When Moshe Kasher (my co-host) and I set out to do the podcast, we needed a hook, and I figured that only black guests was one we could deliver on. I know way more black dudes than Marc Maron, Chris Hardwick, and if you can believe it, Pete Holmes. Now, having said all that, our most downloaded episode it with Aziz Ansari, so our hook clearly doesn't work.
Related posts tagged 'Podcasting'
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Related posts tagged 'Podcasting'
I think the first year of the podcast still holds up. I think everyone hates their first 10 episodes, and a lot of people actually take them down and don’t put them back up—mine are up there. But I don’t know, I think the thing the podcast taught me that I wish I knew 10 years before the podcast was how to be a little bit more in the moment of my comedy career. When I first started, I think I was, like, [viewing] myself as more of a craftsman or a writer, and a lot of my performances were very intricately written and not in the moment. I think what the podcast taught me was truly to just be in the moment and not plan anything and know that comedy is essentially meant to be stupid and silly a...
I think one of the best things that's ever happened to my stand up is the podcast because now I no longer have any motivation to send a "message" in a joke form. I just want my shit to be funny. If I can make points and be funny at the same time, awesome. I'm all for it, but most importantly it has to be interesting and funny to me. I can explore ideas until the end of time on the podcast and never need it to be funny, but for me as a fan at least, the comedy that I truly enjoy is the comedy that makes me laugh the most. In the past comics didn't have something like a podcast where they could go into great depth about a fuck load of different subjects, so to get their ideas across and expres...
The podcast as it is now without a guest is much easier for me to generate stories and material for because I am not trying to impress someone I'm intimidated by or trying to make someone who I feel might be bored or annoyed feel comfortable. It's just about me and Sara and now we have Andrew to supply us with topics. Like "Syria".
sometimes it just naturally goes in directions people didn't expect - i'm thinking of pam murphy and will hines on a recent episode. when we take a break, I'll usually ask, "Is there somewhere else you were thinking of going with it, and can i lead you back there?" Most improvisers don't care about where it ends up, because the journey is more important than the destination.
he always teaches me so much. i worry I'm a boring guest because I'm always just trying to soak in his knowledge and process it all. i made the mistake this last time of smoking weed before the show so i blacked out and don't remember anything. he's the best
What makes a great guest for me, is someone willing to completely be child like and bare their silly soul. And it's a bonus if they don't mind opening the show talking about some social issues.
It's something I seriously enjoy. In a way, "it's almost better than hanging out with my friends in real life," because you're being silly and having a good time... but you turn your cell phone off and are 100% committed to bits; without any outside interruptions.
I decided to do it because it seemed easy enough to start. But it's kind of a grind booking guests. I do enjoy the conversations, though.
The thing that I love about Scott is that he is not an agent of chaos, but he is an agent of mischief. He loves to paint other people into a corner. And it’s fun, it’s really fun. You know, there are times when it’s frustrating because you might have a thing that you wanted to do but now because you did screw up a word or something, he jumps on that — but, you know, everyone is in agreement. ... It’s entirely up to the improviser, to the guest, to say, 'You know what, yes, I am going to go along with this idea, this very challenging idea that he has pushed me into, because it’ll be fun to try to get out of it. It’ll be fun to try to make sense of this.'
And, ultimately, that’s one of the th...
i spend the 30 minute drive to meltdown just thinking about the guest and how i want it to go. picture them laughing, myself listening, us connecting. a little visualization. then a quick Wiki search, three Alpha Brain (for real, not a plug -- www.alphabrain.com/weird) and ONE sip of coffee.
The first few episodes, I would have my host prepare their end of it and I would prepare a character, but I found it was more cohesive when they planned both. They don't tell me what they're gonna do until we start recording. I love that built-in element of surprise.
I think there’s something wonderful about capturing somebody as talented and as insightful and even ultimately struggling as Harris. That’s one of the human things that makes technology not just Candy Crush while you’re waiting for your coffee. It’s different than reading an interview because you’re not feeling the pauses. People listen to podcasts in their bed or their car or at work - it’s very intimate to have earbuds in and have this voice running through your head. There’s something that can be human and even soulful about it - we start to get a very intimate and complete picture of a person. Memory can’t really be trusted and autobiographies have glaring omissions. It’s nice to be like...
i usually just think of one funny grain of the character's identity and let it build from there. with hoho, for instance, i just wanted to be an elf who delivers toys to naughty kids.
Q: Would you agree that this is the best time to be a nerd as the nerds are rising up while the jocks and bullies are pumping our gas?
A: i think nerds are on their way to greatness. im SUCH a nerd myself. #hollywoodhandbookref
It's a tough question.
What we're talking about here is comics who are way too undeveloped on stage to be where they're at in their careers. The same thing happened with some of the roasts. It elevated features into headliners. That doesn't hurt standup, that just exposes audiences to standup who are less developed than they'd normally be exposed to.
On one hand, though, people leave those shows thinking the whole art form isn't that great. So that does hurt the perception of standup.
On the other hand, those people bring in new audiences to shows. People who would normally never have seen anything. And they'll then be fans of the craft and many will see other shows. So that's really grea...
It’s draining, but it does become a skill. You get good at it, and you start to polish your stories, then you figure out your voice or whatever the hell it is. It’s an art, and it pays well.
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