One day you might find yourself being employed with so many jobs; working so hard to strive for ambition. There comes that voice in your head, “Where do I belong?” and you do not have a definite answer. You want the world, you want a great living, you want a comfortable life, but what do you have to do to earn it?

Comedian Joey Medina has that answer and he went through all the difficulties that life could give him to earn what he has now. Medina’s idea is just go out there and try; do your best and if you fail, at least you attempted something and did not pity yourself for doing nothing. That is the type of motivation Joey has followed through his boxing career, days as a police officer, and as a comedian; and all of his success was because he never gave up.

Joey was born and raised in the Bronx, he is Puerto Rican, and he observed that most Puerto Ricans live in the Bronx, other than Puerto Rico. He grew up in what he felt was a typical Latino family; he did not have a father and he lived with his mother, grandmother, and aunts. The house was mostly filled with women; he has a great appreciation for women because of his childhood. Joey recalls there being a strong supportive attitude with everyone. His mom worked at medical offices dealing with billing and other accounting paperwork.

At the age of twelve, he was a big troublemaker, actually he describes himself as a “really bad kid.” His mother remarried a man who did not like her kids. The new husband did not respect Joey or his younger sisters. Joey feels that if a man is going to devote himself to a relationship in which the woman has kids he has to accept the whole package, or move on. So, Joey detached himself from his mother because he did not like who she married. Joey became involved in a lot of delinquent acts, and once he attempted to purse snatch an old lady. He remembers grabbing for the purse and she would not let go. He did not want her to fall, and so he let go of the purse and ran off. He ran for what felt like forever and after he stopped he was scared. Joey knew what he did was not right and he would never do that again.

When his mother remarried, the family was living in Queens at the time. But his mother could not handle the constant acts of criminal recklessness Joey was exhibiting, so she had him live with his grandmother. At this time, Joey started training in a boxing gym, and immediately his life began to change. He never hung out with any thugs and his reckless behavior changed for the better. His days were spent either training or watching other guys train. The day Joey turned thirteen was the day he joined the gym. Boxing was like a surrogate father to him. He stayed off the streets and did not drink or do drugs. The cost of the gym was five bucks, but the owner/trainer let Joey do odd jobs to pay his fees. The owner was Italian and Joey always looked up to him like a dad. He would always eat at the owner’s house and Joey learned a lot of life lessons from the owner. As a teenager, his friends were the guys from the gym; older guys. One was a jazz musician, another a dentist, and a police officer. At nineteen, he moved to Arizona to live with one of his uncles, and there he became a professional boxer. He did that for a while, until, sadly, he got burned out with it. “A great love just went away,” as he put an end to his boxing career.

One day he found himself eating lunch with an old friend who was a police officer, and at that moment in his life that was something he wanted to become. He spent two years training to be a police officer and at the age of twenty-four he was fully certified. During that time, Joey got married, even though most of his time was spent being a cop. He went from being a uniform officer to becoming an undercover cop. But the law enforcement profession would only last for three and a half years, because Joey did not like the politics of being a cop; he was too much of a free spirit. So, he then decided to go back to school and take paralegal classes to become a lawyer. But at this time he was broke, he just got divorced, and he was living in his 1984 Camaro. 

Still living in Arizona, Joey was determined to find his place in the world, and he soon discovered all he needed was a good laugh. While trying to learn to become a lawyer, he was selling his blood and plasma to eat on a regular basis. One day he walked into a comedy club, because that is what he loves; comedy. As he focused his attention on one comic after another, he noticed that it was an amazing experience and he wanted to become a comic.  Joey felt he had nothing to lose; he had no wife, family, job, career, etc. He thought he could literally start brand new. Joey spent most of his days and nights at the comedy club because he did not know how he could learn the ways of this new profession. He would hang out at the club and ask the comedians many questions. He would even come to the amateur nights and try out. He thought if he was going to take this seriously he needed to take this to the next level, so he moved to Los Angeles. In L.A., he started working with one of the biggest comedians, Paul Rodriguez. With Rodriguez, Joey learned  about showmanship, and the do's and dont's of stage presence. He then had the chance to be a part of the Latin Kings of Comedy and performed professionally with Cheech Marin, Paul Rodriguez, George Lopez and Alex Reymundo. Today, he is not only one of the most successful Latino comedian's in the business, he has also produced movies and other comedy shows for television.

Joey Medina changed his ways when he found his outlet in boxing, and met older guys that taught him philosophical lessons about life and living. These men became true father figures for Joey as he grew up in the Bronx. Joey found himself as a professional boxer, an undercover cop, and later, a comedian. His idea is to not give up; you must try something new and daring if you want to get anywhere.  He has always  lived by those words. Joey Medina’s life started out on the streets, but through hard work, education and perseverance he has achieved success. He continues to make people laugh all over the world!

Article written by Richard Castillo