Latest news with #ComedyStore
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jamie Foxx Has One Question For Sean Combs in Midst of N.Y. Racketeering Trial: ‘Why You So Nasty, Diddy?'
Jamie Foxx is not pulling punches when it comes to his thoughts on the Sean 'Diddy' Combs' New York sex trafficking and racketeering trial. During a recent appearance at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles, the actor/singer lashed out at the disgraced former music mogul who he once honored at Diddy's 2008 Hollywood Walk of Fame induction ceremony. 'Diddy is fu–in' crazy, huh?' Foxx said in footage shared by Urban Hollywood. 'I don't know if he is going to jail, but he is a nasty motherf–er. Am I right? Especially for us… white people like, 'It's cool,' but for Black people… that was our hero. All that g–damn baby oil, boy! Why you so nasty, Diddy?' When officers raided Combs' homes in Los Angeles and Miami last March prosecutors said they found drugs as well as more than 1,000 bottles of lubricant and baby oil. More from Billboard 50 Cent Keeps His Promise by Posting the 'Really Bad' Things Diddy Has Said About Donald Trump Jessie J Reveals 'Early Breast Cancer' Diagnosis: 'Cancer Sucks in Any Form' Big Thief Announce New Album, 'Double Infinity' The comments from Foxx about the shocking testimony in the Combs trial in reference to the rapper's marathon 'Freak Off' sex parties is relevant because in 2023 rumors circulated that Combs allegedly poisoned Foxx, leading to the actor's hospitalization for what was later confirmed to be a stroke. Foxx opened up about the rumors surrounding his mystery illness last month in a chat with The Hollywood Reporter, shooting down the allegations that Diddy tried to have him killed via poisoning. 'I'm in f—ing perfect shape. [I saw things like,] 'Puffy tried to kill me.' No, Puffy didn't try to kill me. When they said I was a clone, that made me flip,' Foxx said. 'I'm sitting in the hospital bed, like, 'These b—h-a– motherf—ers are trying to clone me.'' While a spokesperson for Combs did not reply to Billboard's request for a comment on the allegations, his team has repeatedly said the rumor was false and unfounded. Foxx also addressed the allegations in his What Had Happened Was… Netflix special in December, in which he said, 'The internet said Puffy was trying to kill me, that's what the internet was saying. I know what you thinking, 'Diddy?' Hell no, I left them parties early. I was out by 9. 'Something don't look right… it looks slippery in here!' The Combs trial is in its fourth week and on Wednesday (June 4) Bryana Bongolan, a friend of Diddy's ex, prosecution star witness Cassie Ventura, alleged that Diddy dangled her over a 17th-floor apartment balcony in 2016 before shoving her into the balcony's furniture. Combs is facing five criminal counts of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and transportation to engage in prostitution, charges that could land him in prison for the rest of his life; Combs has denied the allegations against him. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
It takes a twisted mind to bookmark a city's pain as potential comedy material.
