Bankas Podcast - I almost like Mark Carney ｜ Bankas Podcast - #092

00:00:00.160 Welcome to Bankist Podcast. It's me, Ben Bankist. I hope you guys are having a good week.

00:00:03.680 Please like and subscribe to the podcast, the video.

00:00:08.640 This episode is the last 30 minutes of what we thought was going to be,

00:00:14.640 or what I thought was going to be, a free podcast episode.

00:00:17.820 And then, you know, we went nuts. I went nuts.

00:00:21.060 I'm saying we because I think I'm just schizophrenic at this point. 0.95

00:00:23.740 But I just have Chinese voices in my head.

00:00:27.360 So, the full version of this podcast is on Patreon, but please enjoy the free version.

00:00:37.640 Thank you to everybody who's been supporting me lately and joining Patreon.

00:00:41.660 We are growing. It's pretty awesome.

00:00:44.140 And can't wait for the upcoming shows.

00:00:48.340 If you're not sure where to go see me or what cities I'm coming to or how to get tickets,

00:00:53.420 BenBankist.com, the full schedule is on there.

00:00:57.900 My upcoming shows are in Boston, Massachusetts, and Greenville, South Carolina.

00:01:05.060 I'm coming to all kinds of places.

00:01:07.920 I don't know. I don't know why those are the only two that I plugged.

00:01:11.920 But here's a more in-depth look.

00:01:15.520 Detroit, Appleton, Wisconsin, Bloomington, Minnesota, Philadelphia, Poughkeepsie, Boston, Greenville, South Carolina, Jacksonville, Florida,

00:01:25.480 Levittown, New York, Buffalo, New York, Tyler, Texas, San Antonio, Greenwood Village, Colorado, which is South Denver,

00:01:32.920 San Jose, Bakersfield, San Diego, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Chicago, Orlando, Boca Raton, Cincinnati, Nashville, Indianapolis, Plano, Kansas City,

00:01:49.060 Birmingham, Alabama, Timonium outside Baltimore, Winnipeg, Ottawa, London, Ontario, Irvine, California, Chandler, Arizona,

00:01:57.620 New Westminster, B.C., Tacoma, Washington, Grand Prairie, Alberta, Calgary, Red Deer, Toronto, again, November 15th.

00:02:05.640 We're already over half sold out for that 3,000-seat theater in Montreal, Quebec.

00:02:10.960 Thank you, guys. Enjoy the show and support me on Patreon for the full episode.

00:02:19.160 But I was there for the election as well in Canada.

00:02:22.960 Mark Carney was elected, and the liberals who elected him did it because they thought that he was going to stand up to Donald Trump somehow. 0.94

00:02:36.020 I don't really know where they got that information at all, but he just went and met with Trump and literally looked like a lapdog.

00:02:44.980 I kind of liked how respectful Carney was of Trump, to be honest.

00:02:50.380 And you know what? That's how it should be.

00:02:53.500 Canada's the smaller country. America's the superpower. 0.51

00:02:57.600 But it's just hilarious that Trump was the one who endorsed Carney.

00:03:00.640 He was like, I want Carney.

00:03:02.000 And then liberals are like, oh, he's going to fight Trump.

00:03:05.000 I'm going to vote for the guy that Trump endorsed. 1.00

00:03:07.640 And Pierre Paulyevre is a loser. 0.99

00:03:09.940 I'm sorry. I said it on my show. 0.99

00:03:11.940 His eyes are too close together. 0.99

00:03:13.200 And he chose not to go on Rogan's podcast, which is the dumbest thing you can put. 0.94

00:03:18.180 If Joe Rogan asks you to go on his podcast, you don't say no, especially if you're running for office. 1.00

00:03:24.080 Like you're out of your fucking mind, dude. 1.00

00:03:26.800 Of course you lost. 1.00

00:03:28.240 Of course he lost.

00:03:28.920 And I'm happy he lost.

00:03:30.300 The fact that he did that, the fact that he wanted to win in this weird, like mainstream way, like, oh, I don't want to, or a quote unquote, like Canadian mainstream way.

00:03:39.040 Oh, I'm going to just, you know, work the CBC and I'm just going to get all of them on my side.

