Leanne Morgan will deliver her Southern charm to Columbus audiences
Leanne Morgan has built her comedy on family stories and Southern charm.
The Tennessee native, a mother of three who has appeared on “The View,” “Dr. Phil” and Sirius XM comedy channels and done a “So Yummy” comedy special, has created videos receiving more than 50 million views on Dry Bar Comedy.
Morgan, 55, spoke in advance of her Sept. 16 performance at the Palace Theatre.
Q: How do you describe your style of comedy?
Morgan: It’s very family- and life-relatable. Now my children are grown and out of the house, but for years, as long as I’ve done this, I’d see funny things happen with kids, school, sports and parenting... so I’d tell that story.
Q: You’ve named this your Big Panty Tour. Why?
Morgan: I talk about my panties quite a bit ... The tour (title) says to me: ‘Put on your big comfortable pair
of panties.’ At this point, going through midlife and being an empty nester and new grandmother, I feel I deserve to have a comfortable pair of panties. I feel like my fans are best friends who feel the same way.
Q: So do you attract more women?
Morgan: I usually get a lot more, but more men and couples are coming... More men relate to a viral video I did, after me and my husband saw Def Leppard and Journey, about old people going to concerts and how we’re all aging. We all have plantar fasciitis.
Q: Southern charm is part of your brand. How do you define it?
Morgan: For me, it’s kindness and being loving to all people. When people say “bless your heart” in the South, people think we’re being mean and catty, but that’s not how I was raised. My comedy isn’t mean, just fun. My Southern charm is more about making fun of myself and making everyone feel welcome.
Q: How did your Southern upbringing shape your career?
Morgan: I never get heavy. From the South, we don’t like conflict. We dance around things ... Raised in a rural area in a farming community, our family laughed, made jokes and had funny characters. I present my comedy with a big thick accent, but women everywhere get what I’m saying because it’s universal ... raising children or feeling fat. Menopause is a big thing in my act right now because I’m going through it.
Q: What else will you explore in Columbus?
Morgan: I’ll talk a little about my experiences during COVID: how much I ate and drank, how it feels to be a new grandmother and my relationship with my husband. Having to work in an office at home when he’s never worked at home, he was bossing me around because somehow now I’m working for him.
Q: You’ve done comedy for two decades, but this is your first national headlining tour. Why did it take so long?
Morgan: Isn’t this crazy, after doing comedy 22 years?... When my kids were growing up, I couldn’t hit it hard. I’d work when I could, doing private corporate events and clubs here and there .... I’m 55 now, and touring because of my social media. They started doing videos of me doing bits of standup. It caught on like wildfire, with people sharing my clips and finding out what else I’ve done. It all came together, like a gift from heaven.
Q: What prompted the name for your “So Yummy” special?
Morgan: I’ve used that phrase so many times. I’m nurturing: I love my kids and my new grandbaby. So I say they’re “so yummy.”
Q: Your tour, set to start June 2020, was postponed because of the pandemic-driven lockdowns. How does it feel to be back on the road?
Morgan: I was elated at the biggest thing ever to happen in my career. Then it came to a screeching halt. I felt devastated. Now that it’s back open, it feels even more of a gift. I’m blessed.
Q: When did you realize you could do comedy?
Morgan: I always knew I wanted to be in show business, but being from the country, a town of 500 people, I didn’t know what that meant .... When I was dating my husband, we visited my sister and went to the Comedy Store in Los Angeles. That was the first time, at 25, that I’d ever been in a comedy club. I remember watching the comedians and thinking: I know I can do this.
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