While so-called comic Andrew Lawrence defends his right to laugh about Liverpool victims, private clubs have the right not to book him We are the knee deep in a generation determined to exercise its right to set its own trousers on fire for likes, retweets and attention. In our post-truth era, where standards, morals and actual shame are relics of a bygone age, anything goes. Which leads us to a performer - this column is not referring to him as a comedian - called Andrew Lawrence. Most of us have been with Liverpool, a city still reeling the incident in which a car was driven thrown crowds at the Premier League club's title-winning parade last week. While the carnage included firefighters needing to rescue three adults and a child trapped under a car, attention-seeking Lawrence saw their trauma as an opportunity to road-test some new material. His remarks on social media remain too offensive to repeat in this column. His attempts to double down on them equally so. For people like Lawrence there would appear to be no line, no boundaries of taste and decency. He woulds go on dismiss his offensive posts as 'mild', adding a string of further, despicable remarks attacking the people of Liverpool. A reminder here that at least 65 people were injured in that Liverpool incident. It remains a miracle that nobody died. So it takes a twisted mind of some proportions to bookmark the pain of a nation as potential comedic material. Mercifully, the response from comedy establishments across the country has been swift and decisive. One, Caddies in Southend, immediately cancelled an upcoming gig at which Lawrence was scheduled to perform, saying it did not "condone or support" his remarks. The Comedy Store in London went further. 'He is not welcome at any of our events or venues. His name will never appear on a bill associated with us,' it said. In a hard-hitting statement, the world-renowned venue added: 'We work with brilliant comedians from across the UK and beyond and we believe in the power of comedy to challenge, uplift and connect - not to target people in moments of real pain. 'That's not comedy. It's cruelty, plain and simple. Mocking a hurting community says far more about him than it ever could about this city. 'Promoters and comedians who continue to book or share a stage with him should think carefully about what that says to audiences. 'If you're standing by him, you're standing against everything this industry should represent.' Lawrence responded by insisting in his Instagram defence that he has just finished a nationwide tour and has no plans to do another one any time soon. Predictably, some of the entitled comedy set - convinced they have a pass to try and elicit laughter from every single scenario, regardless of how traumatised the victims - tried to put their heads above the parapet on this one. But real comedy is when we punch up, no down. If kids trapped under cars is suitable material for clowns who want to make a name for themselves then our meltdown as a society really will be faster than first thought. Laughably, Lawrence is still taking aim at his critics, claiming selective outrage. Tellingly, however, he has been disabling replies to his tweets and has even embarked on a blocking spree. Yep, he was brave enough to dish it out but too terrified to take it. Even some fans of his right wing humour decided he'd crossed a bridge too far, treating his words and his disgraceful defence of them with the derision they deserved. Lawrence also accused Caddies, the venue that axed him, of 'losing their courage after being bombarded with abuse and threats of violence from online trolls'. It was an attempt to mischaracterise the justified anger from the sensible majority questioning whether his puerile remarks were really going to be indulged at the venue. Because while he might believe he can say what he likes with no limits, private comedy clubs have the absolute right to decide who does and does not perform at their establishments. Thank goodness his 15 minutes of fame are approaching the final few seconds.
Black America Web
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Black America Web
Jamie Foxx On Diddy, 'He's A Nasty Motherf***er'