00:03:44.180 Dude, no, the CBC, they have their whole comedy wing of government funded comedians in Canada that were making fun of Pierre for a decade already.

00:03:55.700 They've been making fun of them.

00:03:56.880 They've perfected it.

00:03:57.900 They've perfected the fight, the fight and the little you're done.

00:04:01.860 You're cooked. 0.98

00:04:02.760 You have a billion dollar media company shitting on you. 0.99

00:04:07.000 And all the boomers watch that media company in Canada. 1.00

00:04:10.480 Obviously, they're not going to fucking vote for you. 0.99

00:04:13.000 I just think it was like, oh, my God, it was embarrassing. 0.99

00:04:15.720 It was an embarrassing is embarrassing for Pierre to lose that like lead that he just didn't know how to play that.

00:04:22.560 He should have went on Rogan and talked about it and talked about how ridiculous it is that Trudeau just dropped out at the last second and all this stuff. 0.99

00:04:31.280 But fuck, I don't know, man. 0.99

00:04:33.580 That's Carney's Carney's almost better than Pierre. 0.99

00:04:40.060 People are mad at that.

00:04:41.340 Maybe they'll be.

00:04:41.900 I mean, so far, he hasn't done anything.

00:04:44.620 I don't know what's true anymore because people are like, he's coming for the censorship.

00:04:48.220 He's going to censor everything.

00:04:49.560 I'm like, where's the evidence?

00:04:50.420 And then they send me a video and it's like, this is a doctored video, dude.

00:04:54.440 This is literally AI.

00:04:56.860 And they're like, yeah, I know it's AI, but like, that is what he might do.

00:05:00.560 It's like, what are you talking about?

00:05:02.220 I can't be that invested in things when nothing really matters.

00:05:08.440 Like when you have a like, I want to enjoy my life. 0.98

00:05:11.100 I don't want to wake up every day going, well, fucking Carney's prime minister. 0.98

00:05:16.540 I didn't even really care that Trudeau was prime minister. 0.99

00:05:19.000 I thought it was funny until COVID, until we weren't allowed outside.

00:05:22.820 That's when I started actually like, like freaking a bit.

00:05:27.120 Started going a little crazy because we weren't allowed outside.

00:05:31.100 But if that had never happened, I mean, I don't know if I would have joked about it.

00:05:35.580 The blackface thing was fun. 0.97

00:05:37.400 That was fun.

00:05:38.900 Most fun time of my life was when Trudeau did blackface.

00:05:42.180 I had some of the best memories.

00:05:43.800 I had some of the best bits on stage talking about it.

00:05:47.620 We, you know, I had some of my first viral videos talking.

00:05:50.640 It was, it was, it was good.

00:05:51.900 It was, it was a fun time.

00:05:53.260 Everybody was enjoying themselves like when a prime minister legalizes marijuana and then

00:05:58.600 does blackface and now you're smoking legal weed and looking at him do in blackface. 0.92

00:06:03.940 That's enjoyable.

00:06:05.480 That's an enjoyable experience.

00:06:08.400 And you can't tell me otherwise.

00:06:10.800 I'm sorry, but would it be better to have no legal weed and, you know, Harper walking 0.99

00:06:17.060 around and, and, and fucking no abortion. 0.98

00:06:20.940 Like, I don't know. 0.99

00:06:21.860 I don't think so.

00:06:22.760 The people are like legal weed has ruined society and blah, blah. 1.00

00:06:26.040 You guys are losers. 1.00

00:06:27.800 You talk too much. 1.00

00:06:29.280 You fucking, I don't want to hear your fucking, like, you know, when people get so intense 1.00

00:06:34.400 with the, the opinions and stuff and they're like, this is not right. 1.00

00:06:37.480 And this has to be, that's not cool though. 0.91

00:06:39.800 Like, that's not like big dick energy. 0.99

00:06:42.240 That's not even like, I want to fuck energy. 1.00

00:06:44.460 That's bitch made energy to be that involved in anything really. 1.00

00:06:51.080 But, but it was nice to come back. 0.99

00:06:56.280 I have fun with my dogs.

00:06:57.440 My, got more dog problems.

