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Cum Town
Presentation
Hosted by
Genre
LanguageEnglish
UpdatesTwice weekly
Length60–90 minutes
Production
ProductionNick Mullen
No. of episodesRegular: 317
Premium: 278
Publication
Original releaseMay 11, 2016 –
June 23, 2022
Related
Related showsThe Adam Friedland Show

Cum Town was a comedy podcast that was hosted by New York City-based comedians Nick Mullen, Stavros Halkias, and Adam Friedland, and produced between 2016 and 2022. During its run, it was consistently one of the most popular podcasts on Patreon and concluded as one of the top 25 comedy podcasts on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. In July 2022, it was succeeded by Mullen and Friedland's spin-off podcast and interview show The Adam Friedland Show.[2][3][4]

History

In 2016, Cum Town was created by Mullen, the primary host and producer of the show.[5] Halkias was the first co-host; Friedland became a second co-host, starting as a frequent guest and first appearing in the show's second episode.

The podcast concluded in June 2022 after months of the hosts suggesting its end as well as their renewed interest in stand-up comedy, particularly Halkias, who released his debut comedy special that month. On June 25, 2022, Halkias announced that he was no longer part of Cum Town.[6] Subsequently, Mullen and Friedland revealed their plan for a spin-off podcast—The Adam Friedland Show—to be hosted by Friedland and produced by Mullen.

Content

Cum Town episodes were typically 60 minutes long and consisted of improvised comedy blended with casual unscripted conversation. Featured guests include Tim Dillon, David Cross,[7