D.J. Demers

Last updated
D.J. Demers
Birth nameDonald James Demers, Jr. [1] [2]
Medium
Nationality
  • Canada
Years active2009–present
SpouseMajalyn Demers (m. December 22, 2018)
Children2
Website djdemers.com

D.J. Demers (born 1986) is a Canadian-born stand-up comedian, widely known for appearances on Season 11 of America's Got Talent, numerous late night talk shows, his online stand-up streaming specials, as well as on his 2023-2024 television series One More Time on CBC. [3]

Contents

Background

Born to Don and Joy Demers [1] of Kitchener, Ontario, [3] [4] D.J. was diagnosed with hearing loss at age four; [5] without hearing aids, he was considered deaf. [5] Growing up, his parents and older sister helped him with the challenges he faced, including having spare hearing aids on hand. [2] The hearing aids weren't waterproof and would stop functioning if he sweated too much, on the playground or during sports. [2] In his youth, Demers played ice hockey extensively.

As a teenager, Demers' mother encouraged him to take a part time job in a used sporting equipment store — to become more comfortable speaking with people. [6] He later graduated from Wilfrid Laurier University with a degree in Business [2] [1] and later worked in marketing at a Waterloo, Ontario tech company. [7]

In 2009, Demers applied for and was selected by Richard Branson in a contest for an internship with Virgin Mobile. [7] Each self-submitted homemade entry would outline ways young people could stay afloat in the econmoic downturn. Suggesting ditching a mobile phone for two tin cans connected by string, Demers' video was Branson's favorite entry. [7]

In approximately 2011, Demers moved to Toronto to further his stand-up career, [1] subsequently moving to Los Angeles. Demers is married, with two children. [5]

Career

Demers began performing comedy in his second year of university, making his first comedy club appearance at Yuk Yuk's. [3] He won the 2013 Toronto Comedy Brawl and the Homegrown Comics Competition at the Just for Laughs Festival in 2014, and starred in a 13-segment television series, The D.J. Demers Show for Accessibility Media. He won a Canadian Comedy Award for Best Breakout Artist in 2015. [8]

He appeared on America's Got Talent in 2016, [8] advancing to the Judge Cuts round but not making it to the live shows. [9] In 2017 he appeared on Conan, [10] and undertook a comedy tour of university and college campuses across the United States sponsored by hearing aid manufacturer Phonak. [9] He has also appeared on episodes of the CBC Radio comedy series The Debaters . [11]

He received a Juno Award nomination for Comedy Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2018, for his comedy album Indistinct Chatter. [12]

In 2019 his stand-up comedy special Interpreted was streamed as a Crave original, [13] and he headlined Comedy for a Cause, a stand-up show in Montreal that consisted entirely of comedians with physical disabilities. [14] His second comedy album Uninterpreted, a selection of segments from the Crave special, was also released the same year.

In June 2023, CBC Television greenlit One More Time , a comedy series starring Demers as the manager of a used sporting goods store. [15] The series premiered on CBC in January 2024, [16] After the show,which the Toronto Star called "a love letter to mid-size Canadian cities," [6] was cancelled after its inaugural season, full episodes remained available on Youtube. [17]

In 2024 and 2025 he hosted two All Access Comedy specials for the Halifax Comedy Festival and AMI-TV. [18]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Standup Style, Kitchener Comedian Makes His Mark on 'America's Got Talent'". Waterloo Record. June 9, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Jeff Hicks (November 19, 2014). "'Its All Good' with D.J. Demers". Waterloo Region Record.
  3. 1 2 3 "Kitchener-born comedian D.J. Demers needs your votes to become top comic". Kitchener Post, August 10, 2017.
  4. ↑ Cowper, Janna (2022-05-02). "Talking with Deaf comedian D.J. Demers on World Laughter Day". Hearing Like Me. Retrieved 2022-10-12.
  5. 1 2 3 Elizabeth Blair (November 26, 2024). "Comic D.J. Demers jokes a lot about hearing loss — but won't be 'the hearing aid guy'". NPR.
  6. 1 2 Debra Yeo (January 6, 2024). "Turning a High-School Job into a Truly Canadian Sit Com". The Toronto Star.
  7. 1 2 3 "Laurier Grad Lands Worlds Second Best Job -- Virgin Intern". Waterloo Region Record. June 12, 2009.
  8. 1 2 "Kitchener comedian makes his mark on ‘America’s Got Talent’". Waterloo Region Record , June 8, 2016.
  9. 1 2 "D.J. Demers kicks off comedy tour at WSU". The Daily Evergreen , October 3, 2017.
  10. ↑ "D.J. Demers Performs Stand Up on Conan". The Interrobang, July 14, 2017.
  11. ↑ "Eavesdropping is harmless fun". The Debaters , May 20, 2017.
  12. ↑ "Arcade Fire and Daniel Caesar lead 2018 Juno Award nominations". CBC Music, February 6, 2018.
  13. ↑ Ernie Tripper, "Who is On Late Night Tonight in Comedy: Week of November 11, 2019". The Interrobang, November 11, 2019.
  14. ↑ "Montreal's first fully accessible stand-up comedy show takes the stage". CBC News Montreal, May 28, 2019.
  15. ↑ Greg David, "CBC unveils 2023-24 programming slate featuring over 40 original series from Canadian storytellers". TV, eh?, June 1, 2023.
  16. ↑ Debra Yeo, "How hard-of-hearing comedian D.J. Demers turned his high school job into a Canadian sitcom". Toronto Star , January 6, 2024.
  17. ↑ Alex Nino Gheciu, "Allan Hawco, Snotty Nose Rez Kids among familiar names behind upcoming CBC lineup". Canadian Press, May 24, 2024.
  18. ↑ "Pluto TV marks one-year anniversary in Canada". Broadcast Dialogue , December 14, 2023.
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