Jo Koys Journey From Stand-Up Favorite to 2023 Golden Globes Host

Posted by Aldo Pusey on Friday, May 24, 2024

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From selling out stadiums to dropping several successful stand-up specials to publishing an autobiography, Jo Koy has already checked off several major milestones in his comedy career. He can now check off another: hosting the 2024 Golden Globe Awards. This will be Koy’s first appearance as a host for a major awards show.

Koy, whose comedy often focuses on his family and Filipino identity, is known for his “Funny Is Funny World Tour” and five stand-up specials on Comedy Central and Netflix. His style focuses on storytelling, conveying his own experiences in a way that is relatable to all.

“Comedy is like music, there’s different genres,” Koy told Variety in 2020. “In music you have country, jazz, R&B and in comedy there’s impersonators, political commentators, puppet guys … all sorts of different styles. I’m never going to juggle or talk about politics; I’m a storyteller.”

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In 2022, he starred in Universal Pictures’ feature film “Easter Sunday,” which draws from his personal experiences and stand-up comedy routines. He also recently appeared in Disney’s “Haunted Mansion” and voiced the character Bendo in Netflix’s “Monkey King.”

But Koy’s journey to earning stand-up and acting success was not without hurdles. In fact, he told Variety in 2020 that he bombed his first time performing stand-up comedy when he was young at Las Vegas’ “Starmania,” where people would perform at local bars. “My mouth went chalky. I forgot everything I wanted to say,” he recalled. Still, that experience did not deter Koy, who had wanted to be a comedian since he was 11.

After dropping out of college, Koy was still living in Las Vegas and working various day jobs, finding few opportunities to perform. A chance encounter with future “Sopranos” star Steve Schirripa — who was working as a comedy booker at the Riviera at the time — advised Koy to go to Los Angeles to work on his craft. Taking his advice to heart, Koy drove five hours to Los Angeles’ Laugh Factory, where he met his good friend Tiffany Haddish.

“I have never seen him bomb, and I don’t know if I can say that for any other comic. He is always funny, whether it was a sold-out room or just five people in the audience. From day one, I thought he was a superstar. I was like, ‘This guy’s going to be the most famous dude in the world,’” Haddish told Variety in 2020.

Koy got his big break performing stand-up on an episode of “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno” and would go on to appear on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” “@Midnight With Chris Hardwick,” “The Joy Behar Show,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” “Last Call With Carson Daly” and “Jamie Foxx: Laffapalooza.” He also appeared in more than 100 episodes of “Chelsea Lately,” Chelsea Handler’s late night series on E!.

The comedian pinpoints the day his life changed as when his first Netflix special “Jo Koy: Live From Seattle” aired in March 2017. From that point on, Koy was selling out shows, shooting more specials, landing movie deals — and now, emceeing major awards ceremonies.

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