The 2012 debut of the Tonight's 80s Stand-Up Comedy TV program further introduced stand-up to audiences. Subsequent similar programs, such as Tencent Video's Rock& Roast series, helped place it firmly in Chinese entertainment.

Home advantage

Sampson was raised in Beijing's traditional hutong alleyways and discovered his passion for comedy while thinking about how he could leverage his Chinese language skills.

"I kept wondering how to use my Chinese language skills after graduating from university and how to apply it in my work. Then I discovered comedy," he says.

Influenced by Canadian xiangsheng performer Da Shan (Mark Henry Rowswell), Sampson saw parallels between his cross-cultural background and Da Shan's successful integration of Western and Chinese comedic elements. In 2023, he transitioned into stand-up, aiming to bridge cultural divides through humor.

Sampson says he then met his perfect partner, Li Xinshu, who was a host for the Yinghe comedy group at that time.