Source: Earl Gibson III / Getty Jamie Foxx didn't hold back when it came to Diddy, unleashing a savage roast that made it clear he wants no association with him. During a Comedy Store appearance, Foxx fired shots at Diddy, who's currently at the center of a federal sex trafficking and racketeering case, with biting commentary that quickly went viral. In video footage obtained by Urban Hollywood, Foxx delivered a pointed verbal jab: 'HE'S A NASTY MOTHERF***ER!' The crowd erupted as Foxx leaned into the moment, using humor to call out what many in the public have been whispering behind closed doors. Foxx spoke candidly about the fall of a once-revered figure, noting how Diddy's situation hits particularly hard for the Black community. According to Jamie, while 'white folks might still think it's all cool,' for many others, Diddy was once seen as a symbol of success and pride — a sentiment that now feels shattered. The comedian didn't stop there. Jamie started landing heavier jabs, referencing the mogul's often-mocked love for baby oil, then turned to his daughter, Corinne, who was standing by his side. With a straight face and perfect timing, he asked her: 'You heard of the disturbing claim that the mogul once allegedly had an escort pee in Cassie's mouth?' The moment was part roast, part real talk, a savage blend of jokes and truth. Foxx kept it funny, but the message hit hard: the stuff coming out about Diddy ain't just wild, it's flipped him from Hip-Hop legend to a straight-up warning sign. SEE ALSO Jamie Foxx On Diddy, 'He's A Nasty Motherf***er' was originally published on Black America Web Featured Video CLOSE
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Comedians get serious: how the personal lives, loss and growth shaped their game-changing Netflix specials
Taking the stage at the Comedy Store on the Sunset Strip, Jamie Foxx took a long look around and soaked up the atmosphere of the legendary main room. 'I ain't been in this motherf--ker in 35 years!' he announced, noting that some people in the audience for "Netflix Is a Joke Presents: FYSEE L.A. Comedy Night" weren't old enough to remember comedy icons like Robin Williams and Richard Pryor, who trod the same stage and are immortalized with their photos on the club's walls. More from GoldDerby 'Squid Game' Season 3 trailer drops, teases tragic endgame: Everything to know about the final season of Netflix's biggest show 'Your Friends and Neighbors' star Lena Hall on her emotionally raw Hole cover in the season finale: 'This is what I do' The entire 'Karate Kid' franchise, ranked (animated series included!) The 57-year-old Oscar winner was on hand for a Q&A with his influencer daughter Corinne to discuss his comedy special What Had Happened Was…, in which he triumphantly returned to the stage following the debilitating 2023 stroke that took nearly a year for Foxx to recover from. But first, he grew a little nostalgic, recalling sneaking into the club as an underage aspiring comic in 1988 and being dumbstruck to find his idol Eddie Murphy performing on stage. 'That motherf--ker was still funny! And rich!' he laughed, describing Murphy's raunchy, indelicate material. 'I'm a little fella from Terrell, Texas, sneaking into the Comedy Store and seeing my hero Eddie Murphy talking some sh-t!' Photo byfor Netflix Foxx closed out a night featuring several fellow comics whose Netflix projects are vying for Emmy bragging rights this season, including Sarah Silverman (PostMortem), Mike Birbiglia (The Old Man and the Pool), Fortune Feimster (Crushing It), Michelle Buteau (A Buteau-ful Mind at Radio City Music Hall), Bert Kreischer (Razzle Dazzle), Andrew Schulz (Life), and Tom Segura (Sledgehammer). For Foxx and each of the participating comedians, their projects — often deeply personal, even existential in nature — proved to be game-changing for their careers, their lives, or both. 'It was tough because I couldn't almost eat it and then come out and say, 'Knock-knock, who's there?'' Foxx said of his ambitious, disciplined approach to crafting his special after months of intense physical rehabilitation. He had a stage built in his home and honed his material every single day in preparation for two taped performances in Atlanta, maintaining secrecy in the wake of his recovery. 'We couldn't take it out and let people hear it, because everybody was wanting to know what it was,' Foxx said. 'So in Atlanta, we just asked the audience, 'Man, give us grace. I ain't been on stage in a minute, but I got a story to tell.'' The actor-comedian bluntly revealed the internal struggles he faced in the wake of his stroke. 'They said, 'You can have a second chance.' I said, 'What the fuck was wrong with my first chance? I don't get this. Not me. I put the smiles on people's faces,'' he revealed. 'I didn't understand that part, and that's what I had to deal with inside — was being thankful.' He admitted he used to envy the pantheon of comedy greats that lined the comedy club's walls, wondering why he wasn't listed among them. 'I think I've done some funny stuff, but I was never mentioned with the greats,' he said. But a personal conversation with a higher power, just as he was settling the challenging edit of his special, changed his perspective. 'God spoke to me and said, 'I used to listen to you when you would whisper that you wanted to be part of the great ones,'' Foxx recalled. 