From Hood to the stage

Well known to young Montrealers, Anas Hassouna is a hit on social networks with his colleague Oussama Fares. The young comedian produces a lot of content for a variety of mediums with his company Fishnet. It ranges from humorous videos on TikTok to their show. We are here on YouTube. In it, they discuss with various public figures, from Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois to Fabrice Vil.

École Converse met Anas Hassouna to understand who is bringing back the codes of his neighborhood, the Hood, at the scene.

Naila: Anas, can you tell us about your background?

However, my background is atypical. Moi piss my Patnais, Oussama Fares, we've known each other for over 15 years, from Montreal North. Ever since we were young, we knew we wanted to make jokes. After that, I moved to Repentigny during high school. I was already doing improv, but there, I discovered real improv. From there, my guidance counsellor called my parents to tell them that I would not be going to accounting. I told them that I was going to the Comedy School.

So, at the School of Humour, I met Romane. Worse, with my Boy Lamine and Oussama, we started a collective. Oussama and Lamine, they bought equipment, and we started making videos very quickly. We found ourselves making videos in front of the camera and also behind the camera for a lot of comedians. It was a bit new, starting to make capsules. Then, one thing led to another, we started working for Just for Laughs. A few years later, I started working a lot more on stage. Oussama Fares took the stage recently, worse and worse, here we are today.

I was less at the forefront of the scene. Today, I still have a good career Hamdoulilah. However, my journey has been complicated because not all institutions are adapted to receive the background that can be offered as an immigrant and all. That's it, it's a very big summary of my career.

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Ahmed: What I notice is that you have taken a different path than a lot of other minority comedians. What do you say about that?

Oussama and I took a path that no one else wanted to take, and that no one else could, in fact, take. We represent the street. We partly represent that because we come from there and everything. Our background is particular because it is not Mainstream. It's dangerous because we represent people who are still in the minority, and we try to open up. We want to represent all of Quebec, to be a bridge with these cases, but it takes balls, what? I made choices anyway. It's clear who I represent. So, if that audience decides that I no longer represent them, it's dead; because we displayed our colors.

Marc-Elder: How did your time at the School of Humour go?

The staff was welcoming and everything, but it was not possible for me, at that moment, to exploit the Montreal references that I have, to be 100% myself. I was mostly a version... polite, atrophied, I would say. An amputated version, because I was just doing what the Quebec public was doing Mainstream could understand.

Samira: You weren't talking about the things you wanted to talk about?

I actually didn't have anyone to talk to about it. It's not that I was being prevented or anything. It's just that I was with 12 other white people, and we were playing in front of a white audience, and we had white teachers. I just didn't feel like I had the space to do what I'm doing today at the time, but I was developing too and everything. That's why I want to make it clear that I'm not saying anything bad about the school. I have never been pressured to do something that I am not. Nevertheless, I had a lot of leeway.

In my head, I said to myself, if I arrived and then I said: “Yo, what is going on? In shape, rancy-headed? ” I would have had 12 people looking at me with round eyes. I didn't have the space because it was a bit less suitable. It's good because I had the chance to do something that hadn't been done before. It's true that you have to be careful with humor. When you make a joke in front of white people, and you talk about your ethnic background, it's pernicious. You may end up serving the people you represent. You have to be careful before throwing stone at the artist.

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Ahmed: What inspires you?

What inspires us is everyday life, it's where we come from, Man. She is an immigrant mother who supports her family. They are our parents. These are our paths. It is the journey of the people around us. These are really unusual things.

You come from Hood, you see things you wouldn't see elsewhere, especially as the son of an immigrant. What really inspires me is my parents. The more I advance, the more that's it. My parents are the classic. They are two people who have worked very hard, and they bring you up in this, and they explain racism to you, and how you experience it. My father always said to me: “You have to be twice or three times better than the others, otherwise they will take them anyway.”

Marc-Elder: How did your parents experience your career choice?

