Thursday, May 22, 2008
By John Benson
Aisha Tyler says she works at being ‘unique and original.’
Aisha Tyler is going home.
After spending the last decade in barrier-breaking television roles — the first recurring black character on NBC-TV’s “Friends” and the first black and female host of E!’s “Talk Soup” — Tyler is returning to her first love, stand-up comedy, this year.
Though a live concert taping is scheduled for this summer in San Francisco, Tyler is currently honing her act with a club tour, which includes her Cleveland debut tonight through Sunday at Hilarities 4th Street Theatre. Regarding her act, the 37-year-old funny lady, who now can be seen regularly on CBS-TV’s “Ghost Whisperer,” has a message for her fans.
“My material is really informal and fun and very edgy,” said Tyler, calling from Washington, D.C. “It’s not a kid-friendly show. I have to tell people who know me from ‘Friends’ or ‘Ghost Whisperer,’ don’t bring your 15-year-old daughter to my show because you’ll have to have a really long kitchen table conference afterwards.”
She added, “I’m like one of those people who doesn’t have a hook. I’m not crazy observational comedy girl or angry political commentary guy. It’s mostly like life and culture. It’s really storyteller driven. It’s really conversational. People always feel like when they leave we were just hanging out.”
Granted, being truly unique is hard to find in today’s comedy world. Still, there’s a good argument to be made that Tyler is unlike any other female comedian touring today. Add in the fact she’s a black funny lady and there is no one that comes to mind who can be linked alongside this San Francisco native.
“Without sounding like a total self-involved jack---, nobody is like me,” Tyler said. “I know it sounds egotistical, but I don’t think there is, and I’m proud of that. I work hard at being unique and original. Like when people come to my show they say, ‘Oh this black girl is doing comedy and it’s going to be like Def Comedy Jam. I know what she’s going to do.’ And then they come in they’re like, ‘That’s so different and so much funnier than I expected. And you killed me.’
“It’s always nice when somebody tells you that your comedy made them pee on themselves. That’s when I say, ‘My job here is done.’ But it’s especially with guys who say, ‘I have never laughed at a girl comedian and you made me completely fall apart.’”
For the male readers, there is definitely something to be said about Tyler that transcends the stereotypical female comedian. Guys, you better believe Tyler is something special and would make the perfect wife. Not only does she like to play poker — she’s appeared on “The World Poker Tour” series — but she’s a beer connoisseur.
“And I play Xbox,” Tyler declared. “Plus, I only play games in which I get to kill things. I’m almost the perfect wife. I’m sure I have my flaws, and my husband would point them out ad nauseam, but I’m definitely an unusual girl.”
Just when you think that’s where the story ends (actually, that is where it ended until a few minutes later when the phone rang again), Tyler called back to up the ante.
“I thought of something else,” Tyler said. “If I actually dispensed beer, then I would be the perfect wife. So I’m working on that now where beer will come out of my index finger. And then, I will be the perfect wife.”