It’s no secret that St. Louis has produced more than a few comedy legends.
Dick Gregory burst onto the comedy scene in the 1950s. Actor and comedian Redd Foxx was also born in St. Louis before moving to Chicago and starring in the sitcom “Sanford and Son.”
Later, comedic voices like Cedric the Entertainer, Lavell Crawford and Nikki Glaser won the hearts of American comedy lovers both on screen and behind the mic. Glaser is even hosting the 2025 Golden Globe Awards in January. Kevin Nealon, brothers Joe and Guy Torry, “The Office” actresses Ellie Kemper and Phyllis Smith, Darius Bradford and many other comedians have called St. Louis home.
Now, a new generation of comedians are behind the mic, generating laughs. Here are five must-watch stand-up comedians coming out of St. Louis and a few honorable mentions.
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Cameron Keys
If stand-up comedy doesn’t work out, University City–native Cameron Keys, 27, says he’s not sure what he’ll do.
“It has to work,” Keys says. “This is the only thing I’m really good at.”
Things are looking promising.
In May, Keys was a part of Netflix Is a Joke, one of the largest comedy festivals ever with performances from more than 400 stand-up comedians. Before that, he spent years on the road touring with comedian JJ Williamson, who was instrumental in giving Keys a shot in comedy. Plus, he’s opened for major comedians like Tommy Davidson, Ali Siddiq and fellow St. Louis–native Cedric the Entertainer.
Now, Keys is inviting audiences to get to know a little more about him with the release of his first album “Learning As I Go” on Nov. 15.
“I feel like everybody’s doing that ... we all are learning as we go,” Keys says. “We’re all figuring out this thing called life as it happens.”
Keys has been learning comedy throughout his life.
On his days off from work, Keys’ grandfather would pick him up from school. Together, they’d watch stand-up sets after Keys finished his homework. His grandpa had favorites, gravitating towards sets from Richard Pryor, Dick Gregory and Alonzo Bodden, but they’d watch anyone.
In his free time, Keys enjoyed watching “Chappelle’s Show” and reruns of “In Living Color.” By the time he made it to high school, Keys had learned that laughter was currency.
“People always kind of felt like I was a funny person, so I went to school every day wanting to make somebody laugh,” he says. “Like that was a goal of mine.”
Unfortunately, Keys’ comedic edge didn’t translate the first time he took the stage to perform a 13-minute set during a talent show as a 16 year old. In fact, his first performance almost made him quit comedy altogether. However, after being encouraged by his friends and his mom, Keys returned to the stage in his senior year and hasn’t stopped doing stand-up since.
Still a young comic, Keys says he’s still figuring out how to describe his style. His delivery is raw and unfiltered. He draws from his experiences for his material, making his sets truthful and fresh. Keys describes himself as a storyteller, centering his topics around dating, women and his real life.
“Whatever’s going on right in the moment at the time of my life, then that’s kind of what I try to stick to,” he says.
Larry Greene
Larry Greene, 35, has been a familiar face around the St. Louis comedy scene for quite some time.
His stand-up comedy journey began in college when he noticed guys around campus performing sets at student-run open mics. Intrigued, he decided to give comedy a shot at an open-mic night near Southern Illinois University Carbondale toward the end of 2013.
“I was outside looking in at what they were doing on stage but actually getting up there, like something premeditated, that was the weirdest thing with me,” Greene says.
To his surprise his first performance was a hit. He performed three story-driven jokes that gained heartfelt chuckles from the crowd. That one night changed everything for him.
“I just had this warm feeling on the inside that didn’t compare to anything I had ever felt before,” he says.
After hitting the stage at three open mics, Greene left school, ditching his master’s program to devote his time to comedy.
Over a decade after starting out and honing his skills through co-hosting events, Greene has become a comedy staple in St. Louis. He’s opened for comedians like Paul Mooney, Tommy Davidson, Karlous Miller and Jess Hilarious. This fall, Greene is performing at St. Louis’ Flyover Comedy Festival, participating in a live comedy taping, and performing alongside fellow St. Louis comics at an upcoming showcase for STL Made. For Greene, being a stand-up comedian isn’t just about making people laugh but also bringing people together.
