Q&A with ProZD

f you've been on the internet since 2010, chances are you've encountered the work of SungWon Cho, aka ProZD, aka That One Guy Who Does the Silly Voices and Makes Funny Videos About Video Games. Perhaps you first encountered his work with his popular "Goofy Sings" series. Remember that video of Goofy singing Evanescence's Bring Me To Life? That was him. The classic dub of Mickey and Donald Duck getting all philosophical? That was him too. Or, if you've been on KnowYourMeme in the past, like, 4 months, you've definitely seen some of his most popular work, as his short, hilarious skits regularly make our front page. Cho took the time to speak with us from his home in Michigan earlier this week about his growing popularity, Kingdom Hearts, the best games for the Nintendo 3DS, and whether a hot dog is a sandwich.

Q: Hey KnowYourMeme! What’s up? I am Adam Downer and I am here with the illustrious SungWon Cho, also known as ProZD!

A: Yo. What’s up?

Q: Not much man! I’ve been looking forward to this all day. We’re big fans of your stuff, and thanks for taking the time to talk with us.

A: Well, thank you!

Q: So what’ve you been up to today? One of your videos I think just made top of Reddit, the one about the license plates?

A: Oh did that hit the top of Reddit?

Q: Well, I’m not sure about the top, but I know it’s doing extremely well.

A: I don’t use Reddit, but I know they get passed around down there. Today I’ve just been recording some videos, and pretty much what I do each day is record, edit, record some voiceover.

Q: So when did you first know you could make a career out of voice acting? I assume it’s your career?

A: My career is basically videos and voice acting. I’ve been doing voice acting and videos for a while. I would say last year is when I could finally just do that. I’d been doing it before, but now it’s pretty much what I do as my job now. I started focusing on YouTube more and then a bunch of videos got big on Reddit, and since then--I mean, my channel has always been growing, but being on the front page of Reddit a couple times helps quite a bit. At this point, I’m doing it full time.

Q: Do you remember if there was a specific video that was the first one to get super popular, where you were like “Oh shit, this is really popping off?” I know the Goofy Sings videos did super well, but I think it’s interesting that when you type “ProZD” into Google Trends, there’s a spike in November of 2016 where your name shoots up. Was there something around that time that might’ve caused that?

A: I don’t remember which ones spiked… but I know that was around the time Reddit really latched onto my stuff. I don’t remember the specific video. I’m the type of guy where, I make the video, and I’m ready for the next one. I don’t really re-watch my stuff, so sometimes i forget about ones that I made. I made a lot of Vines before YouTube, and now I do a little bit longer stuff. I know that the one where I sing “Take On Me” got really popular, but that’s not the first one… I know it was one of the skits, but I don’t remember which one.

Q: Speaking of the skits, obviously you have a grasp of how internet-friendly comedy works, the short, terse style that grew out of Vine. Were you drawn to Vine initially? What drew you to this style of comedy, beyond the YouTube stuff you were doing before that got popular?

A: Vine is funny. I was actually kind of intimidated by Vine when I first heard about it. I was like, “There’s no way I can fit a whole skit into 6, 7 seconds,” so I didn’t use it for a long time. It was seriously, completely on a whim. I was just like “You know what, I’m not gonna worry about it.” The first couple Vines are just of me dubbing over animals, very simple stuff. Then the first one that got really big with me on camera, I had like, a syrup bottle--it’s hard to explain, so that one got really big. It helped I already had a big Tumblr fanbase at the time. That kind of propelled the Vine, but then Vine grew bigger than that, and now YouTube has grown bigger than that. I guess what drew me to it is that it’s just low pressure, being able to cast out your comedic idea into the internet, not having to worry about over-planning, or over-editing it (although later on I would), but overall it was just a way to put out my ideas in a very easy way. It also helped me pare down my writing so there’s less filler. Straight-to-the-point, good pacing, punchlines have more impact. I was always impressed by what other people did on Vine.

Q: Do you mourn the loss of Vine at all? Or do you think its death has helped you with your YouTube stuff?

A: I mourn the loss of Vine in regards to other creators. I think there were some awesome, funny people on there, and I think they didn’t have other channels to fall back on, whereas I had Tumblr, YouTube, and Twitter. For me, I was fine, and I’m doing, you could say, very well, but it was more a bummer to lose other Viners. Not that they’re not still out there, but it’s harder to find their content now, cuz Vine was their big platform.

Q: How do you come up with skits? They’re often video-game based, or regular, every-day life based. Where do you draw inspiration?

