A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly, or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audience directly is called a stand-up comedian.
Brian Joseph Regan is an American stand-up comedian who uses observational, sarcastic, and self-deprecating humor. He is known for incorporating body language and facial expressions into his act. His performances are often described as clean as he refrains from profanity as well as taboo subject matter. Regan's material typically covers everyday events, such as shipping a package with UPS, mortgages, and visits to the optometrist. While he does not define himself as youth-oriented, Regan makes frequent references to childhood, including little league baseball, grade school spelling bees, and science projects.
Edward Rubin Griffin is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is best known for portraying Eddie Sherman in the sitcom Malcolm & Eddie, the title character in the 2002 comedy film Undercover Brother, and Tiberius Jefferson "T.J." Hicks in Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (1999) and Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (2005). He also portrayed Lester Matthews in John Q. (2002), Orpheus in Scary Movie 3 (2003), Pope Sweet Jesus in Norbit (2007), and voiced Richard Pryor on Black Dynamite (2012–2015). Griffin was ranked at number 62 on Comedy Central's list of the 100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time.
Sommore is an American comedian and actress. Known as the "Diva of Contemporary Comedy," her comedic style features biting sarcasm and frank discussions about money, sex, and equality between the sexes. She first gained fame as the first female host of the long-running Black Entertainment Television (BET) stand-up showcase ComicView, as well as one of the four female comedians that headlined The Queens of Comedy tour.
Alfred Langston "Finesse" Mitchell is an American actor, stand-up comedian, and author. From 2003 to 2006, Mitchell was a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live. He has also appeared on such television shows as Showtime at the Apollo, BET's ComicView, Comedy Central Presents, Disney Channel's A.N.T. Farm, and NBC's Late Friday.
Observational comedy is a form of humor based on the commonplace aspects of everyday life. It is one of the main types of humor in stand-up comedy. In an observational comedy act, the comedian makes an observation about something which is common enough to be familiar to their audience, but not commonly discussed. Such observations are typically presented with the phrase "Have you ever noticed...?" or "Did you ever notice...?" which has become a comedy cliché.
Comic View was an American stand-up comedy show that aired on BET on Tuesdays and Fridays from September 1992 to December 2008. In May 2014, BET announced the return of Comic View. The show has been the launching pad for such comedians as D. L. Hughley, Cedric the Entertainer, Sommore, and Rodney Perry.
Steve Byrne is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is best known from his multiple stand up comedy hour specials; creating, writing, and starring in Sullivan & Son; and as the writer/director of the feature film The Opening Act.
Joseph Glenn Herbert, known professionally as Jo Koy, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He was a frequent panelist on E!'s late night show Chelsea Lately. He has since had a total of six comedy specials released by Comedy Central and Netflix. In 2024, Koy hosted the 81st Golden Globe Awards.
Azhar Muhammad Usman is an American comedian, actor, screenwriter, and producer of Indian descent. He is a former lecturer, community activist and lawyer and has been referred to as the "Ayatollah of Comedy" and "Bin Laughin". He is best known as one third of comedy trio Allah Made Me Funny. In December 2020, Marvel Studios announced that Usman had joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe, agreeing to play Najaf on the cast of the studio's Ms. Marvel original streaming series for Disney+.
James Adomian is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and impressionist. He is best known for his work on Comedy Bang! Bang!, Chapo Trap House, Last Comic Standing, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson where he impersonated President George W. Bush until 2009, and for portraying Bernie Sanders during the 2016 Trump vs. Bernie tour. He voices Talking Ben in the Talking Tom and Friends animated series.
Darryl O’Flynn Lenox was an American comedian who lived in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Tom Simmons is an American stand-up comedian and nationally touring, comedy-club headliner.
Deon Anthony Cole is an American comedian, actor and screenwriter. He is best known for his role in the sitcom Black-ish (2014–2022), which earned him nominations for two NAACP Image Awards and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. On June 25, 2020, he became the second panelist to win the Doris Award on the ABC version of To Tell the Truth. He stars in Average Joe.
Christopher Paul Anthony Distefano is an American comedian. Primarily a stand-up comedian, Distefano began his career in entertainment on MTV and MTV2's shows Guy Code and Girl Code. Distefano's first hour-long standup special, Chris Distefano: Size 38 Waist, was released in 2019 by Comedy Central. His second special, Speshy Weshy, premiered on Netflix in May 2022. Distefano co-hosts Hey Babe! podcast with Sal Vulcano from Impractical Jokers and hosts his own podcast, Chrissy Chaos.
Nishant Tanwar, also known as 'Joke Singh' and more recently as 'Rider OP' is an Indian comedian and actor. He started off his professional career working at NDTV as a Producer, and began doing stand-up in 2009 when he found his passion for the same at an open mic event.
Lydia Nicole is an American actress, comedian, writer and producer based out of Los Angeles, California. Her career in the entertainment industry began in 1972 with the Inner City Broadcasting Corporation at New York City R&B station, WBLS-FM. In 1981, she made her debut as an actress guest starring on The Greatest American Hero. Nicole is best known for her role as Rafaela in Stand and Deliver, and her current project, web series Common Sense Mamita.
Langston Kerman is an American actor, writer, and comedian. He has acted in shows including Insecure, High Maintenance, Bless This Mess, The Boys and English Teacher. Kerman is a writer and co-star on HBO Max's South Side. His first comedy album, Lightskinned Feelings, was named to Vulture's list of 10 Best Comedy Albums of 2018.
Helen Hong is an American stand-up comedian, actress, director, and producer. She has appeared in such works as Jane the Virgin, Parks and Recreation, and the Coen Brothers' Inside Llewyn Davis. She has a regular spot on NPR's Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! and hosts a trivia podcast called Go Fact Yourself. She formerly hosted the podcast Little Ethnic Girls. She has a recurring role on Nickelodeon's The Thundermans and had a recurring role as Mrs. Song in Starz's Blunt Talk. Hong is known for her comedic NowThis videos.
Jimmy Shubert is a stand-up comedian from Philadelphia now living in Los Angeles. He is known for being part of Sam Kinison's "Outlaws of Comedy," as a 2014 finalist on Last Comic Standing, and for acting roles on shows such as The King of Queens, Entourage, and ER, and movies including Go and Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