'He said, 'I had to put you through something horrible in order for you to see how great you could be. … Did you see your special? So what do you think?' I said, 'I don't ever have to be great again. If I gotta go through that, I'll just be cool. C-minus is all right with me!'' Photo byfor Netflix Silverman's PostMortem, too, centered around loss and grief as she explored losing both her father and stepmother within a nine-day span. She never thought twice about building new material around such a deeply personal issue, complete with her signature, often scatological irreverence. 'I put very little thought into that stuff other than what's working, what isn't working,' she told Gold Derby. 'I always mine personal stuff; I've always been explicit and I am interested in mining the darkest corners of humanity. And I'm like, 'None of us are ready for it and it's going to happen to every single one of us, period.' So to have a special that's relatable was new for me.' Silverman said that not only did viewers offer feedback about how healing her set had been for them, it was a balm for the comedian herself. 'It was really cathartic,' she said. 'At the beginning it hurt. I just dreaded it. I didn't know how to tell the story and I felt uncomfortable in places. And once I figured out the story and the shape of it, I really enjoyed it. And I had distance from it. It was so fresh, and by the end I had more distance from it, and I just feel like you're better when you have distance from something.'for Netflix Birbiglia's experience with The Old Man and the Pool, which focused on family — particularly his aged dad's declining health — was both creatively exhausting and invigorating. 'This one is so personal that I feel like I have emptied the tank of all that I have,' he told Gold Derby. 'It's about my dad, it's about my daughter, and I feel like it's raw. It's this thing where now that I've shared it with people, I almost want to go to Hawaii for five years or something. Because I feel so exposed.' 'Certainly the response to it has been pretty extraordinary,' he added. 'It's the amount of emails and messages I get a day from people who are struggling with their parents going through strokes and heart attacks and all these things that are so hard. And my goal with The Old Man and the Pool, more than any of my other specials, is to take this thing that's so awful — my dad and the final stages of his life — and how do I find the funny in that? If I can find the funny in that, that's my gift to the audience: 'This is my coping mechanism here. You can try this too.'' 'I kind of got out of my comfort zone and tried to tell more of a personal story that drew out emotion,' said Kreischer, who pivoted a bit from his party-guy persona in Razzle Dazzle and told revealing tales about his family, including his wife's experience with menopause. 'I knew it worked on the road, I knew it was going to work on television, and the feedback was kind of overwhelming. It went viral and I was really happy about that, so it was really rewarding.' 'The more time you spend in comedy, the better you get and you start being able to do tricks — I say tricks, but things you couldn't pull off when you were younger,' he added. 'Also you get to a point where you're like, 'I've written all the jokes, told all my stories, I'm seeing a format in what I'm doing — I've got to break it up.' I got to really stir the pot a little bit.'for Netflix For Feimster, Crushing It offered a chance to showcase the maturation and evolution of her increasingly honed comedy style. 'I felt like this is my third hour [special] and I wanted to show people I'd kind of grown up, and I felt like my voice had evolved and my stories had, so I wanted the look of it — and my look — to kind of match that,' she told Gold Derby. 'So we just tried to elevate, and I'm glad that that came across, because this is my third tour that I'm on right now, as far as a hundred cities, 150 shows, so I worked these sets out! And I rocked that little pink suit!' Her ongoing connection with Netflix and the faith the streamer has shown in her has provided an immeasurable boost to her comedy profile, she added. 'To be in that family certainly helps tremendously — it's that sort of stamp of approval that you have arrived, because they are selective about the specials,' said Feimster. 'It just feels like I'm a real professional comedian. And I've done so many acting things with them too. I have Fubar coming up with Arnold [Schwarzenegger], and I think I've done 20 Netflix shows, so at this point they're paying my bills and I very much appreciate them!' 'Every comedy special feels like the comedian's wedding: 'What's it going to be? Who's going to come? What is my material going to be like?'' Buteau told Gold Derby, describing her mindset in shaping A Buteau-ful Mind at Radio City Music Hall. Her ultimate goal: level up. 