The Kicker lineup features performances from Butterboy, Joel Kim Booster, Latrice Royale, the Giggly Squad podcast, Hannah Einbinder, Megan Stalter, Sarah Sherman, and more
Life is Beautiful, Las Vegas’ premier three-day music, art, culinary and comedy festival has announced its full lineup for The Kicker featuring performances from comedy trio Butterboy with Jo Firestone, Aparna Nancherla, and Maeve Higgins, star and writer of Fire Island Joel Kim Booster, a live show with the “Giggly Squad” podcast featuring Hannah Berner and Paige DeSorbo and Hacks actress Hannah Einbinder. The fun-filled weekend will also include performances by acclaimed drag queen Latrice Royale, internet sensation and Hacks supporting actress Megan Stalter, Saturday Night Live featured player Sarah Sherman, and more.
Festival-goers can catch a variety of laugh-packed and thought-provoking performances throughout the weekend, adding an additional layer to Life is Beautiful’s already impressive collection of musical acts and experiences.
Fans can also sit in on a variety of live performances from popular podcasters including “Going Deep with Chad and JT”; “Celebrity Book Club with Steven & Lily”; and “Y2YAY” with Sydnee Washington and Marie Faustin.
Open to all ticketholders, The Kicker stage is located at The Venue, which resides on the festival footprint. Each evening, the space will transform to a throwback paradise with 90’s, emo, and hip-hop-themed dance parties.
The Kicker’s full lineup includes:
Butterboy
Three chuckle monsters descend on the stage, clutching with them a horde of the freshest, silver-tongued comics and phone sex operators this city has to offer. Legends in their own right, these three friends, Aparna Nancherla, Maeve Higgins and Jo Firestone combine forces to host Butterboy – the funniest and best show in Brooklyn! Accompanied by the musical stylings of Donwill and the sensual silence of a rotating Idris Elba impersonator, the group is bringing the fun to Las Vegas this September. Comedy fans can check them out to find out which parts of this blurb are bold, unapologetic lies!
Joel Kim Booster
Joel Kim Booster is a Chicago-bred, Los Angeles-based stand-up comedian, writer, and actor whose Searchlight rom-com, Fire Island, premiered on June 3 alongside SNL’s Bowen Yang. With a growing fan base, Booster recently shot his first hour-long standup special for Netflix, called PsychoSexual, and he will soon appear on the Apple TV+ series Loot starring Maya Rudolph. Joel’s other TV and film credits include Sunnyside, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Shrill, Search Party, BoJack Horseman, Big Mouth, The Week Of, and more.
Latrice Royale
Capturing the hearts of the world and earning the title of Miss Congeniality on Season 4 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Latrice Royale has appeared in other incarnations of the franchise including multiple guest appearances on the show, RuPaul’s Drag U and RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars, Seasons 1 and 4, and more. Adding to her sickening resume, she has had two successful runs on London’s West End Stage in DeathDrop and appeared at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas as part of the cast of RuPaul’s Drag Race LIVE! show. The Large and in Charge, Chunky Yet Funky, Bold and Beautiful Queen has not only toured the world with her drag sisters, but her autobiographical one-queen-show Here’s to Life, has seen sold out audiences in major cities all over the globe.
Hannah Einbinder
An LA-based comedian, writer, and actress, Hannah Einbinder’s performance alongside Jean Smart in HBO Max’s Hacks earned her Emmy and Critics’ Choice Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Though the hit show marks Einbinder’s first major television role, she is no stranger to the comedy world; she has owned the stage as a stand-up comedian at venues and festivals around the country and made her network television debut on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in 2020. Hannah was named one of Variety’s “10 Comics to Watch for 2021,” a 2019 New Face of Comedy at Montreal’s prestigious Just For Laughs comedy festival, and was highlighted as one of Vulture’s “Comics to Watch of 2019,” cementing herself as one of the wittiest emerging talents in the industry.
Megan Stalter
Megan Stalter is a Los Angeles-based actress, comedian and writer. Originally from the Chicago comedy scene, Megan has been called “an oasis of invigorating silliness in feeds dominated by wearying tragedy” by the New York Times and “a soothing comedy balm for a scathing grease fire of a year” by Harper’s Bazaar. Her breakout role is in the HBO Max series Hacks.
Sarah Sherman
Sarah Sherman, aka Sarah Squirm, is currently a featured player on Saturday Night Live. Outside of the show, she is known for her unconventional and popular live show, Helltrap Nightmare. She was chosen to be a New Face at the 2021 Montreal Just For Laughs Comedy Festival. Sarah opened for Eric Andre’s national tour and wrote on The Eric Andre Show. She staffed on the Adult Swim series Three Busy Debras and Netflix’s Magic for Humans. She was previously named one of Vulture’s Comics to Watch for 2018 and one of TIME OUT Magazine’s Five Comics to Watch for 2017. Sarah recently wrote, directed, and starred in Sarah Vaccine, a short that Paper Mag described as a “maniacal, gross-out and overwhelming response to [our] lockdown hell.”
Ricky Velez
Named one of Variety’s “Ten Comics to Watch,” Ricky Velez’s first comedy special Here’s Everything premiered on HBO in 2021. Starring opposite Pete Davidson in Judd Apatow’s The King of Staten Island, Velez has also helped write the successful pandemic-themed Netflix feature, The Bubble. Delivering a memorable East Coast comedy style, fans may know him from his time as correspondent on Comedy Central’s The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore or his appearances on the Netflix series Master of None.
