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You Cannot Be Serious!
San Diego Comic Mal Hall has come a long way in a short period of time. With only four years of performing as a comedian, Mal has worked with headliners Jim Breuer, Dat Phan, Mark Christopher Lawrence, Ian Edwards, Bobby Lee, and Patrick DeGuire at clubs and colleges across the country.
Mal is featured as a regular in studio guest on The Show (KIOZ FM Rock 105.3), and DSC on 94.9FM in San Diego.
In January of 2009, Mal was named the unanimous winner of the 2009 Orange County Comedy Competition, which featured over 100 local and national contestants at the Irvine Improv. Along with regularly performing at the World Famous Comedy Store and the Irvine Improv, he has performed at the Planet Hollywood Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, and for many members of the US military at various bases worldwide.
Hometown:Potrero, CA
Favorite Happy Hour: The Tipsy Crow has a dope drink exchange happy hour that is super fun! It’s a stock exchange style happy hour, so drink popularity affects prices!
Favorite cocktail: The Salty Dog (Belvedere Pink Grapefruit Vodka, Fresh Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice, Salt Rim)
What is something only a local would know about San Diego?
Basic (10th and J in the East Village) has the best pizza in town and El Zarape in University Heights has the best Mexican food in town!
Favorite place to perform in San Diego:
In order: 1- The Gaslamp Comedy Show at The Tipsy Crow, 2- The La Jolla Comedy Store 3- Lestat’s Coffee House in Normal Heights
Favorite place for live comedy in San Diego:
The Gaslamp Comedy Show at The Tipsy Crow is the only premier standup comedy show downtown in the Gaslamp. If you want to get a taste of what comedy is like in New York City, you have to check this show out the second Friday and last Thursday of every month.
Why did you get into comedy?
I got into comedy for the power, respect and women! I love attention and I love making people laugh and standup is perfect for that! Besides that, what other job can you wake up at noon, play video games all day and work for 30 minutes and still make rent without a college degree?
Where and when was your first show and how the hell did that go?
December 14, 2006 at the Comedy Co-Op in Sorrento Valley. The Comedy Co-Op was a warehouse that was converted into a comedy venue and it was a very supportive venue for comics, by comics. The set went well! I wasn’t nervous and the audience seemed to enjoy my carefully rehearsed five-minute set.
How has your comedy changed over the last four years?
The biggest thing that has changed about my comedy is my stage presence and delivery. I spent the first year or so of comedy hoping people would laugh - now I hit the stage with a certain amount of confidence knowing that they will laugh.
How would you describe your brand of comedy?
Observational/Social Commentary. I try to find the absurdity in everyday life situations by taking a look a little bit deeper than the surface revealing reasons to laugh at ourselves.
Worst show to date:
I’ve had plenty of bad shows where I didn’t deliver the way I’d like to, but I don’t commit those dates to memory. I don’t have any of the classic horror stories yet (getting booed off stage or tomatoes thrown at me, etc.) and I hope I don’t have one anytime soon.
Best show to date:
December 9, 2009 at The Comedy Store on the Sunset Strip. The show was the final showcase for NBC’s Stand-Up For Diversity. I was already in the top ten of their national talent search, but my performance that night put me in the top five and booked me a spot on NBC’s Stand-Up for Diversity National College Tour.
How has your life influenced your comedy?
Big time! My life is where I get all of my material whether it be interactions caused by my ethnicity, or my day-to-day experiences - it all finds its way into what I do on stage.
What are the common themes in your routines?
I talk about my half Black, half Asian background and random people that I often find myself staring at in public.
Who are the stereo typical douchebags that commonly make an appearance in your routines?
Guys who fist bump and explode it, girls who say “I Heart”, and dudes in skinny jeans.
Do you have a played out set list or do you see where the show takes you?
I hit the stage with a general idea of what I want to talk about and I try to stick to that plan, but I make sure I’m in the room and I let the vibe of the audience dictate where the show goes.
Any pre-show rituals?
I always listen to some Kanye West before every show.
Best thing about being a standup comedian:
Traveling all over the world and meeting new people is the most fun part to me.
Worst thing about being a standup comedian:
The worst part of being a stand up comedian is the expectation of being funny all the time, and random people volunteering their “hilarious” jokes. They say things like “Mal, you can use that in your skit”, also people asking me to tell them a joke on command are all equally the worst part of the job to me.
What has been your all-time low as a comedian?
One time I did a show and didn’t get a standing ovation - that was a terrible day at the Mal Hall house.
What has been your all-time high as a comedian?
Performing for the Troops at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base for a week. It was awesome to be out supporting the people who make it possible for me to do what I do. They sacrifice so much so we can be free, that was definitely an honor.
How’s the local comedy scene? What other local comedian should we check out?
The local comedy scene is small, but mighty. It is hard to have a big scene with only two comedy clubs in town (Comedy Store and Comedy Palace), but there are a lot of guys working hard to produce high quality comedy material. There are a lot of guys that I enjoy watching, but I especially enjoy watching Kyle Ray at The La Jolla Comedy Store and Terrell Wright at The Comedy Palace in Clairemont.
What current comedian do you most respect?
I really like Kevin Hart and Ian Edwards. You should do your life a favor and YouTube them, they're hilarious!
What’s your ultimate direction and goal as a comedian? Are you looking for fame and fortune?
My ultimate goal is to make the cover of Happy Hour Magazine, then after that if I can sell out Spreckles Theatre that would be awesome! Fame and fortune is nice and I’ll take it if I can, but as long as I can make a good living doing what I love, I’m happy.
What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned about the comedy business?
Practice makes perfect and the customer isn’t always right. To get good at comedy you have to perform all the time to stay sharp and get better. Sometimes an audience doesn’t like a certain joke, not because the joke is bad, but because they're terrible people inside! [Laughing]
Do you still have other jobs besides the comedy scene?
Nope! Full-time Comedian and I love it!
You post quite a few movie reviews on your Facebook page, what’s the best/worst movies recently released?
The worst movie I’ve seen in a while was Splice, I walked out 20 minutes into the movie. A movie that I saw recently and liked was Unstoppable (the train movie with Denzel Washington), it was action packed and highly enjoyable to watch!
What’s something about yourself that many don’t know?
I’m vegetarian and when I’m bored or have writer’s block I like to cook and bake to clear my mind - Enchilada Casserole is one of my new favorite dishes to cook!
Plans and goals for 2011?
My goals are to book as many TV spots possible - on Comedy Central, Late Night shows, etc. Always continue writing and performing standup comedy that my city can be proud of.
Website: MalHall.com
YouTube: /MalComedy
Upcoming Shows:
Mal Hall presents The Gaslamp Comedy Show at The Tipsy Crow
Time: 7:30pm
Dates: 1/14, 1/27, 2/11, 2/24
Where: Tipsy Crow | Gaslamp | 770 5th Ave. | 619.338.9300
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