对于乔治·陈(音译)来说,和别人对话非常重要。这位从奥克兰来到洛杉矶的脱口秀演员非常多才多艺。他目前在美国流媒体音乐服务商Pandora的播客内容运营部工作,与别人共同主持一档自己的播客“Sup Doc”,并在洛杉矶主持三档现场喜剧之夜节目。他自己也会上场表演。谈话是他谋生的手段,但在更多时候,他是一个聆听者。
虽然他本人尚未发现播客有何变化,但Podtrac提供的最新数据显示,可能由于通勤人数大幅减少,播客下载量总体呈下降趋势。但到目前为止,新闻类播客依旧最受欢迎,在这个特殊时期,这完全在意料之中。
《财富》杂志采访了乔治·陈,向他了解在居家时代,作为一名脱口秀演员、播客和全能型协作创意人,工作受到了哪些影响。以下问答内容经过精简和编辑。
《财富》:Pandora在奥克兰也有分支机构,但你为什么几年前从奥克兰来到洛杉矶?
乔治·陈:我很幸运,因为我的工作经常可以远程办公,但我女朋友收到了一份[洛杉矶的]工作邀请,再加上我当时得知我在旧金山主持的《迷失的周末》(Lost Weekend)脱口秀节目即将停播,所以一切似乎都自然而然地发生了。
大概一年前,我[在Pandora]的岗位确实有调整,但我还是可以远程办公。我现在的工作是播客内容运营,这与我之前从事的脱口秀分析略有不同。我在2014年加入Pandora,到现在已经六年了。
所以,新冠疫情并没有给你的工作带来大的变化?
是的,我平时工作中也一直在用Zoom通话,在Slack和Zoom上参加会议,通过邮件进行沟通。所以,我早就已经习惯了远程办公。比如,人们说“在群视频时要静音”,这时候我的反应是:“哦,我早就知道了。”
除了在Pandora工作外,你还在洛杉矶主持现场喜剧之夜节目,这些节目最近有什么变化?
我有两场节目时间比较固定,也坚持了最长时间,分别是 “真实痛苦”(Real Pain)和在小大阪的巨型机器人画廊(Giant Robot Gallery)举办的“巨型机器人喜剧之夜”(Giant Robot Comedy Night)。但现在巨型机器人画廊已经停业,我不知道它什么时候会恢复营业,但我想我们要沉住气,静待恢复演出的官方消息。
在“真实痛苦艺术”画廊举办的另外一档节目“真实痛苦”,在本月最后一刻才被迫取消。
我记得在3月12日,我不确定是否要进行开放麦演出,演出的地点是回声公园(Echo Park)的尤尼代尔图书馆(Uniondale Library)。我一直在等消息,我个人觉得应该取消演出,后来图书馆决定停办一切活动。
我更担心的是“真实痛苦”这个节目,因为我预约了许多人参加3月14日的演出,我现在的想法是等节目恢复正常后,尽量重新邀请这些演员进行表演。
你上次主持现场喜剧之夜是什么时候?
我们在3月5日举办了一场[巨型机器人]演出。这场演出引起了很多争议,所以我们取消了4月的演出,我想5月可能也会取消。我们只能像其他人一样,等等看情况再说。
你是否有计划或有意进行虚拟现场喜剧表演?
我考虑过用Instagram Live做直播。直播是为了我的另外一份工作,有关纪录片的Sup播客。我在Facebook上为艺术家利兹·沃尔什做了一次直播。我不想做常规的脱口秀直播,因为这种表演形式并不适合直播,我想针对脱口秀做有点特色的节目。
当你习惯了脱口秀节目,习惯了别人的现场反应,这些在Zoom里是很难模仿的。或许可以进行一对一的表演,但这实际上就是在做播客。直播的时候必须做好准备——不是每个人都擅长就任何话题即兴发挥,侃侃而谈。
我今天就在想,要不要尝试把“现场脱口秀”搬到直播当中,邀请我为4月的演出预约的所有演员加入Zoom直播间,为那些愿意打开摄像头的观众表演,但我的节目会不会被录下来?如果被录像,这就成了另外一回事,脱口秀演员不喜欢被录像,而且当你尝试新素材的时候,录像会留下数字足迹,但你可能对这些素材还没有把握,因为你还没有机会向观众表演。脱口秀演员会不断进行内容创作,只是会有不同的表现形式。
脱口秀演员必须想方设法完成他们的作品。
人们现在喜欢艺术和音乐,因为除了在网上看别人的视频,你在闲暇时没有其他事情可做。我的常规工作没有因为疫情停止,只是我的户外活动时间减少了而已。
但我的日常生活确实发生了一些变化,因为社会上出现的反亚洲人的情绪让我感到不安。我一直在关注这方面的信息,我始终以为这种事永远不会发生在我身边,但事事难料。我以前从来没有考虑过这个问题,直到有一次我要去农贸市场的时候,我戴上手套和口罩,开始担心人们会不会以异样的眼光看我?只是希望他们不会在6英尺以外朝你扔东西。
你的播客有变化吗?
