Dec 24, 2023
When you stand on a stage — the President of the
United States to your right and the Vice President to your left —
with the most powerful and influential people in the world
mean-muggin' you, it’s understandable that even the most seasoned
comedian might get nervous. And, Roy Wood Jr.
admits to it.
But his mentality, during any performance, remains the
same. “This is the job, these are the jokes, no one in this
room can end my career,” Wood Jr. told Mark W.
Wright on Press Pause. “Not being a good comedian
one time is not enough to kill your career — so the more I looked
at it like that, the less concerned I had with nerves.”
Wood, who last spring headlined the 2023 White House
Correspondents' Dinner to its highest ratings since 2017, talked
about his career journey after wrapping his seven-city Happy to
Be Here Live Tour.
Twenty-six years in the business has the Birmingham, Ala. native
grateful to still have the opportunity to do what he loves. "I'm
grateful and gracious," he said. "You can't control who your
audience is. I just put out what I put out, and [to] the people who
want to show up, thank you."