Seriously Kamau?
I did an interview with The Scotsman’s Chitra Ramaswamy. It is one of the most fun interviews I’ve had in a long time. And it features one of my favorite quotes I’ve ever said.
I think I like this interview so much because she took everything I said and then re-calibrated it make it more British-y, which makes me sound more intelligent to me… because I’m a self-hating American.
So my UK debut is fast approaching and I’m still kind of confused why my first set EVER in the UK will be an hour long stand-up set in London, but here we go. I could really use the help of YOU, my United States peoples, who have peoples in London who might be interested in some Kamau and my Kamauhour! (Say it put loud. It’s fun.)
My London Debut 5 April
The details are below and you can download this flier if you wanna ship it to your peoples across the pond. Here is a Facebook invite too if you go that way.
Also, there’s a clip below of my stand-up so they can check me out. Thanks.
I’ve even included a sample letter to help get you started.
SAMPLE LETTER:
Hey Friend (or other synonym here… maybe even their name),
I think you should go see my friend W. Kamau Bell when he comes to London and plays Hen & Chickens Theatre on Tuesday, 5 April. Kamau is hilarious (or other synonym here). He’s been named San Francisco’s best comedian three times. America’s Punchline Magazine declared, “One of our country’s most adept racial commentators with a blistering wit and a willingness to say what you quickly realize you’ve always thought.” And Robin Williams called him “ferociously funny.” This is his first time in the UK, so treat him well. He’s a delicate flower. See a clip of him here.
You can also follow him on Twitter and here is the Facebook invite.
Thanks.
(Insert your name here.)
Photo by Adam Davis
Sun., Feb. 6, 8 p.m., 2011 Get your tickets HERE! Bring a Friend of a Different Race & Get in 2for1.
Back in 2005, a little-known San Francisco comic made a crack about a little-known Illinois senator, also black. Said W. Kamau Bell, “There will never be a black president named Barack Obama. Because that is too black.” Then the unthinkable happened: Obama actually became president, and Bell focused his comedy into a stand-alone show, The W. Kamau Bell Curve: Ending Racism in About an Hour. He’s been performing and refining the act for years, adapting topics of his ire from George Bush to Michele Bachmann. And while he comes as the subject of race from a Bay Area liberal’s perspective, his jokes also range from Star Trek to kung fu movies to Macbeth. (“As a society,” says this Chicago-raised utopian, “let’s be the The Matrix part one, not The Matrix II and III.”) And, like the president, Bell has stripped the anger from his smart, genial demeanor—he’s like the funniest dude in your Ph.D. program. Though he’s a young guy, fluent in blogging, twitter, and Facebook, he’s also a bit of a throwback—skipping over the incendiary taunts of Pryor and Murphy back to the early humor of Cosby (before sweaters and sitcoms). Also note the ticket price: two-for-one if “you bring a friend from a different race.” It’s a great chance to save some money and meet someone not in your usual online dating profile. BRIAN MILLER
…
“Chicago-raised utopoian”
“the funniest dude in your Ph.D. program”
“the early humor of Cosby (before sweaters & sitcoms)”
Yup, that’s pretty much how I’ve always described myself.
The Epitome of Evil?
In the tradition of epic filmmaking & epic story telling, Kamau has one doozy of story to tell about his last three weeks. And in classic FNGTAC fashion, Vernon takes the conversation waaaaaaaaay off road in a beautiful way. This episode features several epic battles of Good vs. Evil: Kamau vs. Sacramento, Kevin Avery vs. Hollywood, Vernon vs. Hip Hop, Vernon vs. Quentin Tarantino, and even Vernon vs. Apollo Creed(?). And during this epic tale Vernon & Kamau finally have the N Word conversation, and we’re not talking about Zen meditation. It took seven episodes for these two black guys to have that conversation. WOW! Maybe instead, they are actually “Far Afield Negroes”. This one also features a surprise ending which portends good things to come, and also we finally get to find out exactly what percentage of Vernon that Kamau is. May the force be with them!
Connect with Vernon on Facebook, Twitter @vurnt22, and www.livingcolour.com
Connect with Kamau on Facebook, Twitter @wkamaubell, and www.wkamaubell.com
And you can connect with the Podcast on Twitter @ThatFNGuide
GET US ON iTUNES NOW!!!
According to Punchline Magazine, my latest CD, Face Full of Flour is #7 of 2010’s 10 Best Comedy Albums!!!!
Woooohoooooooooo!
Which begs the question… WHY DON’T YOU HAVE IT YET???
You can get it if you click right next to this blog. Look to the right of where you’re reading now.
Don’t believe I’m #7? See below OR click here to read the entire list. Many of my friends are on it, like Glenn Wool & Hannibal Buress, and Kyle Kinane.
