Chilly Palmer once said that it doesn’t what time you arrive because when you’re important, people will wait. To debate that theory ethically, comedian Sherwin Arae makes an exciting appearance at Chocolate Sundaes inside of The Laugh Factory Comedy Club. During his performance, Arae explains why he loves performing at black comedy shows, especially when the show begins on time.
Originally from Tehran, Iran Sherwin came to America at a young age. Raised in an Iranian household while attending American schools created Sherwin’s comedic foundation. “Our neighborhood was mostly white, with the exception of one black family next door to us, I was so happy to see that Iranians were not the only ones who put plastic covers on their furniture.”
But life was not always easy for Sherwin as a minority. “I remember my first baseball game; my dad showed up to cheer me on but the only problem was he didn’t speak English. When he saw the other parents yelling in English he decided to yell in Farsi. Everyone was terrified – Little League was never quite the same.”
From that moment Sherwin frequently would re-enact what his father did for others to enjoy. After a while Sherwin went on to start impersonating his uncles, aunts and cousins. Nobody was safe. “It got to the point where people just didn’t want to talk when I was around for fear that I would impersonate them later on, and I never wanted to let anyone down.” Sherwin was slowly beginning to find his true calling in life. Comedy. “I remember getting a hold of Eddie Murphy’s Delirious. It was a drug and I was dangerously addicted. I watched it over and over and over again, to the point where I memorized the entire thing.”
Sherwin’s parents however were very serious about education with Sherwin. After completing high school Sherwin went on to college where he obtained a Bachelors in Information Systems, followed by a Masters, and an MBA. Upon graduation, Sherwin began working in corporate America. “Sitting in a cube all day felt so restrictive, it just wasn’t me. My friends kept urging me to try comedy since that was all I seemed to talk about. Finally in 2009 I gave it a shot. I did 5 minutes of material and it was everything I had ever dreamed of. I knew that this is what I was going to do with my life. Make people laugh.”
Sherwin has since been performing at various comedy clubs in NY and California.
Sherwin’s all-time favorite standup bit is Eddie Murphy’s cookout scene from Delirious.
