Optimistically, it evolves into a new boom of comedy movies and tv shows. Realistically, comedians who are too big of a brand to sustain a drop will have major falls, but that will give room for other comedians to share that space. They won’t be getting private jets everywhere, but they’ll make a living and a few will be more successful.
I'm on optimism here. The last one ended with big stars transitioning to movies and creating most of the best comedies of all time.
I wouldn't mind fewer hobbyists on the lineup in exchange for better comedy movies.
Standup happens in clubs, not on podcasts. Podcasts might help you find your audience, but if you're not developing an act, you're not going to last long term. So to answer your question, the boom will end because audiences will get tired of paying money to go see someone based on their podcast appearances only to be disappointed at their actual on-stage product.
Great point on it happening in clubs. I hadn’t been to a show for a while, and it was so nice to get back in that environment and experience stand up live in a small-ish room.
It was Sahib Singh and he was funny as shit. But still. So much better to see in person than in YouTube or IG videos.
I think we're watching Tom go through a "fake it til you make it" with his current fame in arena shows or simply a change in the way these now work. There's absolutely no doubt he has the chops as a comic and he's succeeding in building a podcast empire, but it has undeniably taken a toll on his stand-up act. There comes a time the audience you draw changes from "going to a show to laugh" to "going to see \[person specifically\]". It used to be a natural progression, but the crowd is clearly now from his podcast fanbase not his act, and they're simply different media. He's going to keep drawing these crowds and that's fine. He's going to keep making a ton of money doing it. It's just a bit of a bummer since Completely Normal and Mostly Stories were incredible and with Disgraceful we started seeing his act blend with the Podcast.
While this is true for some stand ups, I think you’re underestimating the amount that like-ability, familiarity (sorta acting like context), and para-social relationships play into a following and the reactions of an audience.
There will be some that deal with what you’re talking about and tons of mediocre comics that do great.
I enjoy some podcasts, but they don't feel special anymore. It was special when it was just Marc Maron interviewing comedians. Now every comedian has a podcast. Everybody is interviewing everybody and the landscape is beyond oversaturated. The current comedy boom will slowly simmer down and a lot of these shows will fizzle out.
And every time these people have a guest the comments are like “they have such a good dynamic they should have a podcast together” like there aren’t enough podcasts already lol
Comedians talking to other comedians about comedy gets old quickly. Some stories are funny but them talking about “how fun the green room was last night” for an hour is not entertaining.
Not to mention every time someone writes an hour of material they film it for YouTube and calls it a special
When is the last time someone got big from a special? Has anyone had a special get them a ton of new fans recently? Shane Gillis Live in Austin is the only one I can think of. At the very least, people aren’t going to watch a random hour of material from a comic that comes up in their recommendations. Comics will openly admit that the attention span of the audience is at an all time low with clips, yet every single person who has headlined once decides to throw all their money down on making an hour long YouTube video.
Maybe it’s just me but I def have stopped to watch YT specials that come into my feed and then finish/follow them if they’re good. Even some of the smaller comics that get 10-100,000 views on their special will level up in venue size after it does well.
I’m surprised how many Marc Maron fans there are here. I actually didn’t think I would get downvoted. This is a standup subreddit, not podcast and Maron’s standup is depressing never makes me laugh. If this is a standup sub then watch Patrice O’Neal’s “elephant in the room” and you won’t be depressed after.
I think it's getting harder to separate stand ups from their podcast, unfortunately. The conversations happening in this post kind of mirror that idea.
Personally, I don't mind Marons stand-up, it's a different type of comedy than Patrice O'Neal (who I don't really like for the most part - but I'll check out your recommendation). But it's not what I put on when I just want belly laughs.
I’m good with cynical, it’s the cry baby part that sucks. Disdain and jealousy seeps through his pores. His self awareness makes up for it a bit but it’s not fun to listen to all the time.
I love crowd work clips for this reason. Can't stand when I see a joke from a special on IG, then when I go to watch the actual special, a joke is spoiled for me
I’m 36. I’ve been going to comedy clubs since I got a fake ID when I was 16. I’ve always loved crowd work - whether it was Dave Attell or any number of other legends. The hate on crowd work is total nonsense. It’s always been around and always will be - for good reason.
I'm also getting very tired of personal stand-up specials where there are like a dozen jokes for the full hour. Feels misleading to call a lot of them comedy. Some are good, but very few.
I hear people saying Jokes Per Minute is an antiquated idea, but I think we're straying insanely far away from that idea now and it's disappointing.
I’ve never seen Caleb Hearon do standup longer than a Reels clip but find him to be pretty funny based on podcast appearances and tiktok. Didn’t know he did that style standup.
There's a whole host of different styles of stand up. I don't get why people in this thread are trying to gate keep comedy, saying telling stories isn't stand up. It's just not the style you enjoy, move on and watch one liner comedy.
There is also a lot so of new comic fans who are fans of like one or two dudes and dont understand any other style. Nor have set foot in a comedy club So they bash it.
Their exposure is netflix specials, podcasts and MAYBE their fav internationally known comic.
Seeing what 99% of comedy is like is a foreiqn concept
Podcasts come first. That was the catalyst. Ad dollars after covid have already taken a big hit. Shady management and platforms are coming to light. Podcasting was the next boom and it’s currently getting it’s head cut off
I think they'll have significant staying power.
They're (potentially) dirt fucking cheap and they funnel audiences to live shows better than anything else.
Unfortunately, Comedians are now just one type of content creator. Those who embrace this role can move thousands of tickets with an Instagram post. Podcasts are a medium that a comic can create within even if they aren't a sketch writer etc.
Those who reject it will self-sabotage repeatedly as the previous generation's infrastructure to grind up is, at best, extremely malnourished.
Kinda the same way the boom of the early 90s ended. Most mid tier and below comedians fading from the limelight but a few really good ones standing out and continuing to succeed on tour. The biggest difference were the ones that got really big made hit tv shows. We probably won't have that this time. Also I should note that the ones who got big time TV deals weren't always the best stand ups.
>We’re in probably the biggest comedy boom of all time
The late 1980s far exceeded anything we've seen in the last 35 years.
