As we’re all adjusting to staying indoors during the region’s stay-at-home order amid the coronavirus pandemic, we could probably use a good laugh or two. Even though comedy clubs are closed, you can still experience the local scene. Comedians have long been building a substantial library of content in the form of podcasts, comedy albums, and stand-up specials that are accessible online.
Here’s a collection of D.C. comedy you can check out from your couch. (And for more local resources for movies, audiobooks, classes, and more, click here.)
The Underground Comedy Podcast
For fans of: Pete Holmes’ HBO series Crashing, about a stand-up trying to make it in New York
Former stand-up comic Sean Joyce is the force behind Underground Comedy, an independent production company that puts on live shows around the District featuring emerging local and national talent. When he’s not booking comedians or warming up crowds, Joyce interviews these up-and-comers about life behind the shtick for his weekly podcast. He recently sat down with Marvelous Mrs. Maisel writer Noah Gardenswartz, Comedy Cellar regular Carmen Lynch, and D.C.’s own Denise Taylor (more about her later). Joyce also offers occasional pearls of wisdom about how to make it in the biz.
Where to find it: Apple, Google, Spotify
Want more podcasts from local comedy clubs? Check out Drafthouse Comedy’s Counter Currents and DC Improv’s The Other Side.
Son of an Ice Cream Man
For fans of: Former The Daily Show correspondent and current Netflix host Hasan Minhaj
Silver Spring native Martin Amini may live in L.A. now, but his Twitter bio confirms he still identifies as a D.C. comedian. His new debut stand-up special was filmed at The Kennedy Center, and it’s an homage to his roots in more ways than one. He talks about growing up in Maryland with immigrant parents—his mother is originally from Bolivia, and his father, an ice cream truck entrepreneur, emigrated from Iran after the 1979 revolution. He also waxes poetic about hip-hop—he stands by Drake, who he says has long provided the soundtrack to his sex life, and he hypes himself up to Juvenile’s “Back Dat Azz Up” before every show. Amini shares the stage with his Overachievers partner-in-crime DJ Bo, who adds musical flourishes to the mix.
Where to find it: Streaming free on YouTube
Want more stand-up specials from comedians raised in the D.C. area? Check out Dave Chappelle’s Sticks & Stones and Wanda Sykes’ Not Normal.
The Sixty Minute Hate
For fans of: L.A.-based writer Lara Marie Schoenhals’ podcast Babe?, for which she invites her friends to talk smack about their lives
In his magnum opus 1984, George Orwell gave us the Two Minutes Hate, a daily ritual of hate-spewing at public enemies. Local comedian Denise Taylor and now-NYC-based Benjy Himmelfarb give us The Sixty Minute Hate—a complaint-filled podcast intended for “smart attractive people only.” The hosts create a comedic ecosystem where every facet of their lives falls somewhere between horrible and not that terrible. Everything is on the table: including a recent blurb published in TheWashington Post about the podcast, substandard apartment living, the president, and preserving a comedian’s stand-up cred once they get married. Taylor and Himmelfarb riff about their respective identities as a Muslim woman and Jewish man, musing about “[overcoming] their differences” in order to hate together. In case you needed more clarity about the podcast’s sensibility, its cover image shows the two comedians in what they call “fascist totalitarian” garb.
Where to find it: Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher
Want more conceptual podcasts from local comedians? Check out First Day Back Season 3, which traces Baltimore comedian Jason Weems as he prepares to record a special after a near-death experience .
I Think It’s Good
For fans of: Kevin Hart’s penchant for yelling, self-deprecation, and pointed observations about race in America
Though he’s relocated to L.A., comedian Jamel Johnson is still a mainstay in the local scene. According to his website, the Woodbridge, Va., native “made a name for himself on the D.C. comedy scene through a hard-to-hate mixture of non-threatening yelling, weird stories and impressively specific but not alienating sports and music references.” His new debut comedy album follows suit. He opens the show by assuring the crowd that the album is actually happening this time: “I know this one’s coming out for real ‘cause I’m not the one recording it. We’ve got some white guys in the back recording this one.” He then briefs the crowd on some ground rules, which he calls “black privileges:” No.1: He gets to DJ with impunity, and No. 2: They have to think whatever he’s playing is artistic and beautiful. As the album unfolds, we hear about his teenage stint at a costume/tuxedo rental/dry cleaning shop, his adolescent thoughts about the D.C. sniper, pants shopping, weight loss, and the way sex makes us all crazy.
Where to find it: YouTube, Spotify, Tidal, iTunes
Want more comedy albums from comedians raised in the D.C. area? Check out Yamaneika Saunders’ Damsel In Distress.
Heavy Flo with Puss and Kooch
For fans of: Sooo Many White Guys, Phoebe Robinson’s podcast featuring mostly non-white, non-male comedians as a counternarrative to stand-up’s dominant culture
Comedy trio Puss and Kooch—Kara Kinsey, Kelsey Peters, and Krystal Ramseur—is the team behind this podcast, by way of D.C. comedy blog Comedic Pursuits. They chat with local comedians—particularly women and non-binary folks—and reflect on comedy, love, and how to brave life’s less-than-funny moments. As for the titular concept of “flo,” here’s how they describe it: “an electric feeling of being on, knowing what the audience wants, and knowing you can give it to them. It’s like a second kiss. You already know you’re on the same page. You both want it, you’re feeling it, and now you’re going for it and connecting together.” Check out their 2019 year-in-review episode for a crash course on the local comedy scene.
Where to find it: Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher
Want more podcasts with D.C. comedians interviewing other comedians? Check out Ross Benoit’s Smiley Frown and Tim D. Miller’s Read the Room.
