Gabriel Iglesias: No labels, just funny

by Emma Kat Richardson

One of the most widely recognized and biggest selling comedians of our day, Gabriel Iglesias keeps things simple, funny and mostly clean. With a new DVD in stores now and plans to record a new special this year, the road horse comic shows no signs of resting on his success.

Gabriel Iglesias wants you to know that he’s not fat; he’s fluffy. And beyond fluffy, he’s a big-hearted dude with an overwhelming comedic persona to match – a rare blend of wry, observational wit that never strays to far from the realm of the clean.

For in a world where far too many lesser comic voices have choked and perished at the hand of a dependence on f-bombs and grotesque sexual humor, it’s rather refreshing to find a guy funny on his own merit.

Leap-frogging from kids shows – he used to steal the stage as a cast member of Nickelodeon’s All That – to fiery, impermeably driven stand-up, Iglesias’s latest Comedy Central special, I’m Not Fat… I’m Fluffy is on DVD shelves right now. He’s also performing at Comedy Central’s South Beach Comedy Festival tonight!

Checking in with Punchline Magazine, Iglesias opines on institutionalized racism propped up by Walmart, his stepson, and why his death would be ultra beneficial.

How did you come up with the term ‘fluffy?’
Uh, fluffy? Oh, wow, it’s been years now. It was a nickname that my mom kinda accidentally gave me. She liked “fluffy” better than “fat.”

How do you keep jokes about being fat fresh and funny?
I guess I don’t like to refer to it as “fat.” “Fat” kinda sounds, like, mean. Fluffy sounds like, more… it almost sounds sexy. It reminds you of a cat.

You find cats sexy?
Well, women do.

Does that work for you?
It works for me, just fine.

How do you keep jokes about being ‘fluffy’ fresh and funny, especially on a scene where a lot of comedians talk about that type of material?
Basically because I talk about myself. I talk about myself, versus talking about others. I tell real stories about things that happen to me. In keeping it fresh, day-by-day, I come up with more stories – things that happen to me. I used to tell people that I’m not a comic: I’m a really funny reporter.

It’s always changing. I tell personal stories and put my real life out there, and the fact that I’m a big guy is part of something that I don’t avoid or not talk about. Of course I address it; I have to address the fact that I’m a big guy in a small man’s world. So rather than being all like, ‘Oh, I’m so sad I’m fat,’ I’m just up there dealing with it.

Jokes.com
Gabriel Iglesias – Hookers
comedians.comedycentral.com

Do you think it’s easier or more difficult to be a Latin comic in this day and age?
I think it’s more challenging for me. I try to avoid that topic, because I’m dealing with so many things that are so frustrating for me. I don’t want to [be labeled] as one kind of comic: when you talk about Seinfeld, you don’t say “Jewish comic Jerry Seinfeld.” When you talk about Steve Harvey, you don’t say “African American comedian Steve Harvey.” You just say ‘comedian,’ but with me, for some reason, because I’m bilingual and doing the whole Spanish thing, Latino, it’s almost like they’re using ethnicity to hold us back.

I’ll give you an example: I’ve done two DVDs already, and the first one I have out, Walmart refuses to carry it in an English section. They have the DVD in the Spanish section next to the, you know, Mexican soap operas and whatever else is in Spanish. That’s really frustrating.

Do you know why? Have you talked to their sales rep about that?
I think it’s just ignorance. Not knowing the product and not knowing who’s doing what. I have to tell people that if you don’t find me in the new release section or on the regular rack, check the Spanish section. Sure enough, that’s where I’m at.

What have you as a comic tried to do to transcend that labeling?
I try to focus hard on my show and make sure that it’s still funny. I’m doing more than other guys are.