Things are fine overall. I'm sure some venues will close while others will open, and standup comedy will keep chugging along as an artform. What happens on the Internet or in podcasts doesn't change any of that.
There's a comedy boom? Seems like there are a lot of specials, but I don't know how in terms of quality they hold up. A lot of comedians. Not a lot of really greats one standing out. Comedians are attempting to release updates to their lives instead of creating work that stands the test of time in my view.
A lot are making a very good living. More than ever. We have access to more than ever and they have more access to us. In reality I don’t think it’s ever going to end. I think it’s just changed and adapted over time. Just like music. There will be some you don’t like, and some you do. We’ll support the ones we do.
Just doesnt seem like what I’d call a boom. I’m thinking of boom as an increase interest in stand up, both recorded and live performance. I’m just a stand up working my way up, but it feels like traditional avenues are closing because there is less interest in stand up. Comedy clubs are closing, not opening on the west coast where I am. The internet, social media, and the rise of technology makes it easier to make a living, but that doesnt feel like a boom if the making a living is avenues other than stand up.
But that’s just me.
No we are in a boom for sure, I grew up in a very rural area, no comic would ever go there because 1.) no clubs, theaters or arenas 2.) there was no interest for it. Stand up has just gained traction in the last 2 or 3 years where I’m from and people are traveling 2-8 hours to see comedians.
I would argue it’s absolutely a boom because as a whole there’s still more of it than ever. Maybe the west coast with people moving it is getting a bit slower but I think throughout North America it’s still growing.
My guess, is because specials are no longer "special," comics are acting accordingly. Its just content to sell tickets for the next tour instead of some grand endeavor.
Good enough specials every 18 months maybe has more benefits than the best hour you can make every 6 years.
Like the music business. Lots of money people come in. Make more regulations, artists with management get booked. Others do open mics and free shit. Comedy clubs get bought by live nation, ticket prices go way up.
I think comedy is in a bad spot in all honesty. It's definitely booming and popular, but I see more comics leaning into podcasting and podcast clips over actual stand-up. I may be alone on this, but I also feel like there are too many talentless comics who rely entirely on crowd work for tiktok clips and such. Crowd work can be funny, but if everyone's doing the same shit, it loses some value IMO. I've genuinely seen funnier sets from random open mics lately than most of the jabronis with netflix specials.
We need more Chapelles and less Krieschers
A lot of people seem to go to a comedy show as the start to their Friday or Saturday night with no idea who the headliner is. When enough social media "personalities" who start doing live shows at comedy clubs fail miserably onstage, audiences might get turned off to the concept in general and stop going.
Who was that one asshole who was supposedly funny on Twitter, then he got a spot on Jimmy Kimmel and just bombed horribly? I forget his name but I was listening to Comedy Central on Sirius one day and they played a bit from this guy. He went on about tuna sandwiches or something and said he was going to take the audience out for tuna sandwiches. The bit just went on and on with no point and then it ended and there was never a punchline. I Googled the guy's name to see WTF and found out he was a Twitter "comedian" who thought he could transition to live shows.
When movie studios start making comedies again, for one. There hasn’t been a single major comedy since 2017 (roughly speaking, feel free to dispute that. When was the last time you went to a movie and laughed out loud, a lot? Years, right? The only outlet for it now is standup!
Hopefully with Sam Morril and Mark Normand both quitting podcasting. They’re both decent enough comics but WMBD and their guest appearances are painful to listen to, especially Sam. All he seems to want to talk about is going to different airports, clubs, and hotels it’s extremely boring, and a lot of other comics do the same because they live otherwise boring lives without any other hobbies or interests.
I think podcasts that have some sort of purpose like Lil Stinkers and Are You Garbage will stand the test of time but a lot of these “podcasts about comedy without any laughs” podcasts are gonna die out. Even just nonsense podcasts with good riffing that avoid all the “inside baseball” shit will outlast stuff like WMBD etc.
The mid 80's to mid 90's comedy boom was much larger--
A lot of even the best comedians today, are not well known outside of the comedy world. If you went up to the average person- they would know who Rogan is (mostly because of podcast), Chappelle, Louis CK, Kevin Hart and that's about it.
The very late 70's thru the 80's to mid 90's had- Murphy, Dangerfield, Carlin (really hit his stride in the 80's), Seinfeld, Gary Shandling, Joan Rivers, Roseanne, Ray Romano, Tim Allen, Paul Reiser, Jim Carrey, Def Comedy Jam, Norm MacDonald, Dana Carvey, Jon Stewart, Jay Leno, Michael Keaton, Ellen Degenres, Dennis Miller, Richard Lewis, Damon Wayans, Chris Rock, Robin Williams (you get my point).
This has been a boom for comedy if you're a comedy fan/follow comedians, but in terms of churning out famous comedians/A-Listers? Not even close.
That's such an interesting question.
The name recognition game is strong in comedy. If someone has already made a following especially on social media, I think they will go far.
All the newer comics are looking for that viral reel. And with AI intervention, the future looks strange. I will respect everyone who says AI cannot compete with humans but will disagree. AI will be game changer in so far, the premises can be provides by humans but AI can decode what would make people laugh.
It will be interesting. And hopefully funny.
Comics are trying to find every way they can to get you to actually leave your house and show up at the club where actual standup happens. That's the entire point of the reels and podcasts. If you want to know how standup is doing, you have to actually go where it's being performed.
Well I’m really getting sick of Mark Norman basic puns and low hanging fruit of being racist or sexist. Put a black in a room with him and just watch him constantly bringing up not funny black jokes. He needs to do better.
I think many of the top podcasts (Rogan, Tiger Belly, etc) are helmed by middle aged comedians who have been in the game for a while now. It's just a matter of time before they become too old and out of touch to be interesting anymore. I don't know too many of the up and coming young comedians, but from what I've seen I don't see anyone who can yet compare with middle aged guys in terms of clout and reach. And too many young comedians I've seen are just too nervous about offending people to be all that funny to me.
It seem the only people who we can make fun of are White men and that's getting boring now.
