Vancouver, B.C.
“Laughter is God’s gift to us”, iconic comedian tells ecstatic audience
Review by Charmaine Rodriguez Kara
Filipino-American comedian Jo Koy brought an audience of over 12,000 in stitches during a two-hour show at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver last night, September 16, 2022.
“Laughter is God’s gift to us,” he told the crowd at the Rogers Arena as he commented on and mimicked the different kinds of laughter from the audience and encouraged everyone to enjoy themselves.
Like his show in Toronto last month, Jo Koy revealed that he is improvising for this leg of the world tour due to the release of his highly anticipated fourth Netflix stand-up special which was shot in March 2022 at the Forum in Los Angeles.
He started the show by talking to the audience and asking them about their ethnicity and who they were with.
In last night’s show, a couple who brought their 12-year-old son and another daughter of South Asian descent got a surprising question: “Have you tried Filipino adobo?” When they responded “no,” Jo Koy promised to come back to Vancouver and treat them to dinner with the famous Filipino chicken adobo, eliciting applause from the audience.
“Jo knows how to work a crowd and make them laugh. It’s nice to experience improv comedy rather than hearing jokes that he’s going to feature in his next Netflix special too. The jokes were hilarious and the crowd interaction was top notch! Josep was worth the money!!!” wrote T.D. at the ticketmaster website’s review section.
Born Joseph Glenn Herbert Sr. to an American father and a Filipino mother who immigrated to the United States, Jo Koy is currently doing his Funny is Funny World Tour—where some of the venues have sold out shows.
Jo Koy, who was raised by a single mom with three other siblings, began as a stand-up comedian in a Las Vegas coffee shop. He is now selling out venues around the globe including Radio City Music Hall (New York), The Forum (Los Angeles), Mall of Asia Arena (Manila), Coca-Cola Arena (Dubai) and ICC Theatre (Sydney).
Jo Koy became a household name after his 2019 Netflix special, Comin’ In Hot – Koy has had four highly rated and successful stand-up specials on Comedy Central and Netflix. In June 2020, he released his first variety special, Jo Koy: In His Elements on Netflix in which Koy brings the laughs and beats to Manila, spotlighting local culture in a one-of-a-kind show featuring Filipino-American comedians, DJs and B-boys.
Clips of his Netflix special are on Tiktok and Facebook reels garnering millions of views.
Jo Koy keeps saying that he is proud of his Filipino heritage, with a lot of his material based on his mother—Josie Harrison.
Aside from his Netflix special, Jo Koy is also promoting his comedy film, Easter Sunday, produced by Steven Spielberg. Debuting in Aug. 5, the feature film is loosely based on Koy’s life and is set around a Filipino family gathering to celebrate Easter Sunday.
The film was said to be shot entirely in Vancouver, British Columbia during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
For his show in Vancouver, the display of love was heartwarming as audiences laughed, applauded and screamed in enjoyment during the performance. Towards the end of the show, Jo Koy played famous 90’s hits and asked the crowd to sing along.
“An epic ending to a great night of comedy,” Facebook user Chris Sandro posted.
For karaoke-loving Filipinos, that definitely was an unforgettable way to end the show.
He will be performing in Winnipeg tonight at the Canada Life Centre, making good his promise to return to the city after his amazing four sold-out performances in 2017.