Jameel is a comedian, producer, podcaster and the founder of the Aussie Comedy Network, a digital comedy channel and production house. Jameel’s background in business and marketing has given him an entrepreneurial outlook on the Australian comedy industry and has helped lead to career highlights like performing at Strawberry Fields. In this interview, Jameel discusses growing up in a melting pot culture, using mindfulness to fuel creativity and his next gig – MCing the roving comedy show at Junction Footscray.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and your creative practice.
I’m a comedian, producer and entrepreneur based in Footscray. I run Footscray Comedy Club alongside Sam Gebreselassie, which currently has 3 shows running a month and growing. I also recently founded Aussie Comedy Network, a digital Australian comedy channel and comedy production house. I also self-produce my podcast The Binge Thinker, which is a creative exploration of the mind, spirituality and self-actualisation.
How did you start your creative practice and why?
I got into performing comedy about 5 years ago, but have been funny and been drawn to comedy my entire life. I started producing shows and content as I have a background in business and marketing, and saw that I could improve on what was currently on offer. I enjoy creating an experience and get a similar level of satisfaction from a show going well as a great performance of my own.
Where did you grow up and has it influenced what you create?
I grew up in suburban Melbourne, in Clayton and then Rowville. I’m a first generation Australian, my father is Pakistani and my mother Filipino which are big culture clashes. I’m not sure if it influences what I create but I’ve spent my life in cultural melting pots, so being a part of the Footscray community feels quite natural to me.
Tell us about your past creative projects. What has been a highlight so far?
Performing at Strawberry Fields festival just before the pandemic was a lot of fun, also getting a comedian of the year award around the same time was a big highlight too!
Who or what inspires your practice?
Having the power to make people laugh and feel good is a big motivator for me, knowing that people feel great from the work that I do. Also enabling creativity and joy at scale thanks to wonders of the digital world through Aussie Comedy Network really drives my passion and gives me free energy.
Where do you feel most creative?
Times of ‘mindlessness’ usually bring me great ideas, that usually occurs when I’m doing something that doesn’t take a lot of brain power to complete such as chores or cardio. Occupying the monkey mind to allow the creative brain to wander and float about.
What gets you through challenging creative/ industry times?
Resilience, patience and belief. Knowing that good and bad times ebb and flow, remembering that great things take time and iterating on what is working to keep growing.
Whose work are you digging at the moment?
I’m very late to discovering Khruangbin musically, and I’ve been enjoying watching Blake Pavey blow up as a comedian from his success on Tiktok. Always great to see genuine talent make an impact.
What future projects are you looking forward to?
I’m very excited for what Aussie Comedy Network has coming next – we’ve just started work on original content and I’ve put together some talented and driven teams, so I’m very confident we are going to put out engaging and unique content for people to enjoy!
What can we expect to see in terms of your involvement in Junction Footscray & what are you looking forward to?
I’ll be MCing the comedy tour for Junction, and engaging with local traders to help promote the area. It’s always fun to interact with the community and get everyone mingling again after a long time apart!
Where can we find and follow you online?
Check out Footscray Comedy Club on Instagram to keep up with all of our shows, and Aussie Comedy Network on your social media of choice to see the great content we have daily. You can follow my journey on Instagram on @jrehman and check out The Binge Thinker on Spotify, Youtube and Apple Pods!
Junction Footscray is a free community event in the heart of Footscray, Saturday 9th July, 4-10pm. Register your attendance via Eventbrite
If you’re into comedy check out these Colour Box Studio interviews: click here.