Mike Epps headlined the We Them Ones Comedy Tour in Grand Prairie, TX where a sea of anxious people flooded into the Texas Trust CU Center for a night of shared laughter. D.C. Young Fly, CHICO BEAN and more comedians drew from the electricity of the audience to deliver iconic punchlines leaving many in the room in tears and heartfelt jeers.
Yet, behind the curtains, a deeper story was at play.
As Epps snapped his final pictures of the night with adoring fans, he entered another stage, one where he wasn’t the expert comedian but rather a student of the game.
Together with Cxmmunity, Next Pro Gamer invited creators for a rare experience to see behind the scenes of a live event and play against Epps on NBA 2K. Next Pro Gamer is building a pipeline where professional esports teams can find the best talent for their rosters.
“If you’re trying to make a name for yourself, this is your chance to get a real shot,” said Founder and CEO of Next Pro Gamer Yunko.
Yunko described that this platform will be similar to the NBA G League or MLB’s Minor League in that gamers can build a sustainable career through contract support, partnerships with brands and celebrities, and legitimate drafting into esports teams.
The We Them Ones Comedy Tour with Mike Epps is only the first of many initiatives that Next Pro Gamer is building. By bringing players and celebrities together, they are setting a stage where you don’t need to be a “professional” to succeed, but rather you only need the hunger to compete and grow if you want to be seen.
Epps is proof of that path.
While Epps delivers the laughs on stage, he also gets buckets on the sticks, but it took some time for him to get to this level versus the creators as Next Pro Gamer’s Antonio Thomas reflected on the comedian’s journey. Thomas described watching Epps compete in the previous twelve tour stops and noted that his stream in DFW was his best performance.
“Epps breaks so many stigmas that people have against gaming, whether that’s his age, demographic or whatever. Every time we have a show or a stream, he proves a lot of people wrong because he’s [playing] on Hall of Fame,” Thomas said.
This journey for Epps mirrors the experience that Next Pro Gamer aims to build. Through the partnership with Cxmmunity, creators can leverage the resources and information for a sustainable gaming lifestyle that only those within certain inner circles had access to before.
Cxmmunity continues its mission of bringing opportunities directly to its creator network as the organization has hosted movie screenings, gaming tournaments, festivals and more.
One creator that experienced this initial opportunity firsthand was BigCreatxr’s own RAYSEAN.
From Dallas, Raysean arrived at the center early with his entire livestream setup from the gaming laptop, DSLR camera and dual mics to bring his audience along for the night. He cheered behind the couch as Epps went head-to-head with Mr Daft, peeked behind the curtains during sets and even snapped photos with some of comedy’s biggest names like D.C. Young Fly.
“This was a whole different experience that I’ve never been through,” RAYSEAN said.
As for advice he’d share with other creators, it was simple. “Lock in and knock on every single door that’s available. You’re probably tired of editing and streaming for 10 hours straight, but do it anyway because it will pay off in the end,” he said.
Next Pro Gamer and Cxmmunity will invite more creators on two more stops of the tour on May 17 and 23 in Miami and Las Vegas, respectively. For a chance to participate, join the CXM Discord and stay tuned for the content on social media.
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