By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally Friday May 29, 2015
There are plenty of actual famous folks who go by my name Rodney. The late Rodney Dangerfield. Rodney King. Comic Rodney Carrington. Singer Rodney Atkins. Then there's Atlanta stand-up comic Rodney Perry.
Chicago native Perry moved to Atlanta in 2009 when he was hired to be the sidekick to his friend and future Oscar winner Mo'Nique on her BET talk show based here. The show only lasted two seasons, but Perry decided to stay local and developed a relationship with the nascent Atlanta-based broadcast network Bounce TV.
They signed him up to be the host of comedy show "Off the Chain" and quickly became the face of the network. I talked to him while he was awaiting a flight back from Los Angeles after playing a barber on Bounce TV's sitcom "Family Time." On June 6, he will be coming to Karma Bistro in Stone Mountain for an "Off the Chain" live show as part of a 17-city tour. (Details here. The first 107 people in are free, the rest it's a $10 cover charge.)
" 'Off the Chain" has been really good for me," Perry said. "After having been on Bill Bellamy's 'Who's Got Jokes,' been No. 2 on 'Mo'Nique,' it gave me an opportunity to be the front guy."
The tour will also give him an opportunity to work on material for his next TV special. But take note: while Bounce is very much a family-friendly network that is restricted by broadcast rules, he said the live show will be a little more adult oriented.
He is psyched he is able to be part of a fast-growing new network in Bounce "who let me in on the ground floor. I got on a ship that was just taking off from the harbor." He can get a hold of the network executives and pitch shows. "They listen and they value my perspective as a 20-year veteran."
Perry said his strength is paying attention to life, to find the funny in every day situations. But coming up with great jokes isn't easy, he said. "I'm not a great writer but I'm a pretty good reporter," said Perry, a dad with six children. "You have to be in tune with what's funny around you. It's definitely a gift to be able to perceive what's funny and communicate it."
While Perry is known in certain circles, he said he remains anonymous enough that he can observe people and be a fly on the wall, something he knows gets tough once you get to Kevin Hart levels of fame.
"I've been around Kevin Hart and I'm sure it's difficult," Perry said. "But he has a really good inner circle. He's got people around him who don't just say yes. I'm sure when he's at home, he can go to the CVS around the corner and people are used to him."
Hart will be doing three dates at Philips Arena next month, the first stand-up to do so ever.
While Perry wouldn't mind becoming Hart-level famous, he said he was reading Steve Martin's book and how Martin said he missed the intimacy of smaller venues. "Comedy needs walls," he said. For him, the ideal size to do comedy would be 500 to 1,000 people at a time.
He credits Mo'Nique for giving him the name he has now courtesy of her talk show. "When people hear you name every night on television, that's a major win," Perry said. "She created great capital for me." But then he had to teach the TV viewers that he wasn't just a sidekick but a stand-up comic. "I had to really introduce myself," he said.
Perry is also a fan of improv and teaches five-week courses in Atlanta for comics, actors and regular folks. He is currently doing it at Social Haven. "I love improv," he said. "It fuels my standup."
COMEDY PREVIEW
"Off the Chain" comedy tour
8 p.m. Saturday, June 6
Free for first 107 patrons, $10 cover charge afterwards
Karma Bistro
1179 S. Hairston Road, Stone Mountain
Reservations: 404-963-6036
About the Author
