Host of ‘Easily Offended'
Gina Brillon launched a half-hour stand-up comedy special, 'Easily Offended.' Premiered in August 2019, the show was made available on channels like HBO Latino and HBO's other digital platforms. The TV special lasted for one season with nine episodes and became one of the highest-watched shows on the channel.
- By Chetana
- Update :
Gina Brillon is a stand-up comedian popular for her shows, 'Pacifically Speaking,' 'Easily Offended,' and 'The Floor is Lava.'
Who is Gina Brillon?
Gina Brillon's career rose to prominence after becoming the first and only Latina performer to win NBC's 'StandUp for Diversity Showcase' in 2012.
Then, she started appearing on shows likeGotham Comedy Live,The View, andChelsea Lately, in 2013. She was also one of the faces for the Montreal' Just For Laughs International Comedy Festival's New Faces Class of 2013'.
In 2014, Brillon's first special show,Pacifically Speaking, was released on NuvoTV. The same year she appeared on the showStep Up Revolutionand starred in the documentary movieThe Fluffy Movie.In addition, she made a guest appearance on popular shows such asLate Night with Seth MeyersandJimmy Kimmel Live!.
Brillon's second special show, Easily Offended, was released in 2019, and her third show, The Floor is Lavawas in 2020.
She had also launched her podcast 'Mess In Progress: A Homegirls Guide To Self-Help.' She was also part of theTED Talk Series, 'TEDWomen 2019: Bold + Brilliant'. Gina also performed onAmerica's Got TalentSeason 16, aired in July 2021.
Early Life
Gina Brillonwasborn on 7 April 1980inBronx, New York, to Puerto Rican parents, and she has a twin sister.
Brillonwantedto do stand-up comedy after watching the Golden Globe Award-winning actress Brett Butler perform and do comedy in front of a live audience. She was just 14 years old at that time but got mesmerized by Butler's ability to make people laugh and wanted to do that for the rest of her life.
Brillon's first on-stage performance came when she was 17 years old when her mother enrolled both the sisters in a comedy contest. It was then she decided to pursue stand-up comedy as her profession.
Early Career
It was hard for Gina to get recognized in the stand-up community as a Puerto Rican performer in the initial days. Gina had to handle all of it, from being invited to show diversity to the program to not being taken seriously.
"I was quite often the only woman on the show or the only Latin female on the show. I knew a lot of the times I was asked to be there because they needed to make a quota…Even though that was an upsetting truth, I used it as an advantage. I saw this obstacle as an opportunity," she once recollected.
Taking that behavior as a 'blessing and a curse,' Brillon started to give her best, and soon her show tickets ran out within hours. She performed with full house audiences in frequented country clubs like Caroline's, The Comedy Store, and The Laugh Factory at Los Angeles and New York City outposts. Brillonbecamethe highest-selling headliner amongst her Improv Comedy Club artists.
In2012, she won NBC's competitive show, 'StandUp for Diversity Showcase.' She was the first and only Latina performer to be awarded that title. The next year, she was chosen for the 'New Faces Class of 2013' of Montreal's 'Just For Laughs International Comedy Festival.'
In2013, Brillon also appeared on the TV series documentaryGotham Comedy Live, followed by the TV seriesThe ViewandChelsea Lately'Round Table' episode.
'Pacifically Speaking'
Subsequently, Brillon's popularity gained momentum, and the renowned Mexican Comedian Gabriel Iglesias offered her a production deal.
In 2014, her first show,Pacifically Speaking, aired on NuvoTV. The one-hour special was produced by Iglesias and his production team Levity Entertainment Group. Iglesias also included her in his show,Step Up Revolution, and his documentaryThe Fluffy Moviereleased in the same year.
Brillon also starred on CBS'sKevin Can Waitand ABC'sThe Connerandmade a guest appearance in popular shows such asLate Night with Seth MeyersandJimmy Kimmel Live!.
'Easily Offended'
In 2019, Brillonlauncheda half-hour stand-up special,Easily Offended.Premieredin August of 2019, the show was made available on channels like HBO Latino and HBO's other digital platforms.
The TV special lasted for one season with nine episodes and became one of the highest-watched shows on the channel. Intheshow, Brillon shared jokes on topics such as relationships, people with Southern accents, people who talk too much, cruise ship buffets, etc.
'The Floor is Lava'
Gina Brillon's third stand-up show,The Floor is Lava, waspremieredon Amazon Prime Video on 5 June 2020.
On this show, she made humor about varied life topics like her evolvement from being single in her 30s to marrying her mid-western husband,followedup by the culture she was taught in her childhood and the ups and downs of a relationship.
One of her jokes thatbrought a great laugh among the audience was when she said, "Doesn't that feel good when you're in a relationship and someone comes to you for advice? It's like, I can't handle my problems. But yours? Give me 2 seconds. I got this."
Later, during the show's promotion,Brillon admittedthat her dialogues and pieces were meant to connect her with the audience irrespective of their background. For her, the reason why she included her personal experiences of make-ups and breakups was to make people relate to her on a personal level.
Comedy Dynamics produced the show, and Brillon was one of the executive producers of the show.
The Guardianreviewed it as one of the dynamically relatable shows by audiences of different nations, and Brillon being the best person to deliver the connection.
Other Projects
In 2019, Brillonlauncheda podcast with her longtime friend, writer, and producer Katherine G. Mendoza, titled 'Mess In Progress: A Homegirls Guide To Self-Help.' The podcast became a hub for her fans toknowBrillon's ultimate guide to self-help touched with comedy.
Further, Brillonwasalso part of theTED Talk Series, 'TEDWomen 2019: Bold + Brilliant'. Her episode titled, 'When people are "suspiciously kind," 'was releasedon 4 December 2019.
Brillon wasselectedas one of the performers on the second episode ofAmerica's Got TalentSeason 16, which aired from 1 to 3 July 2021.
Personal Life
Brillon ismarriedto musical artist Jeremy Oren, and they have a son. Oren is classicallytrainedin singing and piano and had mastered playing seven musical instruments.
Brett Butler Gabriel Iglesias Katherine G. Mendoza Jeremy Oren
