Kenan Thompson is pictured attending the 2022 People’s Choice Awards at Barker Hangar on December 06, 2022 in Santa Monica, California.Photo:Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagicKenan Thompsonhad to dig deep as he put pen to paper, creating a memoir that’s as vulnerable as it is entertaining.Tuesday marks the release of theSaturday Night Liveveteran’s memoir,When I Was Your Age: Life Lessons, Funny Stories & Questionable Parenting Advice from a Professional Clown. For the first time, the 45-year-old is candidly addressing topics like parenthood, race and body image.But it wasn’t necessarily easy to open up about such personal matters.“It is terrifying toopen yourself up like thatbecause I guess I’ve not had to do that, you know what I mean?” Thompson exclusively tells PEOPLE. “I’ve always been so performance-heavy. I haven’t had to do a whole lot of, ‘Let me explain where Kenan is now’ kind of stuff.““Every interview is usually about the project or stuff like that. It’s rarely about me personally,” he continues. “This is the first time that I’m kind of offering all of that to people. It’s scary, but it’s cool.“As for the challenges that came with reflecting on his life’s experiences, theGood Burger 2actor notes that some memories were easier to look back on than others.“It all depends on the timeline of how far away those memories are,” he explains. “Certain things just have to be told because I’ve never told them before, you know what I’m saying? So if you’re going to write a memoir, you might as well just lay it all out there.“Kenan Thompson’s memoir, ‘When I Was Your Age: Life Lessons, Funny Stories & Questionable Parenting Advice from a Professional Clown’, is pictured.Courtesy of Harper BooksThe writing ultimately process proved to be a learning experience for Thompson. As for his biggest takeaway, theAll Thatalum says: “I learned perspective is an interesting thing.““Being back aroundKel [Mitchell]all the time [forGood Burger 2], he keeps bringing up a lot of things from the past that I’ve forgotten or I had a different kind of perspective on,” he shares. “So he’ll just remind me of all these things that I should just have on deck in my memory because I was there. He’ll be like, ‘You don’t remember that? You don’t remember this?'“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.When I Was Your Age: Life Lessons, Funny Stories & Questionable Parenting Advice from a Professional Clownis now available from Harper Books, an imprint of HarperCollins.
Kenan Thompson is pictured attending the 2022 People’s Choice Awards at Barker Hangar on December 06, 2022 in Santa Monica, California.Photo:Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
Kenan Thompsonhad to dig deep as he put pen to paper, creating a memoir that’s as vulnerable as it is entertaining.Tuesday marks the release of theSaturday Night Liveveteran’s memoir,When I Was Your Age: Life Lessons, Funny Stories & Questionable Parenting Advice from a Professional Clown. For the first time, the 45-year-old is candidly addressing topics like parenthood, race and body image.But it wasn’t necessarily easy to open up about such personal matters.“It is terrifying toopen yourself up like thatbecause I guess I’ve not had to do that, you know what I mean?” Thompson exclusively tells PEOPLE. “I’ve always been so performance-heavy. I haven’t had to do a whole lot of, ‘Let me explain where Kenan is now’ kind of stuff.““Every interview is usually about the project or stuff like that. It’s rarely about me personally,” he continues. “This is the first time that I’m kind of offering all of that to people. It’s scary, but it’s cool.“As for the challenges that came with reflecting on his life’s experiences, theGood Burger 2actor notes that some memories were easier to look back on than others.“It all depends on the timeline of how far away those memories are,” he explains. “Certain things just have to be told because I’ve never told them before, you know what I’m saying? So if you’re going to write a memoir, you might as well just lay it all out there.“Kenan Thompson’s memoir, ‘When I Was Your Age: Life Lessons, Funny Stories & Questionable Parenting Advice from a Professional Clown’, is pictured.Courtesy of Harper BooksThe writing ultimately process proved to be a learning experience for Thompson. As for his biggest takeaway, theAll Thatalum says: “I learned perspective is an interesting thing.““Being back aroundKel [Mitchell]all the time [forGood Burger 2], he keeps bringing up a lot of things from the past that I’ve forgotten or I had a different kind of perspective on,” he shares. “So he’ll just remind me of all these things that I should just have on deck in my memory because I was there. He’ll be like, ‘You don’t remember that? You don’t remember this?'“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.When I Was Your Age: Life Lessons, Funny Stories & Questionable Parenting Advice from a Professional Clownis now available from Harper Books, an imprint of HarperCollins.
Kenan Thompsonhad to dig deep as he put pen to paper, creating a memoir that’s as vulnerable as it is entertaining.
Tuesday marks the release of theSaturday Night Liveveteran’s memoir,When I Was Your Age: Life Lessons, Funny Stories & Questionable Parenting Advice from a Professional Clown. For the first time, the 45-year-old is candidly addressing topics like parenthood, race and body image.
But it wasn’t necessarily easy to open up about such personal matters.
“It is terrifying toopen yourself up like thatbecause I guess I’ve not had to do that, you know what I mean?” Thompson exclusively tells PEOPLE. “I’ve always been so performance-heavy. I haven’t had to do a whole lot of, ‘Let me explain where Kenan is now’ kind of stuff.”
“Every interview is usually about the project or stuff like that. It’s rarely about me personally,” he continues. “This is the first time that I’m kind of offering all of that to people. It’s scary, but it’s cool.”
As for the challenges that came with reflecting on his life’s experiences, theGood Burger 2actor notes that some memories were easier to look back on than others.
“It all depends on the timeline of how far away those memories are,” he explains. “Certain things just have to be told because I’ve never told them before, you know what I’m saying? So if you’re going to write a memoir, you might as well just lay it all out there.”
Kenan Thompson’s memoir, ‘When I Was Your Age: Life Lessons, Funny Stories & Questionable Parenting Advice from a Professional Clown’, is pictured.Courtesy of Harper Books
Courtesy of Harper Books
The writing ultimately process proved to be a learning experience for Thompson. As for his biggest takeaway, theAll Thatalum says: “I learned perspective is an interesting thing.”
“Being back aroundKel [Mitchell]all the time [forGood Burger 2], he keeps bringing up a lot of things from the past that I’ve forgotten or I had a different kind of perspective on,” he shares. “So he’ll just remind me of all these things that I should just have on deck in my memory because I was there. He’ll be like, ‘You don’t remember that? You don’t remember this?'”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
When I Was Your Age: Life Lessons, Funny Stories & Questionable Parenting Advice from a Professional Clownis now available from Harper Books, an imprint of HarperCollins.
source: people.com
