Maeve Higgins: Laugh your ass off with some of America’s finest comedians

Name-checking a few hilarious comedians working in the comedy world in the US who also happen to be black

THANK me now, dear reader, because this week’s column as a public service that will bring you from where you are now, unsmiling and alone, to where you could be — laughing your butt off in the company of others. You’re welcome!

I’m writing this column to remind you of, or possibly introduce you to, some of the funniest comedians in show business today. It’s the final part of my Black History Month series, where I promised to include silliness and joy.

I’m going to name-check a few hilarious comedians working in the comedy world in the US who also happen to be black. There are hundreds of brilliant black comics and, obviously, four is a small number.

Of course, this list is highly subjective and I made a few rules for myself. Rule one is that their work has to be available online worldwide since this is an Irish publication. That generally means these are well established and, in some cases, very famous. Rule two is that, while I know some of these artists off stage, I would not disclose any personal information. For example, I would never reveal that Phoebe Robinson owns a floor-length coat made out of, in her words, “the soft, soft fur of kittens the colour of marmalade, double-lined.”

OK, on to the names.

Nicole Byer

Nicole Byer hosts the hit baking/reality show Nailed It on Netflix, for which she’s received two Emmy award nominations and the undying love of a generation of kids and stoners. She is terrific in the role, with a sharp eye for the ridiculous and a giggle that cannot fail to transfer to the viewer.

Following that success, Netflix commissioned a superb comedy special, Nicole Byer: BBW Big Beautiful Weirdo.

However in my view, podcasting is where she shines brightest of all. Why Won’t You Date Me? is a hit show where she discusses love, sex, and dating in a witty, compassionate, and sometimes moving way. Her ability to make solid jokes with honesty and vulnerability is rare.

Byer’s podcast is also a roundabout way to learn her perspective on comedy culture, which is always interesting. In a recent episode, she spoke about the controversy around popular podcaster and comedian Joe Rogan and his pandemic misinformation.

“I mentioned Joe Rogan and then in the comments people were like, but do you listen to Joe Rogan? No, I sure don’t. I just don’t think he needs to be the spouter of information that you take to then live life. He’s a comic. I hope nobody is taking information from me and, without questioning it, living their life. It’s a comedy podcast. I’m just here to tee-hee-hee.”

Phoebe Robinson

As one of the Two Dope Queens who stormed up the podcast charts in 2016, Phoebe Robinson took her TV throne at the top of HBO’s schedule in 2018 with four shows featuring special guests Uzo Aduba, Tituss Burgess, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Jon Stewart. Another season followed quickly and she could have stopped there, but Robinson kept going, with comedy specials and another TV series in the works.

Perhaps more impressive than that, she kept writing. Her third book, Please Don’t Sit On My Bed In Your Outside Clothes is an essay collection that made me laugh and think. She writes with a light touch about serious things; the Black Lives Matter movement, her decision not to have children, and long-distance relationships.

Robinson published her latest book under her own imprint, Tiny Reparations Books, which she leads in conjunction with Penguin Randomhouse. The stated mission of her imprint is to publish works “that highlight and amplify unique and diverse voices” and is “committed to publishing complex, honest, and humorous work that not only reflects the current conversation but also pushes it forward”.

It’s exciting to see a comedian intentionally expand their space to fit others.

Janelle James

A long-time favourite of the New York City live scene, with her own comedy festival each October, appropriately titled The Janelle James Comedy Festival, this past year we’ve watched in awe as James’ star rises high and illuminates the mainstream comedy world. This ascent is largely because of her brilliant turn as Ava Coleman, the horribly self-absorbed and very funny principal in the ABC sitcom Abbott Elementary.

In an interview about her role last week in Variety, James said: “I love that she’s hilarious and inappropriate. And I hope she stays principal for a long time. It’s not good for the kids, but it’s good for the show.”

It’s so much fun and liberating to watch a comedian step into an acting role and make it their own, especially when that involves them being silly and really going for it.

James seems to appreciate that too. In the same interview she said: “I’m doing stuff in this I hadn’t really done before — physical comedy and just being a real freaking clown...I think she’s so great. She don’t need to change.” Exactly, and neither does James.

Michelle Buteau

If you don’t cackle your way through Michelle Buteau’s Netflix special Welcome To Buteaupia, you must be catatonic. It’s packed with jokes and stories from her life as an actor and a comic but is still wholly relatable.

Buteau is often asked to play the sidekick in movies and does so with aplomb each time. Most memorably, she plays Ali Wong’s friend in Always Be My Maybe and Jennifer Lopez’s assistant in the new movie Marry Me.

However, she will soon star in her own show. Netflix has commissioned an eight-episode series based on her book Survival of the Thickest.

In an interview with Variety, she spoke about how inclusion will be a touchstone in her TV show: “I watch Friends all the time and I’m like, ‘You live in New York City and there’s not one Puerto Rican friend?’

“This [her show] is going to be all the things I ever wanted on TV and so much more. [Lead character] Mavis will definitely be exploring what it’s like to be body positive and sex positive and own your sexuality without apologising for it. Figuring out that you can be religious, but also like other things as well. Just defining your own happiness, which a lot of us don’t do.”

Something to look forward to in the hellscape of Two and a Half Men reruns.

So there you have it. If you take these recommendations seriously, you’ll laugh more than you have in a decade. Watch or listen to their comedy and just enjoy yourself!