Enjoy…
#7 – W. KAMAU BELL – FACE FULL OF FLOUR
Though not everyone knows it quite yet, San Francisco-based W. Kamau Bell is one of our country’s most adept racial and political commentators; he’s got a blistering wit and a willingness to say what you quickly realize you’ve always thought. He’s relentlessly intelligent, fusing references to create a rich expression of incredulity in a post-Obama world. Note to working comedians: despite what’s been said time and again, it’s possible make fun of our current president and mean it. Kamau is an Obama supporter but deftly takes the piss out of him when necessary. And all of that is there for us to play – and re-play – on Face Full of Flour, a masterful, thinking man’s album. Buy Face Full of Flour
Enjoy! & Let me know what you think…
And if you like it then pick up a copy of my CD Face Full of Flour for the holidays. They make great Secret Santa presents for that racist at work! Or a great present from Hanukkah Harry. Or for Kujichagulia (That’s Kwanzaa!) Or for (next) Ramadan! It’s also a prefect to wrap up you early Lohri (Hindu) shopping because it’s BLAZING HOT! We got my album in digital OR real-ical.
First of all, why did Kanye apologize. That was one of the few media blow-ups that Kanye has had that I was actually totally with.
(Although when he said it back in 2001, I was stupidly hyper-critical of his word choice. “Doesn’t care about” seemed kind of like soft selling it to me. But now I realize that if it had been me on live television deciding to NOT read the teleprompter and go rogue to try to blow up G Dub’s spot like that, I wouldn’t have been nearly as eloquent. Especially not with all those visions dancing though my head of me getting audited every year for the rest of my life.)
Second of all, did Kanye mean to apologize? According to his Twitter feed, Kanye got caught up in Matt Lauer’s baby blues (not that I know what Matt Lauer’s eye color is, but blue seems right), and apparently Kanye just said whatever Matty Nice wanted him to say. Which for a dude who always seems comfortable bum rushing and going off in whatever direction his lips take him, it seems weird that Matt Lauer is his Kryptonite.
Thirdly… of all, WHY THE FUCK DID GEORGE BUSH FEEL LIKE HE WAS HIGH ENOUGH ON THE MORAL HIGH GROUND TO BE IN A POSITION TO FORGIVE KANYE???…
Ummm… George, Imma let you finish, but… YOU DON’T CARE ABOUT BLACK PEOPLE. You proved that during Katrina. And I no it doesn’t count that you used to own a few. And, just in case you didn’t know, you also don’t care about poor people, Iraqi people, Afghan people, non-born again Christian people, gay people… In fact, in the aggregate, it would seem you don’t really care much about… people people…. Unless they are rich, born again Christian people.
But I digress… READ THE REST OF THE BLOG AT THIS WEEK IN BLACKNESS
Hey NYC people!
I’ll see you next week Thursday, October 21st @8pm for another edition of my show, The W. Kamau Bell Curve: Ending Racism in About an Hour. And this time it is a New York’s premiere comedy spot The Upright Citizen’s Brigade Theater — or UCB, if you’re nasty… and if you don’t already associate UCB with The University of California at Berkeley.
The best part is that it is only a recession busting FIVE BUCKS!!! WOOOHOOOO! What a bargain! Click here for details.
Racism will be ended for less than the cost of a vente mocha with an extra shot of espresso! I hope to see you there. And if not I hope you let your NYC people know. Thanks!
I’ll be in NYC for s couple of weeks and I’m booking other shows, stand-up and otherwise, so there will be many other opportunities to see me there. if you know of any, forward them along. Thanks again.
Umm… It was ME!
The best part is that it was the READER’S CHOICE! Right between BEST BURLESQUE & BEST MAGICIAN! (Which is kinda what a comedian is. We strip naked and try to make magic happen while people laugh.)
So I that means I owe thanks all to YOU! Or people very much like you…if you, yourself didn’t vote.
I assume that some of you coming to my page are trying to get acquainted with whoever this “W. Kamau Bell” person is, so here’s quick primer…
Margaret Cho said about me…
“W. Kamau Bell is the most important guy doing comedy right now. Do yourself a favor and go see him. He’s got the most astute, hilarious and completely righteous material going and he’s going to be a legend in his own lifetime like Richard Pryor and Lenny Bruce. Think Bill Hicks but slightly taller.”
I’m on Facebook, Twitter, & Youtube. Look to the right side of this page —>
Here’s a link to buy my NEW critically acclaimed comedy CD and a clip of my stand-up, followed by a list of upcoming shows!
And here is a list of upcoming shows…
August 13 – The W. Kamau Bell Curve @ UCB in LOS ANGELES
8pm
August 20 – The W. Kamau Bell Curve @ The Comedy Spot in SACRAMENTO
BRING A FRIEND OF A DIFFERENT RACE & GET IN 2for1! (Seriously!)
2 shows 8 & 10pm
August 26 – Laughter Against The Machine @ The New Parish in OAKLAND
2 shows 7:30 & 10pm
August 28 – W. Kamau Bell @ Stage Werx in SAN FRANCISCO
8pm
Hope to see you out there soon!
Kamau's fantastic new album, Face Full of Flour, is now available!
Get it.
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