Kevin Hart Explains How Selling Shoes Brought Him to Comedy (Exclusive) 

Kevin Hart draws a clear distinction between telling jokes and storytelling, and while comedy fans might find this counterintuitive, he says the difference between the two is key. He also realized early the power of comedy in every day life.

The actor and comedian recently joined the slate of highly-successful professionals lending their expertise through MasterClass and, in video clips shared exclusively with The Messenger, Hart explained his approach to comedy and how an unlikely gig brought him to the craft.

“I prefer storytelling. I prefer implementing joke-like structure in stories,” the Ride Along alum explained. "The reason why is because stories — they gotta come from a real place.”

However, this doesn’t diminish the power of comedy, according to Hart. In fact, he said, being able to seamlessly combine authenticity with comedic material is a key to success. 

“If you can put the world of punchlines through the course of a story," he continued, it would be "game over.” 

MasterClass seminars aim to help people improve skills, enhance knowledge and become inspired across an array of categories from acting to cooking to entrepreneurship.

For Hart’s part, he is sharing how humor has played a consistent part in his journey from his upbringing in Philadelphia to headlining sold-out stadiums and building his own multimillion dollar media enterprise. 

The Jumanji star also reminds the audience that making people laugh can have a positive impact on any scale, whether enhancing communication in a relationship or propelling a career forward.

For example, he shared an anecdote from the time he spent working in a shoe store, and would utilize comedy to close sales. 

“When it came to selling the shoe, the idea of adding humor to my portfolio was immediate,” he said, adding that he and his teammates often became frustrated after being asked to climb up and down the stairs to retrieve and then return a dozen pairs of shoes only for the customers to leave without making a purchase.

“Don’t you run me up and down these damn steps and have me get all these sneakers,” Hart recalled thinking. “So instead of just doing that, I would tell people: 'Now you know this is my fifth time being up these steps. You're gonna walk out of here with a pair of sneakers, cause look at my knees. My knees are shaking,' and we would laugh, it would be fun. I found a lighthearted approach to the world of customer service. And it worked."