for the Midwest?

I am Yemeni-Ethiopian.

I'm Arab and African.

If I'm on a plane, I pretend to be Puerto Rican every single flight.

[Laughter] Jesus: And you're unafraid to talk out loud about what's going on inside your head.

Anybody here with anxiety?

Wow, and happy about it!

OK, that's awesome.

Jesus: How do you stay calm when life and comedy is not all smooth sailing?

Ali Sultan: If I were to drown right now, do you have the ability to save me?

Jesus: I would have the ability to write a witness report.

Ha ha!

I'm Jesus Trejo, and I do standup comedy.

And for me, the stories behind the laughs are way better than the jokes themselves, so I'm hitting the road to uncover what fuels other comedians across the U.S. to understand the roots that bind comedians together.

[Cheering and applause] Emcee: Please give it up for your next comic, Jesus Trejo!

[Cheering and applause] So I'm visiting from Long Beach, California.

First time out here.

So beautiful.

You guys have a lot of things out here, uh, that are pretty gangster, things we don't have back home.

What do you guys call them?

Like, geese.

[Laughter] Holy moly!

Have you seen these things?

I was in Denver, and I saw some.

Out here, I saw them again.

They're full-on gangsters.

They walk with a limp.

They look at you like, "What's up, man?

You good?"

It's like, "I'm sorry, man."

Yeah.

I saw a goose with a ankle monitor.

[Laughter] Like, one of them had a ankle monitor.

I said, "I don't know what you did, bro... but you got to turn your life around, man."

Anyway, that's my time.

Thank you, guys.

[Cheering and applause] Jesus, voice-over: When it comes to comics, people often assume the most important asset for this profession is your voice.

Oh!

Thank you!

Jesus, voice-over: But actually, the most important asset for a comic is your mind, and a comic's mind is always on unless you make an effort to turn it off.

The cross section of comedy and mental health has historically gone ignored, but that's changing these days, thanks to comics like Ali Sultan.

I am, uh, I am in therapy, though, and I've noticed that a lot of men are very hesitant to try it, so I've been pitching it to my guy friends in video game terms.

I'm like, "Therapy is a video game.

"You're player one and your objective is to defeat your childhood."

[Laughter] And the final boss is your dad, for sure.

[Laughter] Jesus, voice-over: Originally from Yemen and then Ethiopia, Ali is a nationally touring comic, who's made a name for himself out of Minneapolis, Minnesota, by putting the trials and tribulations he's faced with anxiety and as an immigrant right into his act.

I am Yemeni-Ethiopian.

I'm Arab and African.

I'm also a man, and I've noticed that living in America that I scare different groups of people.

If I'm on a plane, I pretend to be Puerto Rican every single flight.

I enter hip first.

I go, " ¡Hola!"

[Laughter] Jesus, voice-over: But as someone naturally adverse to lakes--or maybe I'm just more of an ocean guy-- I've never been to Minnesota, and I've managed to avoid soccer since a childhood injury left my ankle sounding like this.

[Clicking] Ali: Oh, my God!

Jesus: Do it more?

No, I'm good, man.

Ha ha!

Jesus, voice-over: Yet Ali's got me out here anyway.

And you know what?

I'm glad, because sometimes the best way to understand someone else's journey is to get out of your own comfort zone.

Have you always been a soccer player?

If you grew up in a Third World country, the most accessible game is soccer... Yeah.

and the reason is because it's very simple to start a game of soccer.

Sometimes if we, like, deflate the ball, everybody will take out their socks.

You're just like, rolling, rolling, rolling, just make a big ball, and then you put two rocks as a goal and then you play, and the team that smells more like feet wins the game.

Ha ha!

Obviously, if you touch the ball more.

[Laughter] Jesus: Have you always taken to soccer specifically for your mental health?

So I have anxiety.

That kind of used to be my baseline for a long time.

Like, I was, like, just anxious all the time.

Sure.

Did some therapy, and then my therapist was telling me that when you do have, like, a panic attack, it's your fight or flight.

Correct.

So if you actually flight, if you run, you move the feeling.

Oh, interesting.

Ali: It's about being present, being in the moment and taking care of this one thing at a time.