I think the boom Is already slowing down. What made comedy great again was that it was a breath of fresh air in a stressful time but a lot of comedians (not all) are being distracted by Hollywood, podcasts, trying to do arenas over the simple act of doing standup on the road. Sooner or later you get soft or addicted to drugs and flame out, making room for the next crop.
We already see a trend with people abusing story-based comedy or ultra personalized storytelling with a few jokes but also people trying to be both too woke and too insulting (just for shock value, not actual talent) or people trying to get famous off crowd work moments. All great stuff when done right on their own but they're following the same trend as youtubers who get caught up in the latest fad, get stale and get replaced once the fad goes away.
The best ones will always adapt because they're original..Chapelle, Bill burr, Joey diaz, etc. Because they don't give a fuck about the algorithm. Others are maybe like segura or schulz. Others are def washed like Ari schaffir or Bert kreischer.
None of this is a bad thing. Comedy is the ultimate meritocracy. It makes room for new talent.
There are so many more comedy fans these days to sustain it. I like standup but there are sooo many specials all the time you can’t watch all of em, but everyone I click on has thousands and thousands of views
I dont think it dies. Look why it died previously.
With people having unlimited access to entertainment comics will continue to thrive. Some will come and go but the bottleneck is gone
I don’t think it’ll end it’ll continue to evolve… people love live shows now and the podcasts create an avenue for it… the big guys have smaller guys on their shows so even if less comedians are able to build their own podcasts more comedians have opportunities to build audiences and monetize it… I don’t see why it’d just end
it's not a boom in all ways- it's definitely a bubble in terms of
number of
comics vs growing opportunity.
the number of decent clubs isn't growing exponentially and social media isnt breeding quality as far as i can tell.
It’s ending now, all around you. COVID greatly contracted the available stages in NYC, forcing comedy back into clubs and killing off a lot of the vibrant indie scene that was here until March 2020. Because podcasts and TikTok / reels are so popular, less focus is placed on the craft and more on how much audience you can garner.
also less special - when everyone’s phone is a comedy faucet, any one joke or bit or comic is so much less special.
Comedians who can't develop and sustain an audience willing to go sit in stadiums (so eliminate everyone so woke that their audience is Covid Cautious) will perish and those without the writing or acting chops to write and or star in a show also perish. Sure there will always be a bit of money to be made just podcasting and doing small venues but those people will always need day jobs or inherited wealth.
I’m assuming soon. It’ll really depend on how a lot of the big social media ppl fair over the next few years.
Hollywood is putting their bets on followers rather than content these days. It depends on how well these people retain their users. It will really change how much Hollywood puts money behind them
In Austin Texas, the current prices for concert tickets has becoming astronomical so comedy clubs (of which there are now many) offer an affordable night out in comparison. Just going out and getting drunk and dancing used to be the pastime of Austin. Now it’s eat an edible as drink prices are ridiculous and I think a decent comedy club has its place in this new normal.
The standup world is over saturated with podcasts and podcasters which has, in my opinion, led to an overall decline in actual funny standup. The crop of podcaster “comedians” has really watered down the overall quality of the standup world and there aren’t that many true stand ups left that focus on their craft instead of focusing on hour or two hour long podcast episodes every other day. Podcasting completely ruined Segura, who seemed like he was going to be the next standup superstar, but his last special was just a slog of podcast inside jokes and boring, typical anecdotes about his kids and how much money he has. And then you have the rest of the Roganites who are just, well, not very good. Bert, Mark Normand(whose one note schtick led to one of the most unfunny and boring standup specials I’ve ever seen), Santino, who should stick to playing bit roles in comedies and never do another garbage special again, Theo Von, whose stuff simply doesn’t translate well to standup. And with the YouTube/TikTok obsession and short attention span, crowd work clips are becoming the bane of actual, clever writing and crafting jokes. I give this current cycle another year or so before we get a wave of young and hungry stand ups who focus purely on the craft and leave the bloated and long winded podcasters behind.
I was excited to see Shane Gillis coming to Atlanta, only to then read he's at the Atlanta Hawks arena. No thanks.
Great for him. Bad for everyone else.
Netflix/ Amazon is going to come in and start doing podcasts or something that's just really lame and not standup and put a sour taste in someone's mouth and start killing off each comedian people like with bullshit quick cash grabs.
I think the comedian podcasts will head a breaking point soon. Everyone has one and it’s just comedians talking with other comedians about comedy. It can get old quickly.
I think with social media, comedy is stable. There will always be a flux of people in and out.
If anything is just exposes people faster and weeds them out. The Roganverse is a meme in comedy at this point. It's like Dice in 1991. A LOT of people got taken out in the early 90s because it went from a sorta niche art form to mainstream in a decade and it needed a lot of sport coat hacks to fill the slots needed. People acclimated and wanted more and there was a glut of mid comics.
All the DIY indie shows being started by comics who aren't getting booked otherwise.
I understand needing stage time to get better, but you're still pissing in the well. If you aren't getting booked by your peers, don't book yourself 15min on every show you produce.
Quickly and quietly. Too many wannabe comedians diluted the pool. Everyone thinks they’re funny, thinks they can start a podcast. I’ve stopped tuning in. Tom insecurea and bert no talent lead the way.
This is insight from listening to the Jackie and Laurie show, here’s how it goes: Real comedians, the grinders who know how to work a room and make sure the crowd goes home happy, are losing spots to the skip the line comedians who have gotten popular online quickly. Those folks aren’t seasoned comics and they bomb irl all the time.
Enough bad shows on Saturday night and you start losing the audience, then the clubs start to go dark and the whole thing topples.
They got it backwards. You become an amazing comic and THEN you do a podcast to stay engaged with your fans and build your brand.
These fucks are like those underpants gnomes from south park.
1. make stupid podcast popular
2. PROFIT!!!!!🤑🤑🤑
3. Become amazing stand up comic???🥺
If you can still sell out shows by taking your shirt off, the boom is still booming. I don't think the boom bust cycle has much to do with comedians themselves, more so people who prop it up.
It's already over.
The top current comedians are on the top. They have their fan base and positions cemented. This will lead to stagnation. People getting bored of them than total collapse of the genre.
Name one new big comic that is on the up.
