Carlos Morrison: Not that Kind of Nerd
March 26, 2023
Zachariah Williams
Remember the big finale scene in Flashdance where the judges aren’t really paying attention at first and then suddenly BOOM…they’re on the edge of their seats, tapping their feet? This is the audience (and judges) reaction I imagine/remember when I watch Carlos Morrison’s 2019 Funniest Person in Austin finalist set. He was a memorable ‘WHERE DID THIS GUY COME FROM?!’ standout that year.
During our conversation with Morrison it’s fascinating to discover that what might come off as hilarious dead-pan neurotic stage fright is actually grounded in his true fear of public speaking. It’s the same fear that brought him to comedy in the first place when he took an improv class to overcome his glossophobia. It’s what he opened his memorable 2019 FPIA finals set with. It’s easy to think that it’s a put on, but Morrison’s sweet awkwardness convinces you readily that there is a definite fear and genuine discomfort with being on stage.
Rewind to a young teenage Morrison and you’d find a fairly typical comic background — binge listening to comedy. With the added bonus of Morrison being raised in Austin, his favorite thing to do was listening to a local all comedy clip station where he could hear comedy as often as he could. He even got to a point where he couldn’t listen to enough comedy and began journaling his thoughts. While confessing that he was a nerd, he was quick to point out that he wasn’t the kind of nerd we were thinking of. He was a mischievous nerd (which comes through in his comedy style). As he began thinking about performing comedy and the inspiration he got from watching specials by Maria Bamford, Sarah Silverman, Zach Galifianakis, and Patton Oswalt, he started getting excited about “the idea of comics hanging out and, you know, doing shows together. and making little sketches. That was kind of exciting to me the idea of being in a van with a bunch of comedians.”
Morrison is a tall, imposing figure, we think he’d be better served by hanging out with comics in a tour bus or private jet, but such is the naïveté of a young comic. That was evident in Morrison’s first attempts at performing comedy. Once he decided to take all those journaling thoughts to a stage, he thought the only way to perform was to perform at a club. In 2018, that meant performing at Cap City Comedy Club, so he kept submitting and submitting and submitting his name to be on the legendary Sunday night Cap City Open Mic. And he kept not being added. Those in the know know that to land on the Cap City Open Mic, you have to generally be known as actively working on your sets at other open mics peppered around the city. In 2018, the open mic offerings were more limited than they are now. Until finally in Fall of 2018, he landed a spot at the Cap City Open Mic and Morrison admits, it went pretty well, “except for the last joke.”
As he talked to other comics, he learned about the Austin comedy scene and how it worked. He began performing more earnestly to get over that fear of speaking in public. It wasn’t long before he met previous guest Zain Hussain and the two struck up a friendship and collaborations together that allowed each of their strengths to shine. The two began producing shows together, including one modeled after the near-legendary Taos Co-op Saturday night show (which for a spell was hosted exclusively by comics named Andrew). The 21st Street Coop show was titled This is a Cult and would have continued had it not been for the global interruption that is Covid.
Another thing interrupted was the momentum Morrison was getting after landing in the 2019 FPIA finals. Having landed in the finals in his first ever attempt at the contest, once the contest was over, show bookers around the city were calling on him to perform on their shows. He liked the attention, but there was still that sense of fear (and the nerd mentality) that made him uneasy.
Morrison admits that the global pandemic reset his perspective. He realized that “there are more meaningful things than comedy”. Which is a stark revelation for anyone reading this (presuming some level of comedy fandom leading you, dear reader, here) and those who perform, produce, or otherwise operate in the comedy universe. Having produced several shows, Morrison laments that sometimes the business side “gums up the works and ruins the fun of it.” With a marriage on the horizon, unlike many 20-somethings he knows, he realizes that while he loves performing, hanging out with other comics, he also realizes that having a family and living in a nice house can be just as important.
This reset hasn’t stopped him from producing new shows, by the way. Frequently with the yin to his yang and fellow comedy mastermind, Zain Hussain. The two collaborated on a show held in a convenience store called Business Hours in 2022 and this spring we’ll see The Buddy System at The Velveeta Room. When we discussed how the partnership with Hussain worked, it was fascinating to listen to how the extroverted weirdness of Hussain and the introverted nerdiness of Morrison creates a collaboration of give and take on ideas to create a perfect blend of uniqueness that most any alt-comedy fan can appreciate. Which is probably why Emma Holder frequently invites the duo to perform on her What a Character show at Fallout Theater. As Morrison’s original improv teacher from Hideout Theater, Holder appreciates the character-based comedy choices that the two bring to her show, which gives them a freedom to be as silly and weird as they want to be.
While the highs of being a 2019 FPIA finalist have certainly faded a bit, Morrison has no regrets, He finds that “I’m ambitious in different ways… I want personal growth. That’s what I want from comedy… I want to get better, because it makes me a better person.” Morrison’s thoughtful approach demonstrate a maturity far beyond his years. To borrow a frequent phrase heard during his 2019 FPIA and other sets, “what’s the worst that could happen”? Is it really all that bad to readjust his comedy goals? Achieving the balance of pursuing comedy while also building a family and home, doesn’t seem like a bad outcome to us. And by all accounts, that may be Morrison’s ultimate dream.
Follow Carlos Morrison
- Website — carlosmorrison.com
- Linktree — linktr.ee/crapbycarlos
- Instagram — @crapbycarlos
- Youtube — youtube.com/@carlosmorrison
Carlos can be seen and heard:
- The Buddy System — April 7, 2023 10pm — The Velveeta Room
- What a Character hosted by Emma Holder — appears frequently
- Around Austin
Valerie Lopez
Valerie Lopez