Stand-up comedian Calvin Cole does not want to just make people laugh.
He wants to be liked.
“People could absolutely love your jokes, but when they walk out, they will immediately forget you,” said Cole, a UF graduate. “You want to make people like you. There’s a deep satisfaction in making a room of complete strangers like you.”
Cole was named the Funniest Student in America at the Just for Laughs comedy festival presented by TBS, where he competed against three other college stand-up comedians.
He and the rest of the UF comedy group – Rudy Mendoza, Tim Keck and Brian Amos – won first place at the Rooftop Comedy’s National College Comedy Competition in Aspen.
Cole also won the MVP title at the competition, leading him to his chance to grab the Funniest Student in America title.
The MVP title was awarded to one member from each of the final four teams at the Rooftop Competition – UF, Emerson College, Xavier University and Loyola Marymount University.
During his time at UF he co-managed weekly stand-up comedy shows at XS, 1982 and the Clarion Inn. He is also the co-founder of the University Stand-Up Comedy Club, which recruits and helps develop new talent.
It all began three years ago when he took a class with local stand-up comedian J.C. Currais, who invited Cole to compete at an amateur stand-up comedy show in Gainesville.
Cole’s five-minute routine earned him second place. He has performed at least once a week ever since.
“He hit the ground running and never stopped,” Currais said.
The fulfillment he gets from the audience’s “unmitigated approval” is what convinced him to pursue stand-up comedy full-time in New York City.
“I am ready to work,” he said. “It’s going to take time and a lot of work but I am down. I am ready to work. Nothing happens overnight.”
