This week on the Bertcast podcast, Bert Kreischer sit down with comedian Anjelah Johnson. They talk about her famous nail salon bit, culture & identity, dating a guy with a kid at 14, doing drugs at 12, gratitude, her rise to fame, and much more.
You can preorder Anjelah’s book “Who Do I Think I Am?: Stories of Chola Wishes and Caviar Dreams” on Amazon.
Anjelah Nicole Johnson-Reyes is an American actress, comedian, and former NFL cheerleader. Johnson was a cast member on the series MADtv during its 13th season. Her characters included a Vietnamese nail salon employee named Mỹ Linh/Tammy and a rude fast food employee turned music star named Bon Qui Qui (the latter of which has become popular outside of Johnson’s short stint on MADtv).
Johnson moved to Los Angeles in 2005 to pursue a career in comedy after a friend suggested that she join a joke-writing class. She took improv classes, and quickly began to headline her own shows. Her stand-up routine, comprising her impression of a Vietnamese nail salon employee, received a lot of attention on YouTube. In 2007, Johnson joined the cast of sketch comedy show MADtv as a featured performer. Due to the impending writers strike, Johnson was often given only a few lines in the scripts during her tenure, as the writers had to produce more scripts at a faster pace. However, her self-scripted character Bon Qui Qui, a fast-food employee who treats customers rudely, was received well and gained a similarly large YouTube following. In 2008, Johnson was nominated for an ALMA Award for Outstanding Female Performance in a Comedy Television Series for her work on MADtv.
Johnson was given her own one-hour Comedy Central special, Anjelah Johnson: That’s How We Do It, in 2009. She also appeared in the films Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel and Our Family Wedding, and provided her voice for the live-action adaptation of Marmaduke. As well, she was featured on the late night talk show Lopez Tonight, hosted by George Lopez.
Johnson became the “TC Girl”, a spokesperson for Mexican restaurant Taco Cabana, in 2011. In 2012, Johnson became the national campaign spokesperson for the “Don’t be an S.O.V.” (single occupant vehicle) campaign led by vRide, the country’s largest van pooling company, which encouraged single commuters (S.O.V.s) to rideshare, carpool, or vanpool.Johnson as Bon Qui Qui at the McAllen Convention Center in 2016
In 2013, Johnson reprised her role as her MADtv character Bon Qui Qui for a skit released by Alexander Wang. Johnson’s second stand-up comedy special titled Homecoming Show followed and premiered on Netflix. It was filmed in San Jose, California.
In 2014, Anjelah was featured as her signature character Bon Qui Qui in a parody music video directed by Randal Kirk II “This Is How We Do It” for the Benefit cosmetics, which features social media influencer, Britney Furlan.
On October 1, 2015, Johnson’s third stand-up special, titled Anjelah Johnson: Not Fancy, was released on Netflix. It was filmed in southern California.