00:07:00.260 No, my, my, my shih tzu just hates when it rains and it was like a thunderstorm here in 1.00

00:07:06.040 Texas and just, just running around and shitting and shit on the fucking shit. 1.00

00:07:12.960 He shit on my wife basically. 1.00

00:07:14.920 And just pissing everywhere and, and just being a terrible dog really, but it's not his fault. 1.00

00:07:22.960 It's because of the weather.

00:07:24.520 Oh, my dog doesn't like when it rains. 1.00

00:07:26.320 I mean, that's the type of shit where I'm like, you know, why the fuck do I have dogs? 0.99

00:07:28.880 But for real, my kids love them. 0.99

00:07:33.500 So I'll just, I'll give the dogs to my, my wife when we divorce them.

00:07:39.240 And then we'll, oh, joking.

00:07:46.020 Big shows this weekend, Detroit, Austin.

00:07:50.960 This is the first, second show I've ever done in Austin, Texas since I got here.

00:07:58.280 When I first arrived here, I did a show at this weird, like I put together my own show

00:08:02.100 at this weird workout gym, outdoor place slash bar slash restaurant.

00:08:10.200 And it's at Sapien Center.

00:08:13.020 And now we're doing it at Cap City.

00:08:16.600 I think if it's like 330 people, I think it's like 75% sold out. 0.99

00:08:22.220 Hopefully we just fucking sell this the fuck out. 0.99

00:08:24.780 Austin, Texas. 0.99

00:08:26.080 I mean, I get noticed on the street.

00:08:27.800 There are more comedy fans than usual on six streets.

00:08:31.640 So that's, I mean, I have been noticed in the marshals.

00:08:35.740 That was by a random Mexican guy who could barely speak that didn't actually follow me,

00:08:39.980 but he was like, you know, the guy, you know, the guy.

00:08:43.020 So that was kind of fun.

00:08:45.200 But it's going to be epic.

00:08:47.480 Got to sell out my new hometown, Austin, Texas, Cap City, brand new comedy club up at the domain.

00:08:54.280 Can't wait to be there.

00:08:55.200 And then Detroit, Michigan. 0.99

00:08:58.920 It's going to be great with, I got a buddy coming up from fucking here. 0.99

00:09:06.740 Will, whatever. 0.92

00:09:09.420 Um, and, uh, four shows though, in Detroit, I think two of them are almost sold out and two of them are like half sold.

00:09:17.740 So we're going to, I think we're going to sell.

00:09:20.720 We got ads running for that.

00:09:22.120 I had, you know, two of my videographers, one videographer from Toronto, one videographer from New Jersey, basically collab without knowing they were collabing on my new ad, which I took parts of both of their videos and put it into one and captioned it all.

00:09:38.820 And threw it up and they're getting pretty decent views.

00:09:43.760 That's what you got.

00:09:44.280 I mean, I'm still at the point where, you know, I can sell 1200 seats in Toronto, but I'm not ready.

00:09:49.120 It's not even everywhere.

00:09:50.920 I was talking to Aaron Belisle.

00:09:52.600 I don't know if you know him.

00:09:53.380 The guy speaks through a voice box on his phone.

00:09:55.920 Who's killed Tony. 0.87

00:09:58.300 I think he's either a regular or golden ticket winner or something, but he, um, he fucking was, was saying that, you know, how come I can sell out so many tickets here and not that many tickets here? 0.90

00:10:11.600 It's like, well, dude, you have more fans there.

00:10:14.520 The first time I went to Tampa Bay in May of 2024, right after I got my fresh, my fresh visa and we sold like 35 tickets.

00:10:23.320 Like I did not make money that night.

00:10:25.940 Um, but we came, we saw, I had fans there.

00:10:28.520 And then when I came again, we sold out two shows and there were people that came to the first one. 0.95

00:10:33.900 We're like, fuck yeah, we knew this was going to happen. 0.98

00:10:35.740 You know, you got to believe, you got to believe in yourself. 1.00

00:10:37.960 You got to have that passion in your mind and, and, and manifest this shit. 0.94

00:10:44.400 That's why at the Toronto show, I've been talking about, I'm not going to be really doing the Olivia Chow videos as much, even though sometimes like people send me a video, but come on, you have to do it. 0.98

00:10:55.460 You have to do it.

