Episode 107 · The GaS Digital / Ray Kump Era
Montreal Mama
Aug 2, 2018 · 1:04:57 · 17 segments, 114 moments indexed
- 1 min
Show intro music and announcer introduces Tim Dillon and Ray Kump.
2moments
- 0:12Opening: Tim Dillon Is Going To Hell with Tim Dillon and Ray Kump
- 0:27Tim welcomes listeners and introduces Ray Kump as co-host
- 1 min
Praise for Ray's Solo Episode and Montreal Recap Begins
#Tim and Ray banter about Ray's well-received debut solo episode, referencing a Freddie Got Fingered bit, then Tim recaps returning from performing at the Just For Laughs Montreal Comedy Festival.
3moments
- 0:46Tim praises Ray's solo episode as great.
- 0:58Fans messaged Tim on Instagram saying Ray is phenomenal and that Tim is holding him back.
- 1:33Tim spent a week at the Montreal Comedy Festival and several people asked for Ray at the shows.
Montreal Comedy FestivalJFL board
- 4 min
Variety's Diversity List and the Rise of 'Southern Mama'
#Tim explains how Variety's 'top 10 comics to watch' list included only one straight white comic, a YouTube personality named Darren Knight who performs as 'Southern Mama,' and questions why he was chosen over established stand-ups like Mark Normand or Andrew Schulz.
6moments
- 1:53Tim introduces the topic of bombing at comedy festivals and how comedians handle it.
- 2:59Variety's annual top 10 comics to watch list featured just one straight white male comedian.
- 3:11Tim criticizes diversity lists as inherently political statements that delegitimize comedy merit.
- 3:58The one straight white male on Variety's list is Darren Knight, performing as 'Southern Mama.'
- 4:20Southern Mama came up through social media rather than the traditional New York or LA standup circuit.
- 5:02Darren Knight became famous from a YouTube video where he performs a character who imitates a Southern woman.
VarietyMontreal Comedy FestivalDarren KnightAmy SchumerAndrew SchulzDave ChappelleKevin HartTiffany Haddish+4 more
- 3 min
Watching Southern Mama Videos
#Tim and Ray watch and react to several 'Southern Mama' YouTube videos, unimpressed by the low-effort accent and premise despite the character's millions of views and packed theater shows.
7moments
- 5:59Tim begins watching Southern Mama videos, prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt despite their millions of views.
- 6:12The character's performance is unimpressive—barely a voice, just a southern accent saying things a southern mama would say, no costume in most videos.
- 7:30Tim's core objection: "We're not the audience for Southern Mama" because neither he nor his co-host ever had a Southern Mama.
- 7:41It's odd that this creator was picked as "straight white comedian of the year" given the weak material.
- 7:57Playing a viral Southern Mama video with 1.2 million views—the creator ad-libbing mommy complaints about kids and showers.
- 8:16Tim can't figure out how this person is even supposed to be from the South, let alone why it resonates.
- 8:43Bottom line: Tim went in without prejudice and still found it unimpressive.
- 7 min
Southern Mama Bombs at Just For Laughs
#Tim recounts in detail how Southern Mama (Darren Knight) bombed on the Variety Showcase in Montreal, using a stolen Marx Brothers joke and shit jokes, then arrogantly lectured the crowd about what comedy 'is about' before storming off amid boos, contrasted with Rocky Dale Davis' well-received New Faces set and Chris Redd's on-stage rebuke.
11moments
- 8:53Tim describes how Southern Mama has built a successful career—fills theaters, owns a big house, throws Gatsby parties.
- 9:08Variety selected him for the Montreal Comedy Festival showcase over the festival's own New Faces program.
- 10:11Tim's manager told him the entertainment industry comes down to laziness—someone looked at YouTube views and picked Southern Mama.
- 10:50Southern Mama opens with a Marx Brothers joke about wives and girlfriends, material that isn't his own.
- 11:22The set tanks: lots of shit and diarrhea jokes that don't land with an audience of comedy industry people.
- 11:34Southern white guy Rocky Dale Davis murdered New Faces, so Tim won't accept excuses about identity holding him back.
- 13:13Mid-bombing, Southern Mama says he won't talk about race and gender because that's not what comedy is about.
- 13:59Canadians don't boo the way Americans do, but this crowd is actually booing him during the set.
- 15:02Tim exits early when booed at a different venue to avoid killing the momentum for the next performer.
- 15:43Southern Mama's closing line: 'When we owned them, we took care of them. If they were so unhappy, why are they making all that beautiful music?'
- 15:58Southern Mama bombs hard enough to announce his own failure on stage during his exit.
