Kattoo King, a junior fashion design major at Drexel University, has recently been slaying as a stand-up comedian at open mics on campus and around Philadelphia and her hometown, Washington D.C. Along with making people laugh, Kattoo has found a past-time that she loves and has helped her grow as a person.
Kattoo has always been interested in stand-up comedy. She enjoys watching stand-up in her free time. Her favorite comedians are John Mulaney, Alice Wetterlund, and Dave Chapelle. She has also taken improv classes in the past.
However, it wasn’t until years after her interest in stand-up comedy began that Kattoo finally took the stage. Kattoo said that her first time performing stand-up was done out of spite. When Kattoo was invited by a friend to do stand-up at a Drexel open mic, somebody else commented that Kattoo, with her full schedule, wouldn’t have the time. “I HATE it when people answer for me,” Kattoo said, “so despite my already full schedule, I found time to write and practice a five minute set, then I did my first show and the rest is history.”
What started as an act of spite soon became one of Kattoo’s most treasured hobbies. She began performing weekly at Drexel’s Late Night Series, an open mic in the Creese Student Center on Thursday nights, becoming one of the regular performers. She also tries to squeeze in as many open mic shows at bars around Philadelphia and D.C. as she can.
Kattoo’s favorite thing about doing stand-up comedy is making people laugh, but she says the most challenging part is the first minute of a set before the audience knows whether they like her or not. Her first month or so doing stand-up, she was so nervous before a show that she would listen to a silly song like “Mambo No. 5” by Lou Bega to calm her down. However, now she just puts on some make-up and she’s ready to perform.
However, most open mics that Kattoo attends are still dominated by men. When asked what it’s like to be a female stand-up comedian, Kattoo said, “It’s not really hard…it’s just inconvenient.” She says that there are still some people that think women aren’t funny. She’s even had a coworker tell her that he didn’t find women funny and would probably find a woman’s jokes funnier if she were a man. Yikes.
Along with sexism, Kattoo also runs into people who think that she, as a female stand-up comedian, is meant to be the representation of all popular female stand-up comedians. Kattoo does not agree with that misconception and said, “There are infinite different ways to be a female stand-up, and I can really only represent how I do it.”
Even with negative misconceptions about female comedians, stand-up comedy has had a very positive impact on Kattoo’s life. Because of stand-up comedy, she has become much more confident, in and out of school. “It’s been one of the most rewarding experiences in my life,” Kattoo said about stand-up comedy.
As for Kattoo’s favorite joke to tell on the stage? It’s a short joke that she tells occasionally on stage that goes: “Supposedly the 70’s look is very trendy right now, so why am I the only one who is committed to growing out my bush?”
Along with pursuing a degree in fashion design and working part-time as a waitress, Kattoo’s limited free time is spent doing yoga, hanging out with friends, reading and watching Netflix.
After college, Kattoo wants to one day live in New York and work at a design house, where she hopes to find a job that is both exciting and a great creative outlet for her. She wants to continue doing stand-up and go as far with it as she can. She said that if she ever had to give up stand-up because of her career, she would still continue writing comedy.
Stand-up comedy has been one of the most enriching hobbies for Kattoo, and she encourages any woman interested in comedy to try it! Check out Kattoo’s set on youtube and look out for her performing at open mics and, maybe someday, as a featured performer at a show or on TV!