How the internet caused a comedian to catch fire in the 32nd year of his career.

Facebook, Instagram and TikTok have suddenly led millions of people to Brad Upton’s comedy, and they have discovered a comedian that has mastered the nearly impossible task of appealing to people from the ages of 18 to 80. No one has been more surprised than Brad; he has been very humbled by the newfound fame at this point in his career. Postcards sat down for a conversation with the comedian before his recent performance in Huntsville at the Old Town Theatre.

You started out as a teacher. Expand on that.

I taught 4th grade for seven years. Why that age? Because that’s where the opening was. I also coached high school track. Teaching elementary is hard. After several years, my plan was to transition to teach high school P.E.—because it would be easier, and I would make the same salary. But then I got into standup, and I never went back.

How did the move to comedy happen?

I had been drawn to it for a long time, since I was a teen. This was the early 1980s, when comedy was really starting to pick up. Now, there are “open mics” everywhere—but, at the time, I didn’t know how to get started. I had been writing material for about five years, but I just didn’t have the guts to try it. At age 28, I finally drove 200 miles to an open mic night in Seattle, got on stage, and killed the first time out. It was such a relief to finally do it. If it had been different—if I had bombed my first time out—I probably would never have done it again. But it went well, and within about 17 months, I left teaching to pursue comedy full-time. I have now been working in comedy for 40 years.

Were you married at the time you made the career change?

No, but I had been dating Julie, my future wife, for several years. We got married the year after I left teaching. She was okay with the decision. I had said, “I’ll leave teaching for a year and see what happens. I can always go back.” After one year, I said, “Let’s try another year. I think I can make a living at this,” and she was very supportive. I could still go back to teaching, but I don’t believe I will <chuckles>. I still coach track at the high school where my kids attended, and I still find enjoyment in it. I have been doing it for the last 18 years. I miss some meets along the way, but I turn down some comedy work in May—when it’s district, and regionals, and state—so I can be there, because those are big weekends for the kids.

How long did it take for you to come up with the “Millennials” material?

That is low-hanging fruit, man! I have so much more. I just had a lady tell me, “I supervise 13 Gen Z kids in a corporate office. I had a 26-year-old kid come up to me and say, ‘I need a week off because my roommate’s cat died.’ He was serious, and I had to let him off.”

I’m like, “Are you kidding me?!” What have we come to? I did two shows in Vegas the night my dad died.

You have worked alongside and opened for some big names. Did you get to interact much with them in

those situations?

Some of them, yes; some of them, no. I worked with the Smothers Brothers a number of times. Tommy and I had

many fun nights after the shows. I opened for Johnny Mathis for the last 17 years. He is a sweet, sweet man; he is a dear friend and the kindest human in the world. I also worked with Joan Rivers a bunch. She was caustic onstage, but offstage, as sweet as she could be. She liked me because I was clean comedy, and she wanted a clean opener.

That’s a little unusual in comedy. It’s nice to have a clean comedian.

It’s been very lucrative for me. It’s how I’ve had a nice career. I still do a lot of corporate events and open for a lot of

music acts where they don’t want some- one who is going to be offensive. When I first started, I thought, “I know my mom is going to come see me, and I don’t want to do anything that’s going to make my mom upset.” She is now 94 years old, and she will still tell me if I suck.

Share how the Grand Ole Opry opportunity happened.

I initially reached out to the Opry and never heard back. After my video went viral, I reached out again. The video had 75 million views at that point, and the contact lady happened to be one of the 75 million. She said, “I’d like to have you here.” I made my debut in September of 2018. That was surreal, because I know what the Opry represents. And for the first time in a number of years, I was actually nervous about performing that night. I have now appeared there close to 20 times. Comedy has always been in the history of the Opry, with folks like Minnie Pearl and Stringbean. But what a privilege, because they don’t use a lot of comedians. It’s a huge honor.

Tell us more about “the video” that went viral.

Totally luck. I had been doing that material in the clubs for 10 years! So, when it took off, I was surprised. I was one of the very first people to record a Dry Bar Comedy special in January of 2017. Dry Bar wasn’t even online yet when I taped my first one. They started with short clips of differ- ent comedians, then went to few longer clips, and it seemed like longer clips were getting more views. I called them and suggested they put up a longer version from my session. He put up “The Millennials” bit. We were on vacation in Quebec when it came out, and my phone just went crazy. It got 6 million views the first 24 hours, 12 million views in 48 hours, and 33 million views in 10 days. That video just changed everything.

That original video is still out there, and Dry Bar claims it is the most watched standup clip ever. I don’t do that material anymore in my show, because it has been seen so much.

That was weird, after 34 years, to be recognized. Every night up to then, I went on stage basically anonymously,

because people were like, “Okay. There’s going to be a comedian; I hope he’s good.” I generally exceeded their expectations. Then, all of a sudden, people knew who I was, and I’m like, “Oh…I hope I MEET their expectations.” So, that was different mentally.

The material becomes a challenge, as well. You’ve got these bits that people love. I still don’t know the answer. Do I do them because people want to see them, or do I not do it because they’ve already seen it? It’s a struggle. The other bit I hear the most about is “Honey got a booty like pow pow pow.” People come up to me after shows and seem disappointed that I didn’t include it. But I don’t, because they’ve seen it. So, I don’t know.

How much of the year are you on the road?

After we came out of covid and I blew up on the internet, it has been busy. I have been gone doing shows every weekend for two years, almost. In 2025, I’m going to cut way back. My wife retired in April, and we want to go do stuff! You know, I’m 68 years old, been doing this for 40 years, and I love doing it, but I’m going to cut back from 170 shows a year to about 40, I hope.

What’s your favorite thing about traveling?

I like traveling! Some people think it’s horrible, but I’ve always liked traveling and am interested in places I’ve never been. Like Huntsville! I had never been to Huntsville before, other than passing through on the interstate.

For 26 years, I worked doing shows on cruise ships. I didn’t work a lot…I would do about 5 or 6 cruises a year, and I got to go all over the world! I would look at those places and think, “I want to bring Julie back here someday.” Now it’s time. I’m looking forward to traveling with my wife and not having to pack any “show clothes.” We’re just gonna go where we wanna go and take our time.

What has been the biggest “life lesson” you’ve gotten on the road?

Being nice to people sure works better. That’s always the way I’ve operated, but you have the opportunity all the

time to deal with strangers…and being nice works better! Like last night, the hotel clerk handed me my key and

said, “You’re in 220.” I replied, “Are you trying toguess my weight…because I feel kinda ‘triggered…but you were kinda close, so…’”<laughs> I made him laugh. It just works better. It’s just easier.

For more information, visit bradupton.com