00:10:56.080 But I, I don't, I don't have to do it because I think I'm funnier and better without it in a way.

00:11:04.020 And I'm trying to be, I mean, first of all, I have kids.

00:11:06.540 Second of all, I'm trying to be the best comedian I can be.

00:11:09.540 And doing a Chinese accent over the mayor of Toronto is, I mean, it is the funniest thing in the world sometimes, but you don't want to overdo something, man.

00:11:23.420 You don't want to overdo any, I mean, podcasts every week, but that's not because that's, this is our, this is our time to connect. 0.79

00:11:29.300 This is our time for you to go, oh shit, I want to be, I want to be on Patreon. 0.97

00:11:33.480 I want to fucking support this guy. 0.99

00:11:34.980 I get to know this guy in this hour, 45 minutes to an hour that he just talks about what's going on with himself. 0.99

00:11:41.540 And, you know, if I had Arm in here already and we talk shit and we just fuck around like we did in the latest Patreon, that's what this is. 0.98

00:11:49.460 This is what, that's what, you know, comedy is about letting go and, and, and letting people in and letting people see who you are and letting them decide what the fuck they want from you. 0.98

00:12:07.520 And hopefully it's that they want to hear me talk about bullshit and my, my past and my hopes and dreams and bullshit and, um, you know, hear me interview people, hear me have fun with my friends and sometimes drink and smoke and enjoy life and, and let you in on what's going on. 0.94

00:12:34.360 Going to Appleton, Wisconsin. 0.97

00:12:36.900 That was cool that I told my dad that I was, he was like, where else are you going?

00:12:40.240 I'm going to Appleton, Wisconsin.

00:12:41.660 He's like, oh my God, that's where I used to, don't you know that I used to teach university there?

00:12:46.620 He was like a university professor in Appleton, Wisconsin.

00:12:50.220 And I was like, that's, I did remember that, but I'm like, that's crazy that, you know, he was there and now I'm going there to perform.

00:12:57.720 And he like lived there for years and not for the full year, but to, as a professor of music to go there and perform, it's cool.

00:13:08.780 You know, I'm living a better life than you guys.

00:13:11.700 I'm sorry.

00:13:13.620 It's like, it's, but it's for you.

00:13:18.460 You get to watch all of it pretty much. 0.80

00:13:20.520 I mean, I don't fucking put everything on my stories. 1.00

00:13:23.480 I don't know if people want that shit. 1.00

00:13:24.800 I don't know if I want that shit. 1.00

00:13:26.960 Sometimes you just have to focus. 1.00

00:13:28.440 You have to close off, read a book, focus on the standup, the actual art. 0.98

00:13:34.080 Because a lot of standup now is like, you have to focus on the marketing and how many clips you did and putting out a fucking clip every five seconds. 0.96

00:13:41.060 And, you know, the ads and, and the, but sometimes you just want to talk shit and read books and write and listen, re-listen to your standup and, and fucking feel yourself, feel that energy of. 0.98

00:13:54.800 The fucking comedy art that I know, like Kurt was like, oh, it's, you know, comedy is like bullshit and a failed comedian, you know, I don't, I think it's more, I think it's special still. 0.88

00:14:06.300 And recently I've been thinking a lot about when I started comedy, especially because I did that big show in Toronto and we have another big show coming up November 15th and actually six buzz recently reached out to me and said that they want to interview me, which is, I think is, would be awesome. 0.98

00:14:20.840 And I would love to do that, but just thinking about when I first started comedy and that pleasure that I got from it, the, just the utter pleasure of being at an open mic and with the, having my notebook. 0.86

00:14:36.680 And cause I started when I was 19 and I did it for, you know, people just think I did the fucking Chinese acts.

00:14:42.020 I did Olivia Chow and just, you know, oh, he's selling, oh, cause of Olivia. 0.91

00:14:45.640 No, I've been working at this for a long time.

00:14:49.120 And when I first started, there was just this elation that we got from doing it.

00:14:56.160 And one of the first cool things I remember when I met Ari Shafir for the first time, I was so excited.

