Meet O’mar Finley | Stand Up Comedian & Designer

We had the good fortune of connecting with O’mar Finley and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi O’mar, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
For years I have always prioritized life before work. However, there was a shift, after I couldn’t do all of the normal things that I loved to do for leisure, that I switched to prioritizing my art as much as possible. I had completely gotten absorbed by the process until the pandemic. It was the first time in years where I slowed down and started getting back into the things I forgotten I had loved. And ironically, I believe it has made me an even better artist. It’s been a paradigm shift internally for me, I now make sure I carve out enough time for me to just live, instead of trying to get on stage every night. And honestly, it has been a really nice change.

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.
I am a standup comedian and artist originally from Louisiana. I made the leap a little over a year ago and I have been super excited. It took a lot of work and dedication to get to where I am now, like, Louisiana isn’t known for comedy. It is a really tough place to start out and find your voice. Honestly, its a tough place to even find stage time. But I stuck with it, and even helped create spaces for others to perform, with my group-turned-company NO SHOW Comedy. I’m the most proud of everything that we have accomplished and still want to achieve with NO SHOW. With that, I learned that you can make any situation an advantage if you try hard enough. Building a community over the years has been hard, but one of the most rewarding things I have ever done. Now, for the first time in my comedy career, I am focusing a little more on me than my brand, but, rest assured, you’ll be seeing both myself and NO SHOW on everything soon.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
It’s funny, because my best friends are the ones who convinced me to move. But I’ve found some dope spots on my own that they have no idea about. I love hanging out at speakeasies around town, karaoke, and dancing ( when I’m not booked.) So, a week in town with my besties would be: One night galavanting around Highland Park, Good Housekeeping is a great spot for a cocktail. Not to mention I would also trash talk them at Highland Bowl. Second night, gotta go to ktown to dance at Kiss Kiss Bang Bang until we can’t feel our feet. Gotta shoehorn a beach day somewhere in the middle of the week. I would also bring them to my favorite karaoke night in Pasadena at The Blind Donkey. I love that place with all my heart.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Honestly, I know it is really cliche’ but I have to give my shoutout to both my parents. I have always been able to look to them for support, even when I decided to pursue comedy. When they saw me perform for the first time, I remember them looking at me with a look of surprise. Like, “Oh, you can DO this do this.”

It meant the world to me.

Website: omarfinley.com

Instagram: instagram.com/0marfinley

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/omarfinley/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/0marfinley

Image Credits
Tahjah Harmony Greg Feiner