Yan Yan: Child Don't Be Long | Full Comedy Special

Hi there, Yan Yan and Owl here.

Over the past 14 months, I’ve been pouring my heart into this hourlong visual comedy album, "Child Don’t Be Long," a show that aims to unpack the toll of living far from your loved ones. Many of us haven’t visited family over the last 3 years due to prolonged pandemic travel restrictions. Just as I was finishing the last song in this show and on the day I boarded a flight for China to see my grandfather, he passed away at age 79. He knew I was coming but I didn’t make it in time. I missed the yeye I’ve loved all my life and because of that, I will never see him again. I had titled this show "Child Don’t Be Long" but I took too long. I had written a line: “where’s the comedy in this toll that has been taken on me?” but I can’t seem to make sense of the answer.

This show is for that person who looks across at the comedy scene and isn’t seeing something that resonates with them. It’s for a person who feels alone and overwhelmed by all that the world has thrown at them. It’s for a person who’s worn, in silence, the psychological toll caused by migration, assimilation, and loss. It’s taken me hundreds of hours to piece together these 52 minutes. I hope you are entertained. Your mileage may vary but this is how it happened to me.