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BACK ISSUES INTERVIEWS Stand-Up Comedians Jim Norton Robert Kelly Donnell Rawlings Brad Stine Tammy Pescatelli Leighann Lord George Sarris Nick DiPaolo Russ Meneve Shang and more By Tasha Harris, NYC Comedy Journalist STAGE TIME The Magazine That Stands Up For Comedy |
Now, it would still be those two but add to that The Laugh Lounge, The Laugh Factory and Caroline’s
on occasion. I love that room. That is such a beautiful room. It’s one of the rooms that’s actually
built correctly for comedy; I mean the way it’s shaped…They have the ability, if it’s not a full house
to close it off so people don’t feel like they’re sitting in an empty room.
There’s other little comedy holes where people were doing comedy. There used to be a place on
14th Street. It wasn’t too far from Nell’s. I also performed at Nell’s. It was called Planters. They had
an open mic in the basement all the time. I also work the little rooms all around town…
How did your opportunity to perform on Def Comedy Jam come about?
She said, “rolling her eyes.” The tape will pick that up. I’m not a Def Jam comic. I never wanted to
do the show because I did not think I fit. I understand that not everybody is going to like you.
They’re trying fit a square peg in a round hole…So I got invited to audition for it and I said,
“Well, have they seen me?” because it didn’t make sense. They were trying to change the show.
They were trying to show diversity of black comedy. And see I’ve heard that before where they tell
comics that but don’t tell the audience.
That’s how I got to The Apollo Comedy Hour. Again, “Have they seen me?" "Well, no Leighann,
we want to do something different” and I’m standing in front of an audience who didn’t know they
were trying to do something different. They had no preparation whatsoever. And they’re looking
at me like “Can we boo her?” They didn’t; I did it and got through it.
My idea was I’ll go to the audition…They usually had the audition in Jersey, [at] a really rough room.
I probably blocked it out to protect myself. But for some reason, they were having the audition at
Caroline’s and I said, “Maybe, they don’t know the type of comic that I am, so I’m going to do
political material so that way they definitely know." I just had fun. I did the set that I wanted to do.
I wasn’t worried about trying to get on the show. They picked me. I said, “Did they see the audition?
Because that’s what I’m doing on the show.” And they were like, "No Leighann, that’s fine.
That’s what we want.”
I get there…I told all my friends, my family. My parents actually came…I remember sitting in the
dressing room with my manager and we’re watching the show on the monitor. The first comic,
I don’t know who it was, a younger comic, went out and was just vile. I’m watching it on the monitor
and I’m like, “Yeah, I thought ya’ll were trying to change.” I was horrified. I have to go on after that.
I went out and it was odd because I did political material. If you remember Def Jam, in the front
around the stage was really young people. So, they’re sitting there and the type of stuff I’m talking
about, they had never seen it on Def Jam. They’ve never heard that. They’re not familiar with people
like Paul Mooney. The back part of the audience and the balcony were a little bit older and they were
appreciating what I was doing.
Def Jam was not the type of show that booed people. My father told me there was one guy who
wasn’t getting what I was saying and he was like “We should boo her.” Another audience member
turned around and said, “Man, if you don’t know what she’s talking about, then you need to shut
the fuck up and let her do her thing.” I did my thing. They applauded.
I left the stage and I didn’t know this until my parents told me and I saw the tape: Mark Curry was
the host and when he came out, he did a black power [raised fist] like, “Yeah, that’s what we need
to hear.”
I wasn’t trying to be black power or black consciousness. I was just trying to be me and give you
different comedy. There are different flavors and Def Jam was just one flavor. They gave a lot of
opportunities to a lot of people and put us out there but they only put us out there in one way,
unfortunately. The end of the show was great. I met Russell [Simmons]. I met Steve Harvey and
Ahmad Rashad and they were very complimentary and supportive.
I got an email about two years ago from a girl, who at the time was a freshman at North Carolina
State University. She had apparently saw me on the tape, tracked me down via email to let me know
that she had never seen anything like that before and the fact that she could see a black woman
being graceful and beautiful. She was thanking me and this was years later.
When I started, I did not know what type of comic I was going to be; unfortunately, if you play the
chitlin-circuit rooms, they want comedy one way. And I started discovering that’s not me. And I didn’t
want to be forced to be something I wasn’t.