I'm a lot happier, like, due to therapy and exercise.

I have anxiety.

When you have anxiety, you get bad advice all the time, OK?

I asked one of my family members, I said, "Hey, man.

I'm going through panic attacks.

Do you have any advice?"

And his advice was, "Stop acting like a white boy."

[Laughter] That would get a bigger laugh if this was not a white crowd.

[Laughter] Jesus, voice-over: Therapy is a big thing.

It's like, there's a lot of stigma around it, right?

Ali: There's a lot of sigma, which is kind of funny to me.

I feel like it's worse to be burdening people with your trauma, with whatever, you know what I mean?

Don't burden your barber, OK, with your problems.

Right.

Yeah.

Go see a professional.

Leave the barber alone.

That's why your lineup's all messed up.

It's like, "Oh!

He messed me up.

He messed up my beard for a reason."

A hundred percent.

♪ Ali: For me, I had some childhood traumas.

I grew up fatherless.

My mom had my sister when she was 14, 15.

She had me, maybe 17, 18.

Jesus: Wow.

Ali: When she came to the States, she applied for me and my sister to come to the States, and it took about four years.

I lived in Ethiopia in that time.

Language, culture, friends were all in Yemen, so I had to, like, live in a new place, new language.

So that period of separation, you know what I mean, you're not going to feel that much support.

What gave you the confidence to go seek out therapy?

Because, you know, I'm a first-generation, as well.

I remember being hyper-aware to my parents'...

Absolutely.

financial situation and the hard work, the double jobs that they worked, so that comes with its own-- And they're immigrants, also, so they...

They're immigrants.

probably went through, like, a harsher life.

A way harsher life, and there was always this pressure.

It's like, "We're doing all this so you can have a better life."

It's like, "Oh, damn.

No pressure," you know?

Sometimes they look at kids, it's like, "Oh, they're just kids.

They don't understand."

Nah, man.

No.

I feel like I was the smartest version of myself when I was a kid.

Yeah, man!

You are almost smarter because you haven't numbed your emotions yet.

Man, as you're saying that, it took me years to be OK with my-- on my own, like, that journey of seeking out help, getting therapy.

Whenever I would kind of share this therapy thing with, like, a family member, they'd be like, "Wait.

What are you doing?

We don't tell other people our business."

You know, Did you ever deal with-- Ha ha!

Why are you snitching, Huh?

Yeah.

"Why are you snitching on us, man?

That's for us."

Ha ha!

I don't know if you feel this way, but I'm so grateful that I found comedy.

It's you controlling the narrative of your life.

Well, I feel like comedy is, like, this lived experience accounting, right, in the sense that you take this thing that maybe was a debit, you know, to you and becomes a credit, it becomes this, like, an asset...

Absolutely.

something where I can relate to, you know, getting held at gunpoint as a kid.

It's like, that, when it happened, was so terrible.

Yeah.

But I talk about it in my act and it was just like-- Now it's your closer.

First time I got held at gunpoint, I was a kid.

I probably was nine or 10. Who knows?

And I was with my mom.

We were going to the grocery store.

We're having a great conversation, and as we're walking, this guy turns the corner, gun out, and he's like, "Hey, give me the money.

"I'm not trying to hurt you guys.

Just give me the money."

Now, the problem is, my mother does not speak or understand English, so I had to translate.

[Laughter] I was an accomplice to the ... robbery.

[Laughter] Jesus: Comedy is just such a beautiful, like, vehicle, and some of this trauma or stuff that we go through as kids, but it's like, funny is pain and pain is funny.

Yeah.

Yeah.

And literally, like, if you've gone through some sort of trauma as a child, laughter is, like, such a beautiful thing to hear, and beyond laughter, there's, like, a connection that you feel with the audience.

It gives me the thing that I was deprived of.

Mm.

Man: Hello.

Hey, what's up, you guys?

Jesus.

What's up?

Oh, hey, I heard you're good at soccer, you guys.

Man 2: I'm not.

You're not?

Nah, everybody's mediocre.

Jesus: Take it easy on me.

Ali: OK. Let's go.

Jesus: It's a lot of pressure.

♪ Ali: Tommy, come up.

