By Andre J. Thomas
Entertainment Blogger
Tonight I had a chance to check out my FIRST Arnez J comedy show. I know you’re probably saying, “What you mean your first time Andre?” lol Well, I’ve seen him on commercials for Comic View and heard his name from time to time, but I guess I’m the only black man in America who never got a chance to catch his performance.
Being the person that I am, initially I sat through his comedy set, taking notes on everything. I meticulously wrote pages and pages of notes only to realize that everything I wrote down didn’t capture the essence of what happened tonight. The truth is, Arnez J and his performance tonight was monumental.
When Arnez J began his set, he warned us that he had to go slow because too much of Arnez at one time could be harmful to our stomach muscles!!
Making no apologies for calling everyone in the room a niggah, Arnez J stole the house with his “first gay slave” joke. By the time he transitioned into discussing his experience getting a colonoscopy, the crowd found it hard to stop laughing.
Hanging on his every word, Arnez J used his racially charged storylines to break the invisible wall that separated us.
What am i trying to say in this lengthy blog is that Arnez J reminded us all of what really mattered in the world. As I began to think about how Americans have been completely at odds with each other, I noticed that for ninety minutes, we all were simply having a good time. No one was concerned about race, gender, sexuality, or socioeconomic status because Arnez J helped us all to find common ground by seeing that everybody had flaws. Arnez J used comedy to show us how stupid it is to be racist, sexist and homophobic. The crowd was completely diverse and I can’t say I saw a dry eye in the house. His no holds barred, graphic content was raw and expressed underlying messages of unification. He made it clear that black people were not innocent and that they played a role in improving things as well.
The important theme that he conveyed was that we should respect one another and raise and protect our children. At the end of the day, Arnez J made it clear that we should love one another.
Carmen Barton – Hollywood Divas
Opening the evening for him was comedienne Carmen Barton. Carmen Barton was initially received with a dry reception, but after she began talking about her sex life with the coaches, the audience seemed to relate and welcomed her into the Birmingham family. Barton mentioned that she recently joined the cast of Hollywood Divas -Season 3. Will she bring the show the element that it needs? We can only hope so.
Andre J. Thomas is a 5x Award Winning producer for the hit show, College Talk. Andre is also a featured writer for Black Moguls Magazine, GumpTown Magazine, The Birmingham Times and SwurvRadio. You can listen to @AndreTheBlogger on The Joe Lockett Show 101.1 FM & 1260 AM WYDE (Alabama) on Saturdays from 4pm – 7pm CST. You can read more stories by Birmingham’s Favorite Entertainment Blogger at andrejthomas.com
