PHILADELPHIA — TaTa Sherise has nothing against Lizzo, but the West Philadelphia-based comedian is quick to say she was about the big-girls-are beautiful energy long before the singer was.
“I’m glad to see another big girl doing her thing out here,” Sherise said as if she was setting up a joke. “I mean, I’m like, ‘Go ‘head, girl,’ But I been doing that. They keep saying, ‘I’m like Lizzo.’ Uh, noooo, I’m like Tata. I’ve been fabulous.”
The fabulosity is real. In the five years since Sherise — whose real name is Na’Tosha Wyles — entered the comedy scene, the Camden native has landed roles in indie movies and last year she did her bit live on The Drew Barrymore Show.
She’s performed stand-up gigs in major comedy clubs like the Laugh Factory in Las Angeles, Carolines on Broadway in New York, and the Hollywood Improv in Los Angeles. In August she opened for comedian Affion Crockett, who most recently hosted Martin: The Reunion on BET, at Punch Line Philly.
“She’s energetic, exciting, and there isn’t a crowd she can’t make love her,” said Rachel Shertz, talent coordinator at Punch Line Philly. “The fact that other comedians love her speaks volumes. When I’m watching her on stage, I can’t help but feel like I’ll be able to brag about knowing her in a few years.”
Sherise’s style is raw: a mix of Wanda Sykes’ quick wit, Sommore’s X-rated sensibilities, and Mo’Nique’s big-girl confidence. The result: a spicy show packed with lots of sexual references and racial taboos that’s not cringy. It won’t be long until this 31-year-old will have her dance in the spotlight like so many of the great Philadelphia comics — Bill Cosby, Kevin Hart, and Tina Fey — who have come before her.
Q. When did you realize you were funny?
A. Well, to tell you the truth, I always wanted to be in the arts. But comedy, as a genre, didn’t hit it until five years ago. I lost my father and I had a really bad breakup. I was a little depressed about that. One day I was sitting in [my] living room, eating ice cream, and talking to myself because the woman he left me for was a virgin. And when I said it out loud, it made me laugh out loud. A few weeks later, a friend of mine asked me to come to an open mic. I went after I had gone to the gym so I told that story, and the story about how hard my trainer was on me, and people loved it. I booked my first show three months later.
Q. What’s not funny to you?
A. I don’t like it when people offend other people. Making fun is one thing. Being mean is another. You can make fun of anybody, but it never has to be mean.
Q. What did you think about the Oscar slap?
A. I don’t think Chris’ joke was slap-worthy, but I’m not mad at Will Smith.
Q. How do you get away with being so raw?
A. Give a compliment? I do the critique sandwich with my comedy. I say something nice. I give a little rawness in the middle. And then I top it off with something nice again.
Q. What was it like growing up?
A. Once my mom got addicted to crack, I moved in with my aunt in Pennsauken. My mom went through a lot as a kid: She was molested and raped. But she took care of us. Then one summer she had idle time. My sister and I went to Florida to visit my stepdad’s family; I came back, she was on crack. She went from a PTA mom to a crackhead in one summer. My stepdad and my cousin, they were functional addicts. She couldn’t do it. It overtook her body.
Q. Does that give you a lot of material?
A. Tell me about it. My dad’s sister came to get my sister and I, and she already had four children of her own. Still, she took us in. We put our clothes in a trash bag and never saw our rooms again. We were with her for 10 years. I learned to adapt really quickly — that’s something I talk about in my comedy — I got a taste of three different lifestyles: My dad was a big drug dealer, so we had the hood-rich lifestyle with baby mink coats and the latest Jordans. Then we did the single-mom, check-to-check lifestyle. (My mom was a certified nursing assistant before she got addicted.) Then we went to live with my aunt and her gang of kids. Now we were shopping at Forman Mills, Payless, and Goodwill. I got a job at 14 so I could buy my own stuff.
Q. Speaking of jobs, what was your first?
A. McDonald’s. I worked at McDonald’s. I may have worked limited hours a week, but that job was everything. I ate too many fries, though, so eventually I had to let the fries go.
Q. What’s your day job?
A. I work three days a week at Technical.ly. I’m the operations manager. It’s perfect. When I started comedy, I decided I never wanted to work full-time again. I put the job I have now out in the universe and I got it.
Q. What makes you laugh?
A. Def Comedy Jam and BET’s Comic View still make me laugh. I used to sneak and watch it as a kid. I never thought about being a comedian then, I just enjoyed it.
Q. Advice for up-and-coming comics?
A. Yeah: Don’t turn down a show. That was a rule I made for myself when I first started. If I could afford to get there, I was going. You have to show people what you are made of. The goal is to make them invite you back.
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