Comedy Bang! Bang!


Comedy Bang! Bang! is a comedy podcast which began airing as a radio show on May 1, 2009. It is hosted by writer and comedian Scott Aukerman, best known for his work on the 1990s HBO sketch comedy program Mr. Show with Bob and David, creating and hosting the Comedy Bang! Bang! TV series, and co-founding the weekly Comedy Death-Ray stage show at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in Hollywood.
Under the name Comedy Death-Ray Radio, the show was originally broadcast on Indie 103, but since the summer of 2010 has belonged to the Earwolf comedy podcasting network.
Between 2012 and 2016 Comedy Bang! Bang! was also a television series on IFC hosted by Aukerman and featuring bandleaders Reggie Watts, Kid Cudi, and "Weird Al" Yankovic.
In 2021, Aukerman and producer Brett Morris launched Comedy Bang Bang World, a website and subscription platform offering the back catalog of the podcast alongside new spin-off shows.
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History

Comedy Death-Ray Radio first aired May 1, 2009, after Aukerman gained permission from Indie 103 to conduct a one-month tryout. The first episode's guests were Rob Huebel and Thomas Lennon.
On the May 15, 2011 podcast celebrating the show's second anniversary, Aukerman announced that the show's name was changing to Comedy Bang! Bang!. He credited his wife Kulap Vilaysack with coming up with the new name.
In episode 204, "The Pepper Men," guests Jon Daly and Zach Galifianakis professed their love for the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. Both claimed to be "huge Pepper Men" and had written a song in tribute to the band titled "Abracadabralifornia", which Daly sang, imitating frontman Anthony Kiedis. On January 29, 2014, a parody website www.RHCP2014.com claimed to have the brand-new Chili Peppers song, "Abracadabralifornia". The song was written and performed by Daly and musician Cyrus Ghahremani, though many social media users believed it to be legitimate. Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith tweeted his approval of the song.

Comedy Bang Bang World

In 2021, Aukerman tapped Brett Morris, longtime engineer, creative, and senior production manager of Earwolf to help create a new independent platform for the Comedy Bang Bang archive as well as launch new podcasts.
On October 1, 2021 they launched Comedy Bang Bang World. The subscription service offers exclusive Discord access, ad-free back episodes of CB!B! as well as live performances, and fan favorite Earwolf podcasts like Affirmation Nation with Bob Ducca, Mike Detective, and Bonanas For Bonanza. Premium subscribers also receive new shows like Scott Hasn't Seen, The Andy Daly Podcast Project, CBB-FM, College Town, and We Have To Stop Talkin’ TMNT On CBB.
The rotating feed of CBB Presents, where comedy friends and recurring CBB characters host their own spin-off podcasts, has included Hey Randy, WHO ME? An Extremely True Crime Podcast with The Batmin, This Book Changed My Life, Full Throttle with Bob Ducca, Eat Pray Dunk with Bill Walton, Hi! I’m Prov To Meet You, Entreè PeeE Neur's Entrepreneur Tour, and various one-offs and specials.
In 2023 Andy Daly took his podcasts to his own Patreon channel, while the CBB World expanded its lineup to include Threedom, The Neighborhood Listen, Womp It Up!, Going Deep, and The Gino Lombardo Show.

Overview

Each episode of Comedy Bang! Bang! begins with a theme song performed by Reggie Watts, followed by Aukerman reading a listener-submitted catchphrase. This tradition began under the pretense that one will eventually replace the show's original catchphrase, "What's up, hot dog?"
After introducing himself, Aukerman typically interviews a celebrity guest. After each ad break a comedian playing a character enters the show, either as an invited guest or an intruder on the recording. The conversations are largely improvised, and characters can recur over multiple episodes, forming long-running story arcs.
Near the end of each episode, Aukerman will "open up the Plug Bag", allowing the guests to promote their projects. This feature has a different listener-submitted theme song each week, as well as a different listener-submitted remix of an annually-improvised Ben Schwartz song.
While being broadcast as a radio show, the conversation was broken up by comedy songs. For the first few months of the program, comedian Doug Benson would regularly call the program and give several "8 Words or Less Movie Reviews".
The show's earlier years were characterised by a variety of improv-style games, including "Would You Rather?", "Riddle Me This", and "Freestyle Rap Battle".
Occasionally, guests will present their own features on the show. Examples include:
  • "Harris' Foam/Phone Corner", in which Harris Wittels recited jokes, text-messaged to himself, which were deemed unworthy of his stand-up performances, and was ridiculed for his efforts.
  • "New No-Nos", in which Paul Rust makes up new rules for life and the world, which he refers to as New No-Nos. Nearly every new rule is a ridiculous idea that does not solve any problem.
  • "The Solo Bolo Olympic Song Challenge", in which Ben Schwartz and Scott sing a myriad of different songs, jingles, and show-tunes, attempting to seamlessly transition between songs that have some sort of connection to one another. These connections can include being by the same artist, including the same word or having a similar style, rhythm or melody.
Comedy Bang! Bang! has also been recorded live on stage at theatres around the world. These recordings were available for premium subscribers to Earwolf's Howl app, Stitcher Premium, and currently Comedy Bang Bang World.

Episodes

Recurring guests

2016

2024

Reception

Comedy Bang! Bang! has been critically acclaimed. In 2011 Entertainment Weekly described it as "Often strange, consistently hilarious, always unpredictable." In the same year it featured on Rolling Stone's "10 Best Comedy Podcasts of the Moment".
The A.V. Club says "The guests are routinely top-notch, the show has a de facto company of ace improvisers enlivening each episode, and Scott Aukerman is a gleefully indulgent host", also saying "For comedy fans, Comedy Bang Bang is essential listening." It frequently appeared in the Podmass column, highlighting the best podcasts of each week, and the website named Comedy Bang! Bang! the best podcast of 2013.
"It's perhaps the easiest show to single out as a juggernaut; the podcast is ten years in with over 600 episodes, a testament to creator Scott Aukerman's unparalleled collaboration prowess." — Vulture
The show won in the Comedy category at the 2015 and 2017 Academy of Podcasters Awards.