
Valerie Lopez

Holly Johnston
In this very special Comedy Wham anniversary episode, Valerie Lopez sits down with Duncan Carson and Brendan K. O’Grady, co-producers of the infamous Austin comedy show: Sure Thing and creators of Sure Thing Records. Carson and O’Grady were Comedy Wham Presents’ first-ever guests, and (almost) every year, they celebrate the anniversary by reminiscing, reflecting and recapping the previous year.
While the podcast began in 2016, Lopez notes that Comedy Wham, “Has evolved into this different beast” since then. Recording 39 episodes in 2022, nearly pre-pandemic output, Lopez is awed by all the different people she’s had the opportunity to talk to. For Lopez, providing a platform for comedians and artists from a variety of different races, genders and sexualities is the mission she’s most proud of. That and the projects she’s been able to help promote, “Dave Buckman on reopening ColdTowne Theater, JT Habersaat and his Altercation Festival, Andre Ricks with East Austin Comedy Club, and Monna of Claws Out Comedy in DFW” to name a few. This past year, Comedy Wham also got to participate in its first comedy festival, taking the podcast in front of a live audience at Lysistrata Comedy Festival. And finally, Lopez excitedly announces that Comedy Wham has a new team of writers. Speaking of writing, Lopez has been actively contributing writing pieces about Austin comedy to The Austin Chronicle with more expected in 2023.
Sure Thing enters its 11th year in 2023 and will also have its 500th show. Called a “near-legendary standup showcase” by The Austin Chronicle, Sure Thing is one of the longest running shows in Austin, with a stellar reputation of showcasing the best standup comedians from Austin and all over the country. The show takes place every Friday at 9:30pm at Fallout Theater and routinely sells out.
Carson and O’Grady reminisce with Lopez on Sure Thing’s humble beginnings. Originally named the Laugh Lounge as part of a radio station’s promotional effort, Carson and O’Grady took control of the show and set out to create something much bigger. They wanted people to take it seriously, and that started with giving it a new name.
Sure Thing’s reputation was no joke. Over time, eager attendees lined up hours early outside the show’s original location at Austin Java’s now shuttered Lamar location. Seeing those lines made Carson and O’Grady aware that they were creating something that stood out (and quickly filled out the back room performance area). Audiences knew they were getting a bargain with free admission.
Sure Thing took a hiatus after Austin Java closed its location and eventually found a new home at Fallout Theater. For Carson and Grady, this was an adjustment. It was hard leaving behind the space that gave them “a sense of ownership” where they had great camaraderie with the staff, but Carson and Grady have settled into Fallout Theater and learned to embrace the change, including the one that allows them to sell tickets.
2022 was an important year for Sure Thing in terms of regaining momentum after the pandemic. O’Grady says that for him, “2022 just felt like the year that things started trucking again, in terms of getting the show back up to kind of full speed.”
Carson and O’Grady also share some of their personal 2022 highlights. Carson became something of a TikTok star, amassing a large following from his daily news jokes titled, “Yesterday in a Minute.” For Carson, TikTok reignited the spark of comedy writing and breathed new life into his 16 year comedy career. Carson also announced that he created a Patreon.
For O’Grady, 2022 involved “a bit of soul searching.” O’Grady experienced his own breakthroughs. Ten years into his comedy career, he reached a point of acceptance of who he is as a performer. “So much of early stand up comedy is just trying to learn how to write a joke, just trying to learn how to stand on stage…the next 5 – 10 years is just battling to get some sense of your own voice…and I definitely feel like I’m more confident than I’ve ever been as a comic.”
Turning 40 granted O’Grady a newfound sense of self-awareness and self-acceptance. Referring to life, O’Grady says “you only get one of these, and I’m almost halfway through it.”
Carson and O’Grady’s personal breakthroughs gave them a refreshing new attitude toward Sure Thing. Their new philosophy: “If we’re going to do this, let’s just have fun with it.”
Carson and O’Grady share the best advice they’ve ever received for producing a show. It’s the advice they received from Matt Bearden, the pioneer who brought alternative standup comedy to Austin through his show, Punch, at the original Cap City Comedy Club. The advice: “Hold yourself and your show to a higher standard than everybody else. Care about who you book and be judicious about that because that’s what’s going to let you [establish] yourself in the minds of people…and make your show free and weekly. If you do that, people will find you.”
Perhaps what Carson and O’Grady are most proud of are all the lives who have been touched by Sure Thing. O’Grady says, “The way I feel rewarded by it now is that, because we have done so many shows, there are so many individual people who have had a memory with us.” They go on to share stories of couples who met at the show, people who proposed onstage, and even a divorce.
When asked what they hope for in 2023, Carson and O’Grady announce some exciting news. On February 24th, Mac Blake will be recording a new album and headlining at Sure Thing: two shows in one night. Blake’s debut album Bird Drugs (available on Sure Thing Records) is on heavy rotation in the Comedy Wham headphones (if you haven’t heard it yet, what are you waiting for?)
Carson and O’Grady express their gratitude for the show they’ve created and the lives it’s touched; their biggest hope for the future, “ To keep doing Sure Thing for as long as we get to do it.”
Follow Brendan
- Twitter — @YourPalBKO
- Instagram — @yourpalbko
Follow Duncan
- Twitter — @aduncancarson
- Instagram — @aduncancarson
- Facebook — facebook.com/duncancarson
- TikTok - @yesterdayinaminute
Follow Sure Thing
- Website — SureThingRecords.com
- Twitter — @SURETHINGATX
- Instagram — @surethingatx
- Facebook — facebook.com/SureThingATX
See Brendan, Duncan, and Sure Thing
- Every Friday Night at Fallout Theater!

Valerie Lopez

Holly Johnston