Your comedy is a lot cleaner than that of your contemporaries. Was keeping your material relatively clean a conscious decision, or something that came naturally to you?
It was actually advice that I got from a really dirty comic. He basically made it really clear that he’s funny, but because of the fact that he works blue, he’s not given as many opportunities. He said if he could give me any advice, it would be to try and work clean. I normally just try to keep all the f-bombs out. Don’t get me wrong – in my special, I did an hour and ended on a fuck joke, but that was only one time in an hour. Not bad.

Do you think you’ll always be going in that direction?
I’ll always stick to that direction. If for some reason my career fizzles out, you can always slip it and go dirty, but you can never go from dirty to clean.

Does your stepson ever watch your comedy? What do you want him to take away from it?
He does watch my comedy. He’s in so much of it! [Laughs]. A whole bunch of it. He’s really cool with it. The fact that his friends kinda make life easier for him because I talk about him is kinda really cool.

When I talk about myself, I try to talk about it as positively as I can. He’s a big kid, so he’s not ashamed of being a big kid, and he might experience some of the same problems I did when he gets older. As far as the way he looks at himself now, he’s very proud and he’s a happy kid.

Jokes.com
Gabriel Iglesias – Kids Discovering Late Night TV
comedians.comedycentral.com

Since you used to be on Nickelodeon, have you found it easy to transition from kid’s entertainment to a more general, wide-based comedy style?
I think because my show is silly – I try not to take myself too seriously with it – I just try to keep it friendly. It’s always been like that. I think [it comes naturally] to me. I’ll give you an example: I could go up onstage and talk about this interview, and I could find a way to make it really funny.

I take everything that happens on a day-to-day basis and talk about how I’m challenged; things get thrown at me, and it’s harder for me to do so-and-so. I’ll bring up the thing about Walmart. I’ll talk about being a big guy for a little bit, and about how you called me fat. It’s cool.

Can I have a pseudonym onstage, please?
[Laughs]. I’ll find a way to do it, and I’ll be very friendly about it.

What is your technique for perfecting sound effects and imitations? Is it a practice that you work on every day?
It’s about a good sound system. You can’t practice unless you have a good sound system. You can sit there and go, [makes vibrating buzzing noise], but it has to happen onstage. I’ve been doing that since I was about 10. I was a huge fan of the Police Academy movies and Michael Winslow.

I liked your story in your stand-up special about getting recognized in public. Do you take these occurrences to mean that you’ve really made it in your field?
I don’t think I’ve made it. I think I’m far from. I think I’m in the right direction, but I don’t think of myself in the terms of, “Ah ha! I’ve arrived!” I think when you start thinking that you’ve made it, you start declining. I think that’s the end of your career right there. You’ve got to keep yourself hungry and keep yourself focused. No pun intended on the ‘hunger’ part.

How do you keep yourself focused?
By staying busy. I’m on the road 46 weeks of the year. I balance home life and I balance the road life, so in that plan, I work hard right there. I make it happen.

Is there some sort of milestone that would need to happen for you to feel that you’ve got that brass ring in your hand?
I think when I’m dead is when it’s going to happen. That’s always the case – somebody dies, and their DVDs and artwork starts going through the roof.

Jokes.com
Gabriel Iglesias- The Sixth Level of Fat
comedians.comedycentral.com

So death is the goal for you, then?
Rest in peace is when I’m gonna go platinum, baby. But I enjoy it. Even though I bitch and moan about some of the little things I’m going through, if I didn’t have those things, I wouldn’t have nothing to talk about.

What’s up next for you? Are you working on any movie or TV projects?
I’m doing another special at the end of next year. This one, I’m going to call it Funny, and it’s kind of a putting a group of guys together. It’s going to be an ensemble – five guys in one show. They’re all friends of mine – guys that I’ve worked with over the years, and guys that I think are really, really funny who aren’t given the same opportunities. We’re going to put them all together on one, and we’re going to release it and it’s going to be called Funny. One guy, then the next guy, then the next guy, then I close the whole thing out.

For more info on Gabriel, check out his official site at fluffyguy.com. And be sure to snag yourself a copy of his latest DVD by clicking the image below.