Jim Gaffigan, Dave Chappelle and the Top 11 Most Influential Comedians of 2023
Before we start, let's address a couple of things. This list is subjective, and there are many exceptional comedians who didn't make the cut. Additionally, we're aware that this list features 11 men, and we understand the need for better...
Before we start, let's address a couple of things. This list is subjective, and there are many exceptional comedians who didn't make the cut. Additionally, we're aware that this list features 11 men, and we understand the need for better representation in the comedy industry. With that said, let's delve into the top 11 most influential comedians of 2023.
11. Pete Davidson:
Known for being in the headlines, Pete Davidson's presence in the news is undeniable. Although he may not consider himself the best stand-up comedian, his constant media attention and intriguing personal life have made him a hot topic for comedy enthusiasts worldwide.
10. Matt Rife:
Matt Rife had a rollercoaster year with his problematic world tour and subsequent fallout after the release of his special, "Met Rife Natural Selection." Despite the controversies, his sold-out shows and undeniable fanbase solidify his position on this list.
9. Burt Kreischer:
Many of you may remember Burt Kreischer from his legendary bit "The Machine." This year, he turned that bit into a movie and continued to entertain his fans with his popular podcast, "Two Bears, One Cave."
8. Nate Bergatzei:
Nate Bergatze was named Comedian of the Year by Consequence of Sound, and for good reason. His fantastic special, "Hello World," killer appearance on SNL and his record-breaking ticket sales at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville catapulted him into the spotlight.
7. Theo Von:
Theo Von's rise on the podcast charts has been remarkable. From being number one in the stand-up sub-genre to appearing on the mainstream charts, Von's storytelling abilities and charismatic personality make him one to watch in 2024.
6. Joe Rogan:
Joe Rogan's influence extends beyond comedy. As the host of "The Joe Rogan Experience," his podcast has the power to catapult comedians into stardom. His club in Austin, the Comedy Mothership, has become a hotspot for both up-and-coming and established comedians.
5. Chris Rock:
Despite his infamous onstage incident, Chris Rock's name continues to dominate comedy conversations. His live special, "Chris Rock's Selective Outrage," showcased his ability to address controversial topics head-on, sparking both support and criticism.
4. Kevin Hart:
Kevin Hart's success knows no bounds. From being the top touring comedian of the year to his numerous endorsements and projects, including a documentary about his life, Hart's entrepreneurial spirit and comedic talent show why he remains a force to be reckoned with.
3. John Mulaney:
John Mulaney's return to the stage after personal turmoil garnered him favor among critics and audiences alike. His unique perspective and undeniable talent led to a successful comeback, evident in his favorable Rotten Tomatoes rating of 86 percent.
2. Dave Chappelle:
Every move Dave Chappelle makes is news. Whether it's his highly anticipated Netflix specials or thought-provoking interviews, Chappelle's impact on the comedy industry cannot be understated. His influence continues to shape the comedy landscape.
1. Jim Gaffigan:
Jim Gaffigan's mastery of stand-up comedy has elevated him to the top of the industry. Known for his clean comedy style and expanding his comedic range in his latest special, "Dark Pale," Gaffigan commands respect from both comedians and audiences alike.
Make sure to check out the "Daily Comedy News Podcast Group" on Facebook to share your thoughts and join the discussion. And remember, comedy is meant to entertain, challenge, and bring us together. Stay tuned for tomorrow's episode, where we'll delve into the top 11 stand-up specials of 2023.
If you enjoyed this program, please share it with your friends and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred podcast platform.
If you're a regular listener of...
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Callaroga Shark Media. Hello, I'm
Jenny Mack with your daily comedy news.
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Today we're taking a look at the
top eleven most Influential Comedians of twenty twenty
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three. Couple notes here, there
are plenty of great comedians who are not
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on this list. For example,
Shane gillis huge year, not on the
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list, Todd Berry one of the
best specials of the year, and I'll
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go over the best specials of the
year tomorrow, not on the list.
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I'm also very very very very well
aware you don't have to shoot me a
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note that this list is eleven men. And I spent some time thinking about
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it, and I'm like, well, who should be on this list?
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Amy Schumer? Maybe I don't know, But as I do the list,
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I'll explain my reasoning. And as
with all lists, it's all subjective.
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Your list will be different. The
person next to you their list will be
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different. I'm gonna throw out some
name. You're gonna be outraged that I
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said, Oh, I can't believe
that person on a list that's Setti's list.