A: Well, if it’s a video game one, I’m probably playing a video game (laughs). I mean seriously, watching an anime, playing a game, if something pops up that pisses me off or I think is funny, I’m like “I’m gonna rip this a new one.” I tweet a lot, and sometimes I come up with a tweet idea and think, “you know, actually, this could be a video idea.” It’s usually just me going around, living my life. If I don’t have one, I don’t make one. I’m not compelled to make one on a regular basis. I really just put one out there if I have something I want to make fun of. There’s no strict writing process, although I find driving and showering, I have ideas pop into my head there. Otherwise I’m doing the nerdy--can I swear in this?

Q: Yeah, sure.

A: Sometimes I’m just doing nerdy shit and I get ideas from that.

Q: Is there a video, performance, or project you’ve worked on that you’re most proud of?

A: Some of the skits turned out pretty funny. I don’t try to worry about what other people think. If the finish product is something I think is funny, it’s a success to me, but it’s gratifying to see people enjoy that. I do think one where it was like “When you’re playing a game and you meet the character who’s gonna betray you” turned out pretty well. I think that one came out exactly how I wanted it. If the skits really work, I’m very proud of it.

Q: Speaking of how people receive your work, do you remember the best and worst feedback you’ve gotten from an internet commenter or someone who jumps in your Tumblr asks?

A: The stuff I like the most is when someone says “Hey, I was having a really shitty day, I was feeling really down, and watching your videos really cheered me up.” That kinda stuff makes me happy, if I can help other people out. And then the worst are you know, racist, or trolling. It is what it is, the same kind of shit over and over. I’ve been doing this for so many years that nothing really phases me anymore. It’s just repetition. It’s very difficult, I think, to get to me in terms of internet hate.

Q: So nothing too shocking if you’ve been on the internet.

A: Exactly. Especially if you’ve had stuff passed around, and people go “Oh, who is this guy? Fuck this guy.”

Q: You’ve done a lot of indie projects and you have this popularity. I was wondering if there are major projects, major studios knocking on your door, or if you’re even into that sort of thing.

A: I can’t really talk about what’s brewing…

Q: So something cool is down the road, but you can’t talk about it yet?

A: I have some cool stuff in the works, but anything I could talk about, I probably can’t, but yes, especially after the Reddit push, offers have come my way.

Q: I want to get into some of your video game opinions. I know on your Let’s Play Channel, Press Buttons and Talk, you guys are in the midst of a Kingdom Hearts LP. For one, I commend you for that, because it seems like a tremendously difficult game to LP. You seem to have this deep knowledge of the series, but you also seem pretty critical of it. At what point did you become disillusioned to Kingdom Hearts?

A: I would say I’m not an expert on Kingdom Hearts. I’ve played Kingdom Hearts, Chain of Memories, re:Chain of Memories, Kingdom Hearts 2, and 358 days. I think around that time I was slipping because I liked 2 especially. I think the first game’s a piece of shit, actually. I loved it as a kid, but playing it now, it’s a very flawed game. I enjoyed Chain of Memories and 2 a lot more because they improved on the first one. I think the story of the games is nonsense, but I am excited for 3. I would say my opinion changed when I played the entirety of 358/2 Days and realized what a pointless game that was, and it was just tedious. Also, I became an adult (laughs), and I realized “okay, these games are kinda dumb.” But I’m still fond of 2 and we’ll play it on some point on the channel. Do you watch the channel?

Q: I found it while prepping for this, and it’s super entertaining. There are games on there that no other LP-er does, and doing Phoenix Wright with the dubbing was awesome.

A: Yeah, I love that series. That’s a very fun channel. It’s a decent little community, and I’m kinda okay with that. You know, my main channel has a lot of subscribers, but with that comes a lot of the dumbest people ever in the comments. But the comments on Press Buttons and Talk are very nice (right now, anyway), and we don’t worry about playing, you know, “THE NEWEST GAME.” We just play what we want and that’s very fun.

Q: Another question I wanted to ask you: I was watching your Q&A with your wife you put up recently, and you got a question about Pokémon Sun and Moon, and you mentioned you liked the Pokemon designs and atmosphere, but you thought the story was pretty dumb. Personally, I thought Pokemon Sun was the best because it wasn’t like the generic, “Oh, we’re doing the eight gyms” and everyone you talk to has one line. I liked having recurring characters and stories, but you seemed to think otherwise, so I wanted to press you on that.

A: I really liked the characters a lot. That’s not my issue. My issue is the main villain’s motivations were very wonky. I really liked Team Skull and liked them as a concept, but structure wise, the main dramatic stuff didn’t hit me, and I thought it was very scattershot. I really liked the characters a lot. I don’t play Pokemon for the plot anyway, so I appreciated that they, you know, gave it a try (laughs). I thought it was better than X&Y. X&Y was ridiculous. But yeah, for me, it was more about the characters and gameplay, but the final villain was dumb. I still think it’s a fantastic game.

