Elva

Elva is no stranger to the limelight, as she used to host karaoke shows throughout the island, as well as MC at events throughout high school. Her debut as a comedienne happened in Washington DC at the Caribbean Comedy Festival 2k5 staged at Howard University Auditorium, where she suddenly became a celebrity. "The response was wonderful. After the show all these people came backstage to get my autograph. I was so over-whelmed. That's the reason I stuck to comedy," she said. Upon returning to Jamaica, she started her career in at the Backyaad Comedy Crack Up, a monthly stand up comedy show held in Kingston, Jamaica. Knocking wood, she tells that since starting she has not got an unfavourable response. A number of persons were introduced to the comedienne on radio, where she appears every Friday morning on FAME 95.5FM's 'Full House Fridays'. The show has created quite a buzz for her, cracking people up on their way to work. Creating a buzz isn't hard when a talented individual comes to fill the gap present in terms of comediennes in Jamaica. She states "In Trinidad there are like four huge female comedians. Here, I'm the only one, so the offers for work are numerous." In only a year she has travelled to do shows in London, Canada, the US and the Caribbean. She admits that her comedy is very personal. "I can't tell jokes to save my life. I talk about my life's trials and personal experiences and for some sadistic reason people find it funny. Growing up the way I did, mi nuh have no shame tree," she says. Elva has huge hopes for her career, starting with television. "A big step would be television, it would be crazy and spontaneous. I want only real people, not people you see everyday like ministers and celebrities." With an engaging personality, Elva Allison Ruddock has only one place to go, and that's further up.