D.J. Demers, a hearing-impaired comedian, will perform a free show Feb. 7 at UNK - Kearney Hub

KEARNEY — Comedian D.J. Demers wears hearing aids.

In one of his routines, Demers talks about swimming without his hearing aids.

“My hearing aids aren’t waterproof,” he said. “That’s crazy. I’ve got to take them out when I shower, when I go swimming. Pool parties are a nightmare. I’m not very good at the game ‘Marco Polo.’ Not a whole lot of ‘Polo’ happening when I’m playing that game. Lots of ‘Marco,’ lots of ‘Marco.’”

Demers will perform at 7 p.m. Feb. 7 at the Ponderosa Room at the Nebraskan Student Union at 1013 W. 27th St. on the University of Nebraska at Kearney campus. The show is presented by the Loper Programming Activities Council.

Admission is free.

In a previous interview, Demers talked about his childhood and his hearing impairment.

“If I was a kid who saw a comic who wore hearing aids on Conan O’Brien, I would think that was pretty cool as a 10-year-old boy,” he said. “I went into comedy because I like being funny. But, I know I have a direct impact on people. It’s weird being an advocate, but it’s also cool.”

Demers, an award-winning stand-up comedian based in Los Angeles, appeared on season 11 of “America’s Got Talent.” He has performed stand-up on “Conan” twice and was the winner of the 2014 Homegrown Comics Competition at the prestigious Just For Laughs festival in Montreal.

After winning the competition, Demers was invited to perform at a TV taping, the first time that has happened in festival history.

In 2017, Demers toured the U.S. on the “Here to Hear Comedy Tour,” sponsored by Phonak, a hearing aid company, and filmed the entire experience along the way.

His debut stand-up album, “[Indistinct Chatter],” was released in 2017 to great acclaim. In June of 2017, Demers was the featured Comedian of the Month on Laugh USA on SiriusXM. In 2018, “[Indistinct Chatter]” was nominated at the Juno Awards for Comedy Album of the Year.

In his video “[Indistinct Chatter],” Demers said, “I don’t hear whispering at all. If this is a secret, you can rest assured that it is very, very safe.”

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