'When I was shopping venues in New York, I found out that no other woman had filmed a special at Radio City Music Hall,' she said. 'I'm like, 'Girl, why are you doing this?' Then you have to push yourself. You have to believe in yourself that you could do this. I'd never even played Radio City Music Hall as an independent artist — I've always opened for someone there, and so I'm like, 'Oh, the bigger picture is when you're not doing this anymore, how are other people inspired? How do you leave the world better than you found it?'' Buteau, too, discovered that fulfilling her personal vision resulted in a deeper connection with her audience. 'Between the internet, social media and then also being in public, whether it's America or Europe, the feedback has been amazing,' she said. 'It's not just 'You're funny,' it's like 'I'm inspired by you and I feel better about my body,' or 'I feel seen,' or 'Thank you for this material because I have a non-binary child and now we can watch something together and know that the world's going to be a better place,' or something. It's insane!' Realizing his comedy series Sledgehammer was 'creatively the most fun I've ever had, because we essentially just got to make what we wanted to make, which is kind of unheard of,' Segura told Gold Derby. 'It was a total freedom, and it was so fun to make these, basically, 15 short films. It was a huge undertaking, everybody busted their ass, but it was always super fun.' 'I think it's one of those things that's either going to scare you to go, 'I don't want to do this' — maybe not scare you, but just turn you off,' he added. 'For me, it excited me.' The impact of his special on Schulz, whose Life chronicled his experience becoming a father, was profound — so much so that he's yet to return to performing live comedy as he continues to soak up more of what his personal life has to offer. 'I haven't even been on stage since I put it out, so I don't really know the effects of it,' he told Gold Derby. 'I think the only reason I was able to do this one, outside of the circumstances, is because I took time off and I let life affect me. What I feel. Oftentimes if you tour relentlessly, you just kind of do a different version of the same jokes you are already doing, and I just never want to do that.' Taking a step back allowed him to reframe his humor around genuine experience. 'So this was really cool,' he added. 'I've never been personal about my comedy. I thought my life was kind of boring, and then this thing happened and I was like, 'Whoa — this is not boring!'' Best of GoldDerby 'I cried a lot': Rob Delaney on the heart and humor in FX's 'Dying for Sex' — and Neighbor Guy's kick in the 'zone' TV directors roundtable: 'American Primeval,' 'The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,' 'Paradise' 'Paradise' directors John Requa and Glenn Ficarra on the 'chaos' of crafting 'the world coming to an end' Click here to read the full article.
Time Out
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
The funniest things I saw at Sydney Comedy Festival – Plus, the encore shows you can still catch
Sydney's biggest annual comedy event just wrapped for another year, and I want to give a nod to some of the most hilarious, off-the-wall, and delightful shows I managed to catch during Sydney Comedy Festival's huge 20th anniversary year. Plus, hot tip: the laughs aren't over! There is an assortment of encore performances coming up for some of the festival's most popular shows. This includes the winner of the Best of the Fest Award, Dan Rath's Tropical Depression – a razor-sharp offbeat observational show offering Rath's fresh take on a broad range of topics from Uber rides to moving to Korea, chatbots and more. (Tropical Depression is playing an encore at the Comedy Store on Friday, August 8. You can book tickets here.) Highlights of Sydney Comedy Festival 2025 Ruby Teys – Cherry Vinyl: Coober Pedy's Last Show Girl ★★★★★ Ruby Teys' cabaret-esque style is the very definition of prawn cocktail comedy: delicious, decadent, somewhat perplexing, and always existing one minor but dangerous temperature change away from turning your stomach. The ingredients probably shouldn't work together, and yet, she tosses them together with a dash of showgirl chutzpah and mad genius, leaving audiences rolling in regular roars of laughter – satiated, but always hungry for more. Much like a prawn, the body horror also makes it even better (The Substance 's special effects team simply can't compete with what happens to a Gold Coast showgirl after a few too many komodo dragon placenta pills). Also, she appears in a bedazzled prawn costume. What more could you want? Nostalgically and politically irreverent, Coober Pedy's Last Show Girl is a comedy with two buttons undone on the working class. From following the 'dingo proof fence' to the Gold Coast in order to pursue her dream of