Comedian Bassem Youssef: 'Everything in this world is temporary'

Laugh or cry. That's the choice Bassem Youssef makes every day.

The sharp-witted cardiac surgeon-turned-comedian spends most of his time on the road these days, performing in sold-out shows across the world on his Middle Beast comedy tour.

Now an American citizen, Youssef was one of Egypt's most popular TV personalities. His show Al Bernameg (The Show) regularly racked up 30 million viewers.

But his political jokes eventually landed badly with the government, and under pressure, Youssef left Egypt and moved to the United States in 2016.

"We had that much following, that much fame, exposure and suddenly everything is taken away from you and you have to start from scratch. It's very humbling," he previously said.

Over the next several years, Youssef rebuilt his act, switching to English-language comedy and gaining whole new audiences in the US and around the world.

In October, his notoriety skyrocketed again after an appearance on Piers Morgan Uncensored.

During the interview, which has so far garnered 22 million views on YouTube, the comedian used what Morgan called "dark humour" to point out the absurdity of Western media narratives about Arabs.

He joked about killing his Palestinian wife – "they’re very difficult people to kill," he said." I try to get to her every time, but she uses our kids as human shields."

Youssef also highlighted the disproportionate number of Palestinian deaths to Israeli deaths, calling it "a very good exchange rate."

Speaking to TRT World in a recent interview in Washington, DC, Youssef discussed the purpose of his comedy, what speaking out about Gaza has cost him and who he's (not) voting for in November.

TRT World: So you have been very busy lately. How are you feeling about the renewed attention and popularity?

Bassem Youssef: I don't feel particularly too popular. The thing is with being exposed, it's ups and downs. I had times in my life when I enjoyed a certain level of exposure and fame, and other times where I didn't.

This is the thing with working with media or entertainment or comedy. It's ups and downs and you shouldn't get hooked on a certain state. Because everything in this world is temporary. So you learn to get grounded.

TRT World: I'm sure the past few weeks and months have been very challenging for you on a personal level. How is your wife, family and relatives?

Bassem Youssef: My family is doing well. My wife and kids are in Los Angeles. Of course, we worried about my wife's family in Rafah. They lost all of their homes, and they're basically cramped now in one apartment, in one building. And it's the last stand and I don't know what will happen to them. And it's been very tough for them - extremely tough. And all we can do is just sit and watch, which is very sad.

TRT World: How do you feel the world is responding to what's happening in Palestine, particularly when it comes to media coverage?

Bassem Youssef: Media coverage will always be biased, whether in the east or the west, in the Middle Eastern or the United States. People have their own biases.

And the thing is, with the coverage of Palestine, it was very obvious that the Western media have a double standard. I think they don't feel the emotional connection to the Palestinians. It's very interesting to see that the only conversation they have is, like how proportionate the response should be, as if it's about how many people we should kill, not if we should stop the killing in the first place.

Unfortunately, the Western media has adopted the Israeli point of view without questioning. Even when the Israeli media has now been refuting some of the lies that the Israeli government has propagated, like decapitated babies or mass rape. Western media is not reporting on that at all, which is very sad.

TRT World: Is it hard to be a comedian at such a sombre time? Is it kind of like a choice between laughing or crying?

Bassem Youssef: Comedy is my work. Comedy is my job. Nobody stopped going to work (after Oct. 7). So a lot of people say it's hard to be a comedian. I mean, it is my job, it's what I do. I have my performances. This is how I make my living. And this is the reason actually why I was invited to many of the interviews.

So I have my show, which has been going on for a while. I don't get too much into the current events because I don't want it to be part of my show. So I've been just doing my job like everybody's doing their job. And that's why I don't like when people shame artists or athletes or people who work in entertainment for doing their job.

You do what you do because you want to do, not because you want to compare it to others.

TRT World: In your shows, you say comedy is a way to bring people together. Can you speak a little bit about that?

Bassem Youssef: I've been doing standup comedy for some time now. And even before that I did my political satire show. And I always believe that comedy is a unifying agent.

You can get people in the same room with totally different points of views and laughter disarms people and lets them look at things with a much more relaxed outlook. So I think it's a very powerful tool. And unfortunately, a lot of people from certain mindsets, they look down on comedy, they look down on humour.

They look down on satire, but I think it's a wonderful art form. And I think it helps people come to terms with how they deal with their life, with their surroundings, with a very harsh world that usually is not very kind to us. So I'm very privileged and very honoured and feel very lucky to work in such a field.

TRT World: Where do you think our progress is in terms of Arab representation or Middle Eastern representation in Hollywood?

Bassem Youssef: Arabs are a relatively new set of immigrants in the United States. We're just seeing the fruits of our labour for the second and third generations in this country, like (TV shows) Ramy and Mo, and many amazing, wonderful comedians and actors.

So I think it's going to be a matter of time until we settle into the industry. There's already been amazing work by many people. So hopefully, the next generation will be better.

TRT World: You spoke about Gaza in many interviews. Did this impact your career?

Bassem Youssef: Talking about what's happening in Palestine did have an impact. Of course, I've been cyber-bullied for years, I'm used to that. It's just different people who harass you differently.

My timeline is full of people calling me anti-Semite, anti-Jewish, hater. And before that, it was people calling me an infidel and a Muslim hater. So I'm used to that, it's not new.

I have lost a couple of jobs in Hollywood. I was cast in a couple of movies. And I lost the part. But it's fine. I mean, I'm not on the outside. I mean, my shows are selling out. And I can see there's a lot of love coming from people.

So if you've been dropped by the institution, people are still coming to your show. There is no middle man in these theatres and these shows. So you win some and you lose some, this is part of life.

TRT World: In the past few months in the US, a six-year-old Muslim boy was stabbed to death in Chicago, we saw several protesters were attacked while wearing kuffiyeh. How do you feel about living in this country right now?

Bassem Youssef: I don't feel scared living in the United States. I like being in the United States. I'm an American citizen. And I'm very glad that me and my family are able to have this life in the United States.

As in any country in the world, when we are upset about things, we want to change them - it doesn't mean that we hate the country. The same way that I wanted to change things to be better in Egypt - it doesn't mean that I hate my home country.

There is a lot of terrible incidents against pro-Palestinian people, and there's a lot of bad incidents against Jewish people. Hate is a terrible thing on both sides. That doesn't change my opinion of living here in the United States.

But it makes me hope that people will change things by changing the policies of the country. You can be living in a country liking it, and at the same time be against (government) policy, which is normal in all countries of the world.

TRT World: You are very outspoken about this upcoming election between US President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Do you know who you're voting for?

Bassem Youssef: I'm definitely not voting for Biden. And of course, I'm not voting for Trump. I always consider myself a Democrat, liberal left wing, but I can't find it in my heart to vote for Biden for allowing the genocide happening right now.

TRT World: Right now, as we speak, the Israeli army is bombarding Rafah, which was the last refuge for Palestinian civilians in Gaza. What would be your message to the world given what is happening right now?

Bassem Youssef: The message to the world is still the same: ceasefire. I mean, that's why I wear this pin. This is Artists4Ceasefire. We want to call for a permanent ceasefire.

And I think it's a very simple request. We're not asking people to go to war against Israel. We're not even asking America to cut the aid. We're asking them to pressure Israel to stop killing civilians. It's crazy. It's how logical and how simple the request is and how people consider this as something that's hateful.