rant · moment 14 of 24
Why Everyone Thinks They Could Do Stand-Up
from Kurt Metzger · #135
Audio-only archive episode — no video to seek.
2 minRiff on people who claim they could do comedy, the illusion of behind-the-scenes access making audiences feel entitled to comedians' lives, and the resentment of those who never tried it.
- 38:33Tim got into stand-up thinking he could do it, like an obnoxious person.
- 38:51Tim dismisses the idea that he cares whether friends or anyone else tries stand-up.
- 39:09Nobody wants new comedians in the industry—it's already crowded.
- 39:23What matters is whether someone is actually funny, which naturally gravitates people like a lighthouse.
- 39:39Culture and comedy trickle down from upper-class taste-makers to the rest of society.
- 40:00Showing the process of stand-up too much makes people think they understand it and could do it themselves.
- 40:12They resent comedians' positions based on an imagined version of the job they've never actually tried.