Aidan DeSousa, a comic from Vancouver, believes in comedic versatility and has an anecdotal style of comedy. He is highly influenced by his family and friends and uses them in much of his comedy. We had the opportunity to speak with him to learn more about how he fell in love with George Carlin at the age of 15, his crazy pre-show rituals and more.
How would you describe your comedy style?
I would say my standup falls under the more anecdotal style. I’ll often tell stories from my life and mix jokes throughout. But I use every style of comedy in my sketches, videos, standup, and podcasts. I think you need to be versatile and be able to make jokes in lots of different ways to appeal to a larger audience. Everyone has a different sense of humor so the more styles you can use, the more people you can reach.
Who are some of your influences?
I get a lot of comedic influence from my friends and family. A lot of the people in my life are very funny themselves and they often will say things that are wildly moronic and engage in ridiculous behaviours that spark ideas for jokes, sketches, premises, etc. Use the people around you for your benefit is my point.
Who was your favourite comedian growing up?
George Carlin was how I first got introduced to stand-up comedy. I was maybe 15 and a group of us were helping a friend paint the side of his dad’s house because his dad was cheap and got off on child labour. He played a George Carlin album for us while we worked and it hooked me immediately. I became obsessed and listened to everything Carlin had done. I would say Carlin, Bill Burr, and Katt Williams were my favourites as a kid.
Who is your favourite comedian now?
My favourite comedian now is Tim Dillon. I’ve always been a big fan of a good rant and there’s no one better at the art of the rant than Tim Dillon. His ability to go off on any subject and beautifully weave humour throughout it is second to none. He dabbles quite frequently in dark subject matter making light of it all and I really enjoy that kind of humour. I saw his latest hour at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre and it was one of the best stand-up hours I’ve seen in a long long time.
What is your pre-show ritual?
As someone who has been involved in many cults in my life, no one understands the importance of rituals more than I do. When it comes to pre-show, I’ve found that a sacrifice/blood ritual works best and really gets me in the zone. I won’t go into details on what exactly is sacrificed, but trust me, it’s ethical 😉
What is your favourite place you have performed? Why?
The Toronto Yuk-Yuk’s has been my favourite so far. I grew up in Ontario and had been to that venue many times before I even knew I wanted to do comedy. It’s a really cool club with an old-school feel and lots of history. It is also the place my parents saw me perform for the first time, so it holds some sentimental value for me. Only because that set went well, if I had bombed in front of my parents there I probably would have told you that place is a shit-hole and should be burned to the ground.
What is your favourite bit you have written and why were you proud of it?
Years ago before I started comedy I overheard this unhoused street gentleman say to another that he couldn’t eat in the mornings. I just heard it in passing and this obviously wasn’t what he was talking about, but I thought it was funny the idea of him explaining to the other man how he’s doing intermittent fasting. I jotted it down and said that I would do it on stage one day. It is now a full-length bit about the unhoused talking about the latest diets they’re doing like they’re my aunts at Christmas. The bit has grown and evolved so much over time and I’m really proud of it because I wrote down a lot of garbage before I started, but this one worked and turned into a joke that consistently gets great laughs.
What is your favourite medium for listening or finding new comics/comedians?
The internet! Instagram, TikTok, Twitter. I spend a good amount of time on these soul suckers since that’s where I post all of my content and engage with my audience. It’s usually a hellscape on there but every now and then I’ll come across a video that makes me laugh so hard. I’ll go to the person’s page and, if they’ve been at it for a while, there’s a whole feed of incredible videos, jokes, skits/sketches, and it’s all there for FREE!
Tell us a joke about your city.
You always hear about how much B.C. people love camping but you never fully understand it until you get to Vancouver and see that even in the city there’s people camping year-round.
Do you have anything to promote right now?
Follow my social media pages! I have so many videos/sketches/skits on there, and I post multiple new videos per week. Also, come out and watch some LIVE comedy god damnit. I post on my social media when and where I’ll be performing. There are so many great shows happening all over the city every weekend and lots of great, talented comedians to enjoy.
Where can we follow you?
PAY IT FORWARD: Who is another local comic/comedian we should know about?
Young Ernie Hart! Another Ontario refugee like myself. He’s a young gen z kid who is super talented and a very hard worker. He started this very young and is committed to getting better and putting in the work. I think he’s going to do very well and be a BIG star!
