Curated by Ahaan Ugale · Last reviewed Apr 27, 2026
Stand-up is a craft that mostly gets discussed in 90-second clips, which is a lousy way to understand it. These eight long-form conversations let working comics talk shop with Joe Rogan about the things that actually shape a bit — writing, road life, club culture, audience reaction, and the industry pressure to dilute an edge. Whether you come for the comedy, the craft, or how voice gets built over years, the conversations here go past highlights.
Start here if you want a working comic's view of how the industry sands an edge off — Owen Smith on early rejection, run-ins with Russell Simmons and Dave Chappelle, and why Hollywood development notes flatten voice.
Raw vs. polished standup comedy and finding an authentic styleEarly career rejection, Def Jam, and full‑circle validation from Russell SimmonsYoga, voluntary hardship, and building resilience for real‑life stressHollywood gatekeepers, TV development, and why many great ideas die in notesThe value of old notebooks and the “Notebooks” show concept about joke origins
Dave Attell on how the club scene evolved from the 80s and 90s and how new comics develop today inside Rogan's Austin Comedy Mothership.
Evolution of comedy clubs (Cap City, Laugh Stop, Comedy Cellar, Improv, Ice House, Hermosa, Vegas/Atlantic City)Rogan’s new Austin ‘mothership’ club and building a real comedy communityHow comics develop: open mics then vs now, road work, writing habits, checking for joke overlapAudience changes, cancel culture, young crowd sensitivities, and defending edgy materialAttell’s career mindset: crowd relationships, staying off social media, late-night spots, humility about stage time
Nikki Glaser on sobriety, language taboos, and the mental wiring of fame in a loose hang that hops between dogs, sex, and stand-up craft.
Rescue dogs, pets, and animal rights (including PETA and veganism)Exercise, male anger, meditation, and mental healthSobriety, addiction, and Allen Carr’s ‘Easy Way’ methodSex, relationships, gender roles, and Nikki’s personal insecuritiesLanguage taboos, cancel culture, and free speech in comedy
The pick for writers and teachers who think craft can be reverse-engineered: Jimmy Carr argues stand-up is a structured methodology and pitches joke-writing as a school-taught discipline.
The craft and structure of standup comedy (writing, joke types, process)Comedy clubs, community, and Rogan’s Austin “Mothership” as a cultural hubTeaching comedy as an art form and potential school curriculumCareer, risk-taking, and finding purpose versus conventional paths (college, jobs)Mental health, suicide, bullying, and the psychology of comics
Tom Segura on backdooring his Netflix sketch series Bad Thoughts into existence with self-funded shorts, plus a critique of studio risk-aversion in R-rated comedy.
Tom Segura’s Netflix series “Bad Thoughts” and his original dream of making moviesState of modern comedy, studio risk‑aversion, and the economics of comediesStandup craft: breaks, writing, hypnosis, genuine joy vs manufactured performanceHealth, fitness, touring, addiction, and food quality in America vs abroadTechnology and AI: deepfakes, synthetic media, future of film and actors
Best for aspiring comics studying the unglamorous middle of the craft — Fahim Anwar on the day-to-day grind at The Comedy Store, working out material, and the club culture where reps actually happen.
Life at The Comedy Store: hierarchy, camaraderie, and working out materialStandup craft: performance nuance, writing process, and building new hoursOld school industry vs. new model: JFL, sitcom deals, podcasts, YouTube, streamingCareer paths and risk: Fahim’s Boeing engineering job, quitting, and family dynamicsEthics and politics in comedy: joke theft, Rogan–Mencia, political labels, media culture
Deric Poston on Austin's rise as a new comedy hub and how COVID-era lockdowns and culture-war pressure reshaped what comics could say on stage.
Building The Comedy Mothership and Austin’s new comedy ecosystemDiet, discipline, gluttony, and Rogan’s carnivore/clean-eating approachCOVID lockdowns, vaccines, media narratives, and social divisionComedy culture: meritocracy vs. Hollywood scarcity and envyDevelopment of material: process, bombing, and learning from killers
Jeff Dye on club culture and the design of the Comedy Mothership, woven into a freewheeling hang about psychedelics, Bigfoot, and personal responsibility.
Stand-up comedy craft, nerves, and the culture of elite clubs (Comedy Store, Comedy Mothership)Designing a great comedy room: acoustics, ceilings, and audience soundCOVID-era life decisions, lockdown resistance, and Rogan’s move to TexasWeed laws, hemp history, psychedelics, and who should/shouldn’t use themDrones, war, civilian casualties, and moral distance in modern conflict
How we picked these
We searched every transcript in our catalog of 6,000+ podcast episodes for substantive discussion of stand up comedy, then ranked by relevance — not popularity, recency, or paid placement. Summaries and topic tags are AI-generated from the full transcripts.
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