Here comes the Fuzz: S'pore comedian Fakkah Fuzz brings on the funny

SINGAPORE - Given the chance, Singapore funnyman Fakkah Fuzz would like to open for Canadian comedian Russell Peters.

“His shows sold out in Asia! It’s not a bad thing to be his opening act,” he reasoned.

Of course, fans will say the local stand-up comic is a big enough headliner himself. Tonight, he has his maiden hour-long solo show, In Fuzz We Trust (rated R18) at the SOTA Drama Theatre. The affable 29-year-old, regarded as one of the rising talents in the local entertainment scene, said the opportunity to have his own special as part of this year’s Singapore Comedy Fringe is a dream come true.

“When I started doing stand-up six years ago, I had two goals,” said the mass communications graduate, whose real name is Muhammed Fadzri Abdul Rashid. “One, to have a stand-up segment on a talk show which I had done on Not The 5 Show. The other is to have my own special.

“For most comedians, when they ‘workshop’ material in clubs or open mic gigs, they also work towards having specials of their own. For instance, (American comedian) Louis CK does one every year, while Kevin Hart does one every two years,” shared Fuzz who listed Eddie Murphy, Chris Rock and David Chapelle as his influences.

Not that the opportunity for his first solo gig came on a silver platter: Fuzz has been working on it "for quite some time". The organisers for the Comedy Fringe heard that he was sourcing for venues and offered him a slot. "They gave me a lot of support but there was still a lot of work for me to do especially in terms of marketing. But so far so good, the show is selling well,” he said.

So what can audiences expect from In Fuzz We Trust? “You get Fuzz for one solid hour,” he said with a laugh. “Whether you are a Singaporean or not, I will be talking about everything under the sun - things that will be relatable to everybody. I’m going to talk about my family and on recent things that happened.”

These include the coming Bukit Batok by-election and the United States elections. (His secret wish is that Republican candidate Donald Trump becomes the next US President because “it will be four years of great writing if he wins,” he quipped.)

Like Russell Peters, Fuzz has made a name for himself for race-based jokes that hit home with local audiences of all races. Does he feel a responsibility to ensure that a joke comes across as racial and not racist? "If you limit yourself to what you can joke about, it limits your thought process. It depends on good timing and delivery. Certain topics could be touchy but funny. If you can find light in a tragic situation, it’s the best form of comedy.”

For someone who had been a cleaner, security guard and mall facilitator, Fuzz is not taking his blossoming stand-up career for granted. He consistently works at his craft and ‘workshops’ new materials whenever he can, testing them on friends to see if the jokes work. As he admitted, nothing is more unbearable then a joke falling flat in front of a live audience.

“It happened once at a corporate event I was hosting. The silence was deafening and so awkward and one whole minute of your life was wasted. But you just move on because a joke is not a joke if you have to explain it.”

Recently, the comedian, became a part of the local hip-hop collective Grizzle Grind Crew, led by his good friend rapper Shigga Shay, and can be seen as the comic relief in the group’s music video, Last Warning. He also has a music video of his own, Save Money, in which he appears as his hip-hop alter ego, Fizzy Pop, singing about life in “the most expensive city in the world”.

With his first solo special, Fuzz hopes that he will be able to pave the way for other aspiring comics who dream of making it in stand-up comedy here. “Just like Kumar, who opened doors for many of us stand-up hopefuls, I hope my solo show will do the same for other comedians who dream of having their own shows.”

The chatty comic also hopes that the show will attract new audiences who have yet to see him in action. “It will be comedy not often done in Singapore, with a very strong local flavour. I may do my classic jokes if there are requests for it; but otherwise, there is no better feeling than new material that generates new laughs!”

In Fuzz We Trust is on tonight at 9.30pm, SOTA Drama Theatre. Tickets at S$28 from SISTIC. Fuzz also performs every last Friday of the month, 8.30pm, at Refuge Bar & Club, 79 Circular Road.