Blair Socci grew up surrounded by older boys in her San Juan Capistrano neighborhood, and she quickly learned that if she didn\u2019t figure out how to deliver a joke, she\u2019d end up being the punchline.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think a lot of comedians are the youngest kid in their family, and everyone in my family is really funny; there\u2019s always a lot of mischief and pranks,\u201d Socci said in a phone interview. \u201cEveryone is always getting made fun of all the time, but when you\u2019re the youngest, you have to deal with it, or you can become funny.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now a stand-up comedian, Socci will be taking the stage in a more professional capacity, representing her hometown as one of the supporting comedians for the Stand Up, Chow Down: An Anaheim Experience event, happening April 3-4 at the Anaheim Packing District<\/a>.<\/p>\n In addition to the nights of comedy, several food trucks, including OC Tacos, Cali Delights, and Crusin Fusion, will be serving locals. Inside the Anaheim Packing District, restaurants that will honor the festival\u2019s food vouchers with admission include Urbana Mexican Gastronomy, Stone Groove Stillhouse at Make, Mini Monster, Mangal, Randy\u2019s Donuts, The Wooden Pearl, Parfait Paris, ADYA, Pique-Nique, and Pali Wine Co at Make. Other staples of the food hall, such as Stephen Le\u2019s The Kroft, will be available for a pickup snack before the shows.<\/p>\n \u201cI am so passionate about food that I once wrote an hour of stand-up about just about food,\u201d Socci said. \u201cI\u2019m not doing any food material this time around, but I am looking forward to trying the food because that excites me. I\u2019m also looking forward to working with Don\u2019t Tell Comedy; everything they do is so high quality. For this one, they\u2019re announcing the lineup, but for most of their shows, they don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n Among the comedians performing at the two-day food and comedy event are Adam Ray, Rosebud Baker, Craig Conant, Andrew Orolfo, Audrey Stewart, Ben Brandfon, Leslie Liao, Cole Garrett, Felicia Folkes, Daniel Webb, Fumi Abe, J.C. Currais, Zavior Phillips, Jesus Trejo, Kat Bird, Sean Grant and Zach Noe Towers.<\/p>\n Although she was cracking jokes at an early age, Socci says that wasn\u2019t what ultimately led her to stand-up. In college, her ultimate goal was to become a novelist, and she moved to New York to pursue an MFA in Creative Writing at the New School. Her boyfriend at the time introduced her to stand-up, and she attended her first show at 25, where the seeds of comedy were first planted.<\/p>\n The romantic relationship didn\u2019t last, but Socci filled her spare time by interning at several publications, including W Magazine and Splitsider, which was later acquired by New York Magazine, where she pitched articles about up-and-coming comedians. One of those pitches at W Magazine was on Michael Che<\/a>, who at the time had just appeared on \u201cThe Late Show with David Letterman\u201d and\u00a0started writing on \u201cSaturday Night Live.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI was his first piece of press ever,\u201d Socci said. \u201cWe became friends, and I was asking him these questions of someone who wanted to start comedy. My brain hadn\u2019t told me that I wanted to do comedy, but then a couple of days later, in the shower, I had the thought that I should do this. I was really upset by the breakup, thought nothing could hurt me, then immediately fell in love with it and became obsessed.\u201d<\/p>\n She performed at several clubs in the Big Apple, where she initially thought it would be a hobby she would pursue in her spare time, but before she knew it, it became a full-time gig. She\u2019s since decided to move back to California, where she wants to expand her career and pursue acting, and has built up her portfolio.<\/p>\n Socci is a paid regular at The World Famous Comedy Store and has toured with comedians Marc Maron, Ron Funches, and Anthony Jeselnik<\/a>. She\u2019s been featured on \u201cAfter Midnight,\u201d \u201cThe Late Late Show with James Corden,\u201d and Netflix\u2019s \u201cQ Force.\u201d She was the co-host of \u201cThe Trevor Moore Show\u201d on Comedy Central. Last year, she debuted a one-hour special, \u201cLive From The Big Dog,\u201d on YouTube<\/a>.<\/p>\n The comic also has a unique voice that has landed her roles in voice acting, including the \u201cAqua Teen Hunger Force\u201d movie, \u201cBob\u2019s Burgers,\u201d and the Audible series \u201cGhostwriter.\u201d While her voice has expanded her professional opportunities, she said it\u2019s not without its share of online trolling.<\/p>\n \u201cSometimes very spirited men will write underneath my videos that I sound like RFK Jr.,\u201d she said. \u201cIt happens so much that there must be something there, but I don\u2019t really care. It doesn\u2019t hurt or bother me, like, what am I going to do?\u201d<\/p>\n She said her desire to make people laugh was more recently cemented by the sudden loss of her brother, R.J. Socci, 42, a former college basketball player<\/a> for the Cal Poly Mustangs<\/a>, who died last March.<\/p>\n \u201cIt just really clarified my life\u2019s purpose,\u201d she said. \u201cI just want to spread joy where I can, and every time that I get on stage, I want to honor my brother, make him proud and try to relieve even a touch of suffering for anyone else.\u201d<\/p>\n On the menu<\/p>\n