“I feel like it’s unity in it,” he says. “Having the room full of people laughing together, it brings people together, you know, whether they’re connecting through me or through the joke. That’s a really big piece for me.”
Next year in February, Greene is hosting his 11th “But Baby I Love You,” an annual show he headlines that he says sells out every year. He adds, although he still has much to do on his journey as a comic, that he’s grateful to be a part of the St. Louis comedy scene and hopes to add to the city’s rich entertainment legacy.
“We’re St. Louis, and we’re putting points on that national score board to continuously remind people that we’re here,” he says.
Precious J
Comedian Precious J Dorsey, 40, wants everyone to realize that it’s okay to laugh at themselves.
Born in Tacoma, Wash., Dorsey moved around a lot as a kid due to her mother being in the military. She spent most of her childhood years in St. Louis, moving to the city when she was 2 years old until her family relocated to Atlanta when she was in middle school. However, her mother’s struggles with substance abuse brought her back to St. Louis, where she graduated from Sumner High School.
She describes herself as being from “everywhere and nowhere at the same time.” Yet despite her experiences and nomadic upbringing, Dorsey says telling jokes gives her the relief she hopes she brings to others.
“Comics use stand-up as therapy,” Dorsey says. “I get to get up here, and I get to talk about myself, too, while being transparent and just not being ashamed.”
In 2020, she was selected as Helium Comedy Club’s Funniest Person in St. Louis, but Dorsey says she never had plans to become a stand-up comedian. Her comedy career started as a school assignment. While getting her associate’s degree in 2013, she had to write a “how to” paper and give a presentation. Known for having a few jokes up her sleeve when in class, she presented on how to be a comedian.
It was a huge success, and the assignment planted a seed in Precious J that led her to an open mic. She soon found herself hitting three or more open mics a night. She describes herself as a “starving comedian” during those early days.
“It’s not a struggle, it’s a journey, and you really have to know what you want from it, in order to make it smoothly,” she says.
Dorsey prides herself on being relatable and versatile in her approach to stand-up. She’s animated in her delivery, mixing funny faces and exaggerated body language with stories poking fun at life. Her bits center around topics like dating, relationships, work and her two young children.
Despite moving a lot in her childhood, Dorsey remembers comedy being a consistent part of life no matter where she lived. Her older sister would watch sitcoms like “Martin,” “Kids in the Hall” and “In Living Color” and Dorsey would be beside her laughing. Looking back, she says those shows were the catalyst for her becoming a well-rounded comic rooted in genuine authenticity.
“Having a wide range of comedy influences, it helps make me relatable to all types of people because you will have comics that can only be funny in front of Black crowds, or comics that can only be funny in front of white crowds,” she says. “And I’m myself every time.”
Tina Dybal
Comedian Tina Dybal has led a very interesting life.
Born in Russia, Dybal moved to the United States with her parents when she was only 1. Her family settled in Kansas City, Mo., but she struggled with substance abuse in high school, ultimately dropping out and coming to St. Louis for rehab treatment in 2009.
Years later, Dybal was preparing to attend St. Louis University. She’d been in recovery for a few years and planned to finish her undergraduate studies and hopefully become a doctor. After a college advisor questioned if she wanted to commit to at least 10 years of studying to reach her career goals, Dybal decided to take the semester off to rethink her plans. Not long after, she stumbled into a comedy open mic at Fitz’s in the Delmar Loop.
“I fell in love with it,” Dybal says. “I had no friends in comedy, and I didn’t know anybody. I just was in a weird spot in life and very unsure of myself. And it’s funny that I decided to not go and be a doctor.”
Ten years later, Dybal is still doing stand-up comedy that draws from her own experiences as a “31-year-old, childless, 401K-less, Russian immigrant” navigating shame, life and success. In 2015, Dybal spent substantial time taking classes at the Improv Shop to grow as a comic. The following year, Helium Comedy Club booked her for its soft opening, making her the first comic to grace that stage. Dybal went on to be crowned the comedy club’s Funniest Person in St. Louis in 2018.
