June 21, 2025
I only discovered Fil-Am comedian Jo Koy during the pandemic when I was able to watch his comedy specials on Netflix. A staple of his routines was roasting his beloved Filipino mother. He would frequently quote her using her delightful Filipino accent, and these gags never grew old even as he rehashed variations of these jokes up to now. He is now one of the top-grossing comedy tours according to Billboard Boxscores, which is a big deal since he brings with him his crew of Fil-Am talent to perform on the same stage with him.
Jo Koy performed in the Philippines for the first time just before the pandemic in January 2020 with his "Just Kidding" tour in Manila and Cebu. Then he returned in August 2022 for his "Funny Is Funny" world tour. I was not able to watch any of those, so I was happy to be able to watch this one, the first time I am watching a stand-up comedy show live in an arena venue. As we looked for our seats inside the MOA Arena, US-based Fil-Am Tim "DJ Turbulence" Alejandro was already onstage playing music to get people energized for the evening.
At around 8:00pm, stand-up comedian Joey Guila opened the show. He just turned 53 years old, so his first few jokes were about getting older, from wearing Sketchers, and awkward night-clubbing. His father is Filipino, while his mother was Burmese-English-Irish-Spanish-Italian but was born and raised in India. This led to jokes he told with an Indian accent, like that one about his Indian barber. Joey said he was thrilled to visit the Philippines for the first time, and he gave a shout-out to PBA player Marcio Lassiter who was a relative of his.
The next front act was Bboy Ronnie and Philippine All-Stars, five young men who regaled the audience with their intricate break-dancing routines.
Following that number, there was a video narrated by Wanya Morris of Boyz II Men introducing the main act of the night -- Jo Koy! His opening spiel was about coming back to Manila, and how special this stop was to him and his largely Fil-Am crew, amidst their many stops all over the world. Of course, he began with jokes about his famous Filipino mother, as he laughed about the "child abuse" he got from her using Vicks Vaporub. He shared how that joke elicited reactions from viewers who also had similar Vicks experiences with their mothers.
A major part of Jo Koy's routine last night was the harrowing experience he and his family and crew had on an airplane with an electrical fire, mining humor out from such a traumatic event. Funny how he questioned God why they had to experience this right after his major project donating computers and generators to rural schools they also built. He paid tribute to flight attendants who kept calm while guiding the passengers to their emergency landing, including his sister, now manager Gemma Simmons, who was a former flight attendant herself.
Jo Koy picked out a 17 year old boy from the second row named Carl, and throughout the show addressed to him his advise for young people. His told Carl that "You're not promised tomorrow" so he has to pursue his own dreams, even if it went against the advice of parents. He shared how his elders all mocked him as he worked as a comedian. Ironically, he is now the one subsidizing the college tuition fees of the children of these same aunties who put him down, including magna cum laude nursing grad Jamie whom he called live via Facetime.
Jo Koy also talked about experiencing various health problems, now that he (now turning 54) and his crew were all getting older. He cited gout in particular as it was a condition he shared with both Joey Guila and DJ Turbulence, and he related painfully funny stories about unexpected attacks during their tour as a result of the food they were given. In relation with this topic, he talked about his grandmother Lola Tinay, who developed cancer, but was cunning enough to parlay this disease to her advantage like a "credit card," as Jo Koy called it.
The final hour of the evening was dedicated to the Filipinos known love for singing and karaoke. I did not expect that Jo Koy had a talent for singing R&B songs (he obviously loved Boyz II Men) and hiphop rapping (paying tribute to the Notorious B.I.G.). He wished that Arnel Pineda was in the audience, and true enough he was actually there in the Lower Box section. Pineda gamely sang a few bars, as did Top Suzara of local R&B band Freestyle. Jo Koy became emotional when he saw the audience singing with their cellphone torches lit up.
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