The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Gina Yashere Chats About "Cack-Handed" and "Bob Hearts Abishola"

Episode Date: June 14, 2021

Comedian Gina Yashere discusses her memoir "Cack-Handed," the aftermath of coming out to her conservative Nigerian family and her groundbreaking sitcom "Bob Hearts Abishola." Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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But that's all about to change. Like none of this stuff gets looked at. That's what's incredible. I'm Seth Done of CBS News. Listen to 60 Minutes, a second look, starting September 17th, wherever you get your podcasts. Gina Yashere, welcome to the Daily Social Distancing Show. Why thank you! Good to see you, Chavez. This is so much fun for me. One of the last times I saw you, you were a correspondent on the Daily Show at the studio, and then now, you know, here we are. I mean, I'm wearing a hoodie and it seems like

life has gone very badly for me. And it feels like life has gone really well for you because now I'm talking to you as an author of a book, a fantastic memoir, I'm also today as somebody to you as someone to you as somebody to to you as someone to to to to to to to to to to you as somebody who's a co-creator of a fantastic sitcom on CBS and you're one of my favorite touring stand-up comedian. So Gina Escherry, how are you right now? How have you been doing? I feel amazing.

I'm blessed. I've been able to make a TV show for the pandemic. I've been able to make a teat the pandemic. And I wrote a book because I'm a book, I'm, I, I, tho, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thi, th, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, and, to, and, and, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, and, to, to, and, and, and, to, to, and, t... and, t. and, t's, ttttttto, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to.a, to.a. And, to. And, to. And, too. And, to, t the TV show and I did nothing. And then the pandemic hit and it's like the universe was like, you better sit your back down and bite this book. And I did, I did it, so I feel good. I'm blessed, man. Yeah, you know what, I feel like you're blessed. But every time we get to explore a little bit of Gina Yashoree,

I feel like we get blessed. You have here a British comedian of Nigerian descent, who is also a member of the LGBTQ community. And I mean, this was, you were out and proud when people were like chasing off you in the streets, and you talk about this in the book, and when people were heckling you on stage, and you know, your coworkers, and life has not always been easy. You know, the book feels like a balance of everything.

We feel your challenges. We feel the obstacles the obstacles the obstacles the obstacles the obstacles the obstacles the obstacles the obstacles the obstacles the obstacles that that that the book feels like a balance of everything. We feel your challenges. We feel the obstacles that you face. But man, it is funny and it is like, it's like it's raw, you know, cack-handed. I want to know why you called it that though. I was like, what, what is this? Cack-handed? Because cack-handed is a you know an African, Middle Eastern, Indian, man. You're a witch. Yeah, I'm a witch, the left hand is unclean, it's the hand that's used to

wipe your bum when you go poo, that's why CAC, CAC is another word for poo. So basically you're saying shit-handed. You're saying cat-handed. So that's what, and also the book encompasses the fact that you know Cathamp is also another word for awkward and clumsy. Right, right. So my career, the, you know, the unconventional path that my life in career has taken has always been kind of awkward, kind of clumsy about to dodge these obstacles, move this, track, traverse this. The title just encompasses the struggles and the journeys I've had like trying to make it. You know, you know what's fascinating about that is, you know, we always feel like we know people. I feel like I know you. But just reading the book, there were some things where I was like,

wait, Gina, this happened to you? Like, for instance, I didn't know that you attempted suicide as a teenager. I found, like, I felt like I didn't hug you enough that I that I that I that I that I that I that I that like talk me through that that journey as a person. And and you know if old Gina could go back and talk to teenage Gina now, what would she tell her? I'd just say look, you're feeling the pressure now, you're feeling the pressure, you feel like the world is on top of you and you're never going to get out of being you, regardless of what you are. And that's what I would say to myself. But yeah, at 16, the world was on top of me. I was having mad fights with my mom because the pressure, the academic pressure,

you know how it is, come from an African family. Yeah, we're doing an immigrant family. They've come to another country. They're to be playing games and being foolish you need to do well. People you know Gina you're saying that now and I think so many people don't know what like I almost feel like coming out as a comedian might have been as dangerous to you as coming out as gay to your family like I don't know which one was more challenging to you as an African family like coming from an African family. It was, they were just as bad each other and I was like, you know what? I'm just going to throw it all in at the same time. Just, just get it done, just just whip off that band-aid.

