Winston Hodges on Working With Autistic Students & Going Viral on Funny AF

Winston: [00:00:00] I feel very lucky and, uh, blessed to have been a part of it, and I'm excited to see, you know, where it takes my career, man. I mean, hopefully, you know, hopefully not back to teaching.

Theme: To survive the 

Andrea: Hey, teacher besties. I am so excited to share with you that my book, They Never Taught Us That, is available right now. It is everything an experienced or first-year teacher needs to manage the chaos of a modern classroom, including some anecdotes to make you feel a little bit better because if there is a way that you can screw up, I've probably done it.

It also has advice on how to build trust with families, how to manage grading and lesson plans and IEPs and everything else that they never went over in your teacher prep program. They Never Taught Us That is available everywhere right now

Hey, teacher besties. Welcome to How to Survive the Classroom. I am Andrea Forkham. 

Gerry: And I'm Gerry Patoca. [00:01:00] 

Andrea: And today, we have the very funny comedian Winston Hodges with us. What's up, Winston? 

Winston: What's up? Thanks for, uh, thanks for having me. 

Andrea: Yeah. It's good to be here. I- this is very exciting for me because I, like probably a lot of people, discovered you on the Netflix show Funny AF with Kevin Hart.

Um- Yeah ... which was an absolute treat, and also, I have to be really careful when I say your name because- ... as you pointed out in your set, um, that Winston is the name that is very commonly used to name people's English bulldogs. Yeah. And I got an English bulldog puppy, um, about 12 weeks ago, and we named him Winston and- 

Gerry: Wow.

Andrea: So normally when I say Winston, it's usually Winston. I'm gonna really try and curb that because I don't feel like- Yeah ... that's probably the vibe that we're going for here today. 

Winston: Yeah, yeah, we don't... Yeah, I don't know if we want that type of, uh, ASMR on the- ... on the 

Andrea: podcast. Yeah. And I, so I was especially excited [00:02:00] because I found out that you were also a teacher for a while.

Winston: Yeah. 

Andrea: Yeah. So can you share- Yeah, that is true ... a little bit about, like, how long you taught and what you taught and all that good stuff? 

Winston: Yeah. I worked in education for about, uh, four years. I worked, uh, at a school for autism. Um, I worked in a k- uh, the program I was in, most of our kids were grade level, but they were ages 8 to 22.

So I had an elementary, a middle, and then a high school, and a post-graduate group. And, and we had, uh, basically grade level, uh, students that were, uh, had some behavioral issues, uh, was kind of... We were, we were kind of the last stop at the school before they would get, uh, hopefully reintegrated into a typically developing, uh, program.

Andrea: Gotcha. So were you guys self-contained? Is that kinda how, how that worked, or was it, like, same campus? Yeah Or- 

Winston: Yeah, so we were, the whole school was, uh, every individual at the school did ha- did have [00:03:00] autism, and then there was like nine programs. And so for the first few years we were on the same campus, but we were in a different building.

And then towards the end of my time there, they opened a, a, a brand new huge building, and they moved all the programs into like one, uh, one main campus. But they were all pretty self-contained. Like, we would get to see other kids at recess or like other groups or trips and stuff like that. But our day-to-day, uh, in, in the role of education, we were kinda like probably in, we were in our own little space.

Andrea: Gotcha. Okay, and what state was that in? You don't obviously have to tell us the school district or any of that. 

Winston: It's, uh, Virginia. Yeah, taught in Virginia, yeah. 

Andrea: Oh, okay. Very cool. And you decided you weren't bullied enough as a teacher, so you then decided to go into standup? 

Winston: No, I was l- I was lucky. I was doing standup and then needed a job, and luckily no one wants to teach, so

they were welcoming literally anybody into this school, uh, with no, I had, I had no teaching degree, so I was like, uh... The way the thing would work is there would [00:04:00] be, uh, 'cause it was a private school, so you could just be in the process of getting a, a, a degree. Um- Yeah ... but we had like lead teachers that did have their degree, and then all of us kind of underneath it doing the more one-on-one stuff with the kids.

Um- Gotcha ... but luckily, yeah, I didn't have to... They, they kept pressuring me to go to school, and then I eventually was like, "I quit." So, 

Andrea: sorry. So you taught, you taught for f- you taught special education at the school for four years, and you never, you never even started the process of doing the program or anything?

Winston: No, not at all. I, uh, yeah, 'cause I kept thinking comedy was gonna work out, and then I kept pushing it off, and I was doing so much standup at night that we would do some development stuff. But, uh, they kept offering like, "Hey, we pay for the school, and you go, and you could make more money." And then like, it was like the military where you would like, they would pay for your school, and then you owed them like the two years as a- Yeah

as a lead teacher there. And then I just kept putting it off, and then I gave myself a, a timeframe where I was [00:05:00] like, "You know, if comedy doesn't work out by 2022, I think I'm gonna just go back to school and do comedy for fun." And then, and then COVID hit, and I was like, "I gotta, I gotta get the hell outta here, man."

Andrea: Yeah. Okay, so that, so that's when you, you left the classroom was in during the pandemic or like right after? 

Winston: Yeah. I left October of 2020 Is when 

Andrea: I- Okay ... 

Winston: is when I left. 

Andrea: Gotcha. 

Winston: So we, we had gone remote and I, and so when we went to remote, I started teach- I, I, I moved to DC and I was like, "Oh, I'll just teach remote."

I was like, "COVID's gonna last a long time, so I'll be able to build up. I'll just be able to make remote." And then, uh, they called us back like a month into it and- Oh my gosh ... because the parents were like, "Yo, we can't, we can't work with our kids." Yeah. I was like, "You gotta... We have to get, we have to get these kids back in quick."

Uh, and so I, uh, commuted from DC for a few months, and then I kinda gave like a, I gave like my notice, and then I just, uh, stayed there for like a couple weeks just so I could say goodbye to all the kids. [00:06:00] And then, and then it was like, "All right. Well, I guess I'm full-time comedy. Sure hope the world opens back up and I don't go broke."

Uh, 

Andrea: yeah, which is like a, a gnarly time to try and do comedy because- 

Winston: Yeah ... 

Andrea: I mean, you couldn't, you couldn't go in groups anywhere, and the whole thing with comedy- Yeah ... is it's kinda nice to have a group. Like- 

Winston: Yeah. You kinda need people. Yeah, you don't, yeah, you don't want the, uh... It's the exact opposite of teaching.