Rocky Dale DavisJFL (Montreal Comedy Festival)Darren KnightVarietyMarx Brothers
- 5 min
Money vs. Respect in Comedy
#Tim and Ray discuss the tradeoff between taking the 'shortcut' to money/fame via viral fame versus earning respect through years in the stand-up trenches, using Kevin Hart and Southern Mama as contrasting examples, and riff on New York comedy snobbery and artistic standards (Mozart vs. lute players).
8moments
- 16:31Tim wishes he and Red Com could have written Southern Mama's set before he bombed at a showcase.
- 17:02Chris Redd confronts Southern Mama for bombing and then lecturing everyone about comedy.
- 17:39The core trade-off: you can pursue money or respect in comedy, but not both without putting in years.
- 18:36Tim advises taking the money and house over respect—most comedians with respect have neither.
- 19:14Nothing is ever enough for anyone; people with fanbases and followers still want more.
- 19:58Comedians who succeed quickly think they're supposed to ascend without ever being told they suck.
- 20:28New York has to be the place that says no, that maintains taste even when a hundred thousand people say someone's great.
- 21:02There's a clear distinction between the greatest comedians and very popular ones—like the difference between Mozart and a lute player.
Chris ReddKevin HartRichard PryorSouthern mama
- 1 min
Judging Bad Comics and 'I've Seen Them Do Well'
#Tim explains how you can tell someone in comedy has no taste by their noncommittal answers about other comedians' talent, then pivots toward the news.
3moments
- 21:31Tim imagines a medieval lute player as the southern mama figure of his day, with everyone dismissing him until someone argues he has an audience.
- 21:51On the idea that you can't judge someone's talent: Tim argues that being a person means you're allowed to say someone sucks, even if you suck.
- 22:13The telltale sign someone in comedy has no taste: when asked if a comic is funny, they respond 'I've seen them do well' instead of taking a position.
- 5 min
Pizzagate, Pedophile Accusations, and Owen Benjamin's Hollywood Claims
#Tim unpacks the trend of comedians and right-wing figures accusing Hollywood figures (Dan Harmon, James Gunn) of being pedophiles as political retaliation, contrasts it with real Pizzagate reporting from Nick Bryant, and mocks Owen Benjamin's claims of insider Hollywood knowledge despite having a thin industry resume.
8moments
- 22:41Tim argues that comedians making jokes about pedophilia doesn't make them pedophiles.
- 23:07The dynamic between Hollywood and the right creates toxic mutual accusations: Trump voters are called Nazis, Hollywood people called pedophiles and Satanists.
- 24:01Tim criticizes right-wing figures for pushing Pizzagate instead of covering Nick Bryant's work on the actual Franklin scandal involving real victims.
- 24:28Failed comedians increasingly turn to far-left or far-right politics because it's easier to build an audience through rage than through comedy.
- 25:20Politics attracts people who want to be riled up and directed toward anger, making it much easier than the genuine difficulty of making people laugh.
- 26:13Owen Benjamin claims he sacrificed a major Hollywood career, but Tim notes Owen was just managed by CAA with a pilot and two specials.
- 26:57Tim describes Owen Benjamin's supposed involvement in Hollywood's inner workings as absurd given his actual level of access and participation.
- 27:20Tim's position: don't pretend to be a Hollywood insider exposing secrets if you were never actually part of that world in the first place.
- 7 min
Roseanne, Free Speech Hypocrisy, and Comedian Cancel Culture
#Tim discusses the James Gunn/Dan Harmon pedophile jokes as 'edgelord' white guy humor, then pivots to Roseanne's firing, arguing comedians who now claim to champion free speech were silent or even called for firings (like Bill Maher's) until it affected them personally.
10moments
- 27:44Tim explains the accusation logic: comedians made inappropriate jokes, but that doesn't make them pedophiles.
- 28:10Pedophile humor is typically edgy white guy material—shock value from people without real substance.
- 29:31Tim acknowledges the accusations aren't logical, but defends the underlying instinct: Hollywood does have a real abuse problem.
- 30:30Frustration over ignored victims gets channeled into sloppy accusations—people lashing out when they feel powerless.
- 31:04The repeated-exposure normalization argument is cynical and retaliatory, not particularly sound.
- 31:32Comics only started caring about free speech when they started losing jobs—they didn't defend it for years before.
- 32:02Tim explains why he wouldn't lead a charge against Roseanne despite understanding why ABC fired her.
- 32:40Tim has never tried to deplatform anyone because it's not in his nature; he prefers debate and argument.
- 33:30A comic's fundamental value should be allowing people to make mistakes in pursuit of funny, even hateful ones.
