On the Road with Willie Brown & Friends

What's Up Folks

It's A New Day With New Challenges

Hello Everybody. I hope you all are doing well. This has already been an amazing

year. Things started out kind of slow, but they're picking up at a rapid pace. My faith

in God makes all the difference in the world. I know that some people don't like to

give God the credit, but I can't help it. I don't know what else to do. When you 

start the year off and you have no dates on your calendar it will make you wonder.

I'm a man of faith and I could not be doing what I'm doing at this level without it.

I would bet that if most people did not work for a whole month they would be having

a hizzy fit! But if it had not been for God on my side. I never worried about things.

I just kind of took it in stride. I let God work my calendar. When my calendar is empty

I say "I guess God has more room to work a miracle for me." When my calendar

is full I say "Thank you God for making all things possible." 

So, my January was a wash, but I needed that time to work on setting up the 

prison ministry at our church. Also, we had a tenant move out of our investment

property and we have to turn it over. Therefore, that is taking some time to work out

as well. Finally, we have the old dreaded taxes that need to be filed. It's not easy

when you work for yourself. You have to keep good records and maintain a high

level of accountability.

Florida Here We Come

I'll be flying down to Florida this week to perform in Boynton Beach. I'm doing two elementary

school Black History Month Programs. The shows are being sponsored by the Delray 

Beach Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc. I'm looking forward to encouraging

the children by giving them the history of  black men and women who have helped to 

build this great country of ours. The next day we drive to Tampa to do a Valentine's Day

Comedy event with Arthur Too Smooth Productions. I'll be performing with Comedian 

LadyQ and others. I'm looking forward to that.

After the show we drive back four hours to Boynton Beach. What a night it's gonna be.

I'm a road warrior. Planes, trains, and automobiles. Real comedians know what I'm 

talking about. We make it do what it do. We get the job done by any mens necessary.

The next morning I have to be at St. John's Missionary Baptist Church. I have a show in

the morning for the youth, and one in the afternoon at 4 PM for families and the community.

It's going to be an action packed weekend.

Maybe you or your friends can attend one of these events. Be sure to tell your people that

live in those areas. For more information about shows or tickets call (310) 663-9228.

You guys have a great day! And don't forget, no matter how things are looking at the present,

always KEEP THE FAITH. 

 Hello Folks!

I hope you all are doing well. January flew by like a flash. I didn't actually work much

this month as I was preparing my taxes, and working on renovating an investment

property that my wife and I own, and I took over as head of the prison ministry at our

church Tabernacle of Praise Church International in McDonough, GA. I've been so

busy that I don't know which direction I'm going in.  I'm really taking the necessary

time to set things up for our prison ministry team. We had our first meeting on Tuesday

night and it went very well. We recently had a major soap drive in December where

our church gathered almost six thousand bars of soap. We also have put together

deodorant for men and women, along with hair shampoo and conditioner. The men

and women are really going to appreciate these items. Having been a chaplain at a

women's correctional facility, I know how important it is for those who do not have 

funds to receive these items. We are very grateful to all of the people who have supported

us. We have already begin to disperse these items to some of the facilities that we 

serve.

 

If you would like to assist us in collecting much needed hygiene items for men and 

women just message me at the bottom of this blog or contact Willie Brown at

Tabernacle of Praise Church International in McDonough, GA (678) 272-7838

Okay so it's time to get back out on those ships. I need to make some money now.

Even Uncle Rufus is ready to get back out there on the ship

As my wife was saying "It would be so nice to be in a place with a warm climate right about now."

In December I got a chance to spend the day in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.  It was very nice. I 

walked around a bit, took in the sights, ate some food, went to CVS to get some immune system builders, and headed back to the ship

We also went to Cay Bahamas which is an island that I believe is owned by the cruise line, or at least they get to go there and dock for the day.

The weather was a little too cold to go into the beach that day. So I walked around and 

checked out  the sights.

One thing about the ship is that there is always a beautiful picture to take

So, I'm painting pictures of fun because this is what I'd rather be doing right now. But I know 

that I have some business to finish. And as soon as I do it's Bon Voyage!

This above picture of me was taken at the Hibachi Restaurant onboard the

MSC Seascape. The food was great and the chefs were having a lot of fun that night.

The sea is calling me and I'll be back soon. I'll talk to you guys later. Be sure to leave me some

comments below.  Thank you and God bless you.

What It's Like Being A Cruise Ship Comedian

Working as a comedian on a cruise ship is a lot of fun for me. It's a whole lot better

than performing in some dive or bar where they have bad lighting and bad sound.

On a ship they have the best lighting and sound equipment that you can imagine.

There is a whole staff that is dedicated to helping you to be the professional that 

you really are. That's why I took advantage of the whole situation by having music

in my act and making sure that my wardrobe was superb. You want to wear something

that sparkles when the light hits it!  I was thoroughly prepared for my shows on

the MSC Seascape. I was a little nervous before I went on because I didn't know how

the crowd would receive me, but that's how it always is for comedians. But once

you get those first few laughs you're on your way, and you're going to take the audience

for a ride.

I liked Frank Sinatra all the way back to when I was on a cruise ship many years ago. 

At the end of the night the band members would crank Frank Sinatra up down in the 

crew quarters. It would be a big party after the show and Frank was always invited.

