A Sacramento comedian’s decade-long journey leads to a debut special on Amazon Prime
Sacramento comedian Marcus Parker spent the past decade — his 20s — striving to make a name for himself, mostly on the Northern California circuit.
He’s making a big national debut this week, and fittingly enough, the theme for his show is a meditation on growing up.
It’s been a long journey for the comedian better known as Mars Parker, whose debut comedy special titled “I’m a Grown Ass Man” premiered Thursday on Amazon: Prime Video.
Parker, 33, said the title for his comedy special comes from him reaching his 30s.
In reaching the milestone age, he noticed he’s considered young to older people but old to younger people and he’s figuring out that space in between as he builds his career.
“I’ve been working on this for how long and it’s been a journey, but also a collaborative effort of my friends having my back with everything I’m doing and supporting me as much as they can,” said Parker.
Parker first found his way to a stage after high school when he started performing improv. He didn’t think he’d pursue stand-up comedy then, although he was always drawn to stand-up comedy shows such as BET’s “ComicView.”
His first stand-up performance was in 2013 at Dive Bar at 1016 K St. He said he didn’t do so well at first. He improved and gained recognition from doing shows in different comedy clubs and shows around Sacramento such as Punchline and Laughs Unlimited.
He performed in Boogie’s Comedy Slam hosted by former Sacramento King center DeMarcus Cousins at the Memorial Auditorium in 2016. He’s also performed in the Cap City Comedy Slam hosted by KSFM 102.5FM at the Crest Theatre in 2019.
He began to get booked around California performing at HaHa Cafe in North Hollywood, Flapper Comedy Club in Burbank, and San Francisco’s Cobb’s Comedy Club and PunchlineSF.
When a worldwide pandemic caused businesses and venues to shut down, Parker had a breakdown because he did know at the time what would keep him going.
He avoided social media platforms that comedians often use, like TikTok and Instagram Reels. But Parker and his friends made a video about the pandemic that gained traction.
Once he noticed what social media views and engagement could do, he leaned into them and started making more videos, specifically about Sacramento. He shared the city’s culture through humorous videos, such as the series “Strange and Unusual: Sacramento Edition” in which Parker finds the oddest things about Sacramento and explains them to viewers.
Parker said TikToks and Reels are like improv and they helped him continue bettering his craft.
“It has opened up the door for me to get a lot more bookings in comedy so now I’m seeing the tide has turned, now you need to have a voice and a presence on all these apps,” he said.
It led him to a featured video in collaboration with Zillow, where he helped break down the steps to buying a home in comedic fashion.
Now Parker and friends have independently produced their comedy special at Sacramento’s Guild Theater at the Historic 40 Acres in Oak Park.
The special was picked up by Amazon.
“It’s something to celebrate, it’s a milestone,” said Parker.
Parker said the production was scheduled to be streamed on Saturday at Tiger Restaurant and Lounge, at 722 K St.
Representing his hometown, Parker credits Sacramento and will continue to look for more opportunities to produce comedy specials and bring a comedy festival to Sacramento.
This story was originally published September 21, 2022 at 11:08 AM.