You really want the comedian to audience ratio to be really high. Yes. You don't want it to be- 

Andrea: All right, guys, I don't know if you, uh, if you're watching this on YouTube, you maybe see that now all of a sudden my camera looks different. I am having some technical issues. Um, but before I got spontaneously ejected from the podcast, um, I wanted to hear about any of the crazy stories that you might have, Winston, from when you were still in the classroom.

Anything, not that kids would ever be- Yeah ... disrespectful- 

Winston: Yeah ... 

Andrea: or defiant or cause issues. But just in the off chance you might have one of those. [00:07:00] 

Winston: Yeah, man, it was, uh, every day. So I don't- So it's just, uh, it- it's just every day, man. 'Cause, 'cause the kids I worked with, man, I loved them to death. I miss them.

I do miss them a lot, uh, 'cause it was so, they were fun, but it was the type of school where it would be like kids would freak out on you one day, and then the next day they would go, it would be clean slate, and they wouldn't even remember. So I've been called every slur possible, even the ones that do, have never been directed at someone that, that, that looks like me before.

So that was a- Yeah ... but yeah, I mean, like we've had a bunch of crazy stuff, man. It's like kids getting physical, k- being out in the community and kids, like, attempting to get physical with people that weren't staff. And then you had to be- Yeah ... like holding a kid back while handing out business cards that let people know like, "Hey, I'm allowed to be touching this child right now."

Like it's just 'cause it just looked insane 'cause it would just be like me- Yeah ... and like, uh, we're doing like safety restraints on a kid who's trying to run into traffic, and they're just like, "Leave that kid alone." And we're like, "Take the damn [00:08:00] card. Call this number." I swear to God. It's, uh, what I'm doing right now is much more preferable to what this kid would be doing to you if you did- if you didn't get out of his damn way.

But, but yeah, man, a lot of cursing, a lot of desks getting flipped. I was pretty good at... The thing that I was the best at, um, wasn't teaching. It was the, uh, uh, cr- I'm really good at crisis de-escalation, apparently, was the thing that I would... So I would be working with kids, and then if a kid, you know, for lack of a better term, popped off, they would, uh, uh, I would get brought in like a negotiator 

Theme: to 

Winston: come in and try to get to the bottom of why, of why they were acting this way and what was going on.

So there's countless times where, like, I'm just like in, in the room being like, "All right. All right, Timothy." It's like, "What, what do I gotta do To get you to put down the microwave. What- Like, what do we gotta [00:09:00] do? You know what I mean? Like, I, I get it. You know, neither one of us like your parents. I totally understand-

that you're doing it. But, like, help me help you. Do you need a helicopter with a van full of gas? Do we need to just... Whatever you do, do not hit me with that microwave. But yeah, it would be stuff like that every single day. And then other stuff that's less funny and more, like, sad, that it's like I don't really wanna talk about.

But like, that, it would be- Yeah ... constant crisis every, every single day. And it would pop up some days more than others, where we would be like, "Oh, it's a full moon. We think it's gonna be-" Oh, man. "We think it's..." We'd be tracking the, the stars to see if it was gonna be wild or not. 

Gerry: That is- I never got down with the full moon stuff until I started teaching.

I'm like, nah, man, these, they go, they, they, like, start crawling on the walls like that 

Winston: movie Legion. Yeah, dude, they're 

Gerry: feral. Like, they, they 

Winston: start- Yeah, yeah. Huh. They're feral, dude. Their head's turning around, doing a full 360 spin, so you can s- 

Andrea: That's so bad. So what, what is like the [00:10:00] largest item that was ever thrown in your classroom or at you while you were at that 

Winston: school?

I've had, I've had a globe thrown at me. D- desks are easy, so it's hard, you know, g- I feel like- 

Andrea: Yeah ... 

Winston: outside of desks being flipped, which those would go... E- I- I'd be in the class every day, and I would feel like at least once a week there's people flipping tables like they just got cheated out of a game of Monopoly.

You know what I mean? Like, it is like table flip- Yeah ... immediate. But yeah, textbooks, a globe. I've been, I've been hit with a globe. Uh- Ugh ... yeah, that It's so funny 'cause you'd get such a-- 'Cause my school was a 46-week-a-year school, and so we didn't have summer breaks, and we didn't really have full winter breaks or anything like that.

So you were just at, you were with these kids all year long. And because it was 8 to 22, there were some kids that I was with the entire four years I was there, every day in there. And so you get the type of relationship with the student where, like, there was one where he, like, threw something. I wish I could [00:11:00] remember what it wa- I think it might've been, like, his shoe or something.

Like, threw his shoe at me. And, like, in the most unprofessional way ever, I just was like, "Come on, man." It's like, it's like I'm trying to teach you. With, like, a shoe? Yeah, I'm trying to teach you about the Civil War, man. I'm trying to tell you how that went down, and you're gonna hit me with this shoe? 

Andrea: Oh my gosh.

But it sounds like you guys actually did some stuff, like, out in the community. Yeah. Was that just, like, life skills stuff, or were you g- would you guys do field trips? 

Winston: So I went on loan to a different program, 'cause also, so, like, I was told when I started working at the school I worked at that the, um, average time of staff retention was, like, a month.

Like, that's the lo- Yeah ... like, that's as long as the average person worked there. 

Andrea: Oh, sweet. 

Winston: Um, and, and yeah, which is awesome, right? So, uh, but dude, this, this is true. So my first, um, uh, my first day there we had to go to training, and so I go to training, and I meet this other girl. And I'm nervous 'cause I've never-- I had substitute taught for a [00:12:00] while, but, like, in, you know, in sped classrooms or whatever, but you just don't know if you're gonna have The patience.

You know, I was nervous I wouldn't have the patience for it, and I was like really scared about it. And there was another girl in this training, and she was like, "Oh," she's like, "I was born for this. Like, my best friend, she has autism, and like my co-" And like was saying like, "I was, oh, I'm born, I'm born for this."

And I was like freaking out, like, "I don't know if I'm gonna be here." And so we have this training on Monday, then you go in classroom Tuesday, back to training Wednesday. And then I went back to training Wednesday. I was like, "Oh, where's Marissa?" You know? And they were like, "Oh, Marissa quit yesterday." Yeah, M- Marissa couldn't cut it.

She could- Yeah. 

