Kevin Hamdan sheds light on his childhood, life lessons and his journey to being “Canada’s Top Mentalist”

Since ancient times, magic has fascinated people by igniting their sense of awe and wonder. Cutting across cultures and boundaries, it breaks the monotony of everyday life and transports people to a world of imagination. But as Warren Buffett once remarked, “People will always try to stop you from doing the right thing if it is unconventional,” and one professional practice that often finds itself in the crosshairs of public scrutiny and judgment is that of magic and mentalism. Magic has many negative connotations, with people often not realizing how deeply rooted it is in our psychology and the excitement it invites from those who engage with it.

And the career of one of Canada’s top mentalists, Kevin Hamdan, is a testament to how making unconventional choices by following one’s heart can lead to incredible success. Not even 30, he already has a massive follower base on Instagram and YouTube.

Hamdan, who was born in Toronto and raised in Vaughan, attributes his early interest in magic to his father. He and his dad used to watch Criss Angel and David Blaine on TV, he says, and he vividly recalls the surreal moment when he was six years old and his father showed him a fantastic card trick for the very first time.

Reminiscing about his journey, he shares how, as a kid, he would showcase his magic tricks to his classmates in school, but it was something he got bullied and teased for when he reached Grade 8. So throughout Grades 9 and 10, he began to keep his magic skills a secret.

He describes his parents as people full of life and great energy who have always tried to find ways to make the best of situations. In his own case, when his mother was ill and in and out of hospitals when he was a teenager, it was magic that became his saving grace, keeping him distracted and invested in life. It was then that he began to look at magic as having the ability to transport him beyond his everyday worries into a new world, and could do that for others as well. In Grade 11, he began showcasing his tricks again and saw how it connected with people’s emotions. His mother had always stressed the significance of education, which led him to York University to study jazz guitar. On Day One, he showed his magic tricks to his fellow students, evoking collective screams of appreciation. It was at that moment that he decided to make a career out of magic. He credits social media as the first step that offered him a pool of opportunities to showcase his talent.

“IF YOU DO WHAT YOU LOVE, YOU WILL NEVER WORK A DAY IN YOUR LIFE.”

Hamdan’s combination of mentalism and comedy plays on a range of emotions to offer his audience full- circle entertainment. He borrows from comedians — and says he has massive respect for them because they rely just on their jokes — but observes that unlike comedians, mentalists also have a fallback: if their jokes don’t land, they will always have magic up their sleeve.

He has enjoyed performing for such celebrities as mixed martial artist Israel Adesanya, American actor Ryan Phillippe and for many other influential figures, and showing his art form to Canadian sensation Drake, someone he has looked up to from an early age, who is “one of the greatest to ever do it” and has now grown into a friend — is a surreal experience, he says.

He describes the experience of unlocking a young woman’s phone on the street and her priceless reaction to it, sharing how she ran and how her friends started singing church songs, saying that it had to be “some dark art stuff!”

He notes that, as a mentalist, he doesn’t take himself very seriously. For him, his craft is his persona, but he’s more interested in resonating with his audience and giving them a collective and fascinating experience. When asked which audience reactions he enjoys the most, he says that whether people shout, gasp or remain completely silent in awe and disbelief, their reactions are all special and important to him — he loves seeing the emotional impact his performances have on people, and stresses that this response is not centred on inflating his own ego but is empathetic, with the pleasure of giving people something they will remember for the rest of their life.

Hamdan’s success has also attracted criticism, backlash and even hate, but he says that haters exist in every genre, and that a heckler’s animosity often starts from curiosity. He wants everyone to know that his tricks are never staged and that every person he performs for is a random stranger.

Sharing his greatest life lesson, he observes that it’s important to be human and care for other people. He believes in practicing empathy both in life and online, and not to post anything that makes other people look bad.

Another important rule for him is to always remember that Day One. “You can get lost in the chaos of varied reactions,” he says, “and therefore it is so important to remember why you started and keep that burning desire alive,” that we have one life and should make the most of it.

When asked how his younger self would react to today’s Kevin, he adds that the younger Kevin would be ecstatic, as he used to love watching magicians performing in Las Vegas and other big cities. At the same time, there would be an element of skepticism, where he wouldn’t believe that he’d have been able to make such a successful and enriching career as a mentalist.

“IF I CAN DO IT, ANYBODY CAN DO IT.”

He concludes by saying that although he hasn’t seen the entire world, the one thing he has learned is that life is magic. He strongly believes that the sky’s the limit, and if you are passionate about something, don’t get demotivated by what others say.

Hamdan received some advice from his father that has stayed with him throughout his long journey: “If you do what you love, you will never work a day in your life.” This thought helps him stay eager and passionate about his craft.

He wouldn’t be here had he not followed his passion, he notes, and advises all of us to follow our dreams. “If I can do it, anybody can,” he says.

INTERVIEW BY MARC CASTALDO

kevinhamdan.com
@kevinhamdan



RAPID-FIRE QUESTIONS WITH KEVIN HAMDAN

Q: What is your greatest fear?
A: Heights.

Q: If you could have coffee with one person, living or dead, who would it be?
A: Drake.

Q: What is your on-stage style?
A: Leather jacket.

Q: Do you use your skills to mess with people in real life?
A: No.

Q: What’s your dream performance venue?
A: Scotiabank Arena.

Q: If you could perform for anyone, who would it be?
A: Younger Kevin, but I love performing for everyone.

Q: What’s the hardest trick that you’ve mastered?
A: Reading people — but I will always be a student for life.

Q: If not a magician, what would you be?
A: I will continue trying till I become one.