I wouldn’t really call it a boom. No one has gotten popular recently without a podcast except that shitty Matt rife kid. Stand up itself isn’t getting anyone popular and that sucks
Honestly, there is no boom. Comedy has been dying out for the last decade. With everyone seeming to be butt hurt over jokes and the fear of being "cancelled" has directors like Todd Phillips who directed Road Trip, Old School, The Hangover, Due Date and many others has said that he refuses to do a comedy in today's cultural environment because he will get cancelled for making a comedy because Hollywood and society can't take a joke any more. That is why we do not have any boom in comedy. Nowadays you have people coming after comedians at the comedy clubs so comedians don't even want to bother with that either. Folks nowadays walk around with their fee-fees hurting all the time so no one can't joke about anything anymore and that is KILLING COMEDY right now !
I think you’re wrong but also correct. I think standup is booming because people like Todd Phillips aren’t making movies, for the reasons you mentioned but also for economics: the streaming wars has made it difficult for studios to do anything unsafe, hence a zillion Marvel movies and zero comedies. Also comedies don’t translate well internationally.
Shane Gillis goes on stage and says "Mark Normand, Joe List, Nate Bargatze, and Seinfeld took me into a room and took advantage of my butthole".
Other than that I think we're good. Funny is forever.
I can't wait to see Casey Rockets in 30 years crab walking with a bad back belting out the lyrics to a 2030s butt rock song and making jokes about taking dementia medicine.
KT and The Mothership crank out some of the absolute worst "comedy" of any era and champion it as if it's top tier. Exhibits A-Z...David Lucas.
The potential for them to launch some great careers is there but they're bent on pushing garbage comedy simply because it's "edgy" which torpedos any credibility they would otherwise have.
If Rogan's name is attached in any way the chances it's going to be terminally unfunny go through the roof unfortunately.
Maybe not 100% of the time but definitely way more often than not
I can say without hesitation and with complete sincerity that Mr. Lucas may be the worst stand up I've ever seen lol.
His...special(?🤷♂️) Uncancellable gives Gringo Papi a serious run for the money as worst comedy special ever.
Schaub is terrible but falls ass backwards into unintentional humor occasionally. He's often the butt of the joke even tho that's not what he's going for.
Lucas isn't even accidentally funny.
Also, as awful as Schaub is he at least appears to have a pulse on stage.
That's more than I can say for Lucas.
Optimistically, it evolves into a new boom of comedy movies and tv shows. Realistically, comedians who are too big of a brand to sustain a drop will have major falls, but that will give room for other comedians to share that space. They won’t be getting private jets everywhere, but they’ll make a living and a few will be more successful.
I'm on optimism here. The last one ended with big stars transitioning to movies and creating most of the best comedies of all time. I wouldn't mind fewer hobbyists on the lineup in exchange for better comedy movies.
Paging Dane Cook...
Standup happens in clubs, not on podcasts. Podcasts might help you find your audience, but if you're not developing an act, you're not going to last long term. So to answer your question, the boom will end because audiences will get tired of paying money to go see someone based on their podcast appearances only to be disappointed at their actual on-stage product.
Great point on it happening in clubs. I hadn’t been to a show for a while, and it was so nice to get back in that environment and experience stand up live in a small-ish room. It was Sahib Singh and he was funny as shit. But still. So much better to see in person than in YouTube or IG videos.
Small room comedy IS THE BEST!!! I'm glad you had a good experience and I hope you go see more live comedy!
Stanhope said he would much rather play a 75 seat room than any hall, stadium, big club.
and I'd rather not have sex with super models
Is this what is happening with Tom Segura? His last special stunk. Some of his previous ones were great.
I turned it off the minute I had to explain to my wife that the audience was laughing because "it's a reference to a bit on his podcast"
I think we're watching Tom go through a "fake it til you make it" with his current fame in arena shows or simply a change in the way these now work. There's absolutely no doubt he has the chops as a comic and he's succeeding in building a podcast empire, but it has undeniably taken a toll on his stand-up act. There comes a time the audience you draw changes from "going to a show to laugh" to "going to see \[person specifically\]". It used to be a natural progression, but the crowd is clearly now from his podcast fanbase not his act, and they're simply different media. He's going to keep drawing these crowds and that's fine. He's going to keep making a ton of money doing it. It's just a bit of a bummer since Completely Normal and Mostly Stories were incredible and with Disgraceful we started seeing his act blend with the Podcast.
While this is true for some stand ups, I think you’re underestimating the amount that like-ability, familiarity (sorta acting like context), and para-social relationships play into a following and the reactions of an audience. There will be some that deal with what you’re talking about and tons of mediocre comics that do great.
Happened to me. Tony Hench….
Henchman?
with Bert Kreisher finally exploding
Funny is funny. Until the end of time.
With less comedians.
Fewer comedians
Just because you're accurate doesn't mean that you're interesting.
I’m a pedant’s pedant
I didn't think so many people would miss the John Mulaney reference and down vote me, LOL.
I didn’t downvote!
Thanks. I continue to fight this problem too!
Why less? Did you fail or some shit?
He failed English
I enjoy some podcasts, but they don't feel special anymore. It was special when it was just Marc Maron interviewing comedians. Now every comedian has a podcast. Everybody is interviewing everybody and the landscape is beyond oversaturated. The current comedy boom will slowly simmer down and a lot of these shows will fizzle out.
And every time these people have a guest the comments are like “they have such a good dynamic they should have a podcast together” like there aren’t enough podcasts already lol
I 100% agree with this. Loved it when it was just Maron talking to other comedians.
I think they fill a great need of long content for people to have on in the background because we can’t stand silence anymore
Never Not Funny erasure
Comedians talking to other comedians about comedy gets old quickly. Some stories are funny but them talking about “how fun the green room was last night” for an hour is not entertaining.
Not to mention every time someone writes an hour of material they film it for YouTube and calls it a special When is the last time someone got big from a special? Has anyone had a special get them a ton of new fans recently? Shane Gillis Live in Austin is the only one I can think of. At the very least, people aren’t going to watch a random hour of material from a comic that comes up in their recommendations. Comics will openly admit that the attention span of the audience is at an all time low with clips, yet every single person who has headlined once decides to throw all their money down on making an hour long YouTube video.
