Blair Socci [Interview]

Photo by Corbin Chase

Hello Folks! We have an absolutely wonderful interview with another incredible human being to share with you all. We are kicking off our short break with another incredible person from the world of comedy. It’s Blair Socci, Everyone! Blair is an absolutely hilarious comedian that, for any true die-hard fan of comedy, is simply a household name at this point. I first became aware of Blair’s incredible comic sensibilities when she appeared on our dear friend Amy Miller’s podcast, Who’s Your God?, and then should up on a podcast done by our other dear friends Tom Thakkar & Tommy McNamara that we all know and love, Stand By Your Band. Now, I am just realizing that I am making Blair out to simply be a professional podcast guest or some shit, and that is because I am sometimes a stupid, stupid, person. So let me reiterate the fact that this is where I first found out about Blair’s comedic brilliance. It’s not necessarily the highlights of her career. Blair has done some absolutely incredible work in the world of stand up and comedy writing. Of course, being the simpleton that I am, I still threw in a question about her appearance in Stand By Your Band. I never claimed to be good at this, People. My apologies if I led you to believe I was.

What I am good at is searching out some of the most wonderful folks from the world of comedy and keeping my fingers crossed (for days at a time) that they might want to join us on the very weird journey that has been the evolution of Trainwreck’d Society. And I will be damned if some of them happen to answer the call of the stupid, and jump on the proverbial train that is this site, and by its namesake is only destined for disaster. And Blair Socci is an absolutely perfect example of an extremely talented human being that we are so fortunate to have grace our digital pages here at TWS. We love Blair, and would like to assume that you already do as well. Who in the hell could you not?

So Folks, please enjoy this wonderful collection of responses from the absolutely brilliant Blair Socci!

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When did you discover that you were an absolutely hilarious human being, and that you wanted to make people laugh for a living?

I grew up in a loud, nutso Italian family and everyone was always making fun of each other so you had to be able to take it and also dish it out. Being funny was currency in my family. My parents are both really funny too.

What was the very first paid gig you ever had in the world of comedy? And where there any sort of lessons learned from this experience that you still keep in mind in your work today?

I honestly can’t remember my first paid gig. I wish I had saved something to know. My first year and a half I barked for 6 hours every Friday and Saturday night for free in the village in New York for five minutes of stage time on the 8 and 10 pm shows. Sometimes the maniacal man who ran it gave us a few dollars out of a donation bucket lol but that’s not what you mean I think. He wouldn’t let the barkers talk to each other on the street or look at our phones for six hours! I did it during blizzards. Wow, comedy is a sickness. I hope you’re reading this Jeff Lawrence, you evil warlock. Umm no I was lucky cuz I got on an MTV show two years into comedy and then was able to start getting paid for sets after that which felt really cool because I never ever thought comedy was going to be my career when I first started.

As somebody who has been all across the country making people laugh, I am curious to know about some of the places you love to perform in. I’m especially interested in some places that people may not immediately realize are wonderful places for comedy. Even the the common comedy fan knows that L.A., New York, Chicago, etc. are great places because you all live there. But what about the “flyover states” and anywhere else in the country? What are some places you have found yourself truly pleasurable to work in that some people may not expect to know are such a joy?

Gosh, I’ve been lucky to go to so many cool places but one of my favorite places is Atlanta. They have such a great scene there and so many great comics I love started there. I also love the food. Wow, I just eat so much food there.

It has been a hot minute now, about a year and a half ago, but you once appeared on one of my favorite podcasts of all time hosted by our old friends & past guest Tom Thakkar & Tommy McNamara known as Stand By Your Band where you defended Good Charlotte. And I think you did a damn fine job, if I do say so myself. And whenever we have guests on here that were on this program, I am always curious to know how things were for you all after the show goes live. I love Good Charlotte, and have gotten plenty of backlash for it, just in every day normal ass conversations. So how about you? Did you have any sort of backlash for defending The Madden Brothers & Friends from the internet, or friends and family members?

I love Tommy and Tom so much! They both make me laugh so hard. Honestly, I love so much shitty music it was hard to choose a band but I’d be lying if I didn’t purposely try to choose the shittiest of them all for that pod. I received a lot of backlash especially from Jared at the Comedy Attic but I just pray for my haters.

I read on your website that you have a podcast coming out soon with our another old friend & past guest Johnny Pemberton, entitled Demon Hour. I am very intrigued, and will definitely be tuning in when it becomes available. Would you be able to tell us a bit about this project? How did this come about?

Thank you! Johnny is a wild dude and we just kind of immediately connected when I moved to LA. I love how wacko his comedic sensibility is. We have been slacking on getting the pod out cuz we’re both so busy but we did just shoot a short film together that I am super excited about.

And while I am currently based about 8,000 miles away, and haven’t been able to check out The Blair and Greta Show that you do each week in North Hollywood at Genghis Cohen, I am very intrigued by it, and I’m sure our L.A. readers (there has to be a few, I imagine) would love to know more about this show that you do with (hopefully) future guest Greta Titelman. So, can you tell us what compelled you to want to create this show that I can only presume is absolutely hilarious?

The Blair and Greta Show has been a huge blessing in my life and is my favorite part of every week! Greta and I both moved from New York to LA at the same time a year ago and we knew we had to start a show right away because we would be getting less stage time than we we’re used to in New York and would need a place to work out new material every week. It’s grown into an amazing, packed show with a fun, devoted audience and Greta and I can’t believe how lucky we are.

What else does the future hold for you? Anything you would like to plug to our readers?

Hmmm…I am really excited to go on tour this summer with Ron Funches and Gabe Dinger. They are two super funny dudes and great friends of mine. I know being with them will push me to get better at comedy but I also just love hanging out with them because they are so sweet and silly and fun to be around. I am also working on trying to sell a few things and always making more short films. I love working with Reggie Henke, Brooks Burgoon, Andrew Johnson and Xavier Rotnofsky on my series, Blair’s Lair, which you can find on my Instagram or online.

What was the last thing that made you smile?

I met this dog named Elmo the other night who was 70% poodle and 30% pitbull and I have never connected with anything more in my life. It was like Elmo was me and I was Elmo. He was so fuzzy and furry and laid in my arms like a baby on his back. We loved each other!

To keep up with Blair, check out her WEBSITE. And if you live in the L.A. area, be sure to check out The Blair & Greta Show every Tuesday at Genghis Cohen.

Upcoming Shows Across the Country:

June 20th, 2019 @Thalia Hall in Chicago, IL

July 11th – 13th, 2019 @ Comedy On State in Madison, WI

July 14th, 2019 @ Turner Hall Ballroom in Milwaukee, WI

August 8th, 2019 @ Stand Up Live in Huntsville, AL

August 9th – 10th, 2019 @ Zanie’s in Nashville, TN

& More to come!