The Daily Tar Heel
Printing news. Raising hell. Since 1893.
Thursday, March 28, 2024 Newsletters Latest print issue

We keep you informed.

Help us keep going. Donate Today.
The Daily Tar Heel

Lewis Black and Wyatt Cenac to perform in Carolina Comedy Jam

Lewis Black led a workshop for students Thursday. Black, a UNC alumnus, will appear in the Comedy Jam. DTH/Mary Lide Parker
Lewis Black led a workshop for students Thursday. Black, a UNC alumnus, will appear in the Comedy Jam. DTH/Mary Lide Parker

UNC alums Lewis Black and Wyatt Cenac will return to campus this weekend, planning to leave their alma mater in stitches from their razor-sharp wit and comedy.

The two, along with The Daily Show’s John Oliver and Rory Albanese, will perform on campus today and Saturday for the Carolina Comedy Jam.

The comedians will also participate in several panels this weekend that are open to the public.

The jam will offer UNC students a chance to open for the comedians. Black led a workshop Thursday for the finalists of the Student Stand Up Competition and selected his favorites to open for him.

The famous funny men in the jam provided insight into how they got started and advice for up-and-coming comedians.

How they got started

Cenac moved to Los Angeles and performed comedy there for 10 years before landing a job as a writer for the show “King of the Hill.” He eventually went on to “The Daily Show.”

“I auditioned a few times,” Cenac said. “I think I wore them down.”

Black, who was a theater major in college, said that he started out doing work for nothing. He even spent time working for the federal government before he got his start.

“I did everything I could so I could continue to write,” Black said.

Albanese said he took a different approach to earn his position.

“I started off as a production assistant in 1999 and slept my way to the top,” he joked.

Kidding aside, he said that he honestly worked his way up.

“It’s important to have a system you can grow and succeed in,” he said.

Advice for young comics


Most of the comedians offered similar advice for students trying to break into the comedy world — work hard and truly love what you do.

“First, you’ve really got to enjoy doing it,” Black said. “You’ll realize quickly if that’s what you want to do.”

Black compared being a stand-up comedian to being a professional fighter in the ring with your hands tied behind your back.

“You think, ‘If only I had done this or that’,” he said, imitating jabs and uppercuts. “You’re always learning something.”

Black also said that it is important to “enjoy dying” on stage and persevere through rough shows where routines might not go as well. What makes great comedians, he said, are those who are honest to their points of view.

Cenac said that the most important key to comedy success is sticking with it.

“The more you do anything, the better you get,” he said. “It’s the same as being a pilot or a doctor.”

Cenac also said that another important aspect of success is constantly pushing yourself to keep doing more and topping what you’ve already done.

Albanese said it is important to be patient and not feel rushed.

“If you get good, people will find you,” Albanese said.

He also offered some more general advice.

“It’s also about getting over the fact that you think you’re funny, because that automatically makes you a douche,” he said.

Developing jokes

Cenac and Albanese both said they had no specific methods for coming up with jokes.

When asked how he crafts his humor, Cenac had to take a second to think.

“I’m not stalling because I wanna say pot,” he said. “Sometimes I get a silly idea on the train that makes me giggle, and I try it on stage to see what works and what doesn’t.”

Albanese said it was tough for him to remember to write down some of his jokes, but he makes sure to write them down in the newspaper, in his phone or through a text.

A warning for HJ residents

Cenac had a special announcement — or rather, a warning — for a particular group of students: those living in Hinton James Residence Hall, Room 548, his old room.

“I left that room a certain way, and I expect it the same way, or there will be hell to pay,” he said. “I’m talking Steak-umms in the mini-fridge and Madden in the Sega Genesis.”

 

Contact the Arts Editor at artsdesk@unc.edu.

 

To get the day's news and headlines in your inbox each morning, sign up for our email newsletters.