Lover, Fighter, Guitar Shredder
Welcome to the latest installment of Depeche Mail 101: The #1 Business Newsletter for the Goth and Goth adjacent Community.
Today, comedian Dave Hill provides a lesson in life and business. Beside’s being fun, charismatic, and knowing a thing or two about engaging an audience on and off stage, Dave has an insane work ethic. He’s writes books, music, jokes, skits, is booked weekly, and through all of that….he puts out a daily post on social media to remind everyone that traffic cones are the worst. He’s putting in the work.
A bit of background on Dave Hill. He was born in Cleveland OH, currently residing in New York he is coming around to roughly 20 years of making people laugh. Dave’s daily social posts might involve him shredding on a guitar, punching a traffic cone, or sharing tips on places to find good quality carpet when you’re in the middle of nowhere Indiana. While that’s mostly fun and games for the algorithm, he has also contributed to some really cool TV shows and Entertainment projects. Check out this action…
Dave has appeared on Netflix’s The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Adult Swim's Joe Pera Talks with You Amazon’s The Tick, Peacock TV's Girls5Eva, Comedy Central’s @midnight and Inside Amy Schumer programs, TBS' Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, TV Land's The Jim Gaffigan Show, and TruTV's Comedy Knockout among a bunch of others.
Being a bit of a renaissance man, Dave is also an accomplished musician and writer. If you haven’t seen him play guitar, you haven’t lived. All kidding aside, he’s really, really, really good at it. I hope you’ve come to this blog as a fan of music, so I’m going to toss some names out there that you might get, if not…that’s ok. But, this guy is Yngwie Malmsteem on meth, Joe Satriani couldn’t even HOLD Dave’s pick, let alone a candle to his talent. The only person who comes even close to being an equal of the six string axe is a man named Dimebag Daryl (RIP). He’s that good.
Dave’s love of hockey is another fascinating aspect of his personality. Growing up in Cleveland, he developed a passion for the sport early on. Whether it’s playing in local leagues or catching NHL games whenever he can, hockey provides Dave with a much-needed break from his hectic schedule. He often jokes that if he weren’t a comedian, he’d probably be trying to make it as a professional hockey player. His enthusiasm for the game is infectious, and he loves sharing it with his fans.
I caught up with Dave at a bar in Cincinnati OH called The Comet, which is known about town as the place Jack White puked. They also make killer burritos and I’m told their jukebox is unrivaled, but that’s subjective. I’ll keep it to the facts here. Dave and I talked beneath the back deck of the Comet in an intimate and shaded setting about his time in coming up in comedy, the DIY punk scene, and touring with hardcore legends, Quicksand. Interview coming soon. What I love most about Dave is his commitment to fans. He’s a mostly an open book.
After watching his set (which is amazing by the way), he posed for selfies with fans, signed shirts, and later had beers with fans at the bar. He’s just Dave. He likes hanging out and keeping things easy, but he has an absolutely relentless work ethic which has paid off for him. He has a solid social media following (PS…give the guy a follow), and week after week is booked playing festivals and solo shows where he arrives to town, rides a bus, and shares pick up lines that you can use the next time you’re on the bus.
He’s a giver. So, give him a follow, buy a ticket to a show, check him out. The world would be a better place with more Dave in it.
Here are a few things you should know about Dave.
According the guitar department manager at the Brooklyn Guitar Center Dave is directly responsible for Yngwie’s waning popularity.
2. Speaking of Guitar Center...If you’re a current employee, have been a musician, dated a musician, or or have ever worked in a music store, you’ll love his perspectives on what it's like to shop there. (Full disclosure, I was employed there from 1999-2001, employee number 018980).
3. He has 157 podcast episodes of the Dave Hill Goodtime Hour. If you like comedy, then you should listen to them here.
4. He and his band Valley Lodge, wrote the theme song to HBO's The John Oliver show and made a rad music video for it too.
5. Dave Hill is the American Dream because he says and does exactly what he wants.
6. As an author Dave has written books about reconnecting with his dad, tasteful nudes, and hockey. You can and should check out his books here.
7. He’s from Cleveland OH. You can usually trust a man from Cleveland.
8. He’s in a gang called The Dangerous Snakes Who Hate Bullshit. Rumor has it that you have to wrestle Jay Brewer and 5 of his largest snakes to join.
You can and should catch Mr. Dave Hill on the road if you get a chance. You can find his live shows on his website. https://www.davehillonline.com/live
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