For those familiar with Jen Grant's comedy, one 'squeaky clean' bit likely sticks out.
"It's for sure my most talked about bit. That's the one that most people reference. It's the kind of bit that some people find is edgy, and other people are like who cares?"
It involves the activities of women in the shower, and can be easily found online.
"It happens to be talking about washing your nether-regions, but its not really a dirty joke if you think about it. It's just talking about something private."
Grant said she once performed at a mother-daughter fundraiser, and was surprised at some feedback she received on the bit.
"The woman was uber conservative, and was 80 years old. She said 'I hope you're going to do that shower joke,' and then others say 'I don't know if the shower joke is appropriate?' So who knows what offends people?" she said.
Grant will be performing three times during her stay in the city this week for the Timmins Comedy Festival, including the dubiously named 'Inappropriate Thursday', so will there be a major difference in the material for her sets?
"Oh yeah, definitely. It's fun to do shows like that because its so random that they'd ask you to be inappropriate. Its always like 'Can you be cleaner?'. It's unusual when people come in to the show expecting inappropriate humour. If they're coming in for that, I almost feel like I don't know if I can get inappropriate enough? Oh but I will, don't worry," she said.
"Mostly I'm clean, but if I do a club set, like my headline sets, there's going to be little bits here and there that are potentially inappropriate or offensive, but only to the most reserved people."
Grant, who is originally from Ottawa, now living in Toronto, has a growing fan base across the country boosted by appearances at the Halifax and Winnipeg comedy festivals, as well as the legendary Just for Laughs festival in Montreal. Her style is observational. She has a casual storytelling vibe that audiences easily relate to, probably because she is fueled by everyday occurrences.
"Literally from life. Usually when things happen to me, I'll just write about it. My family, my mom. To her, she's not that happy with it," she said with a laugh. "But really, some of the best comedy is really in the most mundane places. I think that's fun for audiences too, I've been doing stand-up for 16 years now, but when I first started, you don't really know what's going to be funny. Because sometimes you think 'is it just me who thinks this is funny?' Then you discover that we're way more similar than we are different," she said.
"I like jokes like that, where its relateable on almost a universal level, like how awkward life can be."
Many comedians fall in love with the art form at an early age, finding inspiration and idols in the stars they see on TV, in movies, and local clubs. This wasn't the case for Jen Grant. No favourites and no idols.
"No one really. It just kind of happened. I know that sounds crazy, but I had always wanted to perform and I wasn't really a huge stand-up buff. I liked being funny, I liked making people laugh, but I never really got into stand-up as a fan or anything. I didn't really have a lot influence, except local people from Ottawa. Local comics there were a real inspiration because it was a nice community and people supported each other, sounds corny, but its true" she said .
Grant also has experience working with some of the other comedians who will be in Timmins.
"I've met all of them, but I'd say I probably know Derek (Seguin) the best. Mike Bullard, I just worked with him for the first time a few months ago" she said.
She was actually encouraged by a fellow comedian to make the trek north, and has heard good things about local audiences. Although she vaguely recalls visiting the Timmins area as a child, it will be her first time gracing a stage in the 'City with the Heart of Gold'.
"A friend of mine did it last year, her name is Erica Sigurdson, she's really good. She told me to get in touch with Rick Lemieux. She highly recommended it. Because when a comic does a good festival, a really fun one with great audiences, they'll tell their friends" said Grant.
JEN GRANT IN TIMMINS
- Thursday, March 31 at The Working Class as a part of 'Inappropriate Thursdays' with Kenny Robinson, Dwayne Lemieux and Clint Couchie
- ​Friday, April 1 at The Dante Club as a part of the 'Dinner Comedy' show with Glen Foster and Robert Simoneau
- ​Saturday, April 2 at Ecole Secondaire Theriault as a part of 'The Showcase' with Mike Bullard, Derek Seguin, Glen Foster, Kenny Robinson, IncrediBrent, Dave Gaudet, and Clint Couchie
Tickets for the Timmins Comedy Festival are available for purchase exclusively at Altered Reality on Third Avenue.
