Plaza Midwood — Charlotte, NC
Bryan Li does it all — Open Rice, Shameless Society Improv and Charlotte is Creative, but more importantly Bryan is a great person who has surrounded himself with people in this city that are making an impact to better the lives of others. Bryan and I met last year and it’s been fun to see the growth of the things that he is doing in the city and every time we saw each other it was another incredible moment to learning something new about him and his journey. “I grew up in Hong Kong, moved to Mooresville, NC and attended High School there. I moved to Charlotte when I was 19 for college at UNCC. High School wasn’t great; I didn’t make any close friends and always felt there was this big disconnect between me and everyone around me from cultural differences my confidence level and language barriers. When I moved to Charlotte, I told myself I needed to get out there; this was a great place to restart. I met a lot of great people and when I graduated that’s when me and my business partner started our first restaurant — Pisces, we had that for eight years. This is where the people and connection comes into play because when we first opened — for the first three months I could tell you everyone's name who walked through that door and supported us and kept that afloat. We sold the business in late 2017, and that’s where my creative career started. I met Matt Owen from Charlotte is Creative, and we both saw that we could help each other with the goals we wanted, which led me to be on that board for them.”
“When it comes to improv, I was never a performer; even now, I feel that I’m very good at producing and knowing who is good at what and setting them up to do what they are good at. I have zero desire to be in the spotlight, but I absolutely love it when I’m up there with my friends. I originally got into improv because I wanted to write. I have a very close friend who is big into script writing who helped me. One of the important decisions I've made was one day I walked into Charlotte Comedy Theatre to take a few classes, and it immediately became one of the best decisions of my life. One, it's because of the people. My closest friends are people I met through this, and two, the mindsets and skills I’ve learned I never would have learned anywhere else.” When I took my first class, I was 31 years old, and I learned to listen, how to be present, how to be thoughtful and confident; at 31, where would you get that and learn it in such a natural way? I look at my life before 31 and after 31, and it’s such a significant impact on me.”
What was the spark for writing? Where did that come from? “Wasn’t really a spark, it was just a moment where I could figure out what was next and improv was that thing that I wanted to give a try. All of these decisions were made so naturally, and up until this point in my life, that’s not how I normally think. Time, investment, what is the return? When I look back at the last few years of my life, the best decisions I’ve made for myself were not made through those lenses.”
The restaurant business is tricky, so how did one want to jump right into it after college? You are a planner for the improv and making others shine where they are good at it. Is this a similar mindset for owning the restaurant? “This will be interesting for me to separate the two. The Open Rice version of me is very different. I have other business partners, so its different. In my twenties, I was always at the restaurant I was fully in it and I know what that’s like. Now, I’ve made the decision where this is not how I want to live my life. I'm an investor and help out where they need help. I run the website and social media. Do I have a passion for food? I do when it comes to eating but am not a chef. Being in the business for so long has taken the romance away for me. When I try and cook at home it is not chill, I feel like tickets are waiting and I need to make it quick and get it out. I’m not a person who cares about doing something for the sake of it. That’s why improv has changed my life; people who know me can’t believe what I do because they don’t expect it. I’m so drawn to it because you see people who don’t allow themselves to have fun to have the best time within seven minutes. I love it. It allows people to trust me, and that’s a big deal, and knowing what it has done for me and being able to do that for someone else is incredible.”
I was excited to ask Bryan what proud moments he’s had that have shaped him into the brilliant man he is. “About a year ago, I organized a benefit show for this non-profit called CLT Foundation. They serve children who have a life-altering illness or injury. When we were planning this, they reached out and said there was this kid who was 21 at the time, and his dream is to be a standup comedian. I was honored and thought you could do better than me, but I will help. I met with him once a week; his name is Tristan. I helped him write a 15-minute bit at this fundraiser at Lenny Boy. We sold 300 tickets so there were a lot of people there. The fact that Tristan trusted me and went up there and crushed it was one of the most special moments for me in the last five years. People were in tears, everyone was laughing, seriously, he crushed it. Being fortunate enough to be part of something this cool for someone who should have been dead three different times gave me purpose and understanding how important it is to be part of this creative community and improv, it's incredible. We keep in touch, he has a new job, but I keep telling him that he needs more people to hear his story and see his talent.”
Tristan Elsener performing at Lenny Boy. Photo courtesy of Bryan Li.
“It’s all about the people. People are what makes things so special. After we sold Pisces, I traveled, visited a few different cities, and always made my way back here. One is that my parents are now here, and the people that are here. It’s not what you surrounded self with but its who you are surrounded by. It’s guided me to make a lot of decisions in my life. Things are somewhat of an investment — emotion, time, money, all of it. I look at the person I invest in and not the thing I'm investing in. I’ve learned to listen and be present, and listening can guide you to where you want to be. It makes you a better person, better friend and person for your community. As cheesy as it sounds, we are all trying to tell someone, something, somehow. It’s up to us to tell it but if you listen it’s all there.”