00:15:01.600 He came to this bar that was in the annex where I grew up, literally a bar, two blocks from my childhood home, which we didn't have at the time anymore, unfortunately, which I, I'd really like to rebuy my childhood home. 0.91

00:15:17.140 I think that would be a fucking baller ass move, but I almost don't even want to live in it. 0.87

00:15:22.600 But anyway, um, it was a bar called the central. 0.98

00:15:27.760 It's since been torn down when they tore down, um, all the buildings there.

00:15:33.580 They, um, honest ads was, was there.

00:15:37.220 And it was a big, it was like this weird department store for immigrants that was made by Ed Mervish, who was owned all the, all the theaters in Toronto.

00:15:47.140 Originally the Mervish theaters and like plays and stuff.

00:15:52.800 And so it was at the central.

00:15:56.300 They had tons of open mics there.

00:15:58.100 We did open mics there like every couple of days, multiple open mics.

00:16:03.380 And then there were shows like, Oh, I got on a show.

00:16:05.800 The, it was like, almost like a comedy club, like a small comedy club.

00:16:09.300 That was also a bar, but it was fun. 0.99

00:16:11.980 It was just, you'd go and we were young and you know, we were hot and we just sit out and drink and smoke cigarettes and not give a fuck. 0.99

00:16:22.700 Like really not give a fuck about anything. 0.99

00:16:26.040 Money wasn't all that mattered was I want to kill today for, and pretty much for nobody, for my friends. 0.98

00:16:31.640 I want to be the funniest guy of the comedians, 19, 20, 21 year old kids.

00:16:36.620 I mean, there were older people that are 35.

00:16:38.880 I'm trying to do it.

00:16:40.100 Yeah. 1.00

00:16:40.780 Fucking losers. 1.00

00:16:42.380 That's, that is one cool thing about doing comedy when you're young is you get to meet a lot of people of different ages. 0.99

00:16:47.880 So you do kind of grow up a little bit, like you're still silly, but you, you, you, you grow up and you learn about, you know, you meet people with kids and you become friends with a guy with kids that you're drinking with. 0.99

00:16:59.700 No, no 21 year olds doing that really, unless you're in the arts or something, or I guess have a job and then your boss is trying to fuck you or whatever. 0.98

00:17:07.620 Um, but yeah, just sitting out on the patio of the central drinking pot pitchers.

00:17:14.660 I would have friends who weren't comedians come and hang out and we'd just smoke cigarettes and, but anyway, Ari Shafir came to the central and did like a podcast where I'd love to, I bet it's somewhere out in the universe.

00:17:30.700 It was recorded and put out somewhere on somebody's podcast, but it was him.

00:17:37.040 He did this whole talk about comedy and it was really interesting and funny and cool.

00:17:42.760 And then at the end, they did this thing where they put all the comics wrote down one joke.

00:17:48.020 You got to write down one joke and throw it in the jar, this jar.

00:17:52.000 And then Ari Shafir would pull out the jokes and read if they thought they were funny or not and give them tags.

00:17:59.260 And so it was like a cool way to anonymously try to get tags for your jokes.

00:18:05.560 And Ari Shafir did pull out one of mine and it was this joke.

00:18:10.160 It was my infamous Jessica joke.

00:18:13.580 He gave me the name Jessica.

00:18:15.520 Originally it was Sheila or something.

00:18:18.000 Cause that was like some ex-girlfriend I had friend. 0.99

00:18:20.580 It was like a drunk whore. 1.00

00:18:21.640 But the joke was about like, you know, every girl has a jet. 0.99

00:18:27.160 Every group of girls has a Jessica in there. 1.00

00:18:29.940 She's always gets lost.

00:18:31.480 Jessica.

00:18:32.060 Where's Jessica? 1.00

00:18:33.260 Blah, blah, blah. 1.00

00:18:33.800 Oh, she's sucking a dick in the bathroom. 1.00

00:18:35.300 I don't know what it was, but it was a great joke. 1.00

00:18:37.100 And he read it and he was like, this is really funny.

00:18:39.200 Changed the name to Jessica.

00:18:40.220 And then we ended up smoking after together and hanging out. 0.99

00:18:43.860 And it was just, it was just fucking dope, dude. 0.97

00:18:46.720 And that kind of, there's a picture of it somewhere. 0.99

00:18:49.180 Me and my friend, Mike, who wasn't a comedian came and met him too.

