Comedian Aida Rodriguez joins CBS Mornings to discuss her new memoir Legitimate Kid.
She shares how she turned to comedy to deal with her difficult childhood and how it still serves as a form of therapy for her today.
Legitimate Kid: A Memoir: A poignant and moving memoir-in-essays from stand-up comedian Aida Rodriguez on the power of overcoming hardship and transforming pain into laughter.
Aida Rodriguez has, to put it mildly, lived a whirlwind life. Her rags to-riches story is mind-blowing: She was kidnapped as a child by her mother in the Dominican Republic and brought to the US. She was later kidnapped again by her grandmother and uncle, and moved from New York to Florida. As an adult, she ended a difficult marriage and endured homelessness with her children in Los Angeles. But through it all she never lost her sense of humor.
Born with a wonderful wit and an irrepressible spirit, Aida used her gifts and worked tirelessly, turning tragedy and pain into biting comedy that takes on everything from misogyny and racism to social media and news headlines. She eventually released a hit HBO Max special which led to multiple development deals—success that won her a nationwide audience, opened doors, and helped her expand the way Latinos are represented in comedy.
In this, her highly anticipated first book, Aida charts her many ups and downs. From personal setbacks to career highs and everything in between, Legitimate Kid is endearing, shocking, and ultimately life-affirming. Order your copy HERE
Rodriguez moved to Los Angeles in the early 2000s with her two children after her divorce from Ellison. After a bout with anorexia and a divorce, she turned to comedy for healing. For a time, she and her children were homeless and lived out of a car. She is a five-time host of the Imagen Awards, which recognizes “the positive portrayal and creative excellence of Latinos and Latino cultures on screen”
She made her TV debut in NBC’s Last Comic Standing in 2014 where she departed among the top 10 finalists for Season 8.
Rodriguez was a featured comic in Netflix’s Tiffany Haddish Presents: They Ready—a comedy anthology series from longtime friend Haddish—HBO Max’s Entre Nos: Part 1, and Showtime’s Shaquille O’Neal Presents: All-Star Comedy Jam, among other specials.
On the feature side, she was handpicked to appear in the 2016 film The Comedy starring Robert DeNiro by director Taylor Hackford.
