Comedian Jonis Josef (30) is a Norwegian-Somali shooting star who managed to kick down all doors and make his own way onto the stand-up scene. Ever since the start of his career, Josef has created humor about skin color and immigrant culture, and his self-deprecating style has caused the whole of Norway to applaud. The comedian himself believes that the success factor has been a mixture of too high self-confidence and poor self-awareness. – If I had walked around and felt that I was bad from the start, I would never have continued with this. – The first time I left the stage I thought: “Has anyone ever delivered such a good set?” It’s completely sick to say, but it was sincerely the thought and feeling I had – and I have taken it with me further, Josef tells news. Jonis Josef has had his ups and downs throughout his career. Photo: Julia Marie Naglestad / news In the chair at Lindmo’s this week, he talks about the amazing run of his career since he entered the comedy scene in 2016. In the interview, he also tells why he now needs a break from everything, and has decided to go out on a journey to find yourself again. The impostor syndrome Despite his great self-confidence and success as a stand-up comedian, Josef was nevertheless to have a self-esteem crisis in 2017. He received comments that he was lucky to be able to play on his own skin color. The banter that often went at the expense of his own culture and origin eventually gave him the feeling that he had succeeded on the wrong basis. He felt that people were beginning to doubt him and his success. – I felt an impostor syndrome, and it got to me in such a way that I had low self-esteem. I felt like everything I was able to do as a comedian was because I was dark-skinned, and I was like, “Do people think I’m lucky because I’m black?” He stopped talking about his own culture, until he had an epiphany when he went to Los Angeles to see Dave Chapell. There he managed to get a “spot” at the club Chocolate Sundaes at the world-renowned stand-up venue Laugh Factory. Jonis Josef has had to work on his self-confidence throughout his career. Photo: Torstein Østberg – There were only dark people on stage. I did a great set, and got a good response. I take a breath and zoom out a bit, and then it dawns on me that I’m one of the dark ones – and it works. I’m funny and dark! – After that, I wasn’t afraid to talk about culture or skin color anymore. I thought, “Fuck you! I’ll use the background for what it’s worth.” The dream ended with self-sabotage In addition to stand-up, Jonis has also made a name for himself as a series creator with the series “Kongen av Gulset” (news TV) and “Kasko” (TV 2 Play). Now he is also current with the stand-up show “Woke” on TV 2 Play. A show that was a big dream for him. “The King of Gulset” is about the upbringing of Jonis Josef at Gulset in Skien. Because one of Josef’s big goals was to fill Sentrum Scene, and after a long and hard-working process, “Woke” became a reality. The jet set life as a stand-up comedian, actor and series creator went at a high pace, and when Josef had reached the point where all goals had been reached, the empty thoughts came. The career, the friends, the apartment and the boyfriend were in place – what was going to happen now? – I sat for half a year gearing up for the “Woke” show, and when it’s over I get an immediate strong feeling of sadness. For others it was just a show, while for me it was half a year of stress, work and sweat. – It’s strange to have a goal and that feeling of reaching it. You don’t get the spiritual and creative orgasm. You just sit there. That feeling is inevitable – and then I realize that the cliché is true: It’s the journey that’s fun, not the destination. On the “Woke” show, Jonis Josef talks, among other things, about cultural differences, and how tired he is of the openness around mental health. Photo: “Woke” from TV 2 Play Josef learned that the safer you feel – the more afraid you are of things going wrong. He developed habits and attitudes that resulted in self-sabotage. – When I’m feeling good, I’m just waiting for something terrible to happen. It’s like spending a long time on a great, big, beautiful house of cards, and as soon as I get stressed about it breaking, I just knock it over myself. Had to cancel everything The bottom had been reached when he felt that his body and head were no longer on the same team. – I noticed it when I was on stage not so long ago. I was very upset and sad before the show. I struggle to hold the beer that I hold in my hand, and am so weak. I go up the stairs on stage and get lactic acid in my legs. Josef is advised to go to the doctor, and there he is told that he is burnt out. He starts canceling everything. There are several reasons why life as a sought-after comedian has been demanding for the 30-year-old. He admits that it has been difficult to cope with celebrity life. The comedian has received several awards for the series “Kongen av Gulset”. Here from Gullruten in 2019. Photo: Brage Lie Jor – There is no subject at secondary school that tells you what to do if you become a public figure. You are thrown into it, and you also have to cross your fingers that you land on your feet and that it goes well, he says. One-way ticket to Nepal Josef has been in the “humor game” for several years, and now he has reached the point where he wants to take time to reflect. He wants to find himself again, and he will do that by traveling for nine months. The first stop is Kathmandu in Nepal, and he will be there for a few weeks before moving on. – This is a dream for me, to be able to go to the airport in Kathmandu after a few weeks and ask someone: “Where is your next trip going?” They also answer, for example, “Cape Verde”. Then my trip continues to Cape Verde. This is how I will be traveling for a few months. We’ll see where I end up, hopefully it won’t be in Kyiv, he says jokingly. Watch the interview with Jonis Josef on Lindmo on Friday at 21:20 on news 1 and whenever you want on news TV.
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The success was a meeting with the wall for Jonis Josef – now he wants to find himself again – news Culture and entertainment