Above and below are pictures of me and Uncle Rufus. He was a smash hit

on the ship. I asked him if he had met any interesting people on the ship and he said

he met a young lady from Italy. And I said "Genoa"? And he said "No, I just met her."

Then he told me that he met a man from the U.K. So I said "Oh the United Kingdom?"

And he said "No, the University of Kentucky." 

The ship puts your information on the marquee when the ship first takes off to let people know about your upcoming show. As the time passes people log in and make their reservations. By the time the show begins you'll have a full house of passengers waiting for a good laugh.

What's so great about performing on the ship is that when you have a good show everybody

tells you about it. Wherever you go on the ship you will see people and they will say

"Hey you were great last night." "We loved your show." "Where's Woody....isn't he hungry.?"

I love people so I don't mind talking to them. They like to ask you questions about how you

got started in comedy especially when you're a ventriloquist. Somebody is always going

to ask you "How did you get started as a ventriloquist?" And that's when I tell them that

"I was a lonely child." LOL. That's not true. I got started in ventriloquism through an interest in magic.

I was also inspired by Willie Tyler & Lester, and Jay Johnson from the hit tv show Soap. My mother

bought me my first dummy as a Christmas gift when I was thirteen. I then found a home study

course in the back of comic book and I did everything they told me to do and I became a 

professional. Incredible right? Only in America....LOL. It's been an amazing journey and I 

wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

In the picture above I'm hanging out with a couple in Cay Bahamas along with the ship

comedian Jason Russell. Jason was really cool and he was showing me the ropes while

being out on the Seascape. We bonded quickly as professional comedians and had

some really good conversations about the business, life, family, and relationships.

I also hooked up with some really cool people from Philadelphia. I found out that

we all had a lot in common. I love Philly. It's one of my favorite places. I guess

that's why they call it the "City of Brotherly Love." That doesn't mean that you can't

get robbed there because you can. But it's a pretty good sports town and the people

are down to earth for the most part. Being a comedian on a cruise ship is a lot of fun.

I love it. I'm built for it. I go out there, do my job, have a good time, and enjoy the

people. You can't ask for anything more than that. To me it's a dream come true.

The only thing about it is that I spent a lot of money on that cruise. It was close to 

Christmas so I bought my wife a diamond ring and some diamond earrings. I also

went to the Breitling store in Grand Cayman Island. I didn't buy a watch this time,

but I showed mine off. I've purchased two Breitlings while being on cruises. If

they had the one that I was looking for I might have bought it for my wife Sherry.

Watches are an expensive habit. I guess that's one of the reasons why they came

up with the phrase "Time is money."  I own a Breitling by Bentley which is 

one of their signature series watches. It has the Bentley wheel engraved in the back

of the watch. It's pretty cool. That means I'm going to have to get the car to match

the watch. I'm going to have to do a lot more shows  in order to do that.....LOL. I'll be cruising

all over the world non-stop to make that happen.

The Adventures of Comedian/Ventriloquist Willie Brown & Friends

 Cruise Ship Life

On December 2 through the 16 I was booked on the MSC Seascape to do two

seven day cruises. It was great! I had been wanting to get booked on a cruise ship

for a long time and it finally happened. My agent called me out of the blue and

asked me if I was available and of course I said "Yes I am." So, I left from the 

Miami Harbor around 6 PM on December 16th. It was pretty cool. Here's a glimpse

of what it looked like.

Throughout the cruise we sailed to Cozumel, Mexico, The Grand Cayman Islands,

Ocho Rios, Jamaica, Nassau Bahamas, Old San Juan Puerto Rico, Cay Bahamas,

and to the Puerto Plata, Domenica Republic. I performed two shows the first week

and three shows the second week. The crowds loved it and so did I.

MSC is a very nice cruiseline. In fact, I never even heard of it before I got booked to be on it,

But the strangest thing happened once I received the booking. I started seeing commercials

for MSC all over the place. It was like every single cruise ship commercial was MSC. I 

couldn't believe it. I was on the MSC Seascape and it was a beautiful ship, probably one of 

largest and most amazing ships that I have ever been on.

I put a lot of time into coming up with new routines for a varied audience. When you're 

on a cruise you are performing not just for mainstream America, but for people from

all over the world. MSC is an Italian cruiseline so we had lots of Europeans aboard. There

were so many different languages being spoken that I thought I was on the "Tower of  Babble."

I went into the recording studio before I went out on the ship and worked on a medley

of Frank Sinatra duets along with Bob Marley, Michael Jackson, and a little Gladys Knight

for my Aunt Tee character. The music and bits were a big hit. The crowds loved it. The 

whole experience took me to a new level. I can't wait to get back out there.

Stick around folks there's more to come. I've got lots of stories and pictures from the different

islands and places that I've been. I've been around the world several times performing in various

countries and places. A friend of mine told me that I needed to chronicle my travels. He said to

me "Willie, you've been all over the world performing on stages and on television and film. You

need to let people know what you've already done." I  said " Yeah you're right."  So, this is my effort

to keep you all informed on the many travels and adventures of Comedian/Ventriloquist Willie

Brown and Friends.

Above you will see a picture from Puerto Plata, Domenican Republic. It was a beautiful

view.