Come up.

Jesus: You play play, huh?

Oh!

My bad.

♪ Whoa!

[Players clapping] Ali: We're done.

Let's go.

Ha ha!

Jesus: Come on, guys.

Free iced coffee on the line.

Let's go.

Ali: All the way, right.

Ball is out.

Ali: Nice.

[Players clap] Jesus: I thought there was going to be a lot more water breaks.

Ali: Watch out for the camera guy.

Come on, dude.

What are you doing?

Get out of here!

Player: Yeah!

Jesus: Here's a fun tip.

If you ever feel tired, even if your shoes are not untied, untie them, tie them again.

It buys you some time.

Ali: Take a shot.

Take a shot.

Aah!

Ali: We're done, guys.

All set.

Thank you, guys, for playing.

Jesus: Good game.

Good game.

This is arguably the best part of any sport, when it's all done.

Soccer is known around the world as the beautiful game, and while I did my best to completely destroy that reputation, my triumphant return to the field helped me get inside Ali's head by seeing how he gets out of it.

I'm hungry for more and actually just hungry.

Hello.

Hello.

Hello.

Jesus, voice-over: So it's over to Ali's mom's house, where his family has prepared a home-cooked meal.

This is the rest of the family.

Hello.

Jesus.

Hi.

Jamir.

Jesus: Pleasure to meet you.

Pleasure, pleasure.

Hello.

Ali: Hi.

Lillian.

Oh, my goodness.

She gave you a hug.

A hug!

Jesus.

Nice to meet you.

Pleasure to meet you.

Pleasure to meet you.

Thank you for having me.

This is super cool.

Ali: And, you know, traditionally, we sit on the floor and eat, so we're going to sit on the floor.

Jesus: OK, yeah, I'm in.

Man: Ha ha!

Yes, he is the one.

Yeah.

Here we go.

Look at that.

Yummy!

High five.

Man: And this is [indistinct].

Mom: Lentils.

Ali: Lentil, yeah.

Mom: That's the Ethiopian dish.

Ali: I don't think-- have you ever seen something like this.

This is a salad.

[Laughter] Jesus: I like that.

Are you a spicy guy?

Ali: Yeah, I like spicy.

Jesus: Yeah?

I forget who we were talking to, but it's like, my parents are from Mexico, but the word "mild," we feel like that's an American word.

It's either spicy or no spicy.

There's no in between.

Ali: This is saltah.

This is the Yemeni national dish.

You eat it with bread.

I heard the very interesting story there, where the Ottomans invaded Yemen at some point, and the soldiers of the Ottoman Empire would be eating the leftovers, basically, creating a dish out of that, and that somehow became the national dish, right?

Man: Yeah.

Exactly.

Ali: Why don't you take a bite out of it straight from the source?

OK. Yeah.

Let me... Ali: We share.

That's kind of how we eat.

Jesus: OK.

I got it.

Ali: That's a big ol' bite.

Jesus: That is good.

Ali: Try my Doro Wat.

That's a chicken stew with a boiled egg inside of it.

That's an Ethiopian dish.

Share both of our cultures.

Jesus: Food is delicious.

Thank you, Mom.

Mom: Thank you.

Ali: I think food is a really good way to introduce people to your culture.

Literally, like, the number-one thing where you can bring people together.

I mean, the secret to life is somewhere around food.

The first time your son tells you he wants to be a standup comedian, what went through your head?

I don't know much about standup comedy at that time.

Traditionally, people always think, "Oh, I want him to be a doctor.

I want him to be..." Jesus: Sure.

Mom: an engineer," and stuff like that.

Jesus: Right.

It's like any other immigrant's mom.

Jesus: It's common, right?

It's like, my parents are immigrants and they're like, "We want you to have that good job."

You know, they equate those jobs to, like, less struggle, right?

Security, yeah.

Security.

Job security.

Ali: That's an inspiration from her, actually.

You know, so I grew up on my mother's side, and everybody was very authentic, very unique.

My mother was a nurse at, like, 15.

My aunt Samira was a great businesswoman.

My other aunt, Munira, is the first woman I've ever seen drive a car in Yemen.

Wow.