My parents, God forbid, were very upset that I was humorous. Like good parents. If you have parents who encourage you from the start when you tell them you're going to be humorous, I think you don't have very good parents. Or maybe they are rich. But my parents did not agree, and that's normal. They immigrated here. They suffered martyrdom to come here and it's really more difficult than you think, to immigrate here. Then you tell them you want to be a comedian — it's very average. They must have known that. I've always done improv. I have always had problems because I talk too much. But they had expectations, because I had good grades. I broke their expectations a bit, but today they are happy. They're starting to look forward to me breaking through. My mom came to the last Olympia that I did.

Today, my parents are my biggest supporters.

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Samira: Who are the comedians who inspire you?

It is large. I listened to a lot of Quebec humor. Before Rachid Badouri, there was Laurent Paquin, Mario Jean for Quebec humor, and internationally, there was Jamal, Dieudonné when it was halal to listen to him. I was a Geek. I listened to everything. But when Rachid Badouri arrived, it changed everything [...] Quebec was not ready at Rachid's level. It took a Rachid, a friendly Arab, who dances and everything... and who is very funny on light topics. He couldn't have been an Arab Guillaume Wagner, let's say, right from the start. It would never have worked.

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‍Fatima: Do you feel overwhelmed sometimes?

It exists, but it is also because we are independent, and because we refused to take the paths of the big machine. We got approached by that several times. There is independence, and the fact that there is racism in Quebec, which is 100% present, and if you are a Black or an Arab, we will throw a spanner in your way. Not necessarily stop you, but throw a spanner in your way. There is a glass ceiling. It's concrete, in fact, the ceiling.

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Samira: Some comedians like Arnaud Soly or Virginie Despentes fully claim committed humor. Would you say that it is more difficult for you to adopt this type of humor?

I have to be careful, depending on what we're talking about, because, let's say, if I say something that doesn't appeal to the Quebec ethnic community, I'm a leftist extremist rebel. And if I say something that my community doesn't like, I'm sold out. So yeah. 100%. I am always between tree and bark. Absolutely.

Marc-Elder: Basically, do you think you wouldn't have the right to go as far as Mike Ward?

For me, it's clear. Already, Mike Ward, we find that he is not allowed to go as far as Mike Ward! If you're an Arab, it's worse. If you come from somewhere else, it's 100% worse. I don't remember what study came out on the fact that, say, police officers or people in power always tend to be more lenient with white people than with black people for the same thing. That's 100% true for me too.

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Samira: Do you think that breaking into the comedy world is possible when you don't come from a wealthy background?

No, I think we [Anas and Osama] are proof that no. My parents helped me pay for my Comedy School. They had a salary that allowed me to have access to loans and grants. But humor is the art of the people. As long as you can talk to people on Instagram, on your phone, and you have a pen and paper where you can write jokes and try them out. Being well-off helps in everything, but it's not necessary when it comes to humor.

Marc-Elder: Do you think we can laugh at everything?

I think the limit is if the people concerned laugh. It's really the only limit that I make sure to respect.

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Fatima: Why is your company called Fishnet?

There is a rapper from Montreal North called Telus. He often said, “Fish Quiet, rich calm. All my endings dance.” Fish Cale represents drugs, and Enzs, it represents consumers, addicts. And we see ourselves as if we were selling drugs. We are Dealers jokes. That's why we drew this parallel. We really have a background inspired by rap. It's always been about being a crew. And the name” Fishnet ” Comes to us from the words” Fiscal ”.

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Naila: Do you get a lot of feedback from people who tell you that you represent them in what you do?

Yes and we're here, it's like bringing back the Hood, but in a big production, well edited, with interviews and people who don't necessarily come from Hood. With the show, we're here, we've received a lot of comments: “You represent us.” And it's good to be represented outside of religion and for the wrong reasons. It's the most fun one, after “You're funny.”

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Ahmed: For the young people from Montréal-Nord and Saint-Michel who follow you, what do you think your career can leave them with?

It can leave them with the impression that they can do it too, because we started from nothing. And above all, it can make them want to do it. And the only advice I want to give to anyone, regardless of the field, is: do it as soon as possible; just do it, even if you are bad, do it; and if that's what you want to do, do it. There is nothing better than experience. It may not work right away, it may not work in six years or seven years, because you have to like it enough to face this reality, but do it. Because if it works, you will realize that those years where there were no results, in fact, they are really important, because there is nothing that can replace experience.