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Half Way There

Cliff Cash

Stand Up! Records · 2021 · 55 min

A progressive Southern comic takes aim at his own backyard.

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Cliff Cash begins this set in character as a stereotypical Southern redneck, playing into conservative anxieties for easy groans before dropping the act to reveal his actual voice: a progressive Southerner who is deeply exhausted by his neighbors. It is a transition that sets the stage for a smart, sharp-tongued set that dismantles the culture he grew up in. Cash finds humor in everything from his mother speaking in tongues to the bizarre local folklore surrounding Market Street in Wilmington.

Though released in 2021 through Stand Up! Records, Half Way There was recorded in 2016 at the Dead Crow Comedy Room in Wilmington, North Carolina. Distilled from four hours of uncut club footage down to a tight 52 minutes, the release arrived at a quiet moment in Cash’s touring career due to pandemic lockdowns, but quickly shot to the top of the iTunes comedy charts.

Much of the material targets the absurdity of local panics, with Cash translating hip-hop lyrics, pitching a Christian boy band designed to recruit Latino voters, and questioning why heaven supposedly needed Andy Griffith to be its sheriff. Throughout the set, Cash shows why he spent years touring the country in a modified station wagon, refining a style that balances the hyper-local eccentricities of North Carolina with a broader, cynical perspective on the modern American South.

The set list

5 bits

  1. Gay marriage and Charles Manson

    Mocks arguments that gay marriage destroys the sanctity of marriage by worrying it could ruin serial killer Charles Manson's prison wedding.

  2. Conservative conspiracy theories and 'NoBama'

    Satirizes extreme anti-Obama conspiracies, quipping that Obama tricked federal agencies but could not fool the roofing supplies clerk at Home Depot.

  3. Southern rationalizations of celebrity deaths

    Jokes about conservative religious explanations for tragedy, such as Dale Earnhardt dying because God needed a driver or Andy Griffith dying because God needed a sheriff.

  4. Wilmington overdevelopment and local life

    Pokes fun at the Port City tearing down trees for new developments and offers observations on Carolina Beach.

  5. The closer (spoiler). Show it

    Dissecting ridiculous hip-hop and rap song lyrics closer

    A long-form breakdown dissecting absurd and weird lyrics by artists like Lil Jon and Young Money.

How it plays

Tone
Satiric, politically pointed, and sarcastic yet fundamentally gentle rather than confrontational.
On stage
Begins in character as a stereotypical redneck satirizing conservative viewpoints before transitioning into his natural stage persona, described as edgy, affable, and progressive with a thick Southern drawl.
Pace
Easygoing, approachable, and engaging.
About
Southern stereotypes and culture, conservative politics and religion, gay marriage, Wilmington local development, hip-hop music lyrics

What the critics said

Praised as a solid standup release functioning like two albums in one, effectively bridging satire of redneck tropes with smart observational comedy.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: vimeo.com, en.wikipedia.org, metrowestdailynews.com, cinemaone.net, theseriouscomedysite.com, burlingtoncountytimes.com, portcitydaily.com, gastongazette.com.

Backstory

Cash was raised in a conservative Southern Baptist household in Gastonia, North Carolina, and crafted the material while touring out of a camper van; the set contrasts his progressive political values with Southern stereotypes and was released during the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown.

Details

Released
Taped
2016, Dead Crow Comedy Room, Wilmington
Runtime
55 min
Where
Stand Up! Records
Honors
Reached No. 1 on the iTunes comedy chart
Topics

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