I Be Knowin'
HBO · 2019
A theatrical stand-up hour designed as a survival guide for women.
Amanda Seales spends a significant portion of her first HBO hour explaining the precise, exhausting mechanics of living in public space as a woman, whether she is dealing with aggressive street harassers in New York or deciphering the passive-aggressive threat of a white coworker CC’ing an unnecessary manager on an email chain. The show is less a series of traditional setup-punchline jokes and more an energetic, theatrical lecture on self-preservation, complete with highly physical impersonations and a crowd-participation breakdown of the Black National Anthem.
Filmed at the Edison Ballroom in New York City, the 2019 special caught Seales at a high point in her career. She was already established as Tiffany DuBois on HBO’s hit series Insecure and was regularly touring her live comedy game show Smart, Funny & Black.
Rather than playing to the general public, she targets her material directly at Black women, making the hour feel like an inside joke. The observations are highly specific, centering on moments like the audible sigh a bra makes when it is removed immediately upon entering the house—a touch of physical comedy that keeps the heavier political commentary grounded. Critics appreciated how she ran the stage, merging the instructional nature of her live tour with standard stand-up.
The set list
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Introductory disclaimer defining who the special is and isn't for
Excludes racists, abusers, Trump voters, and people who remove shoes on airplanes while dedicating the hour explicitly to Black women.
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How Black am I going to have to get in the workplace?
Navigates corporate microaggressions and professional code-switching on a calibrated scale from Stacey Dash to Nat Turner.
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Hannah versus Becky
Distinguishes between oblivious white women and those who actively recognize and leverage their white privilege to support oppressed people.
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The 'Vagenda' and dating standards
Treats access to intimacy as a privilege and inspects male prospects' value like reading nutritional facts on a cereal box.
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Summoning an inner gay Black man ('LaTravious')
Channels the confidence of gay Black men—who navigate both racism and homophobia—to overcome wardrobe indecision in front of the mirror.
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Reimagining Harriet Tubman
Humanizes the historical icon by exploring the interpersonal and customer-service difficulties of leading people out of slavery.
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Annotating the Negro National Anthem ('Lift Every Voice and Sing')
Breaks down the lyrics and historical significance of the anthem and suggests it be played at NFL games due to the league's demographics.
How it plays
- Tone
- Thought-provoking, unapologetic, educational, celebratory, and sermon-like.
- On stage
- Straight-shooting, intellectual, and witty, seamlessly shifting between academic insight, ratchet humor, and pop culture commentary.
- Pace
- Commanding and conversational; rooted in storytelling, rhythmic cadence, and call-and-response rather than rapid-fire one-liners.
- About
- Black womanhood and Black excellence, White privilege and 'caucasity', Catcalling versus compliments, Corporate etiquette and workplace code-switching, Dating, sex, and relationships ('vagenda'), Black historical figures and anthems
What the critics said
Widely praised as a sharp, hilarious, and educational celebration of Black womanhood that functions equally as a comedy show, sermon, and TED Talk.
In the room: Raucous, celebratory, and deeply participatory, resembling a church service, pep rally, or wedding reception.
Backstory
Crafted explicitly around Black womanhood, systematic racism, white privilege, and the daily cultural negotiations of Black professionals, informed by Seales' master's degree in African-American Studies from Columbia University.
Details
- Released
- Taped
- 2018, Edison Ballroom, New York
- Where
- HBO
- Director
- Stan Lathan
- Topics
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