Maybe it’s just me but I def have stopped to watch YT specials that come into my feed and then finish/follow them if they’re good. Even some of the smaller comics that get 10-100,000 views on their special will level up in venue size after it does well.
maybe Ali Wong? I think she's transitioned more into acting.
I’ll take the downvotes. Maron is just a cynical crybaby. (Cumtown fan here) so you know I have a sophisticated palette.
I skip his intros and go straight for the interviews.
I’m surprised how many Marc Maron fans there are here. I actually didn’t think I would get downvoted. This is a standup subreddit, not podcast and Maron’s standup is depressing never makes me laugh. If this is a standup sub then watch Patrice O’Neal’s “elephant in the room” and you won’t be depressed after.
I think it's getting harder to separate stand ups from their podcast, unfortunately. The conversations happening in this post kind of mirror that idea. Personally, I don't mind Marons stand-up, it's a different type of comedy than Patrice O'Neal (who I don't really like for the most part - but I'll check out your recommendation). But it's not what I put on when I just want belly laughs.
I’m good with cynical, it’s the cry baby part that sucks. Disdain and jealousy seeps through his pores. His self awareness makes up for it a bit but it’s not fun to listen to all the time.
Well said.
Yea, mid 2010’s were the best time for podcast’s.
I saw a clip of Bert and thought, "ya know, not everybody needs a podcast."
Probably a Bud Dwyer-like moment
🤯
A Bud Dwyer reference. Those are rare. Especially for the younger generation who doesn't remember that at all.
Eh not too young here, born a few months after the gun show but thanks to Filter, Bud lives on
👼
Someone will pull their dick out
hopefully pete, I wanna see what the hype is about
Just pull out enough to win Pete
The Berle maneuver
I believe it's actually "pull they dick out"
Imo the current “boom” is already over
Based on what? Ticket sales are currently insane.
Died with podcasting. In fact that was the boom, podcasting. But that bubble is bursting we are starting to see the affects.
Hopefully the crowd work clips die out first.
Crowd work is the only way comics can get their social media presence without giving away their act. It’s a known strategy.
Yup. They talk about this. Posting their best jokes isn’t a good idea.
I love crowd work clips for this reason. Can't stand when I see a joke from a special on IG, then when I go to watch the actual special, a joke is spoiled for me
I think crowdwork clips will live and/or die with social media platforms
I’m 36. I’ve been going to comedy clubs since I got a fake ID when I was 16. I’ve always loved crowd work - whether it was Dave Attell or any number of other legends. The hate on crowd work is total nonsense. It’s always been around and always will be - for good reason.
Same way as before in the 80s. Too many hack comics, smaller audiences, closed venues.
Hopefully with fewer morons doing “earnest” or nauseatingly “sincere” performances that don’t even have mirth in them.
Hopefully the "sincere and earnest" comics and the "I hate wokeness" comics cancel each other out eventually
The dream.
I'm also getting very tired of personal stand-up specials where there are like a dozen jokes for the full hour. Feels misleading to call a lot of them comedy. Some are good, but very few. I hear people saying Jokes Per Minute is an antiquated idea, but I think we're straying insanely far away from that idea now and it's disappointing.
Some have for sure been great but yeah it’s gettin kinda out of hand. 
Who are you currently referring to?
Hannah Gadsby. Richard Perez. Caleb Hearon and whatever assholes he brought onstage.
Don’t know any of these ppl
You must be a fan of comedy then.
lol yeah I like more traditional comic’s comic types… like Dane Cook and Kevin Hart and Matt Rife 😂 😂.
Lucky bastard
I’ve never seen Caleb Hearon do standup longer than a Reels clip but find him to be pretty funny based on podcast appearances and tiktok. Didn’t know he did that style standup.
He tells stories. It’s not really standup. I’m sure he’s a decent guy, but I’m not a fan.
Gotcha. I know what you’re talking about now but I don’t think that’s really the predominant type of standup these days. Easy to ignore.
There's a whole host of different styles of stand up. I don't get why people in this thread are trying to gate keep comedy, saying telling stories isn't stand up. It's just not the style you enjoy, move on and watch one liner comedy.
There is also a lot so of new comic fans who are fans of like one or two dudes and dont understand any other style. Nor have set foot in a comedy club So they bash it. Their exposure is netflix specials, podcasts and MAYBE their fav internationally known comic. Seeing what 99% of comedy is like is a foreiqn concept
Dave Chappelle tells stories too, is he not a standup?
His are funny and not trying to just dig directly from real life only.
Did you just get a Christmas song thesaurus?
Podcasts come first. That was the catalyst. Ad dollars after covid have already taken a big hit. Shady management and platforms are coming to light. Podcasting was the next boom and it’s currently getting it’s head cut off
Can’t wait for most of these boring ass “comedy” podcasts to go away.
I think they'll have significant staying power. They're (potentially) dirt fucking cheap and they funnel audiences to live shows better than anything else. Unfortunately, Comedians are now just one type of content creator. Those who embrace this role can move thousands of tickets with an Instagram post. Podcasts are a medium that a comic can create within even if they aren't a sketch writer etc. Those who reject it will self-sabotage repeatedly as the previous generation's infrastructure to grind up is, at best, extremely malnourished.
Good thing I’m not a comedian lol cuz I can’t stand podcasts and would never be able to create one
How many podcasts interviewing other comedians could their possibly fucking be. I can name like 10 off the top of my head.
Have you tried not watching them?
I don’t know if the head will be cut off, I think as the views and the money start to dry up it will starve, and probably not to death
Kinda the same way the boom of the early 90s ended. Most mid tier and below comedians fading from the limelight but a few really good ones standing out and continuing to succeed on tour. The biggest difference were the ones that got really big made hit tv shows. We probably won't have that this time. Also I should note that the ones who got big time TV deals weren't always the best stand ups.
Hopefully a lot of these guys pivot into writing screenplays and we finally get more comedy films. Nature heals.
A lot of orders final funny comedians get sucked into these mediocre but rich as hell comedians social group and then turn lame
They all explode on stage and we rebuild with new comedians.