00:18:54.540 And yeah, we just, that was cool.

00:18:57.600 That made me feel like that was my first time.

00:19:00.020 So that feeling of going to the central and seeing Ari Shafir there and watching him talk

00:19:09.860 on this podcast and be super nice to us.

00:19:13.120 And now I, so I'm recently, I'm trying to recreate, I'm just feeling these feelings again

00:19:18.640 of the first time I did come, like, you know, the, the excitement and the passion and the

00:19:24.520 pleasure.

00:19:24.940 And I'm really trying to not even trying to, I mean, it's just happening. 0.99

00:19:29.660 It's because I'm at mothership and it's a magical fucking place. 0.96

00:19:33.760 And, um, there's no, they, they don't have that, like the, the yuck, yucks anger of like, 0.98

00:19:43.180 oh, well, I used to do comedy, but now I'm a anchor, you know, anchor, the anger of being 0.97

00:19:48.740 an anchor, that lady who tried to put a kibosh on me getting a fucking being on breakfast television 1.00

00:19:54.100 or like the guy who won't put me on a show because it's like, you know what I'm saying? 0.97

00:19:58.260 Like the equivalent would be that I'm at mothership for the next five years.

00:20:02.960 And then I'm doing stadiums.

00:20:04.160 And then I'm like, Hey, can I drop in for a Sunday saw?

00:20:07.000 And they say, no, that's the, that's the equivalent because it's such small time.

00:20:10.300 And yuck at yuck yucks, the me doing 1200 seats as a guy that came from that club that, I mean,

00:20:18.200 Mark Breslin respects it, but he gives people their autonomy as well to choose.

00:20:22.260 Oh, it's his show. 0.98

00:20:22.880 You can ask him, but, and I, like I said, I don't give a fuck, but it's just interesting. 0.99

00:20:28.220 But now I have that fucking, it kind of invigorates me when people get, say no again, like I kind 0.99

00:20:33.600 of like it. 1.00

00:20:34.480 It just lights a fire under my ass. 0.99

00:20:36.660 It reminds me of going when I was young and that would go to these shows and ask to get 1.00

00:20:42.440 on.

00:20:42.780 And they would say, no, oh, we were, we're booked.

00:20:45.100 We're booked months in advance. 0.95

00:20:46.800 Looking back on that, how much bullshit that was when you, like in the early 2000s, trying 0.99

00:20:53.280 to get on shows in Toronto at St. Louis, like I remember these one guys, these two losers 0.97

00:20:58.940 who ran a show at St. Louis and I just, but there was just this feeling of, I'm part of

00:21:06.720 this.

00:21:07.080 I'm going and I'm performing in these places.

00:21:10.680 And then you'd see a guy performing at it who, you know, he's at yuck yucks, or, you

00:21:14.960 know, you like does comedy professionally, not nobody had social media, but you just 0.99

00:21:19.840 have this feeling of like, holy fuck, I'm in it. 0.98

00:21:22.200 This was a real deal. 0.99

00:21:23.780 And it's crazy because, you know, now I go to mothership and then it's like, you see 0.99

00:21:28.540 Joe Rogan do, you get to watch him fucking work. 0.69

00:21:31.000 You get to watch all these guys with Theo Vaughn and Shane and you get to just watch them 0.99

00:21:37.200 do stand up. 0.99

00:21:37.960 And it's like, holy fuck, you know, we're in this, we're really in this. 0.98

00:21:41.500 But it's interesting because those feelings I had for the guy who ran the show at St. 0.98

00:21:47.860 Louis bar and grill when I first started comedy, I was almost like more wowed by that than

00:21:55.160 because I guess because I'm more dialed in now, like I'm obviously wowed if I'm watching 0.67

00:21:59.180 Rogan fucking performer or a comic perform, but that's like famous and that I've known 0.95

00:22:04.620 forever. 1.00

00:22:05.280 It's crazy.

00:22:05.840 But like there was something about that guy, you know, I don't know how to explain

00:22:11.260 it, but it's like you're young and you see some guy who's making money.

00:22:17.380 Apparently, I don't even there were probably all lies.

