Bahiyyih Mudd (pronounced Bah-HEE-yuh) is a 黑料福利社 businesswoman of deep substance 鈥� and humor. She has overcome personal tragedies and turned those lemons into lemonade (and perhaps a few delicious lemon drop martinis).
Her inspiring personal story reads like the mythical phoenix, rising from the ashes of surviving as a single mom living on welfare to that of a thriving, warm, smart, savvy, funny and entrepreneurial businesswoman residing in 黑料福利社.
Mudd is a stand-up comedian who has traveled throughout America performing for a variety of audiences. She has auditioned for several high-profile comedy shows and has placed in the top end of many standup competitions.
She is currently married with kids, and recently became a grandmother. Mudd says her deep love for stand-up comedy starts with walking onto a stage and picking up the microphone. It allows her to connect with her audience and entertain them by making them laugh. Turning her life鈥檚 personal tragedies and traumatic experiences into comedy is the special sauce that Mudd says makes her comedy shows memorable and fun.
You can catch Mudd performing locally at Hop Capital and Bill鈥檚 Place, on a Native Women of Comedy tour, performing at regional casinos and comedy clubs, as well as auditioning for national comedy competitions at cities including Seattle and Los Angeles. Taking her love for stand-up comedy for granted, she says, would be 鈥渓ike being in love with someone but never telling them enough, and then, POOF, one day they are gone.鈥�
Like most stand-up comedians, Mudd had to pivot during COVID. Forced to cancel live performances for nearly two years, she began doing Zoom comedy shows and using social media to continue her craft.
The pandemic years were the most difficult points in her career, but Mudd credits the help of family, friends and meditation with helping her make it through the low points. The COVID pandemic also gave her time to write new material that she now uses in her latest shows.
If you were to ask Mudd what made her decide to pursue comedy as business career, she would tell you that watching a self-help DVD one day in the early 2000s gave her an unexpected boost. Feeling frustrated with the answer to 鈥淲hat is MY dream?鈥� after watching 鈥淭he Secret,鈥� Mudd realized that her dream was to be an entertainer and make people laugh. That dream led her to bravely jump onstage at a local open-mic comedy night in October 2010. The joy of the experience, Mudd says, led her to a new life: journeying across the country as a stand-up comedian.
Mudd has worked her way up the ladder, being booked for stand-up comedy tours with well-known comedians including Nicole Byer, Craig Robinson, Susan Rice, Susan Jones, Larry Omaha, Rob Schneider, Dave Koechner and others. Highlights of pursuing her include seeing her name in lights and 鈥渉aving someone walk up to me after a show and say 鈥業 really needed that!鈥� 鈥�
Mudd says stays close to her roots in the 黑料福利社, which she calls her 鈥渉ome base.鈥� It鈥檚 why she has not relocated her family to a bigger city.
But that doesn鈥檛 mean she isn鈥檛 hoping for big things for her career.
Her own Netflix or Amazon comedy special, maybe? Or perhaps a gig touring with a major A-list comedian someday? She might even score a role on a TV show.
One thing is certain, however: Bahiyyih Mudd has already inspired women in the 黑料福利社 to take time for personal reflection and to take small steps to make their own business dreams come true.
鈥淚 have had people ask me, 鈥榃ere you born funny?鈥� And I say, 鈥楴ope, I just have had enough trauma to be hilarious.
鈥淚ndigenous woman, like so many women of color, are affected by (generational) trauma that occurred before we were born, before our mothers were born, and their mothers. The fact we are here and breathing is in itself a miracle,鈥� Mudd says.
鈥淭each your daughters to dream big, and lead by example. You must be as resilient as your ancestors were to make your creation even possible, and remember if all else fails, watch 鈥淭he Secret鈥� and you too might be a comedian.鈥