8 Things You Didn’t Know About Felipe Esparza

Felipe Esparza is an American stand-up comedian and actor of Mexican origin. Felipe Esparza was born in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. He grew up on his mother’s family’s ranch in Sinaloa before migrating with his family to Tijuana to live with his aunt for around two years.

You may be familiar with Filipe Esparza from his comedian career, but there is more to his life as you will discover from the following facts.

8 Things You Didn’t Know About Felipe Esparza

1. New HBO Program

Esparza has a new HBO show called Translate This, which will focus on his life as an immigrant and everything that comes with it. ^[1]

2. All Of It Began In Rehab

Esparza began stand-up comedy while in treatment for drug usage. Since he was a child, he had wished to be a comic. A counselor once asked Esparza to set down five goals for himself, and he didn’t have anything to work on before that. The first thing he thought of on his list was to become a comedian. ^[2]

3. Translator For His Parents

Esparza was tasked with doing most of the translating for his parents. It also gave Esparza an advantage in situations where he didn’t want his folks to know. For example, his parents didn’t need to know about his school grades, so he just skipped over them in translation. ^[3]

4. Associated With Gangbangers

Esparza was a member of a gang from his late teens to his early twenties. He’d been affiliated with gangbangers since he was 13, so he was well familiar with their way of life. It wasn’t until he met Father Greg Boyle of Homeboy Industries that his life changed dramatically. 

5. Stand-up Comedian Since 1994

That’s a long time to be in the comedy business. While the big leagues didn’t come calling for him until nearly 25 years later, he’s always had a solid career doing stand-up comedy, which he enjoys. His biggest break came in 2010 when he won NBC’s Last Comic Standing. ^[4]

7. His Comedy Is Not Limited To Latino Issue

He also spends a lot of time discussing his involvement in gangs, drug use and time to recover, his life as a parent now, and numerous other topics. Esparza provides more than just the typical immigration gags, and ideally, this new show will allow him to showcase his talents on a larger scale.

8. Married In 2014

Felipe Esparza’s wife is Lesa O’Daniel Esparza, whom he married on December 13, 2014, and with whom he has been living happily ever since. ^[5]