Show me the funny

Cancellations and blowbacks are now part of the territory Rizal Kamal has to navigate as head honcho of LOL Asia. — Photos: LOL Asia

AT the Lfy Hotel in Chinatown on a recent Tuesday afternoon, we await the arrival of Rizal Kamal. The CEO and founder of LOL Asia has been busy putting together world class comedy shows and events. If that alone wasn’t hard enough, Kamal, at the time of this interview, is also dealing with issues revolving around the last minute cancellation of his most recent show involving Singaporean comedian, Sharul Channa.

“Honestly, it’s hard to be optimistic about comedy in Malaysia at this present point of time,” is his answer when asked about the state of comedy here in the country. Obviously dealing with the fallout and disappointment of the show being cancelled at the last minute has been a bitter pill to swallow for the CEO of LOL Asia. “I think what made it worse was that Sharul’s performance was actually a really small show – it was supposed to be a small venue with about 250 people, so the impact would have been minimal,” explains Kamal.

But the performance was canned by the authorities following several police reports against Channa for a joke that was deemed offensive by some parties. According to Kamal, the joke in question was from a 2017 show, which was accepted back then. “Personally for me, it’s hard to imagine that just seven years on, we have become so sensitive over trivial things. Frankly, I think we’ve forgotten how to take a joke.”

Serious business

Cancellations and blowbacks are now part of the territory Kamal has to navigate as head honcho of LOL Asia. But he accepts the fact that it is part of the business he is in. Although it may test the resolve of the live entertainment company, it has nevertheless not dented its strong reputation and impressive track record of stellar comedy and live event shows.

Since its inception artists and talents that have performed under the LOL Asia banner include Kevin Hart, Russell Peters, David Blaine, Fluffy and more. With an impressive roster of shows under its belt, what the company has accomplished thus far is undoubtedly impressive.

According to Kamal, he knew nothing about the world of stand-up before jumping feet first into the business. “Next to watching Eddie Murphy’s Raw and Delirious on VHS, some of Russell Peters’ videos which had blown up on YouTube and listening to a few Jerry Seinfeld CDs, my knowledge of comedy and stand-up was pretty much restricted to that,” he says.

But a meeting with the late Australian comic, Jonathan Atherton eventually put Kamal on the path in the world of comedy and stand-ups. “Jon was known as the Laugh Guru but he was a frustrated comedian, because he kept getting cheated,” he explains. “One day a friend of mine suggested that he should just put on his own shows.”

Atherton followed through on that advice and started doing shows in Singapore and KL. “He became a promoter and because not many people were exposed to stand-up comedy back then, the scene here really exploded,” says Kamal. “Back then, we had a few established local comics like Harith (Iskander), Douglas (Lim) and Joanne (Kam). The current ones like Phoon Chi Ho, Kavin Jay and Kuah Jenhan were only just starting in the business doing open mics.

Kamal put on his first show 15 years ago at Velvet Underground, headlined by Atherton, Terry Johnson and Andrew Netto and it was a roaring success. “I think we blew people’s minds. We had celebrities in attendance, the energy in the room was amazing, and everyone was laughing so hard. For a whole year after that we sold out all our shows.”

Taste for comedy

The advent of streaming and social media has no doubt helped fuel the interest in the world of stand-up and Kamal opines that the international landscape is fantastic at the moment. “I think people generally gravitate towards it because they love to hear the thoughts and perspectives of comics,” he says. “But the main divide right now though, is who the audience is.”

Kamal explains that often times when there’s a switched-on crowd who comes in for a laugh, there’s generally no issue. However when the show is recorded and goes out onto social media, then it has the potential to be divisive. “It can reach a segment that is unable to comprehend or understand the subtleties of a joke, and therein lies the danger of what is said in a controlled, safe space and what goes out on the internet.”

Because of this, Kamal takes extra precaution on selecting the comics, how the show is promoted and what videos the comedians put out. He also makes sure that the performers that are selected are able to cater to the Malaysian appetite. “I think our taste for comedy actually is a reflection of our society – we don’t like the extreme, someone who is too vulgar or political,” he states. “And it’s not just Malaysia either, because we also do shows in Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia and so forth.”

Kamal opines that the Asian audience is often times more middle range, compared to British or American audiences. “I believe our view of the world is pretty much extremely liberal, in terms of our thinking.” He also explains that the comedians themselves have to understand the lay of the land.

As such he makes it a point to sit down and fill them in on the general sensitivities of what is happening here in Asia. “The smart ones will either turn up or dial down their jokes and also feed off the crowd and test out a few gags during their set to see how audiences react according to the briefing.”

The laughs continue...

The setback of a show being cancelled hasn’t slowed Kamal’s determination. Looking ahead he is already busy planning several big LOL Asia events. “We have Atsuko Okatsuka coming in July,” he reveals. “We brought her down back in 2016 when she was a nobody,” says Kamal.

“I remember finding one of her videos on YouTube and thought she had something. I put her on the first Comedy Central Stand-Up Asia and now she’s grown so much. Her sales are amazing, she’s selling out everywhere she goes now.” Kamal also tells us that he has recently confirmed a show featuring Omid Djalili, the British Iranian comic, which will be held in both Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.

Touching on what piques interest in the comedians he brings down to perform under the LOL Asia banner, Kamal elaborates that primarily, being funny is the main criteria. “Funny, as you know, can be quite subjective so when I book a comedian, I have to make sure it is someone who the audience trusts to make them laugh and entertain them.”

Kamal explains that back then, he relied mostly from word of mouth and recommendations by other comics but today the landscape has become more diverse. “We have to look at TV credits and social media presence and gauge those performances and whether it will be attractive to the audiences here.”

Although enjoying the immense success of putting on sold-out international shows and expanding his network internationally, Kamal admits promoting local and Asian talents is his most rewarding experience. “For example, working with someone like Kumar is super special,” he says.

“He is such a vibrant personality and he put his trust in us to guide his career globally. Doing things like this for the local scene is special for me, personally. When I work with local artists and build their shows, that’s when I get the most satisfaction.” “When I book a comedian, I have to make sure it is someone who the audience trusts to make them laugh and entertain them.”

This article first appeared in Star Biz7 weekly edition.