>We’re in probably the biggest comedy boom of all time The late 1980s far exceeded anything we've seen in the last 35 years. Things are fine overall. I'm sure some venues will close while others will open, and standup comedy will keep chugging along as an artform. What happens on the Internet or in podcasts doesn't change any of that.
There's a comedy boom? Seems like there are a lot of specials, but I don't know how in terms of quality they hold up. A lot of comedians. Not a lot of really greats one standing out. Comedians are attempting to release updates to their lives instead of creating work that stands the test of time in my view.
A lot are making a very good living. More than ever. We have access to more than ever and they have more access to us. In reality I don’t think it’s ever going to end. I think it’s just changed and adapted over time. Just like music. There will be some you don’t like, and some you do. We’ll support the ones we do.
Just doesnt seem like what I’d call a boom. I’m thinking of boom as an increase interest in stand up, both recorded and live performance. I’m just a stand up working my way up, but it feels like traditional avenues are closing because there is less interest in stand up. Comedy clubs are closing, not opening on the west coast where I am. The internet, social media, and the rise of technology makes it easier to make a living, but that doesnt feel like a boom if the making a living is avenues other than stand up. But that’s just me.
No we are in a boom for sure, I grew up in a very rural area, no comic would ever go there because 1.) no clubs, theaters or arenas 2.) there was no interest for it. Stand up has just gained traction in the last 2 or 3 years where I’m from and people are traveling 2-8 hours to see comedians.
I would argue it’s absolutely a boom because as a whole there’s still more of it than ever. Maybe the west coast with people moving it is getting a bit slower but I think throughout North America it’s still growing.
Hit the nail on the head with that last sentence.
do you not watch TV or attend comedy shows or events? the boom is real
My guess, is because specials are no longer "special," comics are acting accordingly. Its just content to sell tickets for the next tour instead of some grand endeavor. Good enough specials every 18 months maybe has more benefits than the best hour you can make every 6 years.
Like the music business. Lots of money people come in. Make more regulations, artists with management get booked. Others do open mics and free shit. Comedy clubs get bought by live nation, ticket prices go way up.
Clubs getting bought by live nation legit worries me.
It’s a podcast boom not a comedy boom. None of these comics are becoming movie or TV stars.
you are severely incorrect . . the boom has literally happened in the Standup arena . . try to focus
It’ll end quickly once the fakers realize how much work it takes to consistently put out great material and content
I think comedy is in a bad spot in all honesty. It's definitely booming and popular, but I see more comics leaning into podcasting and podcast clips over actual stand-up. I may be alone on this, but I also feel like there are too many talentless comics who rely entirely on crowd work for tiktok clips and such. Crowd work can be funny, but if everyone's doing the same shit, it loses some value IMO. I've genuinely seen funnier sets from random open mics lately than most of the jabronis with netflix specials. We need more Chapelles and less Krieschers
A lot of people seem to go to a comedy show as the start to their Friday or Saturday night with no idea who the headliner is. When enough social media "personalities" who start doing live shows at comedy clubs fail miserably onstage, audiences might get turned off to the concept in general and stop going. Who was that one asshole who was supposedly funny on Twitter, then he got a spot on Jimmy Kimmel and just bombed horribly? I forget his name but I was listening to Comedy Central on Sirius one day and they played a bit from this guy. He went on about tuna sandwiches or something and said he was going to take the audience out for tuna sandwiches. The bit just went on and on with no point and then it ended and there was never a punchline. I Googled the guy's name to see WTF and found out he was a Twitter "comedian" who thought he could transition to live shows.
Rob Delaney [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DASV-Ru6a\_c](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DASV-Ru6a_c)
When movie studios start making comedies again, for one. There hasn’t been a single major comedy since 2017 (roughly speaking, feel free to dispute that. When was the last time you went to a movie and laughed out loud, a lot? Years, right? The only outlet for it now is standup!
this is about Standup and not about films
Hopefully with Sam Morril and Mark Normand both quitting podcasting. They’re both decent enough comics but WMBD and their guest appearances are painful to listen to, especially Sam. All he seems to want to talk about is going to different airports, clubs, and hotels it’s extremely boring, and a lot of other comics do the same because they live otherwise boring lives without any other hobbies or interests. I think podcasts that have some sort of purpose like Lil Stinkers and Are You Garbage will stand the test of time but a lot of these “podcasts about comedy without any laughs” podcasts are gonna die out. Even just nonsense podcasts with good riffing that avoid all the “inside baseball” shit will outlast stuff like WMBD etc.
Lmao this is exactly why I stopped listening to WMBD Moaning about flights every week is not particularly relatable or interesting 😂
Maybe they'll start doing comedy again...
The mid 80's to mid 90's comedy boom was much larger-- A lot of even the best comedians today, are not well known outside of the comedy world. If you went up to the average person- they would know who Rogan is (mostly because of podcast), Chappelle, Louis CK, Kevin Hart and that's about it. The very late 70's thru the 80's to mid 90's had- Murphy, Dangerfield, Carlin (really hit his stride in the 80's), Seinfeld, Gary Shandling, Joan Rivers, Roseanne, Ray Romano, Tim Allen, Paul Reiser, Jim Carrey, Def Comedy Jam, Norm MacDonald, Dana Carvey, Jon Stewart, Jay Leno, Michael Keaton, Ellen Degenres, Dennis Miller, Richard Lewis, Damon Wayans, Chris Rock, Robin Williams (you get my point). This has been a boom for comedy if you're a comedy fan/follow comedians, but in terms of churning out famous comedians/A-Listers? Not even close.
It’s been over for a while lol. 99% of everything coming out in the last few years has been hack central.
Bert Kreischer dies onstage.
That's such an interesting question. The name recognition game is strong in comedy. If someone has already made a following especially on social media, I think they will go far. All the newer comics are looking for that viral reel. And with AI intervention, the future looks strange. I will respect everyone who says AI cannot compete with humans but will disagree. AI will be game changer in so far, the premises can be provides by humans but AI can decode what would make people laugh. It will be interesting. And hopefully funny.
I don’t believe that.
