Solomon Georgio always knew he wanted to be a comedian.

"My family is all immigrants, and when we came to the States, comedy was the best way to understand what was going on," Georgio said. The child of Ethiopian refugees, Georgio grew up in Seattle; he now lives in Los Angeles.

With a decade of stand-up under his belt, Georgio is visiting Portland's Mississippi Studios July 9 to record his first comedy album.

Georgio made his late-night television debut in 2015 and has recorded a half-hour special for Comedy Central that will air in the fall, but comedy wasn't always easy, even if it was a lifelong obsession.

"I was not intentionally funny for a long time," Georgio said. "I tried an open mic when I was 17 and I was booed off stage. Like every 17-year-old with a microphone should be."

Georgio might not have become a teenage comedy sensation, but he persisted, and when he came back to stand-up eight years later he discovered that he had something to say.

"Making people laugh, there's a certain essence of being more vulnerable and being more confident, and those are two things you garner later in life," Georgio said. "It turns out if you wait a little longer you have more important things to say."

Like most comedians, part of what Georgio discovered was that stories about his life and personal experiences made for great material.

"Personal experience was definitely the way in. Trying to find a way to relay my own life so it doesn't seem crazy. That's kind of been the thing that I've had the most practice in, having to explain where I'm from, what I am," Georgio said. "Anyone who's a minority in this country is sort of put in the position to have to explain their existence. I kind of had to do that my whole life."

Conscious comedy is on the rise, whether it's overtly political or social commentary, and comics like Georgio are stepping into the spotlight.

"I have always felt that queer voices and immigrant voices have been very necessary, but a lot of people feel like with the Trump administration it's imperative to have these voices," Georgio said. "I'm kind of a little annoyed by that because these voices were being ignored the whole time. Their imperativeness was always there, but because more people are afraid, now they're like, 'Now you have to speak up more.' I wasn't being quiet before."

Georgio's hope with his album is to push the reach of his voice and humor to the widest audience possible. He's also hoping that committing material he's worked on for almost 10 years to the permanent record will give him the chance to begin again.

"There are definitely jokes that are never going to be said again once I have them recorded," Georgio said. "The great thing about the first album is that it's sort of a sacrifice to the gods. You can say, 'Here's everything I've done before this moment so I can be able to start anew.' "

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Solomon Georgio

When: 7 and 9 p.m. Sunday, July 9

Where: Mississippi Studios, 3939 N. Mississippi Ave.

Tickets: This show is 21 and older only. Josh Androsky also appears. $10-$15, Ticketfly, mississippistudios.com or 877-987-6487