Gerry: She, she couldn't hang. That's what's funny about like a month average, and then you see somebody, they're like, "I've been here for three years." It's like, I mean, somebody's dragging this thing down. 

Winston: Oh, yeah, dude. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. There's people that were like that. And you would always hear like...

They, they felt like war stories where people would be like, "Yeah, there was one lady, she asked someone to watch the student she was with when she went to lunch, and she just never came back." Just [00:13:00] people just left her like- Oh my gosh ... "I'm done with this." Block the school's number. 'Cause they didn't pay you enough to like really care about it if you didn't care about it, if that makes any sense- Yeah

whatsoever. Like, you really had to be about that life. And I, and I, I'll say this, man, it's like I'll joke about it all the time. I, I felt like I had found a career that if comedy did not work out, it was the only thing I'd ever done where I was like, yeah, I was like kinda made to do this. Like, this was- Yeah

this was in my bag. It was in my... And man, working with kids with autism sh- will really help you with interpersonal comedian communication in a way that I was not prepared for. Like, I am so good at dealing with hecklers and other comics, talking them off the ledge or whatever, because you have to be very intentional with your communication, and you have to actually active listen.

'Cause I had students that if you Didn't really pay attention to them and they could tell you weren't paying attention. It was like they were going, they were gonna pop off for sure, but- Yeah ... yeah, I don't even remember what question you asked. I feel like I didn't even answer the damn question you asked me.

No, 

Andrea: you did. [00:14:00] No, you, you did. Some of the crazier things that happen. Well, and I think that's the thing that I find so interesting too is, like, when people think of special education teachers in particular, I think that, like, that woman who you met who's like, "I just, you know, I have a sibling- 

Theme: Yeah ... 

Andrea: he's disabled, and I'm just ma-," like, like these very sweet, gentle spirits- Yeah

is what people have in their head. Until you've actually met a special education teacher- 

Theme: Yeah ... 

Andrea: they are tough as nails. Like, there is no one who has seen more- 

Theme: Yeah ... 

Andrea: or experienced more. And then on top of it, have more paperwork than any other- Yeah ... teacher in the school with all of the meetings and all the parent interactions that are required to happen several times a year- Yeah

and all that. It's completely different, I think, from what people would imagine. Like, they're expecting, like, this very sweet, gentle person, but I don't feel like the sweet, gentle people a lot of times can hack it because it's j- it's hard. I think they 

Winston: can work with babies. 

Andrea: Yeah. 

Winston: Yeah. Like, those people- 

Andrea: Maybe, like, the itty-bitties

Winston: in the early intervention, the little ankle [00:15:00] biters, they can work with the two and three-year-olds because they can't get physically overwhelmed- 

Andrea: Yes ... 

Winston: by, by the, the little goblins when they get to become- Yeah ... teenagers and, and stuff like that. Yeah, it was tough, man, 'cause I just was like, I wanted to be the type of person that could do it, but having never really done it full time, I was just so nervous.

'Cause I don't know, man, you read all the time about, like, teacher snaps, beat, beats up student. And then, like, I, I was always like, "Man, that's terrible. That's awful." And then I taught at that school, and I was like, "Yeah, man, I mean, did anyone ever ask what the kid called him?" Right? It went up, it went up.

'Cause it's not saying it's okay- Well- ... but it's not like, after working in that for four years, I was like, yeah, man, if I didn't have the patience for it and I didn't have such a good support system of, like, we all looked out for each other, and we would had a really good system of, like, if you needed to get out of a situation because you could feel you were getting escalated, you would tag out.

Yeah. And people would get tagged in, tagged out constantly. Um, but like, you know, you'll see someone where it's just, like, full on [00:16:00] teacher fist fighting a child, and I used to be like, "Oh, that's crazy." And now I'm just like, "Yeah, that person, they snapped." Yeah. Something happened in that class, and they just were like, "You're not gonna talk to me like that anymore."

Andrea: Yeah. Well, and I think that people, they, they don't understand how many days in a row that teacher probably- Yeah ... had to take a deep breath- Yeah ... and go for a walk and swallow down that rage- Yeah ... and then deal with all the rest. Like, and again, not to say that, like, we are supporting that happening, but it, it, it, like, people can break.

Like, there is- Yeah ... a limit to the human mind- What 

Winston: I, 

Andrea: what I like- ... and how much someone can take ... 

Winston: what I like to say is there is never an excuse for it happening, but there is always an explanation. So- It- It's never- Yeah ... it's never an excuse. Like, I- You gotta, you gotta be bigger, you gotta be better than that.

But it is nuts where you'll just, I'll, we'll just watch the news and I'm just like, "Well, that guy's life's over 'cause he, 'cause he, 'cause he- Yeah ... 'cause he came into work and, uh, on day 20 of the student disrespecting him, he couldn't take it anymore, man 

Andrea: Yeah, [00:17:00] and I, I, I feel the same way whenever I see a, like, news report about a teacher that, you know, oh, they got caught 'cause they were super drunk.

Like- Yeah ... they were so unbelievably drunk at school, and I'm like, "What are their classes like, though?" Like- 

Winston: Yeah ... 

Andrea: let's be honest. 

Winston: No, for real, man. It's just like, it's like also, it's like, I mean, let's... Can we at least watch, watch them in the class? We can't bring somebody in just to see if they can kinda do it drunk maybe?

Like, maybe- ... 

Andrea: like 

Winston: maybe- 

Andrea: Like maybe see- Maybe- Do a, do a field sobriety test- Yeah ... but for teaching 

Winston: Not drunk- Just teaching so- ... but, like, I don't know, man. It's like I think different people have different blood alcohol contact. Like, if Jerry had beers and I had beers, our level would be different. 

Andrea: Yeah. 

Winston: You know?

Andrea: That's true. 

Winston: So you know- Yeah ... what I mean? Like, so yeah, this teacher has four beers, but they're, you know, keeping it cool, you know? Maybe they- 

Andrea: Right. Maybe it's not- They can handle it, dude ... not so bad. So you said that the, you noticed definitely some, like, crossover with- Yeah ... teaching special education and interacting in the comedy world.

Yeah. Can you, can you say more about that? Like, [00:18:00] what, where have you seen the most things where you're like, "Damn, this is just like when I was teaching special education"? 

Winston: It's just comedians kind of spiral a lot, and there's a lot of, like, uh, perseverating on the same thing or intrusive thoughts and just, like...

