Ryan Kelly, who goes by “Youth Pastor Ryan” on social media platforms, is a stand-up comedian and online personality. On TikTok, he is known for his storytelling and history-related humor and has accumulated five-and-a-half million followers.
On Friday, March 28, Kelly traveled to UW-Eau Claire to perform a stand-up comedy show in Davies Student Center. The event and popcorn was free for students.
Kelly said he got into comedy through improv shows in high school, then started doing stand-up and eventually began his online presence in 2019.
“My switch into stand-up was definitely very different,” Kelly said. “I learned that more storytelling aspect of it while keeping the ability to be light on my feet with improv and really knowing how to read an audience.”
Although Kelly is not a real youth pastor, he uses the name because he “knows what he looks like.” He says his wholesome appearance and clean comedy allow him to reach a wider audience.
While building his social media platforms, Kelly worked at Disneyland as a Stormtrooper, Spider-Man and entertainment host. These experiences provided Kelly with many stories to share online and during his stand-up shows.
“I’ve had a lot of really weird jobs and a lot of really weird experiences,” Kelly said. “And honestly, what’s really neat is my life has just been a lot about finding the fun or finding the funny.”
Kelly also decided to get his master’s degree in homeland security while at Disney since his education was paid for by his employer.
Once his TikTok following grew, Kelly said he thought he would never use his degree, until he became a victim of scamming himself. Now when he’s not making people laugh, he uses his knowledge to hunt scammers and fight cybercrime.
Kelly said that he enjoys performing for university students, and being from St. Louis, Missouri, he especially enjoys performing in the Midwest. During his show at UW-Eau Claire, Kelly shared stories from the many different eras of his life, even memories from his own time in college.
“Everything that I make videos on and everything I talk about on stage is all because I’ve got to live a really diversified life, even though none of it makes sense if you look at it on paper,” Kelly said.
Joann Martin, the coordinator of student activities, said she knew students would enjoy Kelly’s lighthearted comedy.
“I have watched some of his content, and it’s not like … stupid humor,” Martin said. “You have to have a baseline of knowledge or understanding to get the joke sometimes. I think it’s engaging as opposed to slapstick.”
Kelly said although he enjoys the social media aspect of his career and claims it is crucial for success as a comedian nowadays, he recognizes the harmful effects it can have on mental health. His advice to students and those pursuing a career in comedy is to avoid reading comments, do their own thing and “go touch grass.”
Kelly said that he wants to continue making people laugh, but his future life goals are more personal.
“I want to have a family,” Kelly said. “I want to be able to be there. And I just want to be able to take care of those around me. Honestly, my long-term goal is to start a senior cat sanctuary.”
Ironically, Kelly shared with the audience that he had just visited Mr. Kitty’s Cat Cafe in downtown Eau Claire. He hadn’t planned to adopt a cat but ended up going home with two. Kelly shared this experience on TikTok and the video went viral.
After the hour of non-stop giggles and snorts was up, Kelly’s final message to the audience was to find the little things that make them happy and tell their stories.
Matczak can be reached at matczaij9603@uwec.edu.
