Hannibal Buress
A slow, deadpan dismantling of minor grievances and municipal rules.
5 specials · 2010–2020
Start with My Name Is Hannibal, the breakout (2010 · 50 min · Stand Up! Records)
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Hannibal Buress delivers a premise like a man explaining a strange interaction to a bartender who stopped listening minutes ago. He stares into the middle distance, speaks at a molasses-slow pace, and leaves heavy pauses hanging in the room. He will take a mundane phrase and repeat it aloud until it loses its meaning entirely. In his later specials, he augments this deadpan approach with a live DJ, dropping his pitch an octave with a pedal, looping a single physical gesture on a giant video screen, or singing a petty complaint through a wash of autotune.
Specials
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A visually warped, score-settling hour fueled by actual police body-cam footage.
YouTube
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A hometown set defined by deadpan timing and oddball detours.
Comedy Central · 67 min
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A relaxed hour of deadpan observations and rap lyric analysis.
Comedy Central · 65 min
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A laid-back debut album featuring pigeons, pickle juice, and syphilis.
Stand Up! Records · Album · 50 min
On stage
He was a constant presence in 2010s standup, an oddball observational comic whose routine about Bill Cosby unexpectedly went viral and altered the industry. After reaching theater-level fame, he essentially stepped off the standard comedy treadmill to do whatever amuses him. He operates in a strange, highly personal lane. A live show might consist of him doing a half-hour of jokes before leaving the stage and returning to perform under his musical alter ego, Eshu Tune.
The material itself relies on minor civic annoyances and confusing human behavior. He builds escalating routines out of very small slights: receiving a jaywalking ticket, getting an odd email, or having a bizarre encounter on a bus. He doesn’t raise his voice to sell the punchline. He just stands still, reading the exact wording of a local ordinance or a strange text message aloud, picking apart the vocabulary until the logic of the situation falls apart completely.
Turning points
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Viral Stand-Up Routine on Bill Cosby
During an October 2014 performance at The Trocadero in Philadelphia, Buress performed a routine calling out Bill Cosby's sexual assault allegations, which went viral and sparked intense national media scrutiny.
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Disorderly Intoxication Arrest in Miami
Buress was arrested in Miami after asking police officers to call an Uber for him; the charges were later dismissed.
At a glance
- Born
- , Chicago, Illinois
- On stage
- since 2002
- Style
- observational, absurdist, satire, surreal, black comedy
- Breakout
- My Name Is Hannibal
- Topics
- Elsewhere
- Website, Wikipedia
Fans also like
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Eric AndreFans appreciate Buress as the unflappable, deadpan co-host counterbalancing André's chaotic surrealism on The Eric Andre Show.
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Baron VaughnBoth comedians emerged from the same alternative stand-up circuit, sharing stages on The Awkward Comedy Show and collaborating across comedy projects.
Podcasts
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Handsome Rambler · host
Conversational comedy podcast featuring casual discussions, music production, and guest interviews.
Also on screen
- 2010–2012
- 30 Rock
- 2012–2020
- The Eric Andre Show
- 2014–2019
- Broad City
- Spider-Man: Homecoming
A clip to start with
A clip of Hannibal Buress