And I used to have a ton of students that would be like, "The problem isn't that something bad happened in the day. The problem is something bad happened," and then they could not quit thinking about it. Hmm. And that happens with comedians a lot, where it's someone just like, "Oh man, I bombed, I bombed, I bombed.

I'm not gonna get to work here anymore. Like, oh, it's the worst set ever." And then just learning how to communicate where it's just like I'll be in a green room sometimes being like, "Oh, hey Mark, how's it going, man?" And they'll tell me what's going on. Like, I'm like, "Oh dude, I, I get it, man. I'd be really frustrated if that happened to me too, man.

That sucks, dude. That's really awful, 

Gerry: man." Well, I talked about- Oh, we, we talked about one of Andrea's shows last week in New Orleans. She texted me the other day. She's like, she's doing pushups. She's like, "It's never happening to me again." I'm like, "All right, Andrea." Yeah. "How, how you fix the problem?" 

Andrea: It 

Winston: was so bad.

But y- Yeah. But you just gotta let [00:19:00] people feel seen and heard, and I was like, "Yeah, man, that'd be terrible if that happened. I would feel that same way." It's like, but you know what? Like, here's the reality of the situation. Like, and so, like, what can we do now? Like, what's the next steps? Like, what's the worst case scenario?

What's the best case scenario? And just talking people through that, and not just comedians, but it's like, man, I found out that, like, most people Aren't heard in their day-to-day life. And the difference is when individuals with autism, at least in the community I worked with, when they're not heard, they will let you know and it's gonna be a problem.

But like- Yeah ... kinda everybody enjoys feeling like, "Hey, like you're actually listening to me, and like you're looking for solutions, and you're being patient with me," and stuff like that. So it's really helped my interpersonal communication just across the, the board. 'Cause I was like a comm major in college and I was like, "I don't know when I'm ever gonna use this."

And then I proceed to use it every day. 

Andrea: Every, i- in every facet of 

Winston: your life. In every facet of my life, uh, I, I am using it. 

Andrea: That's awesome. All right, so we are gonna take a very [00:20:00] quick break, guys. And we will be right back.

Have you ever wondered what I would say if my mother and my administrators weren't watching every single thing I do on social media? Well, that's exactly what my stand-up show is, and I'm gonna be coming to a town near you super soon. You can get tickets at 

Gerry: educatorandrea.com/tickets

Andrea: Welcome back, teacher besties. Um, so Winston, I wanna dive in a little bit into what it was like doing Funny AF. 

Theme: Yeah. 

Andrea: And, um, I am so curious because you mentioned that, like, you spend a lot of time kind of talking comedians off the ledges. J- and which comedians, I have learned, are some of both the most insecure- 

Winston: Yeah

Andrea: and the least likely to let anything go humans- 

Winston: Yeah ... 

Andrea: of all time. And that is like A- across skill level, I've noticed- Yeah. I, like, the p- like, [00:21:00] whether you are just starting out or you are, like, really, really phenomenal, the, it, the crash outs are- 

Winston: Unreal ... 

Andrea: like, unreal. 

Winston: Unbelievable- Unreal and- ... crash outs, 

Andrea: man ... my, my husband comes with me to go on the shows, the show weekends and stuff like that.

And so he hangs out with myself and the other comics, and he is so sick of us 

Theme: Yeah ... 

Andrea: because he'll watch our sets, and he's seen our sets so many times now that he's like, "All right, I'm gonna watch your show," you know? And, and he'll be honest, like, if it... He's like, like the one I did a couple weeks ago, he's like, "It wasn't your best.

It was the worst setup for comedy anyways." And I... He's like, "Your, you did the jokes the same way. They did not land the same way." Um, and, and so he, like, is so sick of us. And so- Yeah ... I kinda wanna hear with doing Funny AF where it's, you know not just the 20 to 500 people in your immediate audience are seeing you.

Yeah. But it's, you know it's gonna go out [00:22:00] wider. Obviously, you guys didn't know what was gonna get cut- Yeah ... in the non-live ones and all of that. Yeah. Um, but what was that like in the green room when you were doing Funny AF? I 

Winston: mean, it was fun, man. Everyone, uh, that's another thing where, like, usually when you watch these competition shows, there's somebody, there's a villain, and there's somebody to hate.

And we did not have that, man. Like, we were a very tight-knit group. Like, I'm pretty good friends with, like, a lot of the people even from the first few rounds. But, like, the top 10, we all became, I think, pretty close, especially the groups like, like the, the ones of us that were from the East Coast or whatever 'cause I'd be seeing them in New York and, and on the road and stuff.

And yeah, and we're all just pretty close, and you would just be in there, and everybody's kinda stressed out. And there is so much stuff that they cut, which I get it. You can't, you know, you only have Lord knows how many episodes of an hour a piece. But they cut so much stuff that I was positive was gonna be in the show.

Uh- Yeah ... like 100% beyond a shadow of a doubt, and then I'm watching it, I'm like, [00:23:00] "I can't believe they didn't use that." And I think all of us kinda had that. Like, we had moments that we thought were either to our story or were just really interesting, unique things that happened that did not get left in.

And I was like, "Man, if they'd left this in, that would've been awesome." 

Andrea: Okay. So c- k- are you allowed to share what some of those things 

Winston: were? Yeah, why, I mean, why not? I ain't signed nothing. Yeah. I, uh, they haven't got me signed anything, you know? Yeah. So well, there's like one where we were in the, um, the callback episode, um, like the one when we all went to LA, and it was like 18 people being cut down to 10.

And, and one person went up And they ran the light, like, an insane amount. Like, they did, like, 15 minutes instead of five. Wow. And they would not get off stage. And, uh, the other 17 people are in the green room, and it was just like, to me, it was the best moment of the show because I'm sitting in the green room and I'm watching...

We're, we're watching everyone on the TV, and I just like Say out [00:24:00] loud to the group while other people are having conversations. I was like, I was like, "This feels like more than five, right?" Like everyone kind of feels this is more than five. And then people start to look at the TV and, and, uh, I think, uh, Steve Fury was next to me, and then Steve just goes, "Yeah, this feels like at least six, right?"

And then as we're doing it, people start watching and, and the person keeps going into more bits. And then so we're all just like, "There's no way they're gonna do another joke." And then they would be like, "Yeah, what else did y'all wanna talk about?" And we're all like... And everyone's like screaming in the green room.

