Jessi Saldana

If you had met Jessi Saldana in his childhood, you’d know he has lived a thousand childhoods in one. Picture a kid bouncing from skateboarding ramps to emo playlists, from band practice to deep academic dives—all in the tiny town of Willis, Texas, north of Houston. When you live a thousand childhoods, eventually comedy will get its chance. A friend introduced him to Comedy Central and George Lopez, and he became obsessed. When he turned his attention turned to comedy, his family gave him a less-than-lukewarm reception—some even said, "You're not funny." Turns out, unpredictability was his brand from the start, and no other obsession would loom so large in his life.

While Jessi's first foray into comedy was in Conroe, Texas, he eventually made the move to Houston to make his mark. At first, it meant driving an hour to perform in the big city, night after night, just for the chance to make people laugh before clocking in at your day job the next morning. Of the three big comedy scenes in Texas (Houston, Dallas, and Austin), Houston may be the hardest to break through in. Crowds expect to be laughing within moments of a comic stepping on stage. This was a great training ground for Jessi. Houston comics didn’t sugarcoat feedback, either—all tough love and no shortcuts. That grind shaped him—every bomb, every piece of advice, every late-night hang. And his family took notice, too. His never-ending shift in interests stopped with comedy and they noticed his tenacity.

Change is never easy, but for Jessi, moving to Austin was a leap of faith—equal parts chasing new fun and testing his love for standup. He didn’t overthink it. With a trailer of stuff and a heart full of what-ifs, Austin became a new playground for him to play. But it wasn't all play, Austin became a testing ground for him - did he love standup as much as he thought (the answer is yes), and how did he navigate the changes in the Austin comedy scene post-pandemic. In Austin, he found new crowds, new struggles, and new reasons to keep going. A self-admitted cynic, he’s traded some of his old cynicism for optimism (it’s a work in progress, he admitted). With his dedicated monthly show Tuesday Gigante, Jessi has found his niche, an all-hispanic standup show at Rozco's Comedy Club. Jessi's outlook is more positive and he's had great experiences including an LMAOF comedy special and, recently, a last-minute opening set for Houstonian Mo Amer. I was at that show and seeing Jessi launch an incredible night of comedy was worthy of celebration. But, fighting that cynical mindset isn't easy. Even as we gush about those victories, Jessi notes, "But the thing with comedy is you always want more.” Here's to more Jessi in our lives.