我的Sup Doc播客的另外一位主持人帕科·罗曼住在旧金山,我们一直都是用Skype沟通。所以这方面没有太大的变化。
现在大家都待在家里,你认为播客的收听率会上升还是会下降?
最近有一篇报告研究了播客收听率的变化趋势。人们喜欢在哪里收听播客?上下班途中,但现在人们不再通勤。我们做的是影视类节目,关注时事动态的人可能不喜欢这类节目。我在Pandora的工作是做一个聆听者,这个工作很有趣。
除此之外,新冠疫情对你个人有什么影响?
变化之一是我女朋友现在也和我一样待在家中,我们住的是一居室,所以我们必须协调好时间和空间。她经常用Zoom进行通话,还要拍摄视频内容,所以她在另一个房间工作,我在卧室工作。我真的觉得我们很幸运,因为我们能在家工作,还有工资收入。
你现在还玩音乐吗?[陈先生曾是KIT等多个乐队的成员,从20世纪90年代末开始,他就断断续续地为他的唱片公司Zum制作实体唱片。]
我现在很少玩音乐了,不过我准备今年发行几张唱片,但现在还没有决定。目前还不了解零售业、制造业等受到的影响有多大。我有工作,有收入,可以承担发唱片的费用,但我一直合作的一家唱片厂目前被隔离,他们的封面打印机目前也无法正常工作。国际唱片店日也推迟了。
西南偏南艺术节(South by Southwest)被取消的时候,本来可以从中看出一些征兆,但直到很长时间以后,人们才意识到一切都将会长时间陷入停滞。(财富中文网)
译者:Shog
对于乔治·陈(音译)来说,和别人对话非常重要。这位从奥克兰来到洛杉矶的脱口秀演员非常多才多艺。他目前在美国流媒体音乐服务商Pandora的播客内容运营部工作,与别人共同主持一档自己的播客“Sup Doc”,并在洛杉矶主持三档现场喜剧之夜节目。他自己也会上场表演。谈话是他谋生的手段,但在更多时候,他是一个聆听者。
虽然他本人尚未发现播客有何变化,但Podtrac提供的最新数据显示,可能由于通勤人数大幅减少,播客下载量总体呈下降趋势。但到目前为止,新闻类播客依旧最受欢迎,在这个特殊时期,这完全在意料之中。
《财富》杂志采访了乔治·陈,向他了解在居家时代,作为一名脱口秀演员、播客和全能型协作创意人,工作受到了哪些影响。以下问答内容经过精简和编辑。
《财富》:Pandora在奥克兰也有分支机构,但你为什么几年前从奥克兰来到洛杉矶?
乔治·陈:我很幸运,因为我的工作经常可以远程办公,但我女朋友收到了一份[洛杉矶的]工作邀请,再加上我当时得知我在旧金山主持的《迷失的周末》(Lost Weekend)脱口秀节目即将停播,所以一切似乎都自然而然地发生了。
大概一年前,我[在Pandora]的岗位确实有调整,但我还是可以远程办公。我现在的工作是播客内容运营,这与我之前从事的脱口秀分析略有不同。我在2014年加入Pandora,到现在已经六年了。
所以,新冠疫情并没有给你的工作带来大的变化?
是的,我平时工作中也一直在用Zoom通话,在Slack和Zoom上参加会议,通过邮件进行沟通。所以,我早就已经习惯了远程办公。比如,人们说“在群视频时要静音”,这时候我的反应是:“哦,我早就知道了。”
除了在Pandora工作外,你还在洛杉矶主持现场喜剧之夜节目,这些节目最近有什么变化?
我有两场节目时间比较固定,也坚持了最长时间,分别是 “真实痛苦”(Real Pain)和在小大阪的巨型机器人画廊(Giant Robot Gallery)举办的“巨型机器人喜剧之夜”(Giant Robot Comedy Night)。但现在巨型机器人画廊已经停业,我不知道它什么时候会恢复营业,但我想我们要沉住气,静待恢复演出的官方消息。
在“真实痛苦艺术”画廊举办的另外一档节目“真实痛苦”,在本月最后一刻才被迫取消。
我记得在3月12日,我不确定是否要进行开放麦演出,演出的地点是回声公园(Echo Park)的尤尼代尔图书馆(Uniondale Library)。我一直在等消息,我个人觉得应该取消演出,后来图书馆决定停办一切活动。
我更担心的是“真实痛苦”这个节目,因为我预约了许多人参加3月14日的演出,我现在的想法是等节目恢复正常后,尽量重新邀请这些演员进行表演。
你上次主持现场喜剧之夜是什么时候?
