Meet Preston Taylor | Comedian, Producer, Positive Vibration Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with Preston Taylor and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Preston, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
Being an artist or creator, as I feel both apply, are timeless professions. When I was a child there was a moment of clarity, all the people we read about in school, or the books we read from were stories of other people. The people you hear about in history all created something or gave us art that lives on today. This has always been the inspiration for me to pursue the creative/artistic career path. I love to narrate the story and create new ones while you laugh at the process.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Being a stand up comic is a very unique craft. What sets me apart from others may be in the why I love comedy. I love to make people laugh and I believe laughter makes everyone around it a little more positive. So it almost feels like an obligation to be great when on stage to give people that positive they came to see.

I am most proud about conquering stage fright. It is exciting to have a stand up special out for the World to see and writing a second special knowing there was a time I was terrified of public speaking. I can still hear the giggle in my mothers voice the first time over the phone. I told her I was headed to perform at an open mic and she replied, “who, you?”

Honestly, getting to where I am professionally took a lot of winding roads. I feel most people in life don’t go directly down a path, there are plenty of detours before the destination. As far as arriving at this point being easy or not is all about perspective. I look at each day as a learning experience. We can all create the hard knock life narrative and give that version, but we could also create a narrative of all the positive forces along the way. Overcoming any challenges required believing and trusting in yourself and it always is important to have a support system. Family, friends, mentors, life connections, and people that just help you stay motivated and creative in the moment. Those challenging times create some of the best art.

The lessons I’ve learned along the way and the thing I want the World to know about my brand is positivity. Over the years it started becoming a recurring theme in my life. The more positive I was, the more positive the people around me were, the more positive things happened. So go out and find the things you love, find those positive people, spaces, friends and hang in and around them more and watch yourself grow without even trying sometimes.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If I have someone coming to town and I wanted to give them an experience there is one place I am taking them to start. Sugar Fish by Nozawa. I have been around Mr. Nozawa since the days of the Studio City strip mall location and love to share their story. If you haven’t had a hand roll from one of his establishments you are missing out on one of life’s pure treasures. After a full belly we are going to breeze over to Dockweiler beach to get that local vibe and shy away from all the tourists in Venice and Santa Monica, and watch the sunset over the ocean. To wrap up the evening, pop down to Pancho’s in Manhattan Beach for a night cap and call it an LA day.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people that are an important part of the story it would be unrealistic to have them all here, but certainly a few people come to mind. My mother has always been my foundation in this story. Her guidance and influence has helped shape me into the man I am today. My college roommate, first Hollywood roommate, and still amazing friend Brandon Muse. When I started out in comedy no one believed in me more than this man. It truly was inspiring to see someone believe in you so much before you saw it in yourself. My little brother Phillip, who has easily been the biggest motivator my entire life. We don’t call it a competition, we just like to one up each other, but in a way that is just pushing the other to be better. It is a competition born out of brotherly love that we understand and use to push each other in life still to this day. My dear friend and mentor since I arrived in Los Angeles, David Neuman. The first time I met David he handed me a copy of The Alchemist by Paul Coelho and said give this a read it will be helpful for the journey. I never knew what he meant until years later, after making this a yearly read, I found myself back home filming scenes for my first stand up comedy special. All I kept thinking about was the grand journey the last 12 years provided to have me back where I started for such a big moment.I am forever gracious to so many teachers, coaches, friends, and family that have had such vital roles in the creation of my story.

Website: https://tubitv.com/movies/582426/farm-to-tv?start=true

Instagram: @Prestontaylorcomic

Twitter: @prestonjtaylor1