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If there’s one thing that Johnny Daley is serious about, it’s comedy ... specifically stand-up comedy. He can literally talk for hours extolling the merits of this “beautiful art form” in which he has wholeheartedly invested his time, talent, and finances.
The actor and comedian’s entrepreneurial spirit came to the fore in 2017 when he started his Johnny Live series in a tiny club space in Portmore, St Catherine, and it has grown exponentially since then.
“We were trying something out with the club owners. We did it for about four weeks, and we felt like it could continue, but the club owners didn’t believe in it enough,” Daley told The Sunday Gleaner. “Then we got a call from 100 [venue on Hope Road], and the rest is history. The brand literally started to evolve at 100. We did an entire year, and then we decided to part ways.”
Since then, the brand has continued its upward trajectory, with Daley occupying his own venue as of 2019 and starting the Comedy Bar brand about three years after, “because we couldn’t have any events during COVID”.
“This brand has been [based] here (at Dunrobin Avenue) since then, building every single week ... having seasons of 14-16 weeks, break for two weeks and start right back, so we go for the entire year,” a satisfied Daley explained. “We are absolutely happy with the progress. In the three years, we have managed to expand the brand into Mandeville, and we did that for about a year, and we also did a stint in Linstead, and the brand literally has been booked across the island. People just want the brand itself of comedy.”
Last Tuesday was the big season finale for the year 2025, and the comedians showcased their A-game inside the Dunrobin Avenue venue, and the very interactive audience loved every minute. Host Elias Fennell prepared the way for Chris ‘The Entertainer’ Larmond; veteran Robert ‘Bobby’ Finzi-Smith; special guest, the irrepressible Mikey V; and featured act, Johnny Daley.
Based in Canada, Mikey V’s comedic timing is off the chain. An honest fellow, he told the audience that “it’s never clean with me. It’s always risqué,” but he was kept in check by two youngsters who were actually too engrossed in their phones to listen to jokes from some old guy.
Quite comfortable with poking fun at himself, he wore an in-your-face T-shirt with the image of a tongue sticking out and which was involved in quite a bit of the action during an act doused with ribaldry. One of his more humorous jokes was a tale about a swift right hand he received when a voluptuous lady in the elevator – “A thickas we call dem!” an audience member shouted out – asked him to “Press 1, please”. “Mi jaw feeling better,” he said, rubbing the affected area.
And his closing joke was pure genius, but neither it nor the question he asked before telling it can be repeated here, just in case the easily offended take offence. However, his smooth-as-butter punchline, “Oh, you’ve played this game before?” connected solidly, giving patrons one of the heartiest laughs of the evening. Of special note was the fact that in the audience were Finzi-Smith’s two specially invited guests from St Elizabeth, who needed and appreciated the pure medicine of laughter.
Like most of the acts, he took pot shots at “Johnny who nuh pay suh good” but paused to salute Daley’s wife, Sophia, for her hard work and devotion.
GROWTH
Daley told The Sunday Gleaner that he was pleased that his brand has spawned young comics as well as other brands such as Dufton Shepherd’s Slightly Unhinged and Chris ‘The Entertainer’ Larmond’s Comedy in the Hills.
“Elias Fennell, the host on Tuesday, came here two years ago, fresh off the street, didn’t know what to do. He got booed every night at the open mic section, but there he is now ... a mature comic on the rise,” Daley said.
He shared that comics, both professional and amateurs, have benefitted from open mic, which he compared to a gym, where the focus is “building your comedic muscles”.
“We are proud of the growth of the industry that we have been able to affect, and we encourage others to get involved,” Daley said, adding that ventures such as his can be financially viable.
“My model is to have my own venue and to operate it as a business. We don’t just do comedy here. We rent the venue out; we have other events that we keep here on a weekly basis. We have once-per-month stints that we keep at 100 ... they have asked my company, Johnny Live Productions, to produce their show. So we have seen the growth. The more shows we have, the more shows we’ll produce, the more work we get and the more we earn,” he stated.
He noted that he saw new people every week attending the Tuesday night shows and that that was encouraging. “There was a time when I used to say that comedy was at the baby stage in Jamaica. I think now, we are at the teenage years. We are not at the adult stage yet, but the industry is certainly coming together,” Daley explained.
He aims to expand Johnny’s Place and make it a more attractive space for a mixed audience. “Comedy tends to attract a more mature audience, and we want the younger people to come and enjoy stand-up comedy as well. We are encouraging more young people from the universities to come and express yourselves. Stand-up comedy is a beautiful art form,” the stand-up comedian declared.
Daley, who has enjoyed a great year, shared that one of the high points was being invited to perform at this year’s Caribbean Festival of Arts (CARIFESTA) in Barbados.
“The reason why this was such a high point for me is because that invitation came directly from the Bajan Government, and they wanted the best comedians from the region to represent CARIFESTA. I understand the Jamaican contingent was large, but because they added the comedy section, I was sought after directly. That was a really powerful moment for me to experience, and I had a great time in Barbados,” Daley said.
Another big moment was his own show on October 19, when he brought award-winning comedian Trixx to perform at his Johnny Live Comedy Bar Special.
“And, I am happy for Tuesday night .... we had a bumper crowd, an awesome show, and I’m hoping that 2026 will bring bigger and better things for us,” Daley said.
English (US) ·