00:22:19.680 The people, those open mic guys that ran those shows, but you just thought like, wow, that

00:22:23.100 guy's cool. 0.99

00:22:24.340 That fat loser is 35 and makes a hundred bucks a show is fucking cool. 0.99

00:22:28.420 I don't know why we just think they're fucking cool, but a lot of those open, I remember 1.00

00:22:34.600 doing open mics on Danforth, Danforth musical. 0.98

00:22:38.620 Well, I performed a few fucking times on Danforth before that. 0.97

00:22:43.020 Some rocket coffee, red rocket coffee. 0.98

00:22:47.140 And this play, you know, some pub that comedians would line up, sit there for six hours to get

00:22:54.180 a five minute spot to do it for three people. 1.00

00:22:57.640 I did all that shit. 0.99

00:22:59.060 So people don't, if you don't know, now, you know that from the age of 19, I was doing 1.00

00:23:05.700 the most, like I was doing from 19 to 24, I was doing five shows a night.

00:23:12.820 I would fly around the city in my mom's Toyota matrix and I would, I would, I was doing junk

00:23:19.460 removal on the side after I dropped out of school and then I would just get picked up

00:23:26.760 sweaty as hell from junk removal.

00:23:29.140 My mom would pick me up in the matrix, drive me home, I'd change and shower and eat.

00:23:34.980 And then I'd go and do comedy and it was a good life.

00:23:38.020 And I miss, I do miss, I mean, I miss my mom.

00:23:41.100 Obviously I miss my mom and I miss how much she supported me.

00:23:45.000 I mean, she still supports me, I think from the grave for sure, or from heaven or from

00:23:49.580 hell or whatever it is, but, um, I can feel her support really when your parent does, I

00:23:57.280 think they just continue supporting you forever as like this, this eternal spirit.

00:24:03.180 And, but I just, those were good times, smoking cigarettes with my mom, driving in the, in 0.97

00:24:09.500 the matrix, not giving a fuck, got shows tonight, every show, he's got shows tonight. 0.78

00:24:13.780 Where's your show tonight? 0.98

00:24:14.800 You got a show tonight.

00:24:15.940 She knew the whole deal.

00:24:17.260 She knew I was trying to get part of yuck, yuck. 0.70

00:24:19.120 She's even up until the last months of her life.

00:24:22.880 I remember mentioning, you know, maybe six months, seven months before she died, you

00:24:27.800 know, that I was, cause I was in Austin, Texas.

00:24:29.660 Why are you in Austin or Texas?

00:24:31.380 Oh, why are you in Texas?

00:24:33.160 She had to mention.

00:24:34.140 So if I go, well, Joe Rogan's comedy club is there and she would go, Oh, Joe Rogan.

00:24:38.720 I know Joe Rogan.

00:24:39.680 I know Joe Rogan.

00:24:40.440 Like she still knew what I was trying to do, that I was trying to move to a place

00:24:45.760 and, and create a life.

00:24:48.060 And then when I had my kid, she was excited for me, even though she had the dementia

00:24:51.380 really held her from being able to be super excited for me.

00:24:54.820 But it was, you know, she, she understood.

00:25:00.900 She always understood.

00:25:01.720 So I missed her for the, and even when she understood me dropping out of school, that

00:25:05.320 I wanted to do comedy and that it was a real passion.

00:25:07.700 And then I was really good at it.

00:25:09.240 She came to see me and was like, you're really good at this.

00:25:12.700 And yeah, it's, it's, that's the, there's the, the, the history of Ben Bankus, the 19

00:25:21.040 year old doing comedy and 20 year old, um, you know, 21, 22, 23, never stopped.

00:25:27.340 The only time I really slowed down was when I started selling, I got a job selling photocopiers

00:25:33.500 because I had this like kind of semi-serious girlfriend and I felt like I needed a job

00:25:38.400 and I lied to my resume and got this job selling photocopiers.

00:25:41.400 And I was like, I don't even know if I want to do comedy.

00:25:43.460 This is so fun.

00:25:44.420 All I did is show up and sell and you make money and I make people, I was making everybody

00:25:48.840 in the office thought it was funny and the clients thought it was funny.

