'You Have To Believe In It, And Believe People Will Like It': Sam Morril On New Special 'I Got This' & The Comedy Cellar

(CBS Local)-- Stand-up comedian and New York native Sam Morril hasn't performed in a month and he misses the rush of being in front of a live crowd.

He and his girlfriend and fellow comedian Taylor Tomlinson are quarantined together and passing the time by filming funny videos at home. The good news for Morril is that he filmed his most recent comedy special a few months ago before the entertainment world was shutdown due to the spread of coronavirus.

Morril filmed his new special "I Got This" at the Comedy Cellar in New York. While it wasn't picked up by a major network, it is on the Comedy Central Stand-Up YouTube channel and already has over 1.7 million views.

"We filmed it in December and thank God I filmed it because I was like do I film or wait until someone buys it and I'm so glad I filmed it now," said Morril in an interview with CBS Local's DJ Sixsmith. "I'd be going crazy sitting on this hour now. It probably took me close to two years and I was burning other material along the way. I post a lot of topical jokes and I didn't use to do that. I dump a lot of jokes as well. You just have to believe in it and believe people will like it."

FULL INTERVIEW:

Morril is a regular at the Comedy Cellar and has been on tour with comedians like Amy Schumer and Jim Jefferies. While there are many digital platforms to help comedians get recognized today, Morril wishes that the people picking stand-up specials had a better understanding of what is and isn't funny.

"I don't think they're willing to take many chances," said Morril. "They have no taste for the most part. I think they go which way the wind is blowing. If something seems hip at the moment and I use hip instead of good on purpose because if something feels cool, they go with what is shiny instead of what is good."

While there are many challenges to overcome in today's comedy industry, Morril loves performing at places like the Comedy Cellar and Gotham Comedy Club in New York. Morril was 18 years old when he first got on stage and hasn't looked back since.

"You get little tastes and I remember Colin Quinn once said you get just enough to stay in comedy," said Morril. "That's how I felt. Opening for some bigger acts early on and touring with Amy Schumer or opening for Jim Jefferies and doing Conan early on was big. That was the first late night I did. You get a taste and then you want more regularly."