“I’m an open book I don’t really shy away from any topic personal or otherwise. I also do my best to keep the realness of a subject but I tend to use hyperbole to get my point across.”

Stacy Moise

They say if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere. It’s been a little over one year since emerging comic and writer, Stacy Moise, moved from NYC to L.A., and she’s been brandishing her talent and making her mark, ever since. Her brand-new venture, Change Tha Narrative, is a budding cold reading group, held weekly for up-and-coming creatives. Moise is also host of the podcast, “So Then What Happened,” which features artists sharing funny stories about personal experiences in the entertainment industry.

When she’s not hosting, writing, or producing short films and sketches, you can find Moise at an open mic, where her love for comedy began, She received big laughs at her first open mic back in 2015 and has since focused on developing her craft.  

By her own account, Moise has a “larger than life personality” and takes “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it” to a whole new level. Much like some of her favorite comedians, Stacy is not one to shy away from talking about personal, cultural or racial issues. Her sketch, “9-1-WHAT?!” takes a humorous look at prejudice in the wake of the increased exposure of people nicknamed BBQ Becky, Permit Patty and the like, across social media.

This project, along with her stand-up comedy, and other creative endeavors, tell her story and unique experiences, which she’s unafraid to share with the world.

Her advice to others: “Don’t dim your light for anybody! Don’t be scared to do something because “it’s too soon” or so and so doesn’t think you can do it. If you’re auditioning or trying out something new; my motto is let THEM tell YOU no. Don’t be the one to tell yourself no.”

Meet writer, comedian, actor, director and producer, Stacy Moise. Happy Discoveries.  

SolShock: Who is Stacy as a writer?

Stacy: I’m super observant as a creative. I see things in everyday life that someone may not even notice or they see but don’t think twice about. However when I see it, it makes me curious. How did they get here? Who are they to each other? What’s that car ride going to be like going home? Then I can write a whole sketch or joke about it!

SolShock: Who is Stacy as a comedian? Which comes first?

Stacy: As a comedian it’s the same thing. I take my everyday life and situations with my family, to situations with work, friends, school etc. and I put it into my comedy. I try to be 100% honest unless I’m exaggerating, but every joke and story comes from somewhere real. I usually don’t do topical stuff only because I honestly don’t really care, LOL. It gets boring and everyone else is already talking about it, plus you’re not going to be able [to do] that material again in 2-3 three months. I would say being a comedian comes first because I’ve been funny all my life!

SolShock: At what point did you know comedy and/or writing was for you?

Stacy: The first time I went on stage and did an open mic, I got laughs. I didn’t know anything about material, joke writing, sketches etc. I got laughs the first time I went on stage and the same with the first sketch I wrote. It was a three-page sketch I wrote for some class that I stretched to 10 pages for this group that I was in and it killed! Overall, I enjoy it, it’s something for ME. I’m not doing it to help someone or to be a people pleaser, it’s actually something for me.

SolShock: Who are some of your favorite comedians?

Stacy: Deon Cole, Paul Mooney, George Carlin, John Leguizamo, Jim Carrey, Richard Pryor, Sommore, Adele Givens, Affion Crockett.

SolShock: What inspired “9-1-WHAT?!”?

Stacy: Of course you know you have Permit Patty and all these other stupid nicknames of these people who are calling nine-one-one on people of color for the most mundane things. It was started in that sketch writing class (shout out to UCB, NY). For that class, they wanted us to write about something that meant something to us. I always have hundreds of ideas swirling in my head. it was originally going to be at a police station and the ridiculous 9-1-1 calls kept coming in but I felt it would be better to have the officer confronting the people and them still not seeing their wrong doing because that’s very real.

SolShock: What do you hope people will take from this project or others? Do you plan to write and direct more like this?

Stacy: Since I asked for feedback, I did get some interesting takeaways from it. A very small amount of people didn’t get the point, and I think that’s because of their privilege to be unaware of what’s happening now. Even if they didn’t think it was funny, they just completely missed the whole point. Others felt that more people of color should have been involved and I think my favorite feedback was that Danielle should have been able to speak more but that was part of the points because rarely does the victim of these things have their moment of vindication and get to of speak out about that. This short was actually only five pages of the 10-page sketch and I do want to actually film the whole thing. I absolutely plan on writing and directing more items I don’t know where they will fall in my creativity but the four that I have are definitely completely different and separate from each other.

SolShock: Is it important for you to talk about real issues like racism, politics or other in your comedy or writing?

Stacy: It’s very important because it’s a reality. It may be an uncomfortable subject for some people but oh well! Humor can also make it an easier pill to swallow. I even talked about colorism, gender issues and also in Black Culture, when you are considered not “black enough” or as they say, you “act white.” I talk about all of these things because those are my reality, things that I’ve actually experienced.

SolShock: What was your most recent happy discovery?

Stacy: My most recent happy discovery would definitely be the cold reading group but I’m starting with a friend called Change Tha Narrative. It started January 5th and is going to be every Sunday at Blaqhaus from 7:30-10:30pm. Not only is this restaurant a black-owned business but this group is geared towards people of color. I’ve seen and I am a part of cold reading groups like this; however, I’ve also seen the lack of diversity. I don’t know if it’s because I’m from New York but it’s something it’s very easy to spot.

Discover more about Stacy Moise. Follow her on Twitter.