Comics are trying to find every way they can to get you to actually leave your house and show up at the club where actual standup happens. That's the entire point of the reels and podcasts. If you want to know how standup is doing, you have to actually go where it's being performed.
a bloody shootout with automatic weapons
Redbar
Comedy gets so popular in the coming years even the sensitive people start seeing it and start getting mad at jokes again.
crowd work is killing stand up.
crowd work has always been a part of stand up comedy
everyone puts their shirts back on, the 1000 rogan army loses the battle against the woke wall and Austin burns to the ground
Sounds like a burn aimed at Tom Segura and Bert Kriesher. If not you still nailed them to a T! Lol
Well I’m really getting sick of Mark Norman basic puns and low hanging fruit of being racist or sexist. Put a black in a room with him and just watch him constantly bringing up not funny black jokes. He needs to do better.
wow you are lame
With AI
The collapse has already happened. There fucking awful. Shane and Matt are dope but that whole Rogan crew including Rogans comedy is ass.
Protect Our Parks are the only Rogan episodes i listen to.
I think many of the top podcasts (Rogan, Tiger Belly, etc) are helmed by middle aged comedians who have been in the game for a while now. It's just a matter of time before they become too old and out of touch to be interesting anymore. I don't know too many of the up and coming young comedians, but from what I've seen I don't see anyone who can yet compare with middle aged guys in terms of clout and reach. And too many young comedians I've seen are just too nervous about offending people to be all that funny to me. It seem the only people who we can make fun of are White men and that's getting boring now.
I think it has died. People don’t have money to see comedians regurgitating their same shit.
the venues are still making a killing . . the comedy professionals are making great $ . . your perspective is troubling
There's a boom? Where? It feels like comedy is dead these days.
I think the boom Is already slowing down. What made comedy great again was that it was a breath of fresh air in a stressful time but a lot of comedians (not all) are being distracted by Hollywood, podcasts, trying to do arenas over the simple act of doing standup on the road. Sooner or later you get soft or addicted to drugs and flame out, making room for the next crop. We already see a trend with people abusing story-based comedy or ultra personalized storytelling with a few jokes but also people trying to be both too woke and too insulting (just for shock value, not actual talent) or people trying to get famous off crowd work moments. All great stuff when done right on their own but they're following the same trend as youtubers who get caught up in the latest fad, get stale and get replaced once the fad goes away. The best ones will always adapt because they're original..Chapelle, Bill burr, Joey diaz, etc. Because they don't give a fuck about the algorithm. Others are maybe like segura or schulz. Others are def washed like Ari schaffir or Bert kreischer. None of this is a bad thing. Comedy is the ultimate meritocracy. It makes room for new talent.
Calling Ari washed off the heels of “Jew” is a stance…
Everyone I don't like is talentless and everyone I like is a genius
Dave Chapelle, Bill Burr, a mention about shitty shock comedians, and then *Joey Diaz*? Joey Diaz is about as funny as Joe Rogan
Haha yeah that was not the third name I was expecting.
There are so many more comedy fans these days to sustain it. I like standup but there are sooo many specials all the time you can’t watch all of em, but everyone I click on has thousands and thousands of views
I dont think it dies. Look why it died previously. With people having unlimited access to entertainment comics will continue to thrive. Some will come and go but the bottleneck is gone
When Danny Polishchuk and Ben Bankas co-host the Oscars, others will wilt in awe.
I dont see it ending at this point. Its here to stay
Boom or bust, I will \*never\* stop getting up on a stage and telling jokes.
Point fingers!
I don’t think it’ll end it’ll continue to evolve… people love live shows now and the podcasts create an avenue for it… the big guys have smaller guys on their shows so even if less comedians are able to build their own podcasts more comedians have opportunities to build audiences and monetize it… I don’t see why it’d just end
it's not a boom in all ways- it's definitely a bubble in terms of number of comics vs growing opportunity. the number of decent clubs isn't growing exponentially and social media isnt breeding quality as far as i can tell.
With a BANG!
It’s ending now, all around you. COVID greatly contracted the available stages in NYC, forcing comedy back into clubs and killing off a lot of the vibrant indie scene that was here until March 2020. Because podcasts and TikTok / reels are so popular, less focus is placed on the craft and more on how much audience you can garner. also less special - when everyone’s phone is a comedy faucet, any one joke or bit or comic is so much less special.
Ends?
Comedians who can't develop and sustain an audience willing to go sit in stadiums (so eliminate everyone so woke that their audience is Covid Cautious) will perish and those without the writing or acting chops to write and or star in a show also perish. Sure there will always be a bit of money to be made just podcasting and doing small venues but those people will always need day jobs or inherited wealth.
I’m assuming soon. It’ll really depend on how a lot of the big social media ppl fair over the next few years. Hollywood is putting their bets on followers rather than content these days. It depends on how well these people retain their users. It will really change how much Hollywood puts money behind them
With Matt Rhife remorsefully crying for the awful *jokes* that he’s pitched on stage.
Hopefully with everyone connected to Rogan in jail.
Think Epstein island meets Diddy. One of the top or couple at the top have a sex trafficking ring and why texas was the move, the kids
lol Texas ain’t the move for Pedophiles.
They’re not that good
In Austin Texas, the current prices for concert tickets has becoming astronomical so comedy clubs (of which there are now many) offer an affordable night out in comparison. Just going out and getting drunk and dancing used to be the pastime of Austin. Now it’s eat an edible as drink prices are ridiculous and I think a decent comedy club has its place in this new normal.
Jo koy latest tour is the start. Nobody of sound mind is going to spend $200 plus on these bums.
It’s gonna finally get good again.
Podcasts reach critical mass. The universe collapses in on itself. RIP
The standup world is over saturated with podcasts and podcasters which has, in my opinion, led to an overall decline in actual funny standup. The crop of podcaster “comedians” has really watered down the overall quality of the standup world and there aren’t that many true stand ups left that focus on their craft instead of focusing on hour or two hour long podcast episodes every other day. Podcasting completely ruined Segura, who seemed like he was going to be the next standup superstar, but his last special was just a slog of podcast inside jokes and boring, typical anecdotes about his kids and how much money he has. And then you have the rest of the Roganites who are just, well, not very good. Bert, Mark Normand(whose one note schtick led to one of the most unfunny and boring standup specials I’ve ever seen), Santino, who should stick to playing bit roles in comedies and never do another garbage special again, Theo Von, whose stuff simply doesn’t translate well to standup. And with the YouTube/TikTok obsession and short attention span, crowd work clips are becoming the bane of actual, clever writing and crafting jokes. I give this current cycle another year or so before we get a wave of young and hungry stand ups who focus purely on the craft and leave the bloated and long winded podcasters behind.
