Eddie B. – The comedic styles of a former science teacher

BY JANICE CAMPBELL

“I had a fellow teacher tell me once, “You are a genius! You merged your job with your passion!” I told her that I would love to take credit for it, but I’m not that smart. I’ve been tired of teaching since the day I started. If it was me who came up with this idea, why didn’t I come up with it thirteen years ago?!”  Eddie B.

Often, you’d imagine teachers entering their professions particularly for wanting to make a difference in the lives of their students. They spend decades working tirelessly, grading papers, creating interactive lesson plans and providing a fun learning experience for children. But what if I told you there was one fifth-grade teacher who bravely stood up and said, “HELL NO!” to all of this? That teacher was none other than former-educator-turned-comedian, Eddie B.

The Houston-native started his comedic journey alike many others; being the class clown.

“I used to get in trouble for it, but I was the life of the party. I’d be the one acting up on the school bus during field trips. I played sports and I was always the one cracking jokes. I was still good at sports, but I just had a sense of humour. I couldn’t stop it.”

When he became of age and it was time to look for a job, he weighed his options carefully. Unsure of what career path to follow, he chose one that appealed to his goals of financial stability: teaching.

“I didn’t choose teaching; it was just better than where I was at. I was working at a car wash doing sales, and if you’ve ever had a sales job, you’d know it’s up and down. But teaching? It was a career and it’s a respectable job. Not one time was I thinking about molding my students into better people… I ain’t care about that! I was thinking about having a salary. I wanted to do everything else; I wanted to do physical therapy and I wanted to do comedy. I never thought about teaching until I started teaching.”

Though venturing into education wasn’t his first choice, it was a profession that he stuck to for thirteen years. But outside of having a stable job, his true fulfillment was lacking. Comedy was Eddie’s passion; he posted one-minute videos on Instagram, and he performed at comedy clubs and open mic nights regularly, but it wasn’t bringing in enough money or exposure. Frustrated and unsure of where to turn, it was one prayer that changed his life forever.

“I was completely out of ideas man. One day, I just asked God. I said bless me with some ideas, I said it just like that. I didn’t think nothing of it. One morning, I walk into my classroom to prepare for the day, and a thought hit me. You’ve been teaching and doing all these videos… why don’t you make a video exactly about this. You’ve been tired of this.”

“This” was teaching.

“So, I started making a video right there. I didn’t put a lesson together or nothing for the kids. I started making a video before they got in my classroom. When it was time for them to come in, I let them in and locked the door so nobody else could come in the class, because I would get in trouble if I was on my phone. I gave the kids what the teachers call “busy work”. That means, leave me alone, this is something to keep y’all quiet and out of my face! Then, I started editing the video during the class.”

He posted the video, entitled something along the lines of “What Public School Teachers Really Say About This Time of Year.” He was accustomed to including a couple of teacher related jokes into his stand-up routines and didn’t think much of the video. At first, he got his usual 5,000 to 6,000 views. What really surprised him was when the views ballooned to 10,000!

“When it got there, I was like “Ah man, I’m in the money now!” 10,000 was a lot to me, I thought I done blew up! I went to sleep and woke up, then started to get ready for work. I checked the numbers again, it was in the 100,000s this time. I thought something was wrong, maybe the internet was glitching or something. But what it really was, it was the teachers. It was bouncing from teacher to teacher like a big domino effect. Everybody was sharing it. By the end of the week, I was at a million views. I was like if y’all like that, I have about thirteen years’ worth of this! I been mad!”

From that point on, Eddie began to consistently post hilarious teacher-exclusive rants, averaging about three to four Instagram videos out per week. There was a slight problem, however. With fame often comes haters, and Eddie B. was facing head-on backlash from colleagues within his workplace.

“I had mixed reviews. While I’m talking about crazy stuff that happens at the school, I’m also talking about some of the people who do this stuff. So now there’s a divide. I would shoot the videos in class; they would notice and tell the principal. They would point out how I had my work cardigan or vest on with the school logo. So, in the videos, I would start to tape it up or put my hand over it. I wasn’t gonna stop for anyone.”

As he rose to celebrity status, he decided to take a life-altering step: to officially quit teaching and begin life as a professional comedian. Not looking back, he successfully accomplished not one, but two sold-out nationwide tours. From 60 second videos to headlining his own shows, Eddie quickly received gratification from educators all around the world, thanking him for helping them get by and being their unheard voice.

Today, we still face a global pandemic, but this classic man refuses to let that halt his hustle. Using the restrictions to his advantage, he continued to achieve monumental success through continuously putting out videos and even having a line of limited edition face masks in collaboration with Rafi Nova. Through and through, he never neglected his roots in education on the way.