Q: Is there something I should be playing on the 3DS? I own a 3DS and I feel like once I run of the big series titles, the major Nintendo products, then I’m like what else can this system give me?

A: If you want that’s a little obscure, Pocket Card Jockey is a great game. It’s like, horse racing mixed with solitaire, which doesn’t sound fun, but it’s extremely addicting. SteamWorld Dig is really good, very solid mining, going down a randomly generated level with a steampunk aesthetic. Really solid gameplay. Pushmo is a puzzle game where you pull out pieces of a statue and climb to the top. Those are some eShop gems, but some main games I like. I love New Leaf. I put like 900 hours into that.

Q: Oh my god…

A: Yeah. I 100%’d the game. I got every gold badge, which is a disgusting feat, and anyone who’s ever played that game probably thinks I’m a crazy person because that takes a ton of effort. Fire Emblem: Awakening and Fates are great games. I recently played Kirby Triple Deluxe, which was recently solid. They have two Ace Attorney games on there. Any Pokemon game--I actually played Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, and I thought that was pretty solid. I like any randomly-generated dungeon crawlers, and that’s basically what that is. The Professor Layton series is on there, though like Ace Attorney, you should probably play the DS games first. They have Rhythm Heaven Megamix, which if you like rhythm games, is a super quirky games. Super Mario 3D Land. Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward, a sequel to 999, a DS adventure/puzzle game. That’s my huge list of games for you. I love the 3DS. I think it’s a great console.

Q: And now, upcoming games. What are you looking forward to?

A: Hmm, I don’t really have a ton of upcoming games. I’m playing Persona 5 right now, which is incredible. That’s a really phenomenal game. I don’t have a Switch, so I haven’t played Zelda or anything. However, I want to get a Switch because Super Mario Odyssey looks really good. Fire Emblem Warriors was announced, and I love Hyrule Warriors, so Fire Emblem with the mechanic of killing thousands of guys is up my alley. They’re remaking Fire Emblem Echoes for 3DS, a remake of one of the old ones. They’re making a Professor Layton spinoff with his daughter.

Q: So now for some meme-y questions. You were asked “Is cereal a soup?” I want to ask “Is a hot dog a sandwich?

A: Is a hot dog a sandwich? No. It’s gotta be two pieces of bread.

Q: What is a bun? A bun is two pieces of bread.

A: A bun is one bread. You’re putting the hot dog on top of a bread.

Q: But what if the bun breaks? Then you’ve got two pieces of bread with meat in the middle.

A: Okay, if the bun breaks and there are two pieces of bread over the hot dog, sure. Technically a sandwich, in terms of my definition. But if it’s in one bun, I mean, what, is a wrap a sandwich?

Q: I think so.

A: I don’t think so at all. Is a taco a sandwich? It has to be between two pieces of bread, and anything else is bullshit. So no. I’m declaring that as my official ruling.

Q: What is your favorite meme?

A: Memes come and go. It’s hard to remember them. It’s like a flash. What’s going around right now?

Q: Well there was Jughead’s “I’m Weird” Speech, but that just started floating around. My all time favorite are Loss edits because of their staying power.

A: Oh yeah, I’ve seen the minimalist edits, those are always pretty good. But one I really liked because of what people did with them was the one with the guy reacting to something, with the blinking. I saw a Hatsune Miku 3D rendering of that. And an “older” one--I mean, not that old, but memes come and go so quickly it seems old--was the Arthur clenching fist one. For me, when I see people do cool things with memes--like I saw someone cross-stitched the Arthur hand--I like that. Some memes fall completely flat for me. I’ll see one for, like, the second time and I’ll be like “I’m good. Thank you.” But very simple ones, like a reaction image, that can be messed around with or tweaked in creative ways, have the best staying power.

Q: Do you have any final thoughts you want to put out on the internet?

A: If you like my stuff, just Google me. You’ll see me. And thanks KnowYourMeme, I guess I’m a meme now. You know, Ko Takeuchi, the character designer for Rhythm Heaven and WarioWare drew me on Twitter, so I guess now I’m officially a meme, as he does fan art of memes and stuff.

ProZD is the internet handle of SungWon Cho, a voice actor based out of Haslett, Michigan. He rose to prominence following successful YouTube, Vine, and Instagram videos in which he performs skits about video games, anime, and everyday life. He is married to his wife Anne Marie, and along with Alex Mankin, they have a Let's Play channel called "Press Buttons and Talk."