It can be difficult to find a mainstream comedian these days that cannot be funny without being offensive, shocking and using profuse vulgarity.

Stand-up comedian Pete Holmes lives and breathes comedy, and for him, it is all about being true to himself.

“I do try to be broadly appealing,” Holmes said. “I like to work as clean as possible and to just try and affirm life. I know it sounds cheesy, but I really do want people to leave feeling like ‘Oh, I have more in common with the people I was at the show with than I thought’ and if that happens, that’s a great thing.”

Although Holmes uses clean comedy, he still enjoys some comedians who use profane and vulgar routines.

“I’d like to think that I’m on the same track as a Ray Romano or to a lesser extent, Seinfeld and maybe a little bit of Cosby and a little Steve Martin,” Holmes said. “That’s certainly what I’m going for.”

There are some newer comics that share the same ideas as Holmes when they hit the stage as well.

“There are some lesser known guys that are doing comedy that I really love like Jim Gaffigan, Demetri Martin and Bill Burr. These are guys that are kind of on a similar page but hopefully we’re all different enough. We’re all trying to be true to our voice just like any writer or artist.

“And as I go on, that’s becoming a little bit easier, which is rewarding.”

Holmes will make his first appearance in Charleston tonight at 9 at 7th Street Underground. University Board sponsors the event.

Holmes has performed plenty of gigs to tweak his routine. Holmes has not been a comedian for long; he is no rookie to the stage.

Holmes has performed stand-up for about six years. Before doing comedy full time, Holmes used to wait tables and play clubs at any chance he got.

“One plus of having a regular job while you’re doing comedy is that you’re living a life that’s pretty relatable,” Holmes said. “I wrote some jokes that I still use today about my experience as a waiter and that time kind of being a regular person. Not that comedians aren’t regular people, but we travel around and do different things.”

Holmes has been a comedian of sorts since his youth. Family and friends have been encouraging him since he was 12 years old.

“I remember, I think it was some sort of church retreat, I’d go up and do some sort of Bill Cosby impression and people would be ‘Oh you should be a comedian, but I was 12 years old and terrified of the idea,” Holmes said.

And as Holmes advanced further into college, it occurred to him that having a regular job afterwards just was not how he wanted to spend his future days.

“The idea of just kind of settling in and being an accountant or something, it just didn’t really seem like an option,” Holmes said. “People have asked me before, ‘Why did you choose comedy?’ and I know it sounds cliche, but it really is the sort of thing that chooses you.

“It’s just kind of the lifestyle and the desire for that type of life is in you. And once you start doing it and getting paid to perform and it’s something you enjoy, there’s kind of no going back.”

Holmes’ big break came after moving to New York, where he currently resides.

“I moved to New York and I started performing a lot at the clubs. But more importantly, I started performing at what’s called the downtown alternative scene,” Holmes said. “It’s people trying to do something different.”

Just six months after moving to New York, Holmes was already on his way to rising popularity, but admits that his success was not based solely off what he was doing.

“Jessi (Klein of VH1’s Best Week Ever) really motivated me and pushed me to submit for Premium Blend,” Holmes said. “She also got in touch with one of the producers at Best Week Ever, then they had me come in and audition for that. So really, right off the bat, I was in debt and really, really grateful to Jessi for putting me in touch with these people.”

For three seasons, Holmes did Best Week Ever and taped Premium Blend at that time.

People got a vague idea of who he was, which Holmes said made touring easier.

Holmes even enjoys touring around colleges because he said the crowds are attentive and intelligent.

“It’s somewhere in between the alternative/hipster scene of New York and the kind of white-bred club scene of the rest of the country,” Holmes said. “Not to put it down, but just run-of-the-mill stuff. Somewhere in between those two is the college scene, which is wonderful.”

Holmes’ introduction to college audiences began when he played on the Best Week Ever: Live tour.

“Now I’m fortunate to go out on my own and start touring which is great,” Holmes said. “It’s a dream come true.”

But the main reason Holmes loves playing colleges, is because he feels that he can connect with the audience more than he can with a club full of tourists.

“Sometimes it’s like people really want you to talk about how you hate your wife or your kids and their soccer practice,” Holmes said. “It’s just harder to relate to them. I feel like I have more in common with the college audience, which is a lot of fun.”

College crowds tend to have an average turnout of a couple hundred.

“When there are only 100 people there, you’re kind of forced to incorporate them.”

This is ideal to Holmes.

“I actually love that, where it’s a concentrated group in a small room. One of the things that’s really essential for comedy is tension and intimacy,” Holmes explains. “Not a negative type of tension, but they have to feel like they’re involved in the show. When you watch stand-up on TV, you don’t necessarily laugh out loud.

“That’s because there’s no intimacy and there’s no tension. But when you see somebody live and they’re in front of you in a small space, it’s really easy for the performer and the audience to connect.”

And that’s something Holmes really enjoys doing.

“I really like people to get involved with the show. I like to talk to the crowd and cater the show to the specific night. That’s easier to do when there’s a small crowd,” Holmes said. “There are a lot of things that you wouldn’t think make a difference. If you’re in a space that has bad sound and it’s a huge room with high ceilings, people feel separated from the performer physically.

“And if the crowd’s not with you, that’s just a terrible show.”

Even though Holmes’ performance on Comedy Central’s Premium Blend did not have the biggest crowd, it was not a bad show.

Holmes said it is thrilling when somebody from Comedy Central gives you the stamp of approval.

“You kind of feel a validation,” Holmes said. “It’s like, ‘Oh, something I’ve been working on is now going to be on TV for four minutes!’ That feels good.”

A smaller, more intimate venue with 100 or 200 people is ideal, opposed to a room with 4,000 people, he said.

“Four thousand people are just going to hear your act but 200 people are going to get something different. It’s going to be more organic.”

Holmes one day hopes to perform stand-up in Europe, specifically in London.

“I’d love to go to London and just perform for a while,” Holmes said. “There’s a lot of European comedy happening these days that I’d like to be a part of. My agents have been talking to me about maybe going to Iraq or something. I think it would be a real privilege to perform for the troops.”

Holmes was booked through the National Association of Campus Activities that UB attends in search of entertainers and programs to bring to Eastern.

“They go and see what comedians are funny,” said Mike Usher, UB comedy coordinator. “I think they really just base it on not even professional standings, just who is really funny. Everybody who was at the convention thought he was really funny.”

Usher did not personally book Holmes, but trusts his predecessor’s judgment.

“Last year, the (previous) comedy coordinator booked my fall lineup, so I can adjust and for the fall,” Usher said. “That’s when I’m getting stuff for the spring going, so it’s really handed down by the last comedy coordinator.”

Since he is new to the position, Usher does receive a little help.

“It’s me and then I have a grad assistant that advises me because she knows what’s going on,” Usher said. “I basically answer to her. It’s mostly on me, but she is also gearing me towards the right ideas.”