East Austin Comedy Club, Austin’s only BIPOC-owned comedy club, celebrated its official grand opening weekend on July 21 through July 23, 2022. Guests were invited to experience the modern speakeasy for an intimate weekend of entertainment featuring a diverse array of local talent and special guests.
Founded by local comedians Raza Jafri and Andre Ricks, Austin’s historic Tiger Den has been transformed into East Austin’s newest destination for libations and laughs. Curiously nestled along East 4th Street, the charming venue is adorned with velvet-draped walls and vintage chandeliers. With regularly-scheduled performances from both local and nationally-known comedians Thursday through Saturday, comedy fans will enjoy top talent and the intimacy of a 49-seat setting.
“The world needs comedy now more than ever. We’re excited to launch a truly unique space in Austin where guests can leave behind their worries and laugh with us,” explained Jafri, Comedian and Co-founder of East Austin Comedy Club. “Located in the heart of East Austin, we look forward to bringing comedic diversity and creativity to the neighborhood.”
In addition to its ongoing events, the club offers an artist residency program. The program provides selected comics the opportunity to practice and evolve their talent with up to 20 guaranteed paid prime spots over four weeks. Additionally, Jafri will connect the comedians to other shows and opportunities in the Austin area to encourage and support their growth.
“Not only will we bring renowned comedians to East Austin, but we also plan on discovering and empowering fresh, local talent,” Jafri said. “As Austin continues to grow, it’s easy to get lost as a creative. Our goal is to shine a light on untapped talent and ensure they get the exposure they deserve.”
Raza Jafri is a powerhouse comedian, writer, producer, teacher and Co-founder of East Austin Comedy Club, Austin’s newest comedy venue. With a passion for crafting the perfect punchline, Jafri started standup 5 years ago in Chicago as a way to cope with the banality of being alive. From there, he was hooked. His stylings douse matters of race, relationships, and society in a vat of absurdity and good-natured nihilism.
Seeing a need for diversity in Austin’s emerging comedy scene, Jafri started East Austin Comedy Club to help others access opportunities and improve as artists. In addition to running the club, Raza produces several shows across independent bars and breweries including the Speakeasy in downtown Austin and AquaBrew, a local brewery in San Marcos.
As a nationally touring artist, Raza has performed at the Harlem Comedy Festival, Plano Comedy Festival and shared the stage with the likes of Russell Peters, Usama Siddiquee and Sam Tallent. Recently, We Own The Laughs Tyson Paul sat down with Jafri to discuss everything East Austin, success in comedy, and much more.
How long have you been working on acquiring your own comedy club?
The comedy club was not the initial plan. We were looking to just produce a single weekly show. But the setup of the venue was perfect for comedy. So my partner and I decided to convince the owner to let us keep it for all the weekends. The plan ended up working out for both of us, and Voila, East Austin Comedy Club was born.
Give us some details on your new venue East Austin Comedy Club?
East Austin Comedy Club feels like a secret. It doesn’t make sense. You stroll through a courtyard filled with an array of oddities. You are certain you are at the wrong place. You are certain that death might be near. And then you open the door in that back and step into a different world. Jazz plays in an intimate room adorned with velvet curtains and dim lights.
How often will the comedy club be open?
We are currently open Thursday-Saturday. By late October, we will be expanding into Tuesday and Wednesday. There is a double header each night. Fridays and Saturdays are 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. and weekdays are 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.
Will the venue mainly focus on stand-up comedy or will there be other different comedic events set to be showcased?
We’re just doing stand-up. We want to create a reliable and consistently high-quality show.
How has the Texas comedy scene responded to the information that they will be getting a new comedy venue in a place where there’s already plenty of iconic comedy venues nearby?
The comedy scene has responded with a lot of love. It feels less like a competition and more like mutual support. We occupy a niche that the other comedy clubs do not. We only hold 40 seats and offer a very different experience. Comedians now have a place to perform with big headliners that you might find at The Creek and the Cave and Cap City Comedy Club. Then they can head over to our place and perform again in a more intimate room.
A comedy club is only as successful as the young talent that emerges in between the big name comedians who visit the venue. Who are some comedians that may not be well-known to the masses right now, but once you open, their comedic talents will help turn you guys into one of the best comedy clubs in the state of Texas?
This is hard to say. We have a lot of faith in the comedians we put up. We are performers ourselves and have strong opinions and preferences. We are also building comedic anchors to our shows. This means comedians we believe in will be anchored to a particular night of the week, let’s say the Wednesday late show. Audiences can show up to every Wednesday late show and catch them there. This gives comedians a reliable workout room and audiences a reliable place to perform.
Virtual comedy shows are extremely popular during this period. Now virtual shows may never come close to the excitement of being at a live show, but will you be using this new form of comedy to help with the marketing of your new comedy club?
We’re not really interested in doing virtual shows. We are in the process of recording our shows so that comedians have access to clips they can promote.
Who are some incredible talents that you can let us know about that will be making an appearance at The East Austin Comedy Club during your early beginnings?
We’ve had the likes of Deric Poston, KC Shornima, Lukas Mcrary, Usama Siddiquee, Heather Pasternak, Alingnon Mitra, Ahmed Al Qadri, Tyler Fischer, Matt Boyd already perform at East Austin Comedy Club.
Who are some notable comedians on your venue wish list that before it’s all said and done you would like to bless the stage at The East Austin Comedy Club?
I would love to see Joe Rogan, Louis CK, Maria Bamford, Bill Burr, Sebastian Maniscalco, and others drop in and do a set.
Just by the opening of it’s doors and beginning operations, is The East Austin Comedy Club already a success in your eyes or do you have certain expectations that you would like to meet before you consider yourself to be satisfied?
The main goal for the club was a place for myself and others to grow as comedians. In that sense, this has already been such a success. But we have so many other ambitions now that we are gaining momentum.
Before we end this interview, WOTL would like to say congratulations to you Raza and we wish you nothing but the best for many more years to come. Would you like to send out any special thank you to anyone who may have helped you along the way to make this comedy club possible?
My co-owner Andre Ricks. Our business partner Flann O’Malley. My Mom Dad and brothers. And Alexa for being such a positive and supportive person in my life.
Follow Raza Jafri and the East Austin Comedy Club HERE
