Arguably one of the greatest Latino stand-up comedy performers of all time, Willie Barcena sits down with friends and fellow comedy legends as part of his podcast titled Willie Barcena’s Drop In.
Willie Barcena: Raucous, irreverent, and never politically correct, Willie Barcena is one of the sharpest minds in comedy. His universal material spans family, religion, race, sex, politics, and whatever else you aren’t supposed to talk about. His twelve Tonight Show appearances are among the most frequent for any comedian and by far the most for any Latino comedian.
A 20-year comedy veteran and road warrior, Willie brings laughs and insights all over the world, including many shows for the troops stationed abroad. He has appeared on many TV shows, including: “Moesha” and The Wayans Brothers,” and he was chosen to be the host of the popular TV production “Latino Laugh Festival – The Show.” His one-hour Comedy Central special received rave reviews, and he followed that up with a showtime special. His latest special, now on Netflix, shows Willie is just getting better. Look out for Willie’s next special, coming soon, and check him out on Facebook and Instagram to see new material and stay up on all things Willie.
In this week’s, Willie is joined by stand-up comedian Carlos Mencia as he opens up on his past & where he is now.
Mencia comes from a humble background, born in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, the 17th of 18 children. His parents sent him to the United States when he was three months old, where he was raised in the Maravilla Projects in Los Angeles by his aunt and uncle. In his early teens, Mencia moved back to Honduras. When Mencia returned to Los Angeles, he showed such educational prowess that he pursued a career in engineering. But an amateur night at the world-renowned Laugh Factory comedy club would change his path, and a career in comedy began. He became a regular at The Comedy Store, performing nightly. After he found success on the Los Angeles comedy circuit, Mencia was named International Comedy Grand Champion from Buscando Estrellas (the Latin version of Star Search), eventually landing on shows such as “In Living Color,” “The Arsenio Hall Show,” and “An Evening at the Improv.”
Mencia continued his journey up the comedy ladder by headlining stand-up tours and starring in stand-up TV specials. In 2002, he received a CableACE Award nomination for Best Stand-Up Comedy Special for his HBO special. Comedy Central soon took notice and the show “Mind of Mencia” went into development. Created by Carlos and comedy producer Robert Morton, the comedy series featured Carlos and his crew with their merciless mix of up-close stand-up, unconventional street interviews, and shocking commercial parodies. The show was an instant hit, and propelled Mencia to the comedy elite. After the first season, Comedy Central signed Mencia back for an original stand-up special, “Carlos Mencia: No Strings Attached,” the first Comedy Central Stand-up Special DVD to achieve Platinum sales status.
Throughout the four seasons of “Mind of Mencia,” Carlos never stopped performing live, headlining shows across the country and internationally. “Comedy is my art, and fans are my passion,” he has said. Always looking to give back to those fans, Mencia has entertained troops serving overseas for USO tours in Turkey, Kirkuk, Baghdad, Qatar, Afghanistan, and many other countries.
Later, Mencia went on to star on the big screen. He starred opposite Ben Stiller and Michelle Monaghan in “The Heartbreak Kid,” and in the family-comedy “Our Family Wedding,” alongside America Ferrara and Forrest Whitaker.
Carlos Mencia presently lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two sons.