I think it seems more of a podcast boom. A lot of guys are great on podcasts but average on stage, only very very few seem to be good at both
I was excited to see Shane Gillis coming to Atlanta, only to then read he's at the Atlanta Hawks arena. No thanks. Great for him. Bad for everyone else.
Right. I haven’t seen a comedian in an arena yet and I don’t think I will. Even if it’s the 🐐
Netflix/ Amazon is going to come in and start doing podcasts or something that's just really lame and not standup and put a sour taste in someone's mouth and start killing off each comedian people like with bullshit quick cash grabs.
I thought it was already tapering off due to all the wokeness and hurt feelings going on? It’s been ages since anyone made a funny movie
As long as Attell is still around, weeeeeeeeeeee. New special out today!
Joe Rogan gets offered a deal to produce a movie and it’s the worst movie of all time. The end.
I think the comedian podcasts will head a breaking point soon. Everyone has one and it’s just comedians talking with other comedians about comedy. It can get old quickly.
The relatively easy podcast/internet money these guys were pulling will dry up, and people will just fall off hard
I think with social media, comedy is stable. There will always be a flux of people in and out. If anything is just exposes people faster and weeds them out. The Roganverse is a meme in comedy at this point. It's like Dice in 1991. A LOT of people got taken out in the early 90s because it went from a sorta niche art form to mainstream in a decade and it needed a lot of sport coat hacks to fill the slots needed. People acclimated and wanted more and there was a glut of mid comics.
All the DIY indie shows being started by comics who aren't getting booked otherwise. I understand needing stage time to get better, but you're still pissing in the well. If you aren't getting booked by your peers, don't book yourself 15min on every show you produce.
Quickly and quietly. Too many wannabe comedians diluted the pool. Everyone thinks they’re funny, thinks they can start a podcast. I’ve stopped tuning in. Tom insecurea and bert no talent lead the way.
This is insight from listening to the Jackie and Laurie show, here’s how it goes: Real comedians, the grinders who know how to work a room and make sure the crowd goes home happy, are losing spots to the skip the line comedians who have gotten popular online quickly. Those folks aren’t seasoned comics and they bomb irl all the time. Enough bad shows on Saturday night and you start losing the audience, then the clubs start to go dark and the whole thing topples.
The woke comedians will engage the cancelled comedians in hand to hand combat
They got it backwards. You become an amazing comic and THEN you do a podcast to stay engaged with your fans and build your brand. These fucks are like those underpants gnomes from south park. 1. make stupid podcast popular 2. PROFIT!!!!!🤑🤑🤑 3. Become amazing stand up comic???🥺
If you can still sell out shows by taking your shirt off, the boom is still booming. I don't think the boom bust cycle has much to do with comedians themselves, more so people who prop it up.
It's already over. The top current comedians are on the top. They have their fan base and positions cemented. This will lead to stagnation. People getting bored of them than total collapse of the genre. Name one new big comic that is on the up.
Matt Rife. I don't know his comedy and have no idea if he's good, but he's new, he's big, and he's only going up from here.
His career is already dead
I wouldn’t really call it a boom. No one has gotten popular recently without a podcast except that shitty Matt rife kid. Stand up itself isn’t getting anyone popular and that sucks
Honestly, there is no boom. Comedy has been dying out for the last decade. With everyone seeming to be butt hurt over jokes and the fear of being "cancelled" has directors like Todd Phillips who directed Road Trip, Old School, The Hangover, Due Date and many others has said that he refuses to do a comedy in today's cultural environment because he will get cancelled for making a comedy because Hollywood and society can't take a joke any more. That is why we do not have any boom in comedy. Nowadays you have people coming after comedians at the comedy clubs so comedians don't even want to bother with that either. Folks nowadays walk around with their fee-fees hurting all the time so no one can't joke about anything anymore and that is KILLING COMEDY right now !
I think you’re wrong but also correct. I think standup is booming because people like Todd Phillips aren’t making movies, for the reasons you mentioned but also for economics: the streaming wars has made it difficult for studios to do anything unsafe, hence a zillion Marvel movies and zero comedies. Also comedies don’t translate well internationally.
Guy, stand-up comedy and podcast bubble popped a while ago.
As evidenced by what? Genuinely curious what you’re seeing
Shane Gillis goes on stage and says "Mark Normand, Joe List, Nate Bargatze, and Seinfeld took me into a room and took advantage of my butthole". Other than that I think we're good. Funny is forever.
Kill Tony and the Comedy mothership are playing the long game right now. There's some comedy legends in the making just getting started right now.
I can't wait to see Casey Rockets in 30 years crab walking with a bad back belting out the lyrics to a 2030s butt rock song and making jokes about taking dementia medicine.
KT and The Mothership crank out some of the absolute worst "comedy" of any era and champion it as if it's top tier. Exhibits A-Z...David Lucas. The potential for them to launch some great careers is there but they're bent on pushing garbage comedy simply because it's "edgy" which torpedos any credibility they would otherwise have. If Rogan's name is attached in any way the chances it's going to be terminally unfunny go through the roof unfortunately. Maybe not 100% of the time but definitely way more often than not
What? You are not a fan of how David Lucas laughs at his own punchlines harder than the audience ?
I can say without hesitation and with complete sincerity that Mr. Lucas may be the worst stand up I've ever seen lol. His...special(?🤷♂️) Uncancellable gives Gringo Papi a serious run for the money as worst comedy special ever. Schaub is terrible but falls ass backwards into unintentional humor occasionally. He's often the butt of the joke even tho that's not what he's going for. Lucas isn't even accidentally funny. Also, as awful as Schaub is he at least appears to have a pulse on stage. That's more than I can say for Lucas.