So I have a family of, like, really ambitious women who are, you know, strong.

That's where I draw that self-esteem and ambition.

Jesus: Yeah.

I dream big because I saw people around me dream big.

My mom is a genius.

My mom is a brilliant woman, but she also has ADHD.

We were hanging out one day.

We decided to get some fast food.

My mom was driving.

I'm in the passenger's seat.

We pull up.

I'm not paying attention, and my mother goes, "Can I get a number two?"

And I don't see, but I hear her go, "Can I please get a number two?"

They don't respond.

Says that again with a sense of defeat.

She goes, "Hello?

Can I please get a number two?"

And then they don't respond.

And then she looks at me and she goes, "Ali, do you think they're racist?

Because they won't even take my order."

I put my phone, and I looked over, and I swear to God, my mom is talking to a trashcan.

My mom pulled up, stopped a little too early, and argued with a raccoon, perhaps.

I don't know what happened.

[Laughter] Ali: voice-over: Standup is very powerful, right?

It's real-time representation.

If you're an audience that might be miseducated on who you are or dehumanizes you, when they see you in real time and they see that you have some commonalities and you make them laugh, you make them feel good, like, by the end of the show, they see you as a human being.

I go to, like, small towns sometimes, a small town of, like, 500 people, conservative, and their references will be negative.

Through standup, I can see, like, people softening and changing and opening up, and then by the end of the show, they treat you like you're one of them, so comedy is very powerful.

Yeah.

[Cheering and applause] Ali: Don't feel bad.

My uncle, who I met once, passed away, and his son, who I never met, who lives in Yemen, wanted to let me know that his father died, but did it in the weirdest way possible.

He sent me a picture on Facebook Messenger of the body... and then he wrote in Arabic, "He's gone."

[Laughter] And I was like, "Yo."

I am a Yemeni citizen.

You don't think the FBI has a file on me?

This looks like a confirmed kill.

This looks like I put a hit on for ISIS, and you're like, "Mission complete!"

[Laughter] Jesus, voice-over: Food and sports have helped unpack a lot of Ali's perspective so far and the connection he has to his roots overseas.

But those roots also run deep here in Minneapolis, which is defined by its lakes, and thankfully, right now they aren't completely frozen over.

Jesus: This is pretty darn beautiful.

Ali: It is beautiful, so I'm glad that you get to experience it firsthand.

Like, we have 10,000 lakes.

10,000?

Yeah.

Imagine being the guy tasked with counting them.

Yeah, yeah.

1, 2... "I think you counted the same one, dude."

Do you ever come out here and write?

Ali: Sometimes I do.

Like--if I'm struggling with an idea, I'll bike.

I'll bike around the lake and just, like, work it.

Jesus: So you rely heavily on your memory?

Yeah.

Knock on wood.

I have a really good memory.

Like, I can remember my first set.

Really?

Yeah.

One of my jokes is on TV, on "Colbert"... Oh, nice.

from my first, like, couple months of writing it.

In Yemen, they don't keep birth records, and they don't celebrate birthdays, so you just got to take your best guess, and I finally asked my mom when I was 14 or nine... [Laughter] I said, "Mom, when was I born?"

And she said, "You were born when we got the cat."

[Laughter] I said, "When did you get the cat?"

She said, "That's when your uncle got diabetes," and that's how I learned that time was relative.

The relative is my diabetic uncle.

[Laughter, applause] Ali, voice-over: And I thought, is this a funny privilege to point out for Americans?

At least you know when you were born.

Right.

When I started out, I started out with a lot of, like, more heavier, political, racial stuff just 'cause, you know, you go through discrimination and whatnot, and that type of stuff, you know, you don't really get to talk about, so when you have a microphone, you're like, "All right.

This is, like, my chance "of recalling these things that I think are funny, "but also points out, like, something that bothered me at a time."

This is a true story.

When I was 19, I was arrested because they thought I was the Mexican guy they were looking for, which was confusing because at the time, I was not Mexican.

The cops took one look, and they were like, "Yeah, that's brown enough."

[Laughter] They arrested me.

They took my phone.

They took my ID.

Not only am I and this guy-- 10 years' difference and different races, I have an Arabic name.