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Go, so why is it eleven? We're doing this to help promote
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a new podcast, which is called
The Top Eleven The Top eleven launches on
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January eleventh. Each week, the
Top eleven looks at the top eleven things
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for a single topic. Topic can
be anything iconic, movie moments, mythical
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creatures, album covers, history,
space facts, you know anything the Top
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eleven. Whether you're a fan of
eleven's or simply somebody with a thirst for
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knowledge, tune into the Top eleven
on your preferred podcast platform. This week
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we're taking episodes like this and putting
them in the feed as a preview,
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and then on January eleventh, the
Top eleven launches. All Right, you're
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ready for my list? You're gonna
get mad. Number eleven Most influential Comedians
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of twenty twenty three. Pete Davidson, I hear you now? Is he
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the best stand up comedian? No? Even Pete Davidson doesn't think he's the
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best stand up comedian. But he's
in the news all the time. He
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moves the headlines. Pete Davidson moves
the downloads. Who's he dating? Is
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he in rehab? Why is he
crashing into cars? Sometimes even does comedy
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at a TV series called Bupkiss.
Remember that one. He's got a special
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coming out January ninth, called Turbo
Fonzarelli. He co owns a ferry with
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Colin jos. For some reason,
Pete Davidson to talk about always in the
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news. Number ten Matt Rife.
Matt Rife had quite the year. The
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buzz for nine tenths of the year
was that Matt Rife was it. His
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problematic World tour went on sale.
It broke the ticketing site. He sold
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out one hundred dates. He was
on top. Then he started doing some
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press for Matt Rife Natural Selection,
a special on Netflix, and then we
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all watched the special and we were
like, oh, eit, this special's
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not that funny. And then somebody
had a problem with one of his jokes
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and then Matt instead of ignoring it, dug in doubled down. Lost a
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lot of his fans. Then the
haters came from matt Rife and started digging
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out old tweets. Matt Rife was
a lot more popular. The day before
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that Netflix special came out. Matt
Rife at number ten. Number nine,
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Bert Kraser, did you see the
machine? The machine was fantastic, And
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that was the culmination of probably Bert's
entire hurry up to this point. He
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got famous off to bit the Machine
Now it's a movie, and the movie
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was good. Bert also had a
huge tour. He also has the very
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popular podcast he does with Tom Segura, Two Bears, One Cave, Burt
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Riding High. In twenty twenty three, next up number eight Nate Bergatsey Nate
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was named a Comedian of the Year
by Consequence of Sound, and Nate had
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a couple big things, including a
fantastic special that's one of my favorites of
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the year, Hello World on Amazon
Prime way back in January. Nate also
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set the record for most tickets sold
at the Bridgetone Arena in Nashville nineteen three
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hundred and sixty five. He threw
in one extra seat somewhere in a corner
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to set the record. He hosted
the Best Saturday Night Live and quite some
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time, and I think broke through
to new fans. He also has his
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podcasting network in his own podcast,
Andy shepherding comedians who are lesser known,
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like Dusty Slay. So Nate's got
a little power base going there. Good
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to see him coming up. A
guy that went from nobody really knows who
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he is other than his fans fans
to having a huge year. Theo Vaughn.
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If you kept your eyes on the
podcast charts all year, you noticed
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this past weekend went from being number
one on the stand up subgenre and then
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started showing up on the mainstream charts. I think theo is primed for a
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huge twenty twenty four. He's a
good storytelling. His pot is easy on
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the ears. Dio Vaughn at number
seven, number six, and in some
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ways it's weird that this guy is
so low on the list because he is
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a king maker and a major influencer. It's Joe Rogan, Joe obviously host
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of The Joe Rogan Experience, a
very very very influential podcast. You go
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on The Joe Rogan Experience and suddenly
you've got a lot more fans. Comedians
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like Tim Dillon, who's fantastic,
have seen that their speculation that Joe Rogan's
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deal with Spotify is up. Will
they renew him? Will he stay with
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them? Will he go somewhere else? He'll be keeping an eye on that.
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In twenty twenty four, Joe also
opened his club in Austin, the
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Comedy mother Ship, which has basically
turned Austin's comedy scene into the third Coast
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behind New York and La Sorry,
Chicago, you can send your letters to
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Johnny Mack, some of the comedians
of pop by there, Tim Dillon,
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Roseanne Chappelle. Ron White has come
out of retirement. I guess from hanging
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out Rogan and having fun, Whinney
Cummings, the guys from Kiltoony. You've
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started doing this. Yeah, with
the Comedy mother Ship. Number six is
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Joe Rogan. We'll take the break
and we'll come back and we'll look at
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the top five. This guy was
already at the top of the business and
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then he got slapped in the face. Yes, of course, Chris Rock,
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he's number five. Almost every single
article about a comedian somehow comes back
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to the slap, and we're year
and a half two years out from that
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now Chris Rock's name comes up with
that, whether he wants to or not.
