a while, but over time I learned to appreciate it.
That night taught me something I’ll never forget. I learned to find ways to grow from setbacks and struggles instead of just giving up. Feeling like giving up is ok and makes sense a lot of times. But in the end, it’s not the feeling that matters most, it’s what we do with how we feel that's important.
When life catches us off guard, it's important to try and find a way to accept and adjust so that you can start to accelerate. We created a resource that can help you create a plan for how to manage those moments and experiences we sometime don't see coming or don't really plan for. Please download and feel free to share it with other folks.
And here's a real short video of me sharing the story of me getting booed off stage on a podcast. Please watch and share it too!
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