Hundreds of students crowded outside of Blackman Auditorium Monday night. They anxiously waited for the doors to be pried open to let them in to see comedian extraordinaire, Mike Epps.
Epps is perhaps best known as Day-Day, the smoked out record store clerk, who appeared in two of the three Friday movies.
After students were neatly packed into the auditorium the show began with opening act Nard. He touched on a wide range of subjects that affect college students. Discussing issues such as the hardships of having a relationship in college, and he even talked about more serious past events like the sniper attacks in Maryland.
Once he successfully warmed up the crowd, the headliner strolled out smiling and beaming with confidence. Epps was met with a friendly response from the audience, the applause erupted to a deafening volume and some dedicated fans even rose to their feet to greet him.
When Epps took the stage he commanded onlookers attention. He had the crowd in the palm of his hand from the time he opened his mouth. This is reminiscent of his childhood; growing up with eight siblings, Epps often competed to get his mother’s attention. This prompted him to become an entertainer, a career in which he knew he would be the center of attention.
Epps did not always have his eyes on the stars. As a child, he had aspirations of becoming a basketball player. In high school he shifted gears and turned towards going into the military service. When those plans fell through, he entered a stand-up contest at a local Indiana club on a whim. He came out victorious, and this sparked a flame inside of him that would not go out. With $80 in his possession and determination on his side, he headed to the dirty, dirty south Atlanta.
The highlight of the night was when Epps descended from his throne to interact with the audience. He commented on how one students shirt looked like something a character on “Sesame Street” would wear. He went so far as to break out into a rendition of the “Sesame Street” theme song.
“The most surprising thing about Mike Epps was how much he interacted with the crowd. When he jumped off stage and began his trips up and down the aisles of Blackman, the crowd got into it,” said Jorge Sanchez, president of LASO.
Students agreed.
“He was actually pretty funny — very raw and uncensored. The opening act wasn’t bad either. I was surprised,” said Woodlene Alexis, a junior communications major.
There were no complaints about the price tag that was placed on the event. Considering the headliners credentials, students did not have to dig too deep into their pockets to attend the show.
“The cost of the show was only five dollars. He was really in town for his show at The Comedy Connection was $30 a ticket,” said Sherlon Christie, a senior journalism major.
“I think the crowd got their five dollars worth. Anytime you can see one of the top comedians in the business for only five dollars, its a good buy,” said Anthony Billups, BESS treasurer.
These who came out seem to have had a good time, they left with smiles on their face and stomach cramps after an hour and a half of continuous laughter.