So I was like, yeah, mom, I'm going to be a comedian and I'm gay and I'm also vegan right. Wow. What is it happening? What is what you mean? What the to eat the to eat to eat to eat the to eat to eat the the to eat th you th you the th you th you th you th you th you th you th you th you th you th you th you the? the? theathing. theathing. theathing me me me me theathing. theathing. theathing. I theathing. I theathing. I thathing. I thathing. I thathing. I thathing. I'm thathing. I thi. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. It th. It th. It th. It th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's the. It's theat theat theat. theat. theat. theat theat. theat. theateat. theateateateat. theateateateateatha. come to my... What has it come to my... You're like gay clown? So you don't eat meat. And you don't eat meat. It just blew my mind. But I was like, let's just get it done. It was difficult, but the love of a mother for her child. I mean, I was prepared to be disarmed. I was prepared. Right, right. I thought my mother is super Nigerian and super Christian and you know I was prepared that for this might be the end of our relationship. But you know she wasn't happy. It took her a while to get come round to it but she loves me and I'm a daughter and we passed her. She even loves my girlfriend but my girlfriend plays smart. She did the whole Nigerian bow thing when she met my mom. So my mom was like, I like this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this. I was this. I was this. I was this. I was this this. I was this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this might might might might this might might this might might this might might might might might this might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might might. this. this. this. this. this. this. this. this. this. this. this. this. this. this. This. This. This. This. This. This. This. This. This. This. This. This. It. It. It's. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's this. It's might this. It's might. It's this. It's plays smart. She did the whole Nigerian bow thing when she met my mom.

So my mom was like, oh, I like this wack woman. She's okay. I feel like a lot of that humor is the reason your sitcom is so fantastic. You know, for those who don't know, you have a show on CBS, Bob Hart's Abashola created, I mean, the legend of the sitcom, theckeckeckeckeckecke, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, Bob Hart's Abyshola, created, co-created with, I mean, the legend of the sitcom, Chuck Lorry, you know what I mean? And what makes it groundbreaking is, I don't

think I've ever seen a show about like Nigerians in America. And you also very seldom see shows where Africans are not the butt of the joke. Like there's comedy and there are funny things happening to these Africans but they're not the butt of the joke. It just got renewed for season 3, correct? Yeah, congratulations. I'm trying to catch up with you, mate. How did you, how did you convince people that you know what, people will relate to this story even though it involves Nigerians? How did you do that? I was pitching shows for years, Trevor, trying to get my family on TV, get their, face. I pitched to everybody, nobody was interested. This came out of the blue. I've got a call, my agent called me saying, Chuck Lorry wants to meet you. And I get blown out to

Los Angeles and Chuck is like, listen, I've just come back from traveling around Africa, I've met these wonderful people. I want to make a show with Billy Gord, I've I've I I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've I've the show I've the show I've their I've their their th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've thi. I've met thi. I've met th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've th. I've thi. I've thi. I've thi. I've thi. I've thi. I'm thi. I'm thi. I'm thi. I'm thi. teeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. want the female protagonist to be Nigeria. We've been looking at Africa. Wow. And Julia keeps popping up because you are the loudest people. And so I've been trying to pitch this idea for years. Nothing happened. But Chuck, the universe works in a that amazing. That is so cool. Nobody can see it, but Chuck had this idea. And obviously when Chuck has an idea, everybody's like, well, this is wonderful. Let's do it. It was his idea. And they just found me. I was like, well, where did you find me? How did you know to find me? Did you see me on the day show? Did you see my Netflix specials? And then were like, oh no, we type Nigerian female comedian into Google search, Trevor. That is how they've done a Google search, that is your opinion of quite cribbling. They were able to fly me across the country, vice class for a meeting on a Google search, but you know what? Thank God for Google, Trevor. Thank God for Google, and thank God for you, Gina Yashere, I am so, so, so happy as somebody

who has seen your journey firsthand. There's not a comedian who has worked with you, who has not gone, Gina has not shaped me in some way, shape or form, so to see you crushing it on TV, to see you still crushing it in stand-up, and of course to have this book, which I hope everybody read because it's one of the funniest, just like it's so....... It's, it. Gina Yashare, thank you for joining me on the show. Thanks to having me, Chavon. Good to see you, mate. I'll see you again soon.

Watch the Daily Show, Weeknights at 11, 10 Central on Comedy Central, and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount Plus. When 60 Minutes premiered in September 1968, there was nothing like it. This is 60 Minutes. It's a kind of a magazine for television. Very few have been given access to the treasures in our archives. But that's all about to change. Like none of this stuff gets looked at. That's what's incredible.

I'm Seth Done of CBS News. Listen to 60 Minutes, a second look on Apple podcasts starting September 17. This has been a Comedy Central Podcast.