A fairly well circulated story broke this week regarding an interview with Jerry Seinfeld. He said he wouldn’t do college shows because the current generation is too politically correct. This follows previous comments along the same vein as Chris Rock and Larry the Cable Guy. This got a lot of attention, for things that get attention. Thanks to the internet I’m probably two days behind this already.
A couple things came to mind for me. 1) Larry the Cable Guy’s target demo isn’t college kids, I’ll guess. 2) All three of these guys have enough money where they can do that. I fully support individual success, but you won’t be hearing me say that anytime soon. For the right price, I’ll do a set in front of a street mob during a riot. 3) College shows are rough for a multitude of reasons.
The last point requires explanation. Yes, I do think from the college shows I’ve done (and I’ve done shows for that age group specifically about two dozen times) that a lot of the younger demo is pretty PC. I’ve done shows where I saw people laugh, then immediately look around, see what other people are doing and go back to robot mode. That said, hipster bars are pretty much the same. If anyone goes to a comedy show thinking, “What will everyone think of me during this show?” and they’re a crowd member, it’s going to be a pain in the ass for a comic.
The harder thing for me with that group is that they haven’t had enough life experience to make all your jokes work. You can toss marriage, kids, any kind of job related humor, or any “getting older” jokes. Not as easy when your go to’s are the cost of textbooks and social media jokes. “Hey guys, those books sure are a rip off! Snapchat! I mean, how many versions of Macroeconomic Theory can you write? Instagram! Thanks for coming, have a good night!”
In summation, it’s tougher than it sounds. In addition to the points above, did you know most college shows don’t let the performer drink? WHAT IS THIS ORWELLIAN NIGHTMARE? FIGHT THE SYSTEM! WE MUST STAND TOGETHER! Hey, I just became an annoying college protester! I relate so well to these kids.