Every time they went to a new joke, we'd be like, "Oh my gosh." And the- And there was one time where we're at like minute 14, they go into one more joke and then like Usama's running around the room while we're all like, "Oh my God." And it wasn't mean-spirited. And then that person came back to the green room, and they were like, "I killed, right?"

And we were like, "You did 20 minutes." 

Andrea: Yeah. 

Winston: And they were like, "What?" Did they have 

Andrea: any idea? 

Winston: No. They were like, "Oh, I didn't know 'cause it, it counted down from five." And then the way the clock worked is it would go from five down [00:25:00] to zero, and then when it went to zero, it would start giving you like negative one sec- You know what I mean?

It would be negative and it would start counting up. Yeah. And they were like, "Oh, when it went negative and counted up, I thought that was how much extra time I was getting." 

Theme: Oh, no. What? 

Winston: We were like, "What?" They're like- ... "Yeah, I didn't, I didn't know what it meant. I didn't know what it meant when it said negative nine minutes."

I thought I had... And they 

Gerry: were like, "What?" I thought 

we 

Winston: were doing a battle 

Theme: royale. I thought I was- 

Winston: Yeah. I thought- That's right. He was- I was ready to do four hours ... too baton. Yeah. I thought that's what you're supposed to do. But, but that was such a good fun moment. And then, and then they had like some sincere moments in there.

Like I was, um... During the topical joke episode, which I think was episode six or whatever, we're in there, and I'm in the green room, and it had been like a really emotional thing and like a thing that I, I talked about a lot in interviews on the show, but they never used it as part of my story, is I talked about my dad passing away.

And so they were asking me questions about my dad, and I'm like talking about him and what it means to be on the show and like how proud he would [00:26:00] be and like I'm getting really teary-eyed downstairs and emotional and stuff. And like they have these cameras. I'm telling you, this shit is right in my face.

Like I- They are like, they could not... Like while it's happening, I was like, "Man, just, just don't cry. You don't wanna cry." I was like- Right ... "Don't be emotional." And I was just like, I don't remember what I said, but I remember afterwards I was like, "Man, that's gonna be a really nice tribute to my dad." Like, I felt really good about it, and they didn't include it- Yeah

at all. They s- they just include me at the end. They're like, "Winston, you're going through." And then I go, "Oh my gosh." And it looks like I'm crying 'cause I'm getting ready to go through. I'm crying 'cause we've been talking about my dead dad for an hour and a half downst- downstairs But it was interesting how they cut some stuff to fit their narrative.

But I will say they did a, such a good job. Like, they made everybody look good on the show. Yeah. There were some people that they could have made look terrible if they had wanted to. Yeah. And they did not do it. And the stuff, the f- the few editing things that weren't actually what the [00:27:00] way that they were in real life, it was, I saw why they did it, and it was just to kind of make a point or hammer home the emotional truth to, like, stuff happening.

Like, there's a scene where, like Usama, he automatically gets pushed through in the first round. Like, you, Kevin comes up and raises his hand, like you're automatically going through. And then it cuts to the green room, and there's all these different comics being like, "Oh, crap. Oh, whatever." And then so they cut to me, and I'm walking around, and I go, "F me," is what I say on the thing.

Theme: Yeah. 

Winston: And then I was... But here's the thing. That was, I wasn't in the room when Usama was on stage. So that was, I was in the showroom watching him perform. I wasn't in the green room. So that green room moment was from after my set when I felt bad about my set, and I walked through, and I was talking about it.

But they were trying to hammer home the emotional truth of what it feels like when someone gets an automatic pass, and now we know there's only four spots left to give out. So I wasn't mad about it, 'cause it didn't make me look bad. But, you know- Yeah ... if it'd made me look bad, I'd have said so. But [00:28:00] stuff like that, they would change a couple things to get across, like, how it felt in the room.

So I do totally get that. And I mean, the producers and the directors and the staff, it was truly incredible. And I would, I would redo this show, uh, 100 times out of 100. Like, I would, I would go through that experience again, for, for sure. 

Andrea: That is so cool. And it, I, I was actually... You know, as I watched it, and I saw the way that they were clipping certain sets and everything- Yeah

I did notice that, 'cause I, like, I, even great sets, you could clip it where it's, like, the we- only the weakest parts of the set. Yeah. You know? You could, you could do that. Even, even people who kill sometimes have a moment where it's like, "Ugh." Yeah. And then you g- And, you know, the best comics know how to take that moment and make it even funnier- Yes

because then you're like, "Oh, that didn't land," right? Yeah. But if you clipped it before they ma- like, made it better- You could make them look terrible ... you could make them look terrible. And it just, I think it, it was really evident to me that the people who made it, and the people who put, like, their heart [00:29:00] and soul into creating the show, um, just loved comedy.

Winston: Yeah. 

Andrea: Like- Loved comedy ... loved comedy, and were, like- It- ... trying to give opportunities- Yeah ... to all these comics. 

Winston: They, they could have made this a hit piece on comedians. They could have made this- Yeah ... like, oh, trash TV, and they did not. They were really trying to help people. The, Bill Dixon, who's one of the executive producers, and, like, I think either co-creators or directors on the show, he, he used to be a stand-up comedian.

Like Kevin Hart, like, is still a stand-up comedian. But that dude loves comedy, and I, I think he, he actively really wanted everyone to succeed. And, uh, and it was really awesome to, to be a part of that. Like, it was, it was really cool. Super stressful. Um, and, and the way they edited sets was interesting, because it was like they were...

I had, uh, some people got a lot more of their set shown. So I had really good sets every single time, but, like, they would only show, like, a minute of my set, or, like, a minute and a half. Uh, which is fine, but it was funny the stuff they chose to cut out, 'cause it was, like, um, uh... Like, I t- I talked about [00:30:00] teaching a lot more.

I talked about, like, working with kids on the, on the autism spectrum, 'cause that's a thing that comes up in my standup a lot. Like, I have, like, five or six things that- Continually reappear in my, in my standup and stuff that I like to talk about. And man, they got me. They, they, they cut one joke I had that was a pretty long, uh, uh, teaching joke about teaching at a school for autism and getting frustrated at people saying that vaccines cause autism.

And there was like a long thing at the end that they cut out from it that is like a, a r- a joke I'm really proud of, and I'm excited for people that come to see me, um, on the road are gonna get to see, like, the full, the full joke. But there were stuff that got taken out, and I was like, "Ah, they might have taken that out 'cause it might have been a little too political."

