Barbarians at the Gate
What Xi Said: Comedy and Cross-Cultural Communication with Performer and Content Creator Jesse Appell
This week we catch up with Jesse Appell, an English-Chinese standup comedy star better known to his more than 3 million Chinese followers as Ai Jiexi 艾杰西. Jesse talks about how he parlayed his Fulbright Fellowship research on Chinese humor into a stellar comedy career in China. Stuck in the US for several years during the Covid-19 crisis, Jesse had to find ways to continue his successful comedy career outside China. Jesse recounts how he began to make a name for himself in the media environment of the vast number of diaspora Chinese living and working in America and other countries. We explore the cultural differences between these more Westernized diaspora audiences and those of mainland China. We also hear about the struggles of maintaining a successful career as a standup comedian in the world of Chinese media.
Jesse on Instagram (comedy): @whatxisaid
Jesse on Instagram (tea): @jessesteahouse
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