我们在3月5日举办了一场[巨型机器人]演出。这场演出引起了很多争议,所以我们取消了4月的演出,我想5月可能也会取消。我们只能像其他人一样,等等看情况再说。
你是否有计划或有意进行虚拟现场喜剧表演?
我考虑过用Instagram Live做直播。直播是为了我的另外一份工作,有关纪录片的Sup播客。我在Facebook上为艺术家利兹·沃尔什做了一次直播。我不想做常规的脱口秀直播,因为这种表演形式并不适合直播,我想针对脱口秀做有点特色的节目。
当你习惯了脱口秀节目,习惯了别人的现场反应,这些在Zoom里是很难模仿的。或许可以进行一对一的表演,但这实际上就是在做播客。直播的时候必须做好准备——不是每个人都擅长就任何话题即兴发挥,侃侃而谈。
我今天就在想,要不要尝试把“现场脱口秀”搬到直播当中,邀请我为4月的演出预约的所有演员加入Zoom直播间,为那些愿意打开摄像头的观众表演,但我的节目会不会被录下来?如果被录像,这就成了另外一回事,脱口秀演员不喜欢被录像,而且当你尝试新素材的时候,录像会留下数字足迹,但你可能对这些素材还没有把握,因为你还没有机会向观众表演。脱口秀演员会不断进行内容创作,只是会有不同的表现形式。
脱口秀演员必须想方设法完成他们的作品。
人们现在喜欢艺术和音乐,因为除了在网上看别人的视频,你在闲暇时没有其他事情可做。我的常规工作没有因为疫情停止,只是我的户外活动时间减少了而已。
但我的日常生活确实发生了一些变化,因为社会上出现的反亚洲人的情绪让我感到不安。我一直在关注这方面的信息,我始终以为这种事永远不会发生在我身边,但事事难料。我以前从来没有考虑过这个问题,直到有一次我要去农贸市场的时候,我戴上手套和口罩,开始担心人们会不会以异样的眼光看我?只是希望他们不会在6英尺以外朝你扔东西。
你的播客有变化吗?
我的Sup Doc播客的另外一位主持人帕科·罗曼住在旧金山,我们一直都是用Skype沟通。所以这方面没有太大的变化。
现在大家都待在家里,你认为播客的收听率会上升还是会下降?
最近有一篇报告研究了播客收听率的变化趋势。人们喜欢在哪里收听播客?上下班途中,但现在人们不再通勤。我们做的是影视类节目,关注时事动态的人可能不喜欢这类节目。我在Pandora的工作是做一个聆听者,这个工作很有趣。
除此之外,新冠疫情对你个人有什么影响?
变化之一是我女朋友现在也和我一样待在家中,我们住的是一居室,所以我们必须协调好时间和空间。她经常用Zoom进行通话,还要拍摄视频内容,所以她在另一个房间工作,我在卧室工作。我真的觉得我们很幸运,因为我们能在家工作,还有工资收入。
你现在还玩音乐吗?[陈先生曾是KIT等多个乐队的成员,从20世纪90年代末开始,他就断断续续地为他的唱片公司Zum制作实体唱片。]
我现在很少玩音乐了,不过我准备今年发行几张唱片,但现在还没有决定。目前还不了解零售业、制造业等受到的影响有多大。我有工作,有收入,可以承担发唱片的费用,但我一直合作的一家唱片厂目前被隔离,他们的封面打印机目前也无法正常工作。国际唱片店日也推迟了。
西南偏南艺术节(South by Southwest)被取消的时候,本来可以从中看出一些征兆,但直到很长时间以后,人们才意识到一切都将会长时间陷入停滞。(财富中文网)
译者:Shog
You could say that conversation is key for George Chen. The Los Angeles-via-Oakland comic is a jack of all trades who currently works in podcast content operations at streaming service Pandora, co-hosts a podcast of his own called Sup Doc, and hosts three live comedy nights around L.A. at which he also performs. He talks and more often, listens for a living.
While he hasn’t personally seen a difference for podcasts yet, new data from Podtrac shows downloads are down overall in that space—likely due to dips in commuting—though news podcasts are still by far the most streamed, which makes sense in an unsettling time.
Fortune spoke with Chen for a new series, The Coronavirus Economy, to find out what it’s like to work as a stand-up comic, podcaster, and all-around collaborative creative, as the coronavirus pandemic spreads and audiences are told to stay home. The following Q&A has been condensed and lightly edited.
Fortune: What brought you down to L.A. from Oakland, where Pandora has an office, a few years back?
Chen: Luckily my job is something I could always do remote, but my girlfriend got a job offer [in L.A.] and also I knew that the comedy show that I was running at Lost Weekend in San Francisco was about to close down, so it seemed like everything was leaning that direction.
