For over a decade Louisville, KY has been home to a bubbling underground black comedy scene. Comedy is an art that is often cultural. It has its mainstream acts that attract diverse audiences but underground comedy typically caters to a particular demographic.
In the African-American community, comedy is an art-form taken very seriously. It’s a necessity that black comedians have tough skin because black audiences are known to critically judging each joke. An animated witty comedian can bring the house down with laughter, but at any point, the wrong punchline may bring a roar of boos.
Identifying their audience is crucial for a comedian, especially those who are just starting out. Having a “Comedy Home” in a particular city always helps local comedians develop their skills, while becoming comfortable performing in front of crowds.
Louisville has always had a wide variety of black comedians – however, they’ve never had a true comedy home. That is until now. Frank Niddy’s Music & Comedy Club opened its doors for the first time, this past Friday night, March 2nd, at 7pm, to a sold out crowd.
“It was My mom’s dream to open up a comedy club and we wanted to run a family business… We always wanted to be our own boss and have a little family thing so that we can leave on the legacy for our kids. We also wanted to provide a platform for the community where we grew up at and put on some talented people.” – Frank Niddy
To kick off the Grand Opening event, Comedian Meech Dog would host a comedy special featuring popular Louisville comedians Jason “Too Funny” English & Rico Lovelace. Meech Dog is a seasoned comic who has entertained crowds at comedy clubs all across the nation.
“I am the official host for the Friday night comedy, every Friday night at Frank Niddy’s Music & Comedy Club. I’ll be here every Friday bringing comedians from all over the place. My comedy career goes way back but I’m still grinding and still humble. I’m booked in seven different rooms right now so I’m a blessed.” – Meech Dog
After Meech Dog warmed up the crowd, Rico Lovelace took the stage a little after 8pm. Living up to his moniker, “The Next Little Big Thang”, the 5’5 comedian entertained the crowd with his hilarious storytelling – based on real life experiences.
Lovelace gives off the impression that he is most comfortable when on stage. His energetic vibe and deep baritone voice seemed to resonate extremely well with the crowd. So well, that the crowd appeared to be feeding off his energy and actually began verbally responding back to him, at times.
Lovelace is a seasoned comic as well who is patiently awaiting his big-break. For years he has been a proud representative of Louisville’s largest black-owned comedy/entertainment company Streatway Entertainment.
Throughout his career he has performed in comedy clubs all across the United States, shared the stage with Reginald Ballard (‘Bruh Man’ from the Martin show), starred in the comedy movie “The Store” and is currently filming a comedy movie entitled “The Maintenance Man.”
Jason English took the stage around 9:30pm. He is a local crowd favorite based on the worldwide success of his “Too Funny TV” series that he’s hosted on Facebook Live over the past two years. English has a natural gift for improvisation and masterfully portraying different characters.
Too Funny TV birthed his alter ego “Kenny Kenny Kenny” (a 70’s era pimp), who hilariously wears a permed wig while randomly prank calling unsuspecting people and businesses across the nation. English’s improv skills are so convincing that callers often stay on the line with him for nearly an hour, answering questions or searching for items that he’s claimed he lost.
One of his most memorable pranks was a call to a dine-in restaurant, in which he convinced the manager that he was a veteran who left his prosthetic leg in a booth, after dining there. When the manager asked how he was able to walk away from the restaurant without his leg, English replied:
“I have two legs… A walking leg and a sitting leg. When I finished my meal, I put my walking leg back on but accidentally left my sitting leg behind. It should be easy to spot because I’m black but my leg is white.” – Jason English
Following Rico Lovelace’s performance, English continued to keep the crowd at Frank Niddy’s laughing emphatically. He is a showman who loves to interact with the crowd, which often results in someone in the front row getting joked on. It’s all in good fun and the audience appeared to love every moment of it.
All-in-all the sold-out house seemed to be very pleased with opening night at Frank Niddy’s. Once the comedy show was over, the party didn’t stop. The club converted to a Bar & Grill format and Paula And The Live Band hit the stage performing jazz, Blues and R&B music until 2am.
Frank Niddy’s Music & Comedy Club is located at 5044 Poplar Level Road. Hours of operation are Wed-Sun 5pm-2am for the first few weeks. The venue plans to begin serving food by the middle of March, in which it will then beginning opening at 8am.
Brad Harrison is a journalist/motivational speaker/entrepreneur and on-air personality. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications with cum laude honors from the University of Louisville. In October 2015, he started UrbanMaxx Magazine to provide positive role models for Urban residents that reside in at-risk-communities and lack positive leadership in their lives.
For booking or advertising – contact Brad Harrison at bradharrison@urbanmaxx.com