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And this year he finally responded on
stage during Chris Rock's Selective Outrage is
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Live special on Netflix. Then that
garnered a whole bunch of reactions, and
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the other comedians reacted to Chris Rock's
reaction, and it's still a topic.
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But aside from that, if Chris
Rock's behind a microphone, you want to
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hear what he has to say.
Hopefully he does a lot more. In
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twenty twenty four at number four,
Kevin Hart. Billboard recently released that he
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was the top touring comedian of the
year, making sixty seven point five million
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dollars in ticket sales. He sold
six hundred and thirty one thousand tickets over
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eighty two shows. That's a lot
of money, and that doesn't include all
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the various endorsements he deals. If
you watch football, he's always hawking a
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gambling thing. If you listen to
this podcast, Kevin announces, I don't
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know, two new projects a week. He's got his fast food chain.
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Netflix just did the documentary about Kevin
and Chris Rock. So Kevin Hart at
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number four. Next up, number
three, John Mullaney and the press really
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really is in John Mullenie's corner.
Lot of good praise for John Mullaney,
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Baby Jay. I do not have
that on my top Specials of the Year
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list, which I'll explain on tomorrow's
podcast. Despite my personal opinion eighty six
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percent favorable on Rotten Tomatoes. It
was Mulanie's return to the stage after some
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personal turmoil. We learned that mullani
had a drug problem, he went to
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rehabb he had broken up with his
wife. He's got a baby with Olivia
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Munn. Number two Dave Chappelle.
Much like Chris Rock, almost every single
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interview with a comedian comes back to
Dave Chappelle. Every move Dave Chappelle makes
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is news. He's got a new
special out on Netflix on New Year's Even
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if you host a podcast in its
early January, you're gonna be very thankful
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that Dave Chappelle has a new special
and'll be stirring it up again. Dave
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Chappelle Number two and your number one
most influential comedian for twenty twenty three.
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Jim Gaffigan. Jim is getting better
and better at stand up. He's right
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at the top of the mountain right
now. Has the respect of his fellow
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comedians. Additionally, he has the
reputation for working clean, which broadens your
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audience. He's got his acting career
going. He released Dark Pal, which
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showed Jim expanding his comedy styling getting
a little darker. That was very well
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received. He toured with Jerry Seinfeld. He had a great interview with Maren
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Jim Gaffigan is number one. If
you hate my list, you can go
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on the Facebook group, which is
Daily Comedy News Podcast group, and you
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can say this list is terrible.
That's okay. I'd love to hear your
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opinion. It's just a subjective list. Some names that I had down for
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consideration that I left off because you
only get eleven. Mark Marin I really
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got back into his podcast this year. I really love his perspective on stand
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up comedy as an art and it's
like listening to the guy talk Tom Sagora.
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You know I have his partner in
comedy, Bert Kreischer on the list.
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Why don't you have Tom? I
only had eleven spots, and I
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just felt like Bert had a slightly
better year than Tom. Trevor Noah,
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aside from his awesome stand up comedy, the void he has left on the
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Daily Show is tremendous. It's been
a year plus and they still haven't solved
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the cherry issue. Trevor's recent special
on Netflix is fantastic. Jerry Seinfeld not
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on the list, which is weird
because he's probably the top comedian in the
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game. But Jerry just goes about
his business doing his thing, goes home.
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And Conan O'Brien wanted to have him
on the list as well for his
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influential podcast. Eventually, Conan will
come back to TV, right He's been
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developing a show with Max HBO,
Max HBO and Max or whatever we're calling
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it this week for years now.
Is that ever gonna air? Conan?
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But he gets some great guests on
his very very popular podcast. So Conan
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O'Brien will someday return to TV and
we'll be talking about him even more then.
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So that is the list of the
top eleven most influential comedians of twenty
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twenty three. Back tomorrow with a
look at the top eleven stand up specials
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of twenty twenty three. If you
enjoy this program, you tell a friend
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about it, they might like it
too, and you can all follow it
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on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or
wherever you get your shows. See you
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back here tomorrow.