“I’m trying to laugh at the awkward,” she says. “I’m trying to talk about it. I think that’s the biggest thing is that I don’t want people to be ashamed of who they are.”
Dybal’s vulnerability is her strength on stage. She’s currently on tour with fellow St. Louis comedian Libby Higgins on their co-headlining “All Slop No Pod” tour, affectionately named after their podcast “Slop City Podcast” that has gained a cult-like following. Having opened for comedians like River Butcher, Joey “CoCo” Diaz, and Christina P, Dybal says she hopes her stand-up sets make people want to see her again and again.
“Hopefully they’ve got some pee in their pants like they laugh so hard they pee a little, that’s always the ideal,” she says. “But if we can’t get that, I want them to walk away and be like, ‘Oh my god, I can’t wait to see that again,’ you know?”
Tim Convy
Being a stand-up comedian gave Tim Convy, 44, something that was finally his own. However, the St. Louis funny guy isn’t new to the entertainment industry.
Convy rose to fame as a member of Ludo, a St. Louis-based band who’s hit song “Love Me Dead” peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard Alternative Songs Chart in 2008. But when the band took a hiatus in 2012, Convy found himself living in New York City unsure of what his next move would be. It was 2014, and he was running a small record label.
“Ultimately, I was kind of miserable and trying to figure out what to do,” Convy says. “But I was afraid to maybe walk away from the music business.”
That same year, he met fellow comedian and St. Louis–native Nikki Glaser. Convy remembers sharing details about his life with her, and she found it remarkably funny. He decided to give stand-up comedy a try, and when he returned to St. Louis, Convy performed for the first time at an open mic at the Funny Bone in Westport Plaza. Although he was terrified, Convy says afterwards he knew stand-up would be a part of his life forever.
“I had never experienced anything like that, I mean all my (previous) creative endeavors were collaborative,” he says.
Convy realized early on that certain topics like politics were oversaturated in the stand-up scene.
“Everyone’s writing a joke about the president,” he says. “But I have a monopoly on jokes about my dad. I have a monopoly on jokes about me. Comedians aren’t fighting to write the best joke about my 2-and-a-1/2-year-old.”
It resonated, he’s performed alongside comedians like Glaser and David Spade.
Currently, Convy co-hosts the Courtney Show, a radio morning show on 106.5 the Arch. He says it allows him to thrive in a familiar, collaborative environment with the other co-hosts. But stand-up comedy gives him a platform to be personal and center content around his life as a dad, a husband and a creative, without having to be super serious about it.
“It’s just sort of my experience,” he says. “It’s personal and self-deprecating, I’d say more than anything else.”
Convy says he doesn’t drink alcohol or do drugs. Instead, he’s driven by the adrenaline rush of landing a new joke for the first time. He describes it the same way John Mulaney once did, like having a crush on a new girl.
“It’s hard to leave a good comedy show feeling bad about the world or about just people,” he says. “It reminds you that we’ve got a lot more in common than maybe we thought we did.”
Honorable Mentions
Chris Cyr
Known for his witty, unique style, Chris Cyr is a St. Louis-based comedian always looking to take audiences on a funny, cerebral journey.
JC Sibala
JC Sibala has no filter, and he’s not afraid to tackle difficult topics like uncomfortable life transitions, being a single dad and constantly being mistaken for being Mexican while growing up half-Filipino in the Midwest.
Max Price
Stand-up comedian Max Price released his debut comedy special “Lost in the Sauce” back in September. Now, Price is garnering laughs by telling stories about overcoming addiction and adjusting to fatherhood.
Tonerio Brown
For a hearty dose of funny, look no further than Tonerio Brown, who’s witty punchlines and raunchy subject matter stir up both laughs and rose-colored cheeks from audience members.
Willie C.
There don’t seem to be too many things comedian Willie C. won’t say. However, whether he’s hosting or headlining a show, his reality-based style of comedy is sure incite laughter while also dropping a few gems about life.