I think this is related to the size of the country. What are some of the things that you find most interesting about Canada from a Japanese perspective?Ĭanadians are interested in other people, generally.

So, I try to bring up this stereotype in my show and I let them know that Asian girls can stand up for themselves. I think, in general, Canadians believe that Asian girls are easy to manipulate and don’t argue much when people speak loudly or strongly.

I believe there are still stereotypes about Asian girls in Canada. So, when I talk about Japanese sexism, the audience often pays attention. Canada was better than the United States, but Japan was far worse. I was curious about sexism, and I did some research about the global gender gap. People in Vancouver tend to be educated about multi culturalism, and they are interested in listening to related topics. Anywhere I do live performances, I feel very welcome on stage in Canada.

I feel very comfortable doing stand-up here in Vancouver and talking about racism or sexism. So, I practiced plenty of times in front of my friends and my co-workers until I could believe in myself fully and felt that I was ready.” How do you like doing stand-up in Canada? I was very nervous, and I thought that it wasn’t healthy at all. It took a little bit of time to overcome my nervousness. After two weeks, on October 20, 2015, I did my first stand-up comedy gig and became the first Japanese female stand-up comedian in Vancouver. It was there I got an offer to be a stand-up comedian from a producer of the show. Around then, I started dating my boyfriend who was a stand-up comedian, and he took me out to his stand-up comedy show where he played as a headliner. I unexpectedly realized I liked being a comedian after hearing people’s laughter at my first line: “I’ve been married for three years, and it sucks.” The very first point was when I had a role in a comedy play - How Much Are Those Feelings in the Window? - in 2015. Can you tell us what launched your career as a comedian? PHOTO: DALE L We caught up with her earlier this year via Skype to find out more about how she got her start, her biggest influences and how comedy can help bridge cultural divides. And she’s finding plenty of fans: her YouTube channel, Yumi Tube, has amassed nearly 170,000 subscribers and a few of her performance videos have racked up one million views. It didn’t take her long to find her style: speaking heavily Japanese-accented English and touching on topics ranging from ethnic stereotypes to hidden aspects of Japanese culture. Splitting up with her husband in 2015, she took to the stage for the first time later that year. Through her time in Canada, Nagashima has been exposed to different cultures and perspectives, which have opened her eyes and led to her current career. When his visa was about to expire, she decided to get a working holiday visa and, in 2008, moved with him to Vancouver, where they married. While working at a conversation school, she became romantically involved with a colleague from Canada. The Vancouver-based performer has been enter taining crowds since she got her start in 2015, but her comedy career was a long time in the making.īorn in Tokyo, Nagashima graduated from Bunkyo University with a degree in English literature and became an English teacher. Yumi Nagashima - who simply uses the stage name “Yumi” - is the first Japanese female stand-up comedian to really take off in Canada.

Yumi nagashima