Life, Values & Legacy: Our Chat with Denise Vasquez of Henderson

Denise Vasquez shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Hi Denise, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
Great question! I am proud of all of my accomplishments, but especially lately. I was in a wheelchair for 3 years, and I’ve been standing up literally doing comedy again. I started doing stand up in 2013, and stopped when I got hurt at work in 2017. It’s taken me years to not only stand up physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally…but my journey in writing, performing, finding the funny to share what I went through with my audiences has been healing, and the response to my set that I’m building on has been incredible. It’s been years since I’ve picked up my guitar to play more than one song. Lately, I’ve been incorporating my comedy songs in my longer sets where I’m featuring or headlining. I love singing and playing my songs on my guitar, but being able to stand up in front of a live audience, perform my comedy, and incorporate 3 of my songs in my set is a big accomplishment. To see and feel the audience sharing the laughter, is truly a blessing, and makes me even more proud!

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am an artist who creates because it is a part of my being. Life is my canvas, and my words, my voice, my experiences, and my creativity are the colors on my palette that I use to create from all my heART. I started performing on stage when I was four years old, thanks to my mom enrolling me in tap, ballet and modern dance classes. As soon as I was on stage, I knew I was in my happy place. If home is where the heart is, whenever I am on stage, I am home. Throughout elementary, junior high, high school, and throughout my adulthood, I’ve studied dance, voice, music, theater, improv, playwriting, songwriting, sketch writing, comedy writing, scene study and more! I started performing improv at The New York Comedy Club in the early 90’s, when I auditioned and got cast in “The Grown Ups Playground” directed by Joy Newman. I always knew I wanted to be a stand up comedian, but I had other goals I wanted to achieve. I wanted to get to know myself, experience life, and have more to bring to my comedy, not only to be confident in my point of view, so I could master and incorporate other talents in my set. As a teenager I decided to do some soul searching, study, and travel before pursuing my stand up comedy dream. I was born and raised in New York City, and have lived in Scotland, London, The US Virgin Islands, Los Angeles, Ventura, San Diego, Yucca Valley, and now Nevada. Now, like I sing in my song “I’m Back On Track” performing stand up comedy, music, and acting. I have 3 albums of my music on Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes…I have many goals, including my 4th album as a comedy album, and recording my first hour comedy special. I’ve been staying focused, working hard, writing new material and performing in front of live audiences and it feels so amazing to be standing up again!

Okay, so here’s a deep one: What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
Growing up I heard sayings like “Believe to achieve”, “Dare to dream”, and my high school track and field coach even had us write the words “I Can” on a piece of paper and taped it on our backs during practice. Setting goals, staying positive, focused, visualizing, and doing the work, made me realize the power of the mind is an incredible gift we all have. I’ve always had this outlook on life, even as a child, and it’s how I’ve accomplished my goals over the years. It became clearer to me how important mindset really is, and how powerful our thoughts really are, when I got into an accident at work, ended up in wheelchair for 3 years, leaving me with permanent disabilities. I stayed positive, focused, worked hard, visualized the life I imagined, and was determined to walk again. Even with all the obstacles I face on a daily basis, I am doing it! I am a comedian, I am writing, I am performing, I am here, and I am standing up literally!

When did you stop hiding your pain and start using it as power?
I stopped hiding my pain and started using it as power as soon as I realized that my journey, my words, my music, my art, my comedy, my poetry, my plays…touched and helped not just myself, but other people in a positive light. I’ll never forget the day that a fan wrote me and told me they were ready to take their own life until they heard me performing my song “Hope”. They thanked me for sharing my heart, my words, and my experiences through my music…they connected to what I was feeling and singing and realized they were not alone and they too could have hope! This affected me deeply in many ways, and was affirmation for me that sharing my journey, my talents, my life, my authentic self, on stage and off was bigger than me, and it made me realize my purpose of helping others with all of my heART.

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Is the public version of you the real you?
Absolutely! I live an honest happy life, by my own mottos, and one of my favorites that I’ve shared with others whether in person, on social media, or when I’ve spoken on panels like San Diego Comic Con: Never change who you are to fit in, be who you are to stand out! I am who I am, I’m proud of who I am, and at the end of the day I can look in the mirror at my authentic self, and love who I am. I know it’s hard for some people to believe in realness, when we are living in a world that supports alt facts, Ai, and fakeness. I’m 56 years old school, and I’m happy to say my age whenever I can, because for me, age is just a reminder of where I’ve been and where I am. The people closest to me know what you see is what you get!

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. Could you give everything your best, even if no one ever praised you for it?
Always! Everything I set out to achieve, I give it my best. When I was a child, I realized that doing what I love and loving what I do has always made me happy. Even as an adult, I discovered that following my heART is not about praise, it’s about creating because I can, because I must, because it is a part of who I am. If I inspire and make others happy too along the way, and receive any praise, then that is another blessing.

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Image Credits
Katherine Kirkpatrick, Randy Martinez, Denise Vasquez (Self Portrait), all other photos by Randy Martinez

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