Andrea: Piss people off? 

Winston: Yeah, it might piss a few people off if I was talking about RFK Jr. and vaccines and how they don't cause autism. Yeah. I could see where people, where people might have had their fill on that. So. 

Andrea: Yeah. 

Winston: Yeah. 

Andrea: So something I kept thinking about, 'cause you guys, I mean, all... I, [00:31:00] I've... Before the show, there were several comics who I'd been following for a while online, um, some of whom made it out to, to the final, the final group and everything.

But what I kept thinking about while you guys were doing this is you guys were telling joke after joke after joke. 

Theme: Yeah. 

Andrea: I, I don't know how much time and how many j- how many of your jokes you guys used in the process of this, but I'm like- 

Theme: Yeah ... 

Andrea: and then the, the gift and this wonderful opportunity to do an hour, I'm like, a lot of comics would have just- Yeah

burned 20 minutes maybe- Yeah ... of what they would want to be like... 'Cause you guys are obviously trying to use your best stuff- 

Winston: Yeah ... 

Andrea: because you wanna move on and you wanna win, but then that means are, like, are they gonna use it in their, your- 

Winston: Yeah. I think I, 'cause I, 'cause I thought about that, 'cause I was doing the math in my head, right?

And so If I made it to the semifinals, and in the semifinals what they aired, they aired five full minutes from the semifinals. They aired three minutes of me on the topicals, that's eight minutes of jokes. [00:32:00] The roast doesn't count 'cause that's not, you know what I mean, you're not your act or anything like that.

And then another three or four minutes. So I, so I only ended up burning about 12 minutes of material. 

Andrea: Okay. But 

Winston: if you made it... But someone like Usama and Kaitlyn, where they showed more of their sets in different rounds, is they ended up burning like t- almost a half an hour. Yeah. Or like 20, 22 minutes or whatever.

But I mean, I would really be surprised if they wouldn't let you do those jokes again in the special. Like- Yeah ... I, I, I kind of took it as all the jokes of mine that they used was the shortest version of those jokes. So like in the first round I have a joke about having five exes who are now trans men.

Mm-hmm. Um, and uh, but that, I, it's a minute joke on that show. If you come see me live and I do the full version, that's a 10-minute joke. Yeah. So it's a thing where, uh, I think a lot of comics, like I, that's why the five-minute sets I felt, I'm really proud that I made top six because I feel like [00:33:00] this type of show doesn't really showcase me at my strengths, which is like most of my jokes are really long.

They're these big setups and these buildups with a bunch of jokes and stuff in between. Um, but the positive of that was like, oh, I used 12 minutes of jokes, but if they let me reuse them, those jokes are so much bigger and so much better. So I, so I would, I would like to think they would let people reuse some stuff.

Or it might be the type of thing where it's like, all right, now you have a year and we're gonna drop your special the same time we drop the next season of the show. Yeah. Like, that was the only thing that I could think of timing-wise, 'cause there's no way they're going... If they do a quick turnaround on that, that's psychotic.

'Cause I Yeah ... I don't know how- Yeah ... how that would work, but. 

Gerry: Did, did you have to do a new set for every round? Or could you like mix and match and they just cut stuff you ran in a 

Winston: different place? No, so you, so you, you ha- you had to do new stuff every round until you get to the semifinal, where I was, and I was told, "You can use stuff that [00:34:00] they did not air."

So everything I did in the semifinal was stuff that I had done partly in some of the other rounds that had not aired yet. 

Theme: Gotcha. 

Winston: Um, and I think a lot of people kind of did that. So when you watch the semifinal sets, it's a lot of-- Some people have new stuff. Like, I had a few new jokes in there, but most of it was like, "Oh, this is stuff that we did earlier- Yeah

that got cut and, and we're allowed, and we were allowed to keep." I think they kind of did that, 'cause I think they did understand how they were like-- I mean, some people on that show, just from the nature of how long they've been doing it from the original 44, it's like if they'd have made it to the finals, it's like, you know, they might just have a half an hour.

Yeah. Which is okay to have. It's not a, you know- Yeah ... it's not a sta- It's a statement on like, "I've been doing it 11 years, and so I would have more than someone that's been doing it two or three that were in the first few rounds" type of thing, so. 

Andrea: Yeah. So who-- Like, obviously you guys got to perform in front of some comedy legends.

Winston: Yeah. 

Andrea: Um, who was o- like one of your [00:35:00] favorite people to perform to that you were just like, "Wow, that was incredible"? 

Winston: Yeah, it's really nuts because I-- Of the people on it, they were all people that I have like an incredible amount of respect for and think are amazing at what they do, and they are legends.

But they weren't all necessarily people that like- spoke to me when I was younger, if that makes any sense. Got it. Where it's like- 

Gerry: Yeah ... 

Winston: like I think Chelsea Handler is, is, is a genius. I think she's helped so many comics' careers and stuff, and I have a lot of respect for her. But like when her show was on, Chelsea Lately, I was like a little too young to watch it.

Mm-hmm. And so by the time it left, so like I know her in the, in the annals of like she's an OG, we're gonna give her the respect she wants. So like having her say that I was her favorite and stuff, it like, you know, I was looking at more of her stuff, and I had seen some of her stand up, and I was like, "Oh, this is a huge compliment."

Like Keegan-Michael Key is great. I mean, like I loved Key & Peele. Um- Yeah ... I mean, like Kevin of course has been in countless [00:36:00] movies that I've loved, and I saw him when I was in college. It was really cool to see him live. Like if I had to pick one that was like, oh, the person whose standup I had listened to the most is it was like Kumail.

Um- Mm ... because Kumail Nanjiani has an album called Beta Male that came out I think around the time I started doing standup or a little bit before that, and it's a really, really, really amazing album. And so that's kind of like, I used to listen to comedy albums all the time. So and, and he's the only one that I remember having like a, oh, this album was really, you know, something that I love.

So it was-- So I think I lucked out in that like I had a great deal of respect for all these people. But like, you know, when I was a kid, I was purely listening to clean comedy 'cause I was raised super religious, so it's like, you know, I would've been-- I was trying to think of who I could be starstruck by, and it would be someone like, I don't know, it'd be someone like Sinbad.

