Finesse Mitchell has built himself quite the fanbase and notoriety over the years. From his time on the stand-up stage to his television successes on Saturday Night Live and Disney Channel’s A.N.T. Farm, he has no plan to slow down anytime soon. The comedian and actor recently released his fourth stand-up special titled Slightly Offensive, and hilariously bold transparency is part of the charm.
We recently had the opportunity to chat with Finesse about his newest special, performing in his dream venue of Madison Square Garden, his comedy heroes and so much more. You can watch Slightly Offensive now on the 800 Pound Gorilla YouTube channel!
Tell us about your experience filming Slightly Offensive and how you prepared your material.
“The experience was familiar, because this was my second time working with my wife, Adris Debarge. We did my second special together, One Man Monster, filmed in Atlanta. And when I was trying to save money and cut costs, I was like, ‘Babe, suit up. You're in the game.’ But for the material, I had been working on it at the Laugh Factory, the Comedy Store, and the improv here in L.A. as I toured.”
Where does the inspiration for your stand-up come from, and how do you stay inspired?
“I'm a huge fan of stand-up comedy. When I was a kid, I used to hide under the bed to listen and watch Richard Pryor’s Live On Sunset Strip, and all of the Richard Pryor specials that would come on cable back in the day when cable was in its early stages. And then I just became a fan of Eddie Murphy from Saturday Night Live. 25 plus years later, I just get my inspiration from comedy, from being observational and just having favorites in the game.”
What is your dream venue to perform stand-up at and why?
“July 18 and 19th, 2025, I will be performing at Madison Square Garden. That is definitely a bucket list thing to do for all people in stand up comedy that has to be one of the best venues. And so I'm excited about that, and Matt Rife is giving me that opportunity. So how cool is that? Also the Laugh Factory here in Los Angeles is one of my favorite clubs to perform at.”
Where can people catch your upcoming live shows?
“Just go to finessemitchell.com to find out where I'm going!”
Last but certainly not least, would you rather fight one 800 pound gorilla or 800 one pound gorillas?
“Man, I'm just going with neither. I think I'm gonna get my ass whooped trying to fight either one. I haven't fought since I was 12. And a lot of people think you can just fight but at my age now, I’ll pull a shoulder blade muscle just bending over to tie my shoe too fast. So I don't want to pretend like I can fight because I know that I can't. So my answer is neither.”
To listen to the full interview, listen to our latest episode of our Album of the Week podcast to hear much more from Finesse!