"Like, you saw my ID.

"My name is Ali Sultan, not Alejandro.

Like, why would you think I'm the guy?"

Ali, voice-over: Things like that, I just find crazy, but also I find it funny.

So now we're going to go to-- you said Lake what?

Lake Minnetonka.

Lake Minnetonka.

Ali: So we can purify you.

[Trejo chuckles] ♪ Ali: If I were to drown right now, do you have the ability to save me?

I would have the ability to write a perfect witness report.

[Laughter] Does your family not swim?

Well, my parents, you know, they say they-- I've never seen them swim, but they...

Allegedly.

Growing up-- I take their word for it.

I'm the same way where, like, my family are all, like--they have this, you know, mystical lake that they all went to and swam...

Right.

but I've never seen it.

Every immigrant parent went to the same imaginary lake.

When did you start swimming?

I learned on tour.

During the pandemic, I was on tour with Bert Kreischer.

When everyone started talking about swimming, I'm like, "I can't swim, like, at all."

[Laughter] Bert Kreischer: We're teaching Jesus how to swim.

Jesus, voice-over: I had the courage to get in the pool.

I'm, like, learning how to do this thing.

You're going to take one hand off and grab the wall.

Jesus, voice-over: I was so proud.

That pride later turned into, like, legit fear.

Man: All right.

You're good.

You're good.

You're good.

Bert: You're good.

You're good.

You're good.

I really cannot submerge my head for 10 seconds underwater.

I feel like I would die.

Man: Good, good, good, good, good.

This is hard, man.

To this day, I'm very grateful that I learned how to swim, and it was with comedians.

Man: I'm not going to let you walk across.

Arms.

Let go of the wall.

Let go of the wall.

You're so much heavier than my kids.

Jesus, voice-over: The comedy community here in Minneapolis is one aspect of Ali's voice I have yet to experience, but Ali's got a plan for that.

Tonight we're doing the Comedy Showcase.

It's called "People of Comedy."

It's a show that I created.

Today's will be the five-year anniversary.

[Indistinct chatter] Ali, voice-over: The show's going to be at Sisyphus Brewing.

Sisyphus Brewing is my home club.

It was started by a comedian who opened a brewery.

Because he's a comic, he had the eye for how to build a good stage and an intimate comedy room, and he built it in the back of this brewery.

♪ Man: The whole idea behind this place was, if we make the money selling beer, and then we can give the money to the comedians to do their art.

Are you guys ready to get this show started?

Sam Harriman, voice-over: Keep the bar going, but also fostering, like, artists, like, growing and developing.

-I'm 37.

-I have 3 sons.

-I'm an only child.

-Kids are mean.

[Vocalizes] Ali, voice-over: And it was meant to help balance the segregation in my particular scene, so I figured, let me put everybody together so they can see each other, and it's been amazing.

Even the open mic sells out.

It's my favorite place to perform, and I'm excited to have you there, as well.

Jesus, voice-over: So far, Minneapolis has been a lot more culturally diverse than I would have expected, and tonight is no different.

There's comics from all different backgrounds here, each playing a role in creating this unique scene.

Jesus: I was going to ask you guys, is there a lot of rooms in this town to develop as a comic?

Ali: Absolutely.

Comics: Yeah.

Yeah.

Jesus: How many rooms?

Ali: You can get up every night here, and it's a lot less comics than L.A.

The ratio of comedy spots versus comics is a lot better here.

Comic: Working in a community like Minneapolis, not only do you get to hone in on your craft, but you get to learn the industry of comedy.

It's good to learn those lessons.

Ultimately, it sounds like a conducive ground for a young artist to kind of-- Ali: Great incubator.

It's the best incubator you can ask for.

Some of my friends have been watching too much news lately, way too much.

Now they're trying to get, like, intellectual.

One of my friends, he's coming up to me, he keeps coming up to me, bro.

He's like, "Bro, the dollar's collapsing.

The dollar's collapsing.

Are you ready?"

I'm like, "Bro, we don't have any money.

This is not our problem, bro.

This is a rich people problem."