You know what I mean? Like Sinbad- ... could make me starstruck 'cause he's who- Yeah ... I listened to the most, you know, as a child or like that level. [00:37:00] And then like Chris Rock- Yeah ... he's another guy that was like huge name. It's crazy- Yeah ... to be in a room performing, uh, for him. Um- 

Theme: Yeah ... 

Winston: but yeah, man, I think doing standup so long, the starstruck quality of it like doesn't affect me anymore.

Like 'cause it is- Yeah ... a thing where it's like- Yeah ... oh, I just, I have, I respect all these people. They're so, they're so damn amazing. But not like a You know, I think if Conan O'Brien had been there, I probably would've been like, "Well, this is insane that this person- Yeah. Right ... like, like when I think of the big, Chappelle would've been like an insane one.

Uh, like where just like, oh my gosh, being from, you know, living in DC and him being like a DC guy. But yeah, I feel very lucky that I got to perform for all those legends, and the fact that they all liked me was pretty crazy. 

Andrea: When you were standing up there, could you actually see them when you were performing?

Yes. 'Cause a lot of times- Yes ... for a lot of people who don't know, when you're up on stage, you can usually see like the first row, maybe a couple other people. But it looked like you guys were actually- No, they were- Like, were they lit 

Winston: up? They were well lit. 

Andrea: Okay. 

Winston: Cameras on them, well lit. It was... You had [00:38:00] to try to not look at them.

Gotcha. And then every episode it felt like they were moving them closer and closer to the stage. Like, it was kind of insane. But yeah, it was. Yeah. You could for sure see them when you were on stage. Okay. And you had to actively not look at them. And there was like, like when I was in the first round, I was trying so hard not to look at Keegan and Kevin.

And then when I did- Yeah ... the callbacks, they were, generally they were like stage right, like off to the right where you could look straight ahead. At the callbacks, they were dead center in the middle of the room. And- Yeah ... uh, but it was helpful in that moment because that was the round I was probably the most nervous in.

And to watch all of them laugh at my joke at once, and, and I saw Chelsea lean over to Kumail and say something, and I was like, "Oh man," I said, "I've got this in the bag." And it was so- 

Gerry: Yeah. 

Winston: Yeah ... it was really confidence boosting, man. Like, 'cause that's the thing- I bet ... we didn't know what they said about us until the show came down.

Like, I didn't see any of that stuff of them saying it, and so I'm getting texts from people being like, "Chelsea Handler said you were her favorite. Kumail said you were funny. Keegan and Kevin said you were an OG, an original. Nobody's like you." And I was like, [00:39:00] "What?" And then I went back and watched it and I was like, "Oh shit, this is pretty cool."

Andrea: Awesome. 

Gerry: After the show ended, like immediately after, I mean, we, we all do standup. I know you're on like that standup section of Threads, and everyone had opinions. How, how were you handling that, since you were kind of- Uh, a 

Winston: part 

Gerry: of this thing so many people are talking about and have these hard opinions on.

Winston: Well, I'm mentally ill, so I was in threads, like I was responding to people directly, but not in a mean way. It was people... 'Cause when the semifinal came out, there was a lot of people being like, "Oh, it looks like everyone's bombing. It looks like everyone's bombing on the semifinals," but it's because the audience wasn't miked.

And so I was responding to people being like, "Hey, if you didn't like the jokes, I can't change your opinion on liking the jokes, but I can tell you I killed." Like it was- Yeah ... we were all in the room killing. I got a standing ovation in the semifinal round, and I think after me and Olivia's set, once they got to Asama, they had kind of figured it out, and they had [00:40:00] boosted the laughs in the audience and stuff, and so the experience was better.

And I think for the finale it was better, too. But it was just me responding to people being like, "Hey, I don't know what to tell you, man. You can not like my comedy or whatever." I was like, "But I'm not a liar." You know what I mean? I'm like- Right ... if I bombed, I would tell you I bombed. But I went first with no host after Kevin and Chris did their little thing up there, and I went up, and I had a hot set where it was like I got a standing ovation.

People were yelling. Kevin said positive stuff. I think I'm one of the few people Chris Rock didn't say a mean thing to. Like, I think he was just mean to everybody else. He didn't say nothing mean to me. So that was kind of the main thing, and then I've tried not to really look at it and then, uh... Because I, I'm looking at it like this is...

I could view this as like this is the pinnacle, like this could... the most that I'm gonna do. I really, you know, with, to, to not sound delusional, I do think this is kind of just the beginning for my career because, um, like, uh, we're doing this nationwide tour and stuff, and I'm selling tickets pretty good in a lot of cities.

Some not as well as others, but I mean, the ticket sales, I got 'em back today. We're doing really good. I'm like really excited [00:41:00] about it, and I really think that people coming to see me live, like if you kind of liked me in the show, like even if you just thought I was okay in the show, you're going to like really, really, really like me when you see the full hour.

So, uh, so I was kind of been on there responding to people and just, you know, being honest with them and like, I don't know. If people don't like my comedy, it's fine, but I think it's less people didn't like my comedy, and it's more they just, you know, they didn't... just if there's not a laugh track, some people don't know, you know, when something's funny, which is, uh, you know, I'm okay with that.

Gerry: And a lot of the people posting it, it's like they're, the clout they have is them talking about you. Like it's- 

Winston: Yeah, yeah. Absolutely, man ... 

Gerry: open micers- For, for sure ... stuff like that. They're, and they're running their mouth, and people who, who want that 'cause for all of you, no matter whether, uh, you advanced or, or not, like that's gonna do good for all- 

Winston: Yeah

of 

Gerry: your careers. 

Winston: Like- Well, it's just so... Yeah, it's for real, and it's so funny when I would read like when it's a regular person writing it, like that's not a comic, it's whatever. [00:42:00] When I would see like a newer comic saying something negative about me or something else, my brain immediately goes to like, "All right.

Well- Like, you know, I'm gonna-- If y- you would be lucky to work with me. You know what I mean? Yeah. Like I don't even know... And I'm also someone that's just like, I am generally really modest, but when push comes to shove, when I have to be honest about it, it's just like, "Hey man," it's like I, I work the Comedy Cellar in New York.

I get to open for people like, I've opened for Derek Stroop. I've gotten to open for, you know, Michael Che before, Mark Normand, all these people. It's like none of the open micers that are saying negative stuff, if we're gonna be real, you, you know, you couldn't follow me on my worst day type of thing. Yeah.