becoming a glamorous showgirl, Cherry Vinyl's story is a parable for the little Australians, for the underdogs, for the blind blonde mole in all of us. Incorporating animation, pre-recorded footage, costume changes, old fashioned razzle dazzle, the right amount of crude jokes and some top notch physical comedy, Teys delivers a character performance that simply must be inducted into the Australian consciousness. There's even a frank meditation on the intersection of power and gender and body modification, if you should choose to read into it. All in all, a solid six tits out of five. Thalia Joan – Dear Future Memoir ★★★★☆ A talented storyteller with a real knack of unhinged brilliance, Thalia Joan is the kind of comedian who can get a whole room singing along, karaoke-style, to 'I Believe in a Thing Called Love' by British glam-rock-revivalists, The Darkness. And that's exactly what she does in her latest show, Dear Future Memoir. A suitcase-full of stories from her recent fever dream of a trip to the United States – where, spoiler alert, her suitcase never actually joined her – it's a somewhat looser affair than her previous, more tightly scripted shows. (And that may or may not have something to do with the copious amount of cold 'n flu pills she had to snaffle down ahead of her Sydney Comedy Festival run.) But Thalia has the kind of enigmatic presence that thrives in chaos, winning over an audience with witty quips, kooky mannerisms, effervescent energy, and even some amateur keyboard skills. While her therapist may be dismissive about her habit of excusing all of her most self-destructive decisions as 'doing it for the memoir', Thalia proves that she is living out stories that are worth sharing – and in doing so, she encourages us to be bolder, too. (And besides, no man who passes off memeable quotes as billable wisdom can tell us otherwise!) Breaking the Musical ★★★★☆ In the long run, it turns out that the threat of being sued by Rachel Gunn herself was the best publicity that this little-low-budget-show-that-could could've asked for. Sydney-based comedian Stephanie Broadbridge writes and stars in this satisfyingly silly, unauthorised musical satire that is definitely not about a certain Australian hopeful's journey to compete as a break dancer at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Supported by a hardworking ensemble, Broadbridge (as 'Spraygun') strikes the perfect balance in this clever and creative show, painting 'Spraygun' with a relatively sympathetic brush while also holding space for the genuine concerns that certain communities might have about a white woman of a certain demographic representing a dance style pioneered by marginalised communities on the world stage. Breaking the Musical is able to poke fun at the absurdity of certain strains of academia, as well as the absurdity of taking any sort of artform and trying to rank and judge it on a scale, all while exploring what the Australian identity means in today's world (with a 'Nutbush'-esque instructional dance thrown in for good measure). This show is also packed with a delightful grab-bag of musical references for the theatre fanatics to get down with, as well as nods to British pantomime, some genuinely impressive French mime action, and some bedazzled green tracksuits to boot. Playing out over about an hour, Breaking is able to pack in a lot without overstaying its welcome. The ending doesn't tie up neatly, leaving us somewhat baffled and somewhat bemused, but this actually lines up rather well with the real story that may or may not have inspired it. This is comedy theatre that is low-budget, high-stakes, and thoroughly entertaining – something that all Aussies need to see. (Follow @stephbroadbridge on Instagram for updates about Breaking the Musical.) Reuben Kaye – The Party's Over ★★★★☆ Reuben Kaye reaffirms why he is one of the best entertainers Australia has ever accidentally produced with his latest solo show, The Party's Over. In a show that re-treads some of his greatest hits and sprinkles in some updated social commentary and personal anecdotes, Reuben is able to keep everyone on the edge of their seats with his bitingly intelligent and shamelessly raunchy antics as he struts across the Enmore Theatre stage (and playfully taunts unsuspecting folks in the audience). As fans might be aware, the last time Reuben was at this venue, his show had been considerably postponed after threats were made by far-right 'Christian activists' over a certain Jesus joke on a certain primetime television appearance went down famously well. That 2023 performance was a triumph, and this one in 2025 is a total home run. The best part of a Reuben Kaye show is not just how much he'll make you laugh (and that's a lot), but how he'll leave you feeling energised, and ready to fight back against conservative bores.
