Join us on the Funny Muscle Pod as we sit down with Kenny Lee, winner of the 2024 Purvis Wilson Funniest Stand-Up in Dallas Competition. Known for his sharp, cunning comedy, Kenny (@KennyLee270) takes us behind the scenes of his joke-writing process, shares how he developed his comedic persona, and talks about the power of working clean. Plus, he breaks down the strategy behind competing in stand-up competitions and how he crafted his sets to win each round.

In this episode of the Funny Muscle Pod, we sit down with rising Dallas comic CAIN (@funnycain_) to talk comedy, persistence, and the art of refining bits. He shares valuable advice on not giving up on jokes, reworking material, and navigating the Dallas open mic scene. Plus, CAIN reveals how he draws inspiration from professional wrestling and magic to elevate his act. Don't miss this insightful conversation.

Comedian and author Brad Tassell joins the Funny Muscle Podcast to talk about joke writing, performing comedy on cruise ships, and how the comedy scene today compares to the 90s. As the creator and co-host of the Virtual Comedy Show, Brad brings years of experience and insight into crafting punchlines—sharing advice that’s simple yet often overlooked.

What better person to teach us how to do your first year of comedy more efficiently than someone who recently did her first year of comedy very efficiently. Payton Payne, a Dallas comic, joins the Funny Muscle Pod to teach us how she uses stage time to craft jokes, and how, when you constantly are looking for ways to make things funny, typically annoying instances no longer bother you.

Paul Varghese is a comedian and actor who appeared on the reality show Last Comic Standing 2. He’s toured with Joan Rivers and Gabriel Iglesias. He has been doing stand-up since 2001 and lives in Dallas Texas, so Mike (also in Dallas) had some questions about the local scene. We talk a lot about comedy writing, what it’s like being a comic of Indian descent, and the evolution of comedy over the past 3 decades. Paul has a completely innovative way that he uses to get his mind into the comedy-flow-state-writing zone. Tune in to find it out.

In this episode we chat with Dwayne Kennedy, a stand-up comedian, actor and writer. Dwayne has also written for The Arsenio Hall Show and The Orlando Jones Show. He has played roles in such classic series as Seinfeld, Martin, 227, and Amen. Having done comedy for more than 3 decades, Dwayne is in the unique position to talk about the state of comedy today. His advice on “being yourself” on stage is a great tip for younger comedians.

The Funny Muscle Podcast welcomes our first Blue Man in this episode. Which is challenging since the Blue Man Group doesn't talk. Fortunately, this Blue Man is also Nickelodeon Famous. Jeffrey Nicholas Brown is most known for his role as "Jake Hart" on Nickelodeon's Henry Danger. (So, he can talk and does so during the interview) Jeffrey also does stand-up. His advice about getting laughs without talking like he does as a Blue Man is great for new comics.

Chris travels to Dallas for this one. He joins Mike's comedy office hours on Wednesday at the Dallas Comedy Club to workshop material with students. They talk about crafting comedy bits in a group setting. They also chat about Mike's journey to improve his writing using a challenge: The Ice Bucket Writing Challenge which involves writing Hemingway-like prose or taking an ice bath. (Kidding! Though such prose would look like “I took the bucket of ice. It chilled me to the bone. But a man must endure. A man must prevail.”). Mike's challenge involved writing 1,000,000 words. There's great advice in this one for new comedy writers looking to develop better writing habits.

Click to read: Ten Ways the Million Words Challenge Made Me a Better Writer