My role did change [at Pandora], about a year ago, but it’s always been something I could do remote. I’m now in podcast content operations at Pandora, which is a little bit different, before I was doing comedy analysis. I started at Pandora in 2014, so six years now.
So nothing major has changed in that role because of the spread of coronavirus?
Right, I’ve been doing Zoom calls this whole time, meetings on Slack and Zoom, and emails. So in that regard, I’m pretty used to it. Like when people are saying things like “You’ve got to mute yourself in a group video” I’m like, “oh I’ve learned that.”
In addition to your job with Pandora, you also host live comedy nights around L.A., how have those shifted recently?
The two that have been running the most regularly and the longest are Real Pain and the Giant Robot Comedy Night at the Giant Robot Gallery on Sawtelle and right now the store is closed. I don’t know when they’re going to reopen, but I think we just need everything to chill out and get the official word that we can start doing shows again.
The other show, Real Pain, which we had to cancel fairly last-minute this month, is at an art gallery called Real Pain Fine Arts.
I remember March 12 I was not sure if I was going to have my open-mic that I also run at the Uniondale Library in Echo Park. I was waiting to hear something, feeling personally like I should cancel it and then the library as a whole decided they would stop doing events.
I was more concerned about the Real Pain show because we had booked a lot of people to do that show on March 14, and now the idea is we’re going to try to rebook some of those people when the show can happen again.
When was the last live comedy night you hosted?
We did a [Giant Robot] show on March 5 and there was obviously a lot of talk in the air. So April we definitely canceled, and I’m imagining that May is probably off the books as well. We’re just going to have to wait it out and see just like everyone else.
Do you have plans or inclinations to do any virtual live comedy?
I’m thinking a little bit about this whole Instagram Live streaming thing. I did it for a separate thing I do, which is the Sup Podcast, a podcast about documentaries. I did one livestream thing on Facebook Live for the artist Liz Walsh. I didn’t want to do standard stand-up because it didn’t fit the format, so my thought process was to do a character for that.
When you’re used to stand-up, to the immediate reaction from someone else, it’s going to be hard to replicate over Zoom. Maybe one-on-one stuff, but then you’re basically making a podcast. You do really have to prepare if you’re doing a livestream—it’s not everyone’s forte to be able to extemporaneously ramble on about whatever.
I was just thinking today, do I want to try and replicate the idea of [live comedy] and ask all the people I had booked for the April show to join a Zoom room and just do jokes to people who are willing to turn their camera on, and then risk having it be recorded? Because that’s the other thing, comics don’t tend to like having their stuff recorded, and this is definitely a digital footprint when you might be trying out some new material that you don’t feel solid about it because you haven’t had a chance to run it by an audience. Comics are clearly going to keep creating content, it’s just going to take different shapes.
Comics will have to figure out a way to do their craft.
And people are valuing art and music now because it’s like, what else are you going to do in your spare time other than stream some content people made. I’m still working my regular job so it’s only taking away my out of the house activities.
My day-to-day has altered a little bit though now as I’m nervous about the anti-Asian sentiment going around. I’m reading about it and being like, that’ll never be in my neighborhood, but you never know. I hadn’t been thinking about it until we tried to do the farmers market and I had gloves and a mask and I was just like, are people going to look weirdly at me? You just have to hope they’re not going to throw something at you from six feet away.
Has your podcast changed?
My Sup Doc co-host Paco Romane is in San Francisco, so we’ve been doing it over Skype [anyways]. So it hasn’t changed too much in that regard.
Do you think people will tune in to podcasts more now that they’re home, or will we see a decline?
There’s a report that just came out about podcast listening trends. What’s one area where people love to listen to podcasts? Commuting, so that’s gone. The type of show we do is just talking about films and television, so those might have fallen off in favor of people trying to keep up to date on current news. For me, I listen to people talking for my job, that’s my job at Pandora, so that’s fun.
How else has the coronavirus pandemic changed things for you personally?
It’s an adjustment that my girlfriend is home now too at the same time as me in a one bedroom apartment, so we really have to negotiate a lot of our time and space. She’s also doing a lot of Zoom calls and making video content, she’s in another room and I’ve been posting up in the bedroom. I do feel we are very lucky to be able to be in that position to have a paycheck and to be working from home.
Are you still playing music? [Chen was a member of several bands, including KIT, and has produced physical music for his record label, Zum, on and off since the late 1990s.]
I don’t actively play music right now but I was gearing up to start putting out some records this year, but now everything is up in the air. It’s unclear what will happen with the retail situation—retail, manufacturers, all of it. I still have a job so I can still pay for something but I’ve been dealing with a pressing plant that’s sheltered in place and their cover printer is not functioning at the moment either. And Record Store Day got pushed back.
When South by Southwest got canceled, that should’ve been a sign but it took some time to trickle down to everyone — everything is going to be put on hold for a while.