Key Takeaways
- KevOnStage praised Mojo Brookzz’s debut Netflix special, "I Know You Lying," saying its jokes impressed him.
- KevOnStage argued criticism of Brookzz’s use of crowd work overlooks how comedians attract audiences.
- Tony Baker defended Brookzz against fellow comedians, pointing to his ability to fill up venues.
Mojo Brookzz has “found something that works,” and his debut Netflix special, “I Know You Lying,” is proof of that, at least according to KevOnStage.
On Wednesday (Oct. 21) evening, during an episode of his “The Bald Brothers” podcast with Tony Baker, the actor and stand-up comedian said he believes the Black community may have been “unnecessarily harsh” on Brookzz. “Mojo did not create the need for crowd work. The internet has determined one of the easy, repeatable ways to get people to see you is doing crowd work,” Kev explained.
For those unfamiliar, crowd work is essentially when a comedian interacts with the audience and comes up with unscripted jokes based on their exchanges. It’s something Brookzz frequently incorporates into his shows, and arguably, you could say it’s what helped him amass more than 5 million social media followers, alongside his comedy skits.
Even without it, Kev argued that “I Know You Lying” had “great jokes,” singling out Brookzz’s bit about his grandmother having dementia as one of his favorites. “As a stand-up comedian, all you can ever hope to do is build an audience of people who like your style of humor,” the “Safe Space” star went on to say. “He’s doing what we want to do. He’s got material. He’s got a way to get you to come see him. His audience rocks with him.”
“If you watch his special, his audience is dying in them seats,” Kev added, referring to the crowd laughing hysterically, not literally dying. He later pointed out that many comedy specials released on streaming platforms don’t even cut to the audience or offer much proof that “people are actually laughing.” Watch “The Bald Brothers” clip below, then scroll for more information about Brookzz’s “I Know You Lying” special.
What to know about Mojo Brookzz’s “I Know You Lying” Netflix special
In case you haven’t gotten around to watching it yet, “I Know You Lying” arrived on Netflix on Oct. 6. Throughout the nearly hour-long special, which was filmed live at Atlanta’s Center Stage Theater, Brookzz cracked jokes about his hilarious encounter with Bobby Brown, whether flat butts look cooler than BBLs, and a trip to the sex shop with a family member.
As with many comedy specials released on streaming platforms, “I Know You Lying” drew its fair share of mixed reactions. One person on X suggested that without the crowd work, Brookzz’s set would’ve been “meh.” Another person, however, argued that people “just love to hate.” Check out more of what viewers had to say below.
KevOnStage and Tony Baker defend Mojo Brookzz against criticism from fellow comedians
Later in “The Bald Brothers” podcast, Kev spoke about how people will “love you on the way up,” but suddenly have plenty to criticize once you become successful. Baker was even more outspoken, reminding fellow comedians that, at the end of the day, everyone “wants to put butts in them Godd**m seats.”
“You comedians need to shut the hell up,” he continued. “Mojo Brookzz is selling tickets. The crowd work is obviously resonating with that audience… A lot of you that’s doing this, you comedy purists, your shows be empty.”