Once again, I wasn’t going to force it. That’s just not my way. If what ya’ll want is what I can’t give,
then there’s really no reason to force this relationship, so I didn’t play those rooms…I really tried to
place those places that allowed me to develop into whatever type of comic I was going to be.
on occasion. I love that room. That is such a beautiful room. It’s one of the rooms that’s actually
built correctly for comedy; I mean the way it’s shaped…They have the ability, if it’s not a full house
to close it off so people don’t feel like they’re sitting in an empty room.
There’s other little comedy holes where people were doing comedy. There used to be a place on
14th Street. It wasn’t too far from Nell’s. I also performed at Nell’s. It was called Planters. They had
an open mic in the basement all the time. I also work the little rooms all around town…
How did your opportunity to perform on Def Comedy Jam come about?
She said, “rolling her eyes.” The tape will pick that up. I’m not a Def Jam comic. I never wanted to
do the show because I did not think I fit. I understand that not everybody is going to like you.
They’re trying fit a square peg in a round hole…So I got invited to audition for it and I said,
“Well, have they seen me?” because it didn’t make sense. They were trying to change the show.
They were trying to show diversity of black comedy. And see I’ve heard that before where they tell
comics that but don’t tell the audience.
That’s how I got to The Apollo Comedy Hour. Again, “Have they seen me?" "Well, no Leighann,
we want to do something different” and I’m standing in front of an audience who didn’t know they
were trying to do something different. They had no preparation whatsoever. And they’re looking
at me like “Can we boo her?” They didn’t; I did it and got through it.
My idea was I’ll go to the audition…They usually had the audition in Jersey, [at] a really rough room.
I probably blocked it out to protect myself. But for some reason, they were having the audition at
Caroline’s and I said, “Maybe, they don’t know the type of comic that I am, so I’m going to do
political material so that way they definitely know." I just had fun. I did the set that I wanted to do.
I wasn’t worried about trying to get on the show. They picked me. I said, “Did they see the audition?
Because that’s what I’m doing on the show.” And they were like, "No Leighann, that’s fine.
That’s what we want.”
I get there…I told all my friends, my family. My parents actually came…I remember sitting in the
dressing room with my manager and we’re watching the show on the monitor. The first comic,
I don’t know who it was, a younger comic, went out and was just vile. I’m watching it on the monitor
and I’m like, “Yeah, I thought ya’ll were trying to change.” I was horrified. I have to go on after that.
I went out and it was odd because I did political material. If you remember Def Jam, in the front
around the stage was really young people. So, they’re sitting there and the type of stuff I’m talking
about, they had never seen it on Def Jam. They’ve never heard that. They’re not familiar with people
like Paul Mooney. The back part of the audience and the balcony were a little bit older and they were
appreciating what I was doing.
Def Jam was not the type of show that booed people. My father told me there was one guy who
wasn’t getting what I was saying and he was like “We should boo her.” Another audience member
turned around and said, “Man, if you don’t know what she’s talking about, then you need to shut
the fuck up and let her do her thing.” I did my thing. They applauded.
I left the stage and I didn’t know this until my parents told me and I saw the tape: Mark Curry was
the host and when he came out, he did a black power [raised fist] like, “Yeah, that’s what we need
to hear.”
I wasn’t trying to be black power or black consciousness. I was just trying to be me and give you
different comedy. There are different flavors and Def Jam was just one flavor. They gave a lot of
opportunities to a lot of people and put us out there but they only put us out there in one way,
unfortunately. The end of the show was great. I met Russell [Simmons]. I met Steve Harvey and
Ahmad Rashad and they were very complimentary and supportive.
I got an email about two years ago from a girl, who at the time was a freshman at North Carolina
State University. She had apparently saw me on the tape, tracked me down via email to let me know
that she had never seen anything like that before and the fact that she could see a black woman
being graceful and beautiful. She was thanking me and this was years later.
When I started, I did not know what type of comic I was going to be; unfortunately, if you play the
chitlin-circuit rooms, they want comedy one way. And I started discovering that’s not me. And I didn’t
want to be forced to be something I wasn’t.
Once again, I wasn’t going to force it. That’s just not my way. If what ya’ll want is what I can’t give,
then there’s really no reason to force this relationship, so I didn’t play those rooms…I really tried to
place those places that allowed me to develop into whatever type of comic I was going to be.