- 34:03ABC knew about Roseanne's racially charged history but gave her a show anyway, so firing her after a tweet is hypocritical.
RoseanneDan HarmonJames GunnHollywoodBill MaherLaura IngramAlex JonesDennis Hasker+1 more
- 5 min
Southern Mama Bit and Fake Set Recreation
#Tim and Ray perform an improvised, exaggerated parody 'Southern Mama' stand-up set imagining the terrible jokes that led to the bombing, riffing on crude and shock-value material.
11moments
- 34:20Tim introduces the Southern Mama character with a thick accent.
- 34:36Southern Mama announces she's performing at the Montreal Faggot Clown Festival.
- 34:55A joke about shitting in a Waffle House booth and worrying a gay man will find it arousing.
- 35:46Southern Mama delivers a bit about a girl getting her period while swimming, comparing the blood to Kool-Aid.
- 36:21The character forgets the festival name mid-set, treating it as part of the bombing performance.
- 36:39Tim notes that the character says 'Southern Mama' after every joke, which becomes the running gag of the bit.
- 37:15Tim imagines a delusional agent in the room thinking the terrible set is genius.
- 37:34Tim critiques the Southern Mama voice as sounding like a mentally deficient person at a gas station.
- 38:25Discussion turns to Southern Mama's actual YouTube presence and audience size.
- 38:45Tim describes the audiences of Southern Mama's YouTube videos as looking like melted macaroni and cheese.
- 39:00Tim suggests looking up Southern Mama on YouTube to see the audience and find the whole thing entertaining.
Montreal Faggot Clown FestivalYouTubeMarlboroRicketts Fish and GearWaffle HouseKool-Aid
- 1 min
Southern Mama's Fanbase and Pent-Up Political Rage
#Tim describes Southern Mama's overweight fanbase and connects his appeal to a broader cultural phenomenon of angry people seeking podcasts and media that validate their rage and tell them who to blame.
2moments
- 39:26People accumulate rage at jobs they hate all day, then turn to podcasts demanding someone tell them who's evil and why their life sucks.
- 39:42The Federal Reserve functions as a nameless, faceless scapegoat by design — easier to blame than actually confronting a building in Manhattan or DC.
- 9 min
Peter Schiff, the Next Financial Crisis, and US-China Debt
#Tim and Ray have an extended discussion about Peter Schiff's recession predictions, the 2008 financial crisis and bailout mechanics, quantitative easing, the ongoing trade war with China, and a story from the film 'Too Big to Fail' about Russia proposing to China that they jointly dump US treasuries to collapse the American economy.
10moments
- 40:19YouTube comment: 'Peter Schiff has predicted 48 of our last two recessions'
- 40:39Tim discusses the coming crisis being worse because central banks have no money to bail out the system
- 41:09Tim pitches an absurd sales pitch built around the inevitable crisis: 'As you well know, we're due for a crisis'
- 41:48Stock market bubble correlates directly with Fed keeping interest rates at zero and quantitative easing
- 42:28Current oil financing bubble won't be as bad as the housing bubble but represents fundamental economic fragility
- 43:48We're borrowing more money this year than ever before while potentially entering a trade war with China
- 44:55If a massive collapse happens, there's no reserve cash flow and interest rates can't go lower like they did in 2008
- 45:32Tim questions whether starting a trade war with China while they hold so much US debt is the dumbest thing in the world
- 46:06During 2008 financial crisis, Russia propositioned China to dump US Treasury bonds together and crash the economy
- 48:19China is an astronomically rising economy that will be the dominant global force in 10 to 40 years
Peter SchiffRussiaHank PaulsonRed EyeChinaThe Big ShortJoe Rogan
- 4 min
Applebee's Origins, the New Studio, and Batman Villains Riff
#Tim reminisces about watching the 2008 bailout vote from an Applebee's/Chili's, discusses adjusting to the new podcast studio, jokingly compares himself to Batman, and launches into a Batman movie villains discussion (Oswald Cobblepot, Joker, Two-Face) plus a Kevin Farley/Tommy Boy anecdote.
8moments
- 51:15Tim remembers sitting in a mortgage office on Long Island when the first bank bailout failed to pass Congress.
- 51:43The new studio felt weird at first because Tim resists change, but he's gotten more comfortable with it and approves of the color fix.
- 51:55Tim clarifies he doesn't mind the guest not being in the room, and he was just making sure the guest wasn't abusing women.
- 52:21Tim compares himself to Batman, saying wealthy people who fight crime shouldn't be viewed as villains even if they operate in shadows.
