‘2 Dope Queens’ Rules

Remember the good ol’ days when Def Comedy Jam was introduced on television and you couldn’t help but admire all the black comedians who made their way on stage?

Comedians-turned-actors Martin Lawrence and Chris Rock tickled our funny bones back in the day, but the show was sadly ripped away from us five years after its premiere in 1997. Television stations were kind enough to put them on as re-runs and years later, the show received a 25-year special.

Since then, stand-up comedy specials have more or less been… scattered. But now we have an even bigger reason to celebrate thanks to former ‘Daily Show’ correspondent Jessica Williams and ‘Broad City’ star Phoebe Robinson, comedians and actresses who started the ‘2 Dope Queens’ podcast, which has brought nothing but black magic and laughter.

It’s not surprising – this is the digital era and podcasts are all the hype. The WNYC Studios-produced show was so good, it became number one on the iTunes podcast charts. Tons of comedians came through and it was considered inclusive, funny and thought-provoking.

Inspired by ‘Blaria LIVE!’, a blog spearheaded by Robinson, the show eventually merged a series of ideas and came to life in 2016. In a smooth move, television broadcaster HBO decided to pick up the series and turn it into a full-blown comedy special with two seasons, four episodes each.

Directed by fellow podcaster Tig Notaro, Williams and Robinson take on the world in ‘2 Dope Queens’ by featuring hilarious guests and playing games on their live show, staged in Brooklyn, New York.

But the spotlight isn’t always on them – they like to make sure their friends get the best publicity possible; the duo simply facilitates it all.

Special guests included in the first season are Jon Stewart, Sarah Jessica Parker, Titus Burgess and Uzo Aduba, while the second season has seen Lupita Nyong’o and Daniel Radcliffe. The first season may be old – airing in February last year –but the show got revamped and its new season premiered this month.

Topics range from anything under the sun such as race, marriage, sex, love, hate, and all else in between. Don’t worry about getting offended; it’s not as hardcore as the Def Jam days.

However, that doesn’t mean all comedians are funny. Like most comedy specials, you’ll have your top picks. You’ll know who they are if they come up and you’re too afraid of drinking anything in case you burst out in laughter and accidentally choke. The rest will leave you cringing.