LS Episode 531: Lack of Diversity in Comedy World (feat. Jay Jurden)
Angela Yee's Lip Service
iHeartPodcasts
4.5 • 4.2K Ratings
🗓️ 9 December 2025
⏱️ 45 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this hilarious, vulnerable, and fast-moving episode, comedian Jay Jurden joins Lip Service to break down everything from his new Hulu special Yes Ma’am to sexuality, marriage, family, and the wild reality of being a queer Black comic in today’s comedy boom. Jay opens up about filming his debut hour in New Orleans — “the gayest, Blackest city in the South” — and why the energy of the Joy Theater made it the perfect home for his special.
Jay gets real about his relationship: being bisexual while married to a gay man, how they first met in college, who proposed to whom (yes, there were multiple proposals), navigating honesty, threesomes, poly dynamics in NYC, and why they chose to make their long-term commitment official. He also shares how moving to New York together shaped their marriage, how writing for Jon Stewart changed their lives, and why their wedding meant so much to their families.
The comedy talk goes deep — from Paul Mooney’s legacy and “sassy” influence, to how few openly gay Black male comedians exist, to messy behind-the-scenes stories like the Breakfast Club interview that never aired. Jay reveals the pressure comics face to always be funny, how trauma shows up on stage, and why he loves when comedians “act up a little” in interviews instead of playing it safe.
The episode gets even wilder when the group dives into dating culture, straight men “testing boundaries,” Grindr chaos, dick-pic economics, being catfished, OnlyFans, and the reality of queer men navigating hookup culture versus long-term partnership. Jay also talks about changing his voice around straight men, working at Abercrombie, coming out to his mom while watching Will & Grace and What Not to Wear, and why she always secretly knew.
Jay shows love to the people who have lifted him up — Wanda Sykes, Bob the Drag Queen, Taylor Tomlinson, and even the cast of Abbott Elementary, especially Janelle James. He reflects on comedy’s evolution, how Black queer voices are reshaping the landscape, and why it’s crucial for younger comics to be given the spotlight. Finally, he breaks down how his Hulu special came to be, the risks he took to make it happen, and what’s next for him.
Plus, Akeem Woods shares his viral Thanksgiving adventure — going to random followers’ homes for dinner — and the chaotic, heartwarming stories that followed.
This episode is packed with jokes, honesty, queer insight, southern charm, and nonstop energy from two of the funniest voices in comedy today.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is an I-Heart podcast. |
| 0:02.6 | Guaranteed Human. |
| 0:21.8 | Hold on, hold on. What's up? This is what's service. I'm Angela Yee. I'm G.G. McGuire. I'm Jordy, George. Akeem Woods. Jay Jordan. Hey. Hey. Listen, you guys just walked in on our conversation. About crabs. About crabs. No one. And not the kind you eat. No, I have. And Jay, you said people aren't getting crabs anymore. |
| 0:23.7 | Because people don't getting crabs anymore |
| 0:23.7 | because people don't have as much pubic hair right like it's not trendy anymore so like |
| 0:27.6 | except for those skims underwear yeah the fake skim the fake coochie did you okay did you see |
| 0:33.0 | she had different textures too oh she did she had a She had a 4C, she had a 1A. |
| 0:37.7 | Wow. |
| 0:53.8 | Whatever you want to be that day. Which one are you? You can have a blonde joint, but not be blonde. Ginger. So the rugs don't match the curtains. You got a literal ginger snap. A literal ginger snap. Yeah. I think I want to buy that one. I'm going to cosplay as a ginger snap. I'm calling a red hat. |
| 0:54.2 | I know we jumped y'all right into this, but Jay Jordan has a special on Hulu right now. Your debut special. Yes. Yes. So congratulations. Thank you. That means a lot. All of the stand-up, the writing, everything is paying on. Yeah, yeah. I'm excited. It was really cool. I got to do it in New Orleans at the Joy Theater, Historic Theater on Canal Street. |
| 1:13.9 | It was so fun. |
| 1:45.0 | I mean, I'm excited. It was really cool. I got to do it in New Orleans at the Joy Theater, Historic Theater on Canal Street. It was so fun. I mean, I saw people from high school that came out to the show. So I was very happy. So why did you pick New Orleans? Because I know a lot of times you're trying to figure out like, where are we going to film the special? You're from Mississippi. You're based in New York. So what happened is comedy dynamics, the production company, they chose New Orleans because they were filming a couple of specials there. And New Orleans was perfect for me. It kind of was a perfect fit because I'm from the South. I mean, New Orleans is the gayest, blackest city in the South next to Atlanta. And sometimes I think Atlanta is new gay. New Orleans is old gay. New Orleans was. I never realized that. Yeah. I love New Orleans. Me too. We love to eat there. I love you. No, no. No. I can't make this up. The day after I recorded my special, I went to a gay bar. It was packed. And then I was like, is it like this all the time? I walked to one door. have an underwear party in the back. Truly, just like, I never knew that. I knew New Orleans is a fun place. |
| 2:04.4 | I never been. like this all time. I walked to one door. They were having an underwear party in the back. Truly. |
| 2:01.5 | Just like, |
| 2:19.1 | I never knew that. I knew New Orleans is a fun place. I never been. They get down. And the way they bounce. Yeah. I've never been because there's no comedy club out there. Yes, there are. There's not a club. There's one new club, uh, sports drink. It's like a smaller venue. But they closed. |
| 2:17.6 | They did close a lot of the comedy clubs. |
| 2:19.2 | New Orleans, but that's because music is New Orleans primary, like entertainment |
| 2:22.3 | at night. |
| 2:29.8 | But they do have a lot of venues where you can do stuff. Yeah, right. You could do a comedy show. Yeah, you're right. I can get out there. But here's the thing when New Orleans, it's easier to listen |
| 2:31.2 | to jazz drunk than go to comedy drunk. |
| 2:33.1 | So people in New Orleans, they drink all day. |
| 2:34.9 | If they go to comedy, |
... |
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