morningamp:

I don’t think that television is my endgame. I think that I am incredibly happy…and I get to make content and create funny things and enjoyable entertainment with my friends, so I don’t know how it could get better than this. Sure, TV throws a lot of money at you, but I’m good. I’m totally content. -Hannah Hart

Hannah Hart runs one of the more popular series on YouTube, My Drunk Kitchen. What started out as a jokey cooking and drinking video for a friend has turned into a thousandaire’s empire. An online donation drive to send her on a tour of the US made almost five times the money she expected so now she’s going international. Hannah joins hosts Molly Adams and Brian Babylon to talk about her origins as a YouTuber, her relationship with her fans and her upcoming visit to Chicago.

Learn more about Hannah and the upcoming tour at http://www.youtube.com/myharto or at http://www.helloharto.com

The music in this clip is by Hannah Hart herself. Check out the full song here. 

Source: SoundCloud / vocalo

6chicago, my drunk kitchen, hannah hart, youtube, international, cooking, drinking, comedy, internet series, vocalo, chicago public media, WBEZ, talk radio, phone interview, morning show,

morningamp:

Ohh, those drunken tales of embarrassment, hilarity and straight-up craziness. The Blackout Diaries, a live comedy show, recounts these tales to an audience at the Lincoln Lounge every Saturday night. Hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams are joined by the Puterbaugh Sisterz in-studio. These funny ladies talk about the Blackout Diaries, which they help produce each week, and the “exploding” storytelling scene in the city.

And try not cracking a smile when these two start laughing—it’s tough!

Source: SoundCloud / vocalo

6Morning Amp, Comedy, the Blackout Diaries, Storytelling, Chicago,

morningamp:

“My grandma gave me a gift card for my birthday and she said ‘Don’t spend it all in the same place.’ I was like ‘Grandma, you don’t understand gift cards. I have to.’” - Comedian Nick Thune.

Nick Thune is a musical comedian from Seattle who deals in absurd one-liners and heartfelt ballads. He joins hosts Molly Adams and Brian Babylon in the studio to talk about the comedy scene, broken arms, and Jerry Seinfeld. You can catch Nick perform at UP Comedy Club this weekend.

Source: SoundCloud / vocalo

6Vocalo, Morning AMp, Comedy, Music, UP Comedy Club,

morningamp:

Listen to an extended conversation with comedian Erik Griffin. He talks with Molly Adams and Brian Babylon about his comedy career, from stand up to his current gig playing Montez on the Comedy Central series Workaholics. They also discuss some current events, diversity in comedy, and racial profiling in America.

Source: SoundCloud / vocalo

6Vocalo, Morning AMp, Erik Griffin, Workaholics, Comedy, Montez, Comedy Central, Diversity, Racial Profiling,

In this episode: Stand-up comedy can be a male-dominated world, but one group in Chicago is making sure funny women have their voices heard. The Feminine Comique is a beginners course in stand-up comedy exclusively for women. The course was created by Cameron Esposito and classes are taught by Chicago comedian Kelsie Huff. Kelsie joins hosts Molly Adams and Brian Babylon in the studio to talk about the challenges of starting out in comedy and the boys-club world of open mic nights.

Also, Dr. Carl Bell is the Director of the Institute for Juvenile Research, and Professor in the Department of Psychiatry in the School of Medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Dr. Bell talks with Luis and Shantell about the violence among youths in communities and the factors that contribute towards it. According to Dr. Bell, the issue goes far beyond easy access to guns and alcohol; there are a myriad of psychological, sociocultural, biological, and developmental factors that may contribute contribute towards the manifestation of anger and violence.

Chicago’s rock trio Mutts, is known for dirty, grungy guitar distortions and loud in-your-face blues rock. But on their newest album, Object Permanence, you’ll hear none of that. Mike Maimone’s guttural vocals take the center of attention, delivering poignant social commentary over stripped down, unplugged arrangements. The band joined Jesse Menendez on The MusicVox to talk about the new songs and the change of sound.

Lastly, DJ Sadar Bahar throws it down on 1’s and 2’s with a deep disco, underground house, and Afro Beat mix.

Source:

6women, feminist, comedy, Chicago, Vocalo, WBEZ, public radio, classes, youth, violence, gangs, Mutts, lounge, rock, DJ, Sadar Bahar,

morningamp:

“When you go to the open mics, it’s a total boys-club.” - Host Brian Babylon

Stand-up comedy can be a male-dominated world, but one group in Chicago is making sure funny women have their voices heard. The Feminine Comique is a beginners course in stand-up comedy exclusively for women. The course was created by Cameron Esposito and classes are taught by Chicago comedian Kelsie Huff. Kelsie joins hosts Molly Adams and Brian Babylon in the studio to talk about the challenges of starting out in comedy and the boys-club world of open mic nights.

Source: SoundCloud / vocalo

6comedy, vocalo, morning amp,

morningamp:

In studio, cast members Claudia Wallace, Brianna Barker, and Timothy Stoltenberg discuss their archival sketch comedy show, “What the Tour Guide Didn’t Tell You: A Chicago Revue.” The performers talk about how improv is a “team sport,” Chicago humor, and why mainstream comedy seems to lack ethnic diversity.