00:25:51.560 And then I remember I told people, I was like, oh, I got invited to perform at four 20 at 0.99

00:25:56.080 young and Dundas square and to a colleague and like, do it like, what the fuck? 0.97

00:26:00.380 And I remember being like, oh yeah, I guess. 0.99

00:26:02.380 Yeah.

00:26:02.580 Okay. 0.94

00:26:03.480 And went back and killed front of 4,000 people. 0.94

00:26:06.140 And I was like, yeah, I do still want to do this. 0.67

00:26:09.480 This is, so I just kept doing it every start, you know, twice, you know, less than before.

00:26:15.360 It was like 13, I remember doing between 10 to 13 to 15 shows a week, spots, open mics

00:26:21.940 down to like two for like a year and then realized that like, this is what I wanted to do.

00:26:28.760 But then I got the job in commercial real estate. 0.99

00:26:30.580 So then I was like, fuck, is that more important? 0.99

00:26:33.120 And I did have friends being like, dude, you have to do comedy. 1.00

00:26:35.800 You can't fucking give this shit up for fucking commercial real estate. 0.99

00:26:39.300 But I'm glad I had those years of doing those sales jobs and learning the learning business, 1.00

00:26:44.900 some business sense to really like if I hadn't, like it really helped me, obviously.

00:26:51.540 And I'm grateful to those.

00:26:53.940 I had great bosses that were cool.

00:26:56.360 Cressa colliers and photocopiers.

00:26:59.960 I worked at Rico, which I was kind of cool because Rico Coliseum was where the Toronto Marlies

00:27:07.400 played, which is the under the Leafs, the AHL team, the farm team, but we would go there

00:27:13.300 and I played there as a kid because we played rep hockey and sometimes we'd play there or

00:27:19.600 I think we did like an intermission, you know, they have like the young kids come out for

00:27:23.360 intermission and play well, you know, whatever, before they samboney the ice.

00:27:30.860 So it was just kind of like a thing, Rico and then Rico Coliseum.

00:27:34.200 Oh, Rico Rico, you know, and I want to perform that.

00:27:37.980 I'd like to, I want to perform ACC.

00:27:40.480 That's where everybody, the big comics, when you get big, you perform that.

00:27:44.100 I want to do Rogers Center.

00:27:46.100 And I think the, I think other, the other comics that have done Rogers, I think like George

00:27:50.760 Carlin did Rogers Center.

00:27:52.140 Like I want to perform where the baseball team plays because in Toronto, because that is the

00:27:59.080 biggest stadium that Toronto has and I love Toronto. 0.94

00:28:05.460 I'm sad that it's fucking crumbling, but I think it's going to get better. 0.81

00:28:09.200 And everybody who came out and bought tickets, I think a lot of people are going to already 0.96

00:28:13.200 have bought tickets for the second show or the next show in November.

00:28:18.040 But yeah, anything you guys want to know, ask me and we'll talk about it on Patreon.

00:28:27.420 Go to patreon.com slash Ben Bank is sign up five bucks a month.

00:28:31.340 US a month gets you bonus podcasts weekly shit talk sessions with my friends hanging out talking 0.99

00:28:41.440 about the biz, talking about everything that we want to talk about and, um, you know, fuck 0.99

00:28:48.040 everybody that doesn't get it, doesn't want to fucking support, doesn't want to be a part 0.99

00:28:53.760 of this. 0.98

00:28:54.040 Cause this is a fucking, this is, this is, this is magic and we're making magic happen every 0.99

00:29:00.100 motherfucking day. 0.99

00:29:01.800 Thank you. 0.98

00:29:03.140 And, um, see a Detroit.

00:29:06.420 See you.

00:29:06.880 What else is coming up?

00:29:07.720 Uh, Poughkeepsie, Poughkeepsie, New York, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Boston, Massachusetts.

00:29:15.540 And then after that, uh, Greenville, South Carolina, Jacksonville, Florida.

00:29:23.040 Um, I'm going to be there.

00:29:25.080 So I'll, I'll see you there.

00:29:26.600 And there's more, there's tons more dates in June.

00:29:29.240 So I love you guys.

00:29:30.320 And thank you.

00:29:31.600 Good night.

Bankas Podcast - May 08, 2025

I almost like Mark Carney ｜ Bankas Podcast - #092

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