- 52:44Oswald Cobblepot is identified as the best Batman villain character of all time.
- 52:59Tim wants to play a scene where Cobblepot bites someone's nose to close out the segment.
- 53:11A friend was recently watching Tommy Boy with someone's son, reciting every line from the movie.
- 53:26Tim's friend's girlfriend had dated Kevin Farley, which made for a weird moment during the movie watch.
RussiaKevin FarleyChinaBatmanOswald CobblepotGaS DigitalSilicon ValleyTommy Boy+1 more
- 2 min
Batman Villain Actors and the Tommy Lee Jones/Jim Carrey Feud Story
#Continuing the Batman riff, they debate Heath Ledger vs Jack Nicholson's Joker, and Tim tells an anecdote about Tommy Lee Jones allegedly snubbing Jim Carrey in a restaurant during the filming of Batman Forever.
5moments
- 54:49Jim Carrey's Riddler performance was actually right for the character, even though Heath Ledger's Joker is next level once you've seen it.
- 55:04Tommy Lee Jones played Two-Face and was terrible compared to other Batman villains like Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman.
- 55:19Tommy Lee Jones hated Jim Carrey during the Batman Forever era.
- 55:33Jones refused, and when Carrey asked why he was always a dick to him, Jones responded that he would not sanction his buffoonery.
- 55:49Tommy Lee Jones came into the business old and has never really been young in his persona.
Heath LedgerJim CarreyTommy Lee Jones
- 5 min
Tim asks listeners to subscribe, leave iTunes reviews, and share the show on social media, jokes about doing a hayride-themed fall tour, reminisces about being a NYC double-decker bus tour guide, then runs through upcoming tour dates in Chicago, Lexington, and cancelled shows in Providence and Block Island.
10moments
- 56:07Tim urges listeners to leave five-star reviews on iTunes, explaining that engagement rather than raw listens determines podcast rankings.
- 56:51Share the podcast on Twitter and Instagram even if you only have 13 followers—the algorithm is what matters, not your boss seeing it.
- 57:24Post links in Facebook comments, not the main post, because Facebook blocks links to keep people on their site.
- 57:39Tim plans to do live shows in the fall with Halloween themes, pumpkin picking, and weird people.
- 58:11The hayride tour idea—putting hay on the tour bus and running it through Manhattan for a fall theme.
- 58:36Tim spent years as a double-decker bus tour guide and explains the two best times for that tour: fall at night and late January when you can see into lit apartment windows.
- 59:29A pilot is being made; Tim asks listeners to follow him on Instagram and Twitter and have their cats do the same.
- 59:48Tour dates at TimDillonComedy.com: Zany's in Chicago August 8th through the 13th and Lexington, Kentucky Comedy Off Broadway.
- 1:00:06The Providence, Rhode Island show is cancelled and will be replaced with someone funny; the Block Island show is also not happening.
- 1:00:35September and October shows in Massachusetts and other dates being finalized, with Ray Kump providing closing remarks.
- 3 min
Ray's Disney/Demi Lovato/9-11 Instagram Post Explained
#Ray explains his controversial Instagram collage linking Disney, Demi Lovato's overdose, and 9/11 imagery as commentary on corporate exploitation of child stars, and they debate how much personal responsibility versus corporate blame applies to celebrity drug overdoses.
6moments
- 1:00:46Ray's main Instagram account is @Ray Kump where he posts new content regularly.
- 1:00:57Ray created a collage mixing Disney, Demi Lovato, and Saddam Hussein that looks like he's making light of her overdose.
- 1:01:15Tim notes that calling attention to unhealthy celebrity culture can seem like you're making light of tragedies, but it's actually criticism of the system that causes them.
- 1:01:41Ray replaced the plane in the 9-11 memorial image with a Disney plane for the collage.
- 1:02:25Ryan Gosling, who appeared in the violent film Drive, is also in the collage alongside Demi Lovato.
- 1:02:50Corporate interests and government actions, like Disney's exploitation of young stars, inadvertently create the conditions that lead to tragedies people then have to live with.
- 2 min
Closing Southern Mama and Southern Retard Bit / Sign Off
#Tim and Ray close the show with one more crude improvised Southern Mama/Southern Retard bit before signing off and telling listeners to subscribe.
4moments
- 1:03:28Tim argues that while kids face pressure and exploitation, they still need to take personal responsibility for their choices.
- 1:03:50Something odd about Disney's wholesome image combined with their involvement in sexualizing young performers.
- 1:04:05Southern Mama character describes opening a cooler at a camping trip and finding an aborted fetus inside.
- 1:04:26Southern Retard character bit wraps up the segment as Tim closes out the show.