And, and so I, I have-- I'm a modest person, but I am also like, I I have a lot of, I have a lot of... I'm confident, so it's like it doesn't affect my self-esteem to see it. I just think it's delusional and doesn't make sense, and I think it's bad business, man. You will never catch my ass on social media or on any [00:43:00] podcast or any public thing.

You can go to any podcast I've ever done, I have never said a negative thing about another stand-up comedian. Yeah. 'Cause you never know who's gonna take you on the road. You never know who's gonna like your comedy. You never know, like, you know, if you're mean to people on the way up, they're gonna be awful to you on the way down.

And I think it costs absolutely nothing to just be kind and understanding and, and I don't know, man. I remember when comedy was like a brotherhood. Like, we're all in it together. Yeah. Like, we can talk trash to each other about what's going on, but it's like if somebody comes in and tries to talk shit about the fraternity, it's like, "Hey, brother, you're not allowed to talk about my friends like that."

And I feel like that's kinda gone a little bit, which is a bummer. 

Gerry: It was a reflection point for me, 'cause I wasn't even posting anything, and I, it had me thinking about, well, I made this comment to my friend. I was like, I've, I'm- ... who, who am I? You know? Yeah. And it was, it's just, like, people were... Yeah, like- 

Winston: Yeah, some people 

Gerry: were being really mean.

Other people- Say, "Oh, they could've found people who were less known." I'm like, what? They want to go pull you out of a Dairy [00:44:00] Queen lobby- Yeah ... where you're doing an open mic? Yeah. Like, no, bro. Also- Like 

Winston: Also, I couldn't... It, it was so nuts, 'cause I saw so many people saying that, where it's like, "Oh, all these people already had a ton of followers," and I was like, "I did not."

I was like- Yeah ... "Give me a damn break, brother. I've, uh... This has done wonders for my career." But, but yeah, I think at the end of the day, the thing people don't understand is it's like, you know, you can be kind of well-known in comedy, but this was to try to make you well-known to everybody. And also at the end of the day, man, who, they're giving away a Netflix Special.

Who do you... Do you want someone to win it that's been doing comedy for six months? 

Gerry: Yeah. 

Winston: And then the special comes out and you're like, "Oh, this is terrible." And it's like, yeah, it's terrible because they didn't use already pretty good comedians. I felt their casting did a pretty good job of, like, there's people all the way from, like, 20 years down to, like, two or three years.

They gave a nice wide range of stuff. And at the end of the day, man, if you watch the show, it doesn't ma- I've been telling people this all the time because I've had people message me like, "Hey, I didn't vote for you, but I thought you were really funny." Even if you just liked me [00:45:00] and you didn't vote for me or, like, I wasn't your favorite, the beauty of comedy is you can still come see me live.

You know what I mean? Yeah. Like, you, you don't- Yeah ... you don't have to just like one- person from the damn show, you can come see Yeah You can come see all of us, man, 'cause I, I love and respect everybody on the show, man. It's kind of a, built a lifelong bond with, with some of these folks, and I feel very lucky and, uh, blessed to have been a part of it.

And I'm excited to see, you know, where it takes my career, man. I mean, hopefully, you know, hopefully not back to teaching. 

Andrea: Yeah, on, on that note, I know you do have a tour coming up. Yes. Before we let you go, can you share a little bit about where people can find you, and what, what cities are coming up?

Winston: Absolutely, man. You can find me on all social media, man. It's just Winston Hodges on YouTube, but the main ones are @WinstonHComedy on Instagram and TikTok. I have a Facebook, Winston Hodges, as well. I, I'm posting new tour dates. But what we got coming up, man, is, like, uh, I'm gonna say all of them, even if this airs after we do it, but June 2nd, I'm in Nashville.

That's gonna sell out, so you don't even have to worry about [00:46:00] that one. June 3rd, we're in Atlanta. June 25th, I'm in Tempe, Arizona. July 8th is Richmond, Virginia. July 9th is, uh, Philadelphia, PA. July 16th is Chicago. July 22nd, Washington, DC. Uh, August 14th, we're in Columbus, Ohio, and then October 8th, we're in Houston, and October 9th and 10th, we're in Dallas.

But we keep adding dates all the time, and I've got 'em all. Join my email list, join my, uh, uh, join my, uh, fandom over there on Instagram, and I'll let you know when I'm, when I'm in town. And yeah, man, if you, you know, if you got a bunch of teaching fans, I definitely talk about working with kids with autism a fair amount on the road, and, and try to- Yeah It's fun, man.

I've, I've had a lot of people who have kids with autism or have autism come up, and they've been really appreciative of what I'm talking about and what I'm doing, man. So I'm excited to showcase a little more of that than they, than they showed on the show. 

Andrea: Um, all right. Winston, thank you so much for coming on today.

Thank you. This was so, so fun. I appreciate you sharing all of the, the cool, both the, the teacher stories and also the, the comedy world, and what it was like being [00:47:00] on Funny AF, and all of that. It was an honor. 

Winston: Absolutely, man. I feel honored for being here, man. It was nice to meet y'all, and, uh, yeah, I'll gladly come back anytime.

This was fun. 

Andrea: And friends, if you have thoughts about what we talked about today, you can contact us, andrea@human-content.com, or you can contact me at Educator Andrea, and you can contact Gerry at @

Gerry: ComedybyGP on Instagram and 

Andrea: TikTok. And you can contact our whole Human Content Podcast family on Instagram and TikTok at humancontentpods.

Um, if you wanna catch the full video episodes, they are up every week on YouTube at Educator Andrea. Thank you so much for listening. I'm your host, Andrea Forcum. 

Gerry: I'm Gerry Patoka. 

Andrea: And today, we had with us Winston Hodges. Um, our executive producers are Andrea Forcum, Aron Korney, Rob Goldman, and Shahnti Brooke.

Our editor is Andrew Sims. Our engineer is Jason Portizo. Our music is by Omer Ben-Zvi. To learn more about How to Survive the Classroom's program disclaimer and ethics policy and submission, verification, and licensing terms, you can go to podcasterandrea.com. How to Survive the [00:48:00] Classroom is a Human Content production.

How to Survive the Classroom

Thank you so much for watching. Want more of How to Survive the Classroom? You can watch more episodes right now. Just click on that little box over there. You see it? And if you haven't yet, please subscribe. Okay, bye.

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