“I’ve been in the business a long time and I had to work and work at proving myself and letting the boys club know that, yeah, I can be funny. And every time I step out on stage, I don’t have to be an African-American, I don’t have to be a woman. I can be anything I want to be.” —Claudia Wallace

Source: SoundCloud / vocalo

6vocalo, morning amp, arts, comedy,

morningamp:

“There’s a real model now for, not just making money because you can make really good money off of a podcast if it gets to a certain level, so it’s just not that free expression but it allows you to justify all the time it takes. Because you gotta make a living. And so now what started out to me, as just a hobby and something that was a great outlet, has turned into a viable career thing. “
- Greg Fitzsimmons on starting his Podcast

Comedian Greg Fitzsimmons has some experience with radio. His father Bob was a talk show host and storyteller on New York radio and Greg hosts his own podcast. He’s also a TV guy, collecting Emmys for his writing on Ellen Degeneres’s talk show. This morning, hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams spoke to him about his multi-faceted career and got his take on this week’s news!

Source: SoundCloud / vocalo

6Vocalo, Morning AMp, Comedy, Greg Fitzsimmons, Emmy, Writer, Ellen Degeneres,

morningamp:

While hosting Saturday Night Live this weekend, comedian Kevin Hart appeared in drag as Oscar nominee Quvenzhané Wallis. Is this offensive? Hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams talk about the larger trend of black comedians in drag, the homogeneous cast of SNL,and diversity in the comedy-world. We also have a phone call from Morning AMp listener, Amanda, who talks about the portrayal of black females in television and film.

Source: SoundCloud / vocalo

6Vocalo, Morning AMp, SNL, Comedy, Quvenzhané, Diversity, Film, TV,

vocalooverdrive:

“A Bad word is a bad word, and the lack of permission should apply to everybody.”

Comedian Lisa Lampanelli has built a career around being provocative and speaking about topics and issues that many people find sensitive. Ms. Lampanelli recently received a lot of negative criticism, after tweeting a photo with Lena Dunham which used the “N” word. Luis and Shantell discuss the the “N” word, and how it seems to apply only within certain situations, among certain people, but should the word be seen as offensive in any context?

Source:

6Vocalo, Overdrive, Comedy, Lisa Lampanelli, Lena Durnham, N-Word,

In this episode: Dana Gould knows comedy. He started doing stand-up when he was just 17 years old, was a writer and performer on The Ben Stiller Show, and spent 7 years writing on The Simpsons. He joined hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams to talk about his career, comedy, and pop culture.

Also, Lupe Fiasco has done it once again - this time on stage which was made to celebrate President Obama’s Inaugural weekend. Lupe did what he did best: stirred up on controversy. Recent reports have claimed that the Chicago-born rapper performed the song, “Words I Never Said” for 40 minutes by repeating his verses and changing the lyrics by claiming, “Glenn Beck is a racist, Limbaugh is a racist.” and promoted his anti-vote beliefs by stating that he did not vote for Obama, and will not vote for the next candidate in 2016. Lupe was not kicked out of the event solely because of his ranting, but mainly because the audience members became increasingly disappointed and impatient with his lackluster performance mixed with his classic political lecturing. This leaves us puzzled as we questioned why on earth Mr. Fiasco decided to attend the concert and perform on stage if he was so against voting for the President?

As a co-founder of City of Win collective, Mig Mora helped shine the light on Chicago’s diverse Hip Hop community with the release of WIN Vol. 1. With the release of him debut album, Music For The End of The World, it’s Mig’s own diversity that’s on display this time around. Mig Mora joined Jesse Menendez on The MusicVox to talk about the thoughtful and dynamic project.

Finally, the DJ mix comes from Vocalo’s DJ Collective member Carlos Feliciano

Source:

6Vocalo, Dana Gould, Comedy, Hip Hop, Mig Mora, Chicago, Public Radio, Lupe Fiasco, inauguration, WBEZ, carlos feliciano,

morningamp:

Actor and comedian Donnell Rawlings was a principle player on Chappelle’s Show in the mid-2000s and has shown up on The Wire, Spider-Man 2, Law and Order and countless of other places where directors needed a laugh. Mr. Rawlings joined the AMp hosts Molly Adams and comedian Will Miles (filling in for the vacationing Brian Babylon) and discussed his varied career in Hollywood. He will be at UP Comedy Club this weekend.

Source: SoundCloud / vocalo

6Vocalo, Morning AMp, Donnell Rawlings, David Chappelle, UP Comedy Club, Comedy,

The “Jedi master of comedy” joined Molly and Brian in the studio to talk about getting older, earning his chops at Yale drama and lasting 47 years in the business.

morningamp:

“There’s a lot of old fools, too. You don’t necessarily get wiser. You certainly get achier…” -Comedic legend Robert Klein

Source: SoundCloud / vocalo

6Robert Klein, Comedy, Second City, Rodney Dangerfield, Vocalo, Morning AMp, HBO,