[Laughter] Jesus: And the community here is fairly small, so I think there's a kind of a looking out for each other element 'cause you're coming back and you're kind of showing the community how it's done, what you're doing, maybe some pitfalls.

Ali: Absolutely, man.

Nobody gets you like a comic.

Yeah, I think you should have, like, friends outside of comedy and a life outside of comedy, but I also, like, love having my comedy friends.

It really is a team sport off the stage.

Jesus: But up there, you're by yourself.

Up there, you're by yourself, so you get confused into thinking that you're doing this on your own, when really, you're in the green room and you're talking to people, getting sharp around people.

People are giving you ideas.

Like... Ali: Everything you get is through your community.

Comic: It's through your community.

Yeah.

Ali: My theory is, like, with comedy is like, if you work hard, trying your best, if you're growing and you're kind, you will make it.

Emcee: All right.

I'm really excited to introduce your next comic, so please give it up for my best friend in comedy-- Ali Sultan.

[Cheering and applause] Ali: Who's mentally ill in here?

[Cheering and applause] Anybody here with anxiety?

[Cheers and applause] OK. Wow, and happy about it!

OK. That's awesome.

[Laughter] I asked my other friend, I said, "Hey, dude, you seem like you're doing well.

What have you done for your anxiety?"

And he said, "I just got myself a therapy dog," and I love dogs, but I don't like the term "therapy dog" because it's disrespectful... to actual therapists.

[Laughter] They went to school.

They worked so hard to earn their professional title, and we just give it to a chihuahua?

Why?

[Laughter] I never had to wake up at 5 a.m. to let my therapist poop outside, right?

[Laughter] All right.

That's going to do it for me.

You guys are the best.

Thank you.

[Cheering and applause] Jesus, voice-over: This is a killer performance by Ali, and it's not just because of his material.

It's also because he's so comfortable up there.

That comfort comes from hard work onstage and on himself.

Comedy can help comics work through their own mental health and trauma, but for others, whether it's your childhood, job, or just everyday life causing you anxiety, stress, or fear, these are things you do not have to deal with on your own.

But try a professional, not your barber.

And even if you're overwhelmed, never forget how important it is to look around you and consider the moment you're in.

Ali: What does it feel like for you to be in this moment right now?

Do you ever have that feeling where, like, "Things are going so well right now, but, oh, it's coming.

I know it"?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Laughter] When things feel like a movie scene, you're like, "Uh-oh.

Tragedy is about to pop."

Yo, here it comes.

Yeah.

Life and even comedy, is like, there's like an oscillating element to it, right?

One of the big things that I learned through comedy was that if I'm in a tough spot, I can acknowledge it.

All right.

Now we can move on to the next one.

Uh... [Laughter] Jesus, voice-over: If I'm up there, I tell a joke, it doesn't go, I'm like, "Oh, that joke sucked."

Jesus: That was funnier in here for some reason, but... Jesus, voice-over: I think I realized that from life.

It's like I could have all these awful things happening to me, but it's still a good life.

You know what I mean?

I'm still blessed to take this on, you know, and keep moving forward kind of thing.

[Cheering and applause] Ali: You learn that, like, if you stop growing, your act stops growing, as well.

For you to be a better comic, you have to continue growing.

You have to live life intentionally.

Right.

You have to be aware of the experiences that you feel.

Life is in moving forward.

Like, just moving, right?

Jesus, voice-over: I learned that depression comes from dwelling on the past.

Anxiety comes from worrying about the future.

So Ali has taught me more than ever to try to just be in the moment.

Ali, thanks for cooking.

Ali: Absolutely, man.

My pleasure.

I love cooking for people.

That-- What's going on?

Ha ha!

What?

I'm talking to you.

You almost gave him a kiss.

What happened?

Oh, I have food in my beard?

Yeah.

Ali: Good job.

Good timing.

Jesus: Yeah, thank you.

Ha Ha!

I thought you were going to say, "Do you want more food?"

I'm like, "Yes!"

Ali: You asked me what I talk about on my act?

A lot of her.

Jesus: Mom?

Yeah, yeah.

Jesus: You know, he's going to talk about that on stage now, right?

Ali: She's made me a lot of money.

I have, like, 20 minutes on her.

Jesus: Bro, that's great.