Atsuko Okatsuko
Atsuko is a stand-up comedian, actor, and writer based in Los Angeles, recently named one of Variety’s 10 Comics to Watch for 2022. She is touring her hour ‘The Intruder’ at JFL Montreal Festival, and the 2022 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Atsuko made her late night stand-up debut on The Late Late Show with James Corden. She was the special correspondent on Arsenio! Live for the Netflix is a Joke Festival. Atsuko stars in the new Comedy Central animated series, Fairview, and the Paramount+ feature film, Washingtonia, from EP Stephen Colbert. She’s written for Adult Swim’s The Eric Andre Show and Soft Focus with Jena Friedman. Atsuko’s on-screen credits include History of the World Pt. II, Room 104, and The Show Next Door with Randall Park. Atsuko was named a ‘Comedian to Watch’ by Vulture
Jordan Rock
Actor and comedian Jordan Rock is best known for his three seasons as Kevin on Judd Apatow’s Netflix series Love. He recently appeared in the Netflix film The After Party and Big Time Adolescence starring Pete Davidson, which premiered at Sundance in 2019. He also has appeared on FX’s Totally Biased, Gotham Comedy Live, and NBC’s Last Comic Standing. These days, he can also be seen in the Netflix feature film Take The 10, starring opposite Josh Peck and Tony Revolori, and on the most recent season of HBO Max’s Love Life.
Andrew Lopez
Andrew Lopez is a Filipino and Korean writer, director, actor, and stand-up comedian. With multiple projects in the works, Andrew is currently writing a globe-trotting romantic comedy for Amazon Studios called Slow Burn. As a comedian, Andrew’s stand-up is featured on Netflix’s Jo Koy: In His Elements, which he also helped produce. Hot on the heels of the special’s success, he embarked on a worldwide tour opening for Jo Koy performing for thousands of people in arenas and theaters.
The Podcasters:
Giggly Squad: Hannah Berner and Paige DeSorbo
Paige DeSorbo and Hannah Berner bring their top-rated podcast on the road! This live show will make fun of pop culture, fashion, dating, and also get the crowd involved like they’ve never been able to before. Giggles are guaranteed. See you in court.
Going Deep With Chad And JT
Chad Kroeger and JT Parr are on a mission to do good. Using their digital platforms, the duo takes action to raise awareness and bring change for some of the most important causes in pop culture and beyond. When they are not at City Hall meetings, Kroeger and Parr host the weekly podcast “Going Deep with Chad & JT,” which sees them discussing major current events, honoring legends, exploring ongoing beefs, and giving solicited advice to callers and fans alike.
Y2YAY: Sydnee Washington & Marie Faustin
Hosted by Sydnee Washington and Marie Faustin, Y2YAY is the show that throws it all the way back to the turn of the millennium to relive the most infamous pop culture moments of the aughts. Sydnee and Marie grew up in peak 2000s, so join them for a night of revisiting the music, the fashion, and the moments of culture that will forever live in infamy. Be there or we’re taking you off our Myspace top 8!!!
Celebrity Book Club with Steven & Lily
Celebrity Book Club with Steven & Lily is the devious, side-splittingly funny podcast sensation from comedians Steven Phillips-Horst and Lily Marotta. Each week, the long-time best friends rip apart celebrity memoirs with acid wit, incisive cultural analysis and intimate personal anecdotes. Called “the hottest podcast of the year” (Rolling Stone), “unhinged, brilliant” (W Magazine), “drawly, ironic, camp” (Times of London), “riotous” (Dazed), the podcast has garnered fans all across the world in its short time on the air.
Nightly Dance Parties:
90’s Nite
Stifler’s mom is out of town, so the people that bring you The Emo Night Tour are throwing the best throwback high school party of the century at Life is Beautiful 2022! The Emo Night Tour DJs will bring the best 90s jams from Beastie Boys to N’Sync, to TLC, to Third Eye Blind, to Fatboy Slim, to Green Day, and more – offering the perfect backdrop for a night of nostalgia. To up the ante, they’ll be playing some beer pong and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater on stage while rad bartenders will be slinging drinks that you don’t have to score from your friend’s older brother.
Simp City
The R&B experience with a spice of Hip Hop – offering a chance for ladies to leave their man at home for a baller with pockets that are full grown! This evening will deliver a huge sing-along with songs that you grew up with, your parents raised you on, and your younger cousins/siblings know! With throwback feelings to connect, sing, and dance to all night – guests can enjoy timeless classics and today’s hits that are universally loved by R&B fans across the world.
The Emo Night Tour
Imagine going to a show and hearing Taking Back Sunday, Fall Out Boy, Panic! At The Disco, My Chemical Romance and many more, all only playing their best songs…all night long. Welcome to The Emo Night Tour. The Emo Night Tour DJ’s will be spinning all the angst your teenage dirtbag heart desires all night long and will make you feel like you’re at Warped Tour ‘08, minus all the dust and melting in the sun!
For more information on Life is Beautiful, visit www.lifeisbeautiful.com or follow along on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
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