Valerie Lopez
Richard Goodwin
This week we welcome back one of our favorite guests, a man of many pursuits, and all-around hell of a nice guy, JT Habersaat. It’s in your best interests to jump back and listen+read our first volume with him, because there’s an amazingly rich past to discover, and heaps of good advice for performers, and life in general.
The topic of advice was on the table right away when Valerie Lopez asked where life had taken Habersaat in the past year. It’s been a busy one, with a newly released EP and the finishing touches put on a new book as well. Keeping up that pace requires a tenacious work ethic, and the advice about time management that hit home with Valerie last time has continued to pay off for Habersaat. Paraphrased, he says that, like piping pizza pie, you can consider splitting your time and tasks into 8, or 16, or 32 “slices”, but “at the end of the day, you’ve still gotta kill that pizza”. In other words, sometimes the best task management advice is not to follow someone else’s approach. Pick the method that brings you joy and success; there’s no use adapting or comparing to someone else’s strategy if it isn’t what works best for you. Speaking of executing on strategies, how is Habersaat doing on the “5 year plan” he mentioned the last time we circled the sun? He jokes that it’s “out the window”, which in Habersaat-speak simply means he’s still going full speed with mainstays like Altercation Comedy Festival, but staying open to new experiences and opportunities. The festival remains near and dear to him, with a focused and devoted following that comes to Austin from all over the world to catch comics big and small in an intimate venue, Kickbutt Coffee, over the course of a weekend. “Altercation has curated an audience that is so damned cool,” Habersaat raves, and that generally the worst thing he has to deal with is someone being overly enthusiastic.
“Altercation has curated an audience that is so damned cool” Jt Habersaat
With 70+ acts over 4 days, plus the return of the “Holy Brunch” (featuring The McCuewans) and live podcasts (including Arielle Norman and Ava Smartt’s Gender Fluids) on the schedule, the $45 4‑day Altercation Comedy 2019 passes remain an obscenely good deal. Among the acts, there’s a host of other names you’ll recognize, from a heaping handful of past CW guests like Jasmine Ellis, Jake Flores, and Billie Wayne Davis, to virtual comedy icons like Joe DeRosa and Eddie Pepitone. (Take a look at the – always killer–show poster to see the full list; there are far too many great performers to do justice here.) Also new this year is an installment his new project Monster Movie Mockery, where Habersaat pairs with English Matt to riff through a memorably awful horror flick. If that’s not enough Eddie Pepitone for you (is there such a thing?), we were excited to learn Habersaat will be touring with him later this year. The two have become good friends, and it’s sure to be a series of powerhouse shows, no doubt accompanied by Habersaat’s continuing travel tales on his podcast The Road. The fortuitous pairing is yet another example of the kind of relationships he builds, with acts and performers he sincerely admires and loves to bring to new and returning audiences. Somehow between all the touring, Habersaat managed to release the previously mentioned vinyl EP, Mishka Shubaly vs Jt Habersaat: Into the Wilderness. It’s a fascinatingly unique concept: one side is Habersaat telling 20 minute story about touring Alaska, and the other is 3 songs from tour partner and musician/writer Shubaly. (The pair also collaborated on the book Killing For A Living, that had not quite dropped last July when we previously spoke with Habersaat.) Catching up with Habersaat is always a pleasure, and we highly recommend you take the opportunity to get out and see him, and invest in the well-earned cult-like experience that is Altercation Comedy Festival. Stay up to date with all of Jt Habersaat’s comings and goings, including tour dates, podcast appearances, and more, at jtcomedy.com.
—
- Altercation Festival — https://www.altercationcomedyfestival.com
-
- Headliners include Jenny Zigrino, Eddie Pepitone, Joe Derosa, Carmen Morales, and Billy Wayne Davis
- Featuring Jasmine Ellis, Mishka Shubaly, Kristine Levine, David Rodriguez, and Jake Flores
- New Programming includes Monster Movie Mockery and live podcasts!
-
- Lookout Comedy Fest — https://www.lookoutcomedyfestival.com — October 17, 2019 Chattanooga, TN
- Fest Comedy — November 2 – 3, 2019 — Gainesville, FL
- The Road Podcast — his podcast recorded while on the road
- Touring with Eddie Pepitone — For The Masses tour 2019 – 2020
Twitter
Valerie Lopez
Richard Goodwin