George Brown College (GBC) students always bring their A-game at events, and they certainly didn't stop for star comedian Sugar Sammy, whose improv skills were tested, but definitely not defeated, by the scores of students at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Performing Arts on Jan. 24.

“I live for that, I like crowd work, I love improvisation, so whenever you get a crowd like this it makes it more fun,” said Sugar Sammy on the active audience. “It makes the show different, but creating new stuff on the fly is one of the most fun things for me.”

Sugar Sammy, being able to speak not only French and English but also Hindi and Punjabi, has performed ‘over 1,000 shows in over 30 countries, selling 190,000 tickets to his shows in Canada and India, including 77,000 for his ground-breaking English-French bilingual show, according to his official website.

“You build your own fan bases, and you work hard to keep them happy,” says Sammy about the comedic competition. “Being able to perform in four languages gives me more to work with.”

Sammy, along with comedians Trixx and Dave Merheje, have performed at Student Association comedy shows before.

“They asked me, all they had to do was ask, and they've always treated me really well. As long as they keep being very welcoming, I'm back,” said

Being one of the hottest comedians nationally and internationally, “for me I just think about getting up there and working,” said Sammy. “I don't really believe my own hype ever, but at the same time it's good to hear things, but I try not to let it get to my head.”

Straight out of Quebec, Sammy weighs in on the issues surrounding language by repeating something he sometimes hears, “En français s'il vous plait,” during his act.

“You figure out, the more you travel to the province, that you can't put everyone in one category,” said Sammy. “Most of the people in Quebec are very decent, and unfortunately the minority is so loud, that they make all the other people look bad.”

Sammy says there's nothing he wants to do more than comedy, and that each time he gets on stage he performs like it's his last time.

“I am very lucky to be where I am,” says a humble Sammy.

Photo: Halley Requena-Silva

Comedian Sugar Sammy performed at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Performing Arts Jan.24.