Magic of Rainbow
Political satirist propelled from internet sensation to stage Since 2009, Rainbow’s apartment has doubled as the studio where he writes, produces, scores and stars in his videos.
YouTube can make you a star. But can it keep you shining after your 15 minutes of fame? If you're comedian and satirist Randy Rainbow, the answer is yes. Tay Zonday of “Chocolate Rain” and “The Numa Numa Guy” aren't exactly setting the world on fire a decade later. But Rainbow has seemed to reach internet escape velocity. He is touring his first stage show, which stops at the Wilbur on Thursday. For Rainbow, moving his political jokes and parody songs from the iPhone screen to stage has been delightful.
“Making internet content is very isolating,” Rainbow said from his New York City apartment. “To perform live, to get that thrill of the audience reaction is great. There is no equivalent of watching someone stand up and clap on the internet.”
Since 2009, Rainbow's apartment has doubled as the studio where he writes, produces, scores and stars in his videos. His early stuff can be great (see his fake “American Idol” audition), but he didn't go viral until he got political. In 2016, his Trump-mocking “Braggadocious” video, a twist on the “Mary Poppins” classic “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,” exploded across the web with 28 million views in just two days.
There is never any guarantee that a video will be a smash. But sometimes Rainbow suspects he's hit on something huge.
“I have to follow my instincts when I get an idea like `Desperate Cheeto,' ” he said about his parody of 2017's summer smash “Despacito.” “The song was so popular I knew it had a good chance. But when I'm editing at four in the morning after working all day and night, the whole video just feels like random shapes and sounds coming at me, so I never know.”
Rainbow's videos remain a one-man production — even after 100 million-plus views. This is just one of the reasons he loves doing live shows. “I have a tour manager, people that do lights and sound, it's amazing,” he said.
He wants to flesh out the show, add dancers, make it a full extravaganza. It seems Rainbow has the popularity to do it, he just needs the time. Between show runs, he tries to push out a couple of videos a month (this week's took a jab at Giuliani in “Rudy and the Beast”) and now he needs to figure out how to license some new merchandise.
“Of course I am going to figure out a way to sell my own branded version of my pink glasses in the lobby of theaters,” he said, referring to his now iconic cat-eye spectacles he often dons in his videos. “But where's the time? With everything that is going on in the White House, how can I find any free time?”