Stand-up comedian Lee Camp, a former humor columnist for The Cavalier Daily, is returning to Charlottesville Saturday to perform at the Main Street Annex.
Camp has been writing and producing the comedy news show “Redacted Tonight” since 2014, in addition to writing for The Onion. He is the author of the book “Neither Sophisticated Nor Intelligent,” a collection of his best humor columns.
Arts & Entertainment sat down with Camp to hear what he had to say about coming full circle and performing in the same place where he started.
Arts & Entertainment: How does it feel to come back to Charlottesville? Is there anything in particular that you’re looking forward to?
Lee Camp: It’s really exciting to come back. I started stand-up at U.Va. and then I opened for Jimmy Fallon, Tracy Morgan and Lewis Black, which were my first huge shows while I was here. I’m looking forward to performing here again.
A&E: What was your favorite place when you were a student at U.Va.?
LC: What’s the name of that sandwich shop? Littlejohn’s? It’s great when you’re starving at 2 a.m. I also really liked living on the Lawn, which you can’t tell anyone after you leave U.Va. They just don’t get why you want to live in a place with minimal heating and no bathrooms. They don’t understand what the hell you’re talking about. But there’s nothing more enjoyable than opening your door at midnight and seeing naked people run by.
A&E: You started writing humor columns in high school. What was your inspiration for them? How has that changed over time?
LC: Well, when I was 12, I started writing my own stuff. I actually went to high school in Richmond, and I started performing stand-up at 17. When I got to U.Va., most of my columns were about college life — about papers, frat parties and eating ramen noodles in the middle of the night. Now, I write political comedy or a cultural commentary … on things I think are important. And as for the political humor, I don’t just tell John Boehner jokes!
A&E: When and how did you realize that you wanted to do something related to comedy? Was there a certain moment when you knew for sure?
LC: I mean, I always liked comedy and wanted to pursue it, but there was a specific moment I knew that this was what I wanted to do after I graduated. I opened for the Whethermen [while at U.Va.] and it was a great show — about 400 people came. I remember walking out after the show right after and realizing that this was what I wanted to do. I moved to New York City after graduation and that’s how everything started.
A&E: What were some changes that you wanted to see in the paper when you were working on it? What did you like about writing for The Cavalier Daily? If you could write for any other section in The Cavalier Daily, which one would it be and why?
LC: I always thought it was a damn good paper. It’s really impressive how so many college kids were willing to stay all night in a basement and work on a paper. I was only involved in the Humor section all four years I was here, but if I had to do any other section, I’d do serious News, the front page kind of stuff. I have to know these things anyway because of my job now so I feel like that’s something I would do if I weren’t doing humor. But I wouldn’t love it anything as much as Humor.
A&E: What is your favorite thing about Redacted Tonight?
LC: My favorite thing about the show is that it’s about news stories that are not covered in the mainstream news or are hidden or censored. I recently did a monologue on political prisoners in the United States. I like how the show lets me talk about things that aren’t really spoken about in the media — things I think are important. My favorite moment was from two weeks ago when I interviewed Green Party member Jill Stein, who’s launching an exploratory [presidential] campaign. It was really cool to have her on the show because she was the first presidential candidate on the show.
A&E: What's next for you?
LC: The show [Redacted Tonight] is what’s next for me. The show is my dream. I get to write and host and produce a news comedy show that I think is important and I want to work on making it better. I also really like performing live and I want to keep doing that, which is why I came back to Charlottesville. And lastly, I’m interested in activism and making changes. I’m currently working on the right to neutrality, which is basically internet freedom.
A&E: Is there anything you’d like to add?
LC: Yes! Tell everyone that even if I sound boring in this interview, the show will be fun and David Swanson, an anti-war activist and Charlottesville native, will open. It’s going to be a great night.
Lee Camp will perform at Main Street Annex Feb. 21 at 7:00 p.m.
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