12 Comedy Podcasts That Are As Smart As They Are Less Smart
SmartLess is having a good year. Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett launched the podcast in 2020, it was acquired by Amazon for around $80 million in 2021 , and this year Max premiered a special six-part documentary following the show’s six-city tour of North America. . It recently peaked at number two on the Apple Podcasts chart, right behind The Daily .
This means that if you’re reading this, you probably know everything about the show, and maybe you’re looking for something with the same vibe: funny, original, colloquial. Here are 12 podcasts that may not be in the top 5 yet, but are sure to bring you lots of laughs.
Family trips with the Meyers brothers
Seth Meyers and his brother Josh are the hosts of The Meyers Brothers Family Trip , which asks guests to relive their family vacation. Travel talk is an excuse for hilarious conversations with John Oliver, Amy Schumer, Amy Poehler, and other funny people (who aren’t on all other famous people’s podcasts). It’s a glimpse into the families and childhoods of famous people, with storytelling, tangential, brotherly banter between Seth and Josh, and a specially written parody song about each guest at the end of each episode.
Baby it’s Keke Palmer
What is it like to be a famous coach? Which 90s shows were ahead of their time? Why do we lie? On Baby, These Ts, Keke Palmer Keke steps up to the microphone with questions and invites guests (including Jordan Peele, Amy Heckerling, and John Stamos) to help find answers. Keke’s big personality sparkles as she dives into the obsessions that have taken over her brain and unpacks them, taking funny people on her journey. You will learn things you never thought you needed to know.
All Fantasy All
Everything can be drawn in fantasy style on All Fantasy Everything : racehorse names, tokens, words that make you sound silly, places to sleep that aren’t beds, animals you want to get fucked right away, and even yourself fantasy sketches. Comedians Ian Carmel, Sean Jordan and David Gbori have a roundtable discussion with their friends, taking turns drafting lists like you’ve never heard before. Each round is a springboard for goofy stories and touches on specific things in life that we like, that annoy us, and that we do when we think no one is watching.
Straightiolab
Comedians George Siveris and Sam Taggart break naturalistic culture piece by piece with funny guests on Straightiolab . Their conversations, which are about 75% wild, are so out of the ordinary that they go from weird to downright brilliant. However outrageous, subtle connections they find between hot topic and queerness, they inevitably veer into quasi-philosophical conversations about gender. Think of it like an academic comedy. Every show starts with a stupid game segment that doesn’t make sense (and no one is allowed to ask questions about it), and George, Sam, and the guests end each episode with TRL-style yells. To steal from George and Sam: “If this review doesn’t make you want to listen to the show, then congratulations, you’re probably gay.”
Give you a ride?
You know that someone is a good friend if they meet you at the airport. This is usually a huge request. But if you’re traveling with some of the most famous comedians in LA, this is fodder for an outrageously funny podcast. Comedians Chris Fairbanks and Karen Kilgariff on Need a Ride pick up guests like Margaret Cho, Reggie Watts, Jackie Kashian and Ron Funches and somehow get them home safe and sound. (It seems risky that their recording studio is their car.) Their conversations are as light-hearted as any conversation with your friend on the road, as light-hearted as the L.A. wind kissing Chris and Karen’s cheeks as they pedal to medals, windows down, dog talk on Benadryl, drunken spelunking, Tupac’s hologram, Point Break hunks, and more.
lady to lady
Lady to Lady feels like a sleepover with your best friends Brandi Posey, Barbara Gray and Tess Barker. The trio have hilarious chats full of jokes and goofy snippets taken from your childhood birthdays. The guests come to play along, and at the end of the “Women’s Issues” segment, the audience answers questions with funny but useful tips. From time to time, ladies arrange solo episodes – random conversations about their lives, which for some reason are 10 times more interesting than mine.
Endless honeymoon
Natasha Leggero and Moshe Kasher are comedians who are funny on their own, but together they are magical. Their collaborative podcast , Endless Honeymoon , is a humorous relationship show that gives callers completely unfiltered advice on how to develop friendships with the opposite sex, what to do with a partner who has flatulence, and more, even if it offers a glimpse into their own relationship. . If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to be married to a comedian, you’ll find this show pretty funny.
Do not panic
Anthony Atamanuik created a podcast about anxiety that is much more than advice on how to deal with it or interviews with boss girls or tech bros who claim to have overcome it. Don’t Panic is a variety show that invites guests to consider life’s worst-case scenarios, and the rich soundscape makes you feel like you’re living through a disaster yourself. Hints are offered, so try to remember them if you ever get attacked by a swarm of bees or accidentally run your car into the lake. After all, you may die. Anthony and his guests can too. I hope you make it out alive.
Double Threat with Julie Klausner and Tom Scharpling
In Double Threat , comedy legends Julie Klausner (Hulu’s Difficult People ) and Tom Scharpling ( Best Show ) team up for a long-winded, laugh-filled, and often downright bizarre variety show full of singing, skits, and topical talk. pop culture, from Carvel’s newest ice cream cake, to Liza Minnelli’s bursitis, to creepy movie characters, to Ted Cruz having a beer can thrown at him. Guests such as Alan Cumming and Ricky Lake come in for complex and wild talk.
Hollywood Directory
The Hollywood Handbook claims to be “an insider’s guide to achieving your showbiz dreams from two top-notch IT guys who live their lives.” But that would be boring. Instead, hosts Hayes Davenport and Sean Clements tease the idea by bringing celebrities from Kumail Nanjiani to Aubrey Plaza to talk about their projects, yes, but all the while they play the role of two people dying to get into the industry. It’s full of inside jokes, gags, and impromptu parodies that tell the story of how to become famous, and how realistic that is, is up to you.
donuts
Doughboys is a show where the duo of Mike Mitchell and Nick Wieger offer funny yet serious reviews of fast food restaurants. The guys invite other comedians to either praise or completely fry staples from nationwide chains like Taco Bell and more local establishments like Del Taco. The episodes are long – they start with a brief history of the establishment, a lot of banter between Mike, Nick and the guest, and a long detailed review of the food (what was ordered and what is the total number of dishes on 5 forks). scale). The more you listen, the more you get to know Mike and Nick and their combat dynamic, and realize that this show is as much about their friendship as it is about hamburgers.
Bombardment with Eric André
It just arrived – comedian, actor and host of The Eric Andre Show. Eric Andre is the host of the new program Bombardment with Eric Andre , a platform that gives him the opportunity to connect with friends, discuss failures and share funny stories. about the bombings on stage and in public and life in general. In the first episode, which has already aired, Eric invites Michelle Buteau, and they tell stories about their first stand-up days – pissing in bottles and performing drunk in front of an ungrateful audience. The show uses game production elements to give the stories a layer of believability, but the stories don’t need them. Bombardment is not about fighting failure, but about enjoying it.