Modern Minorities

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EP 238: Jocelyn Chia’s (objectively) funny

Modern Minorities

“Jokes are subjective anyway, but laughs are as objective as you can get — as long as the joke is funny and the audience is laughing. That's where the line is, if people laugh or not.”

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Jocelyn Chia is a New York-based lawyer-turned-comedian, who's a regular at the Comedy Cellar and Gotham Comedy Club, and has been featured in Vulture, Vice, CNN, BBC, The New York Times, Sirius XM, MTV, Fox News, TMZ, Vice TV, and Comedy Central. Now if the name Jocelyn Chia sounds familiar - or even if it doesn't, you've heard of her. That's because she really is infamous...at least in Malaysia. You see, back In June 2023, Jocelyn made the front page of The New York Times. The Singaporean comedian got into hot water when she told a series in NYC  that went viral with Malaysians, but not in a good way. And we're not talking about just a few Malaysians. We're talking about pretty much the entire country. So FrieMMd of the Pod and THE Funny Indian Rajiv Satyal reached out to have her on HIS TanGent podcast - because he admired her willingness to stand her ground and not apologize for a joke. You'll hear Jocelyn's deep-dive into what happened, how she dealt with it, how the levels of trust about the media among Asian and American comedians differ, and how Jocelyn's mental health preparation enabled her to not only weather the storm but also to capitalize on the moment. This is a great conversation between two comics not just talking about their craft, but on the very merits of free speech in our increasing global - and social - society. 


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