Comedy
Matt Rife’s Latest Comedy Special is a Masterclass in Crowd Work
Last year, I wrote an essay titled “Matt Rife, Masculinity, and the Fear of a Female Fandom.” At that time, there was a lot of talk on the Internet about the well-known crowd-work comedian and social media sensation Matt Rife releasing a Netflix comedy special that contradicted his established image. Specifically, I used this essay to critique how Rife disregarded his female fans after gaining mainstream success through his off-color jokes about domestic violence and spirituality.
As a fan of Matt Rife, I was not only disappointed by the comedian’s decision to distance himself from his female fans but also by the quality of his comedy special. From my perspective, he was using the special to prove himself to the public while pandering to a male audience, and it was apparent that the online comments he received influenced the way he constructed his comedy set and portrayed himself at a critical moment in his career.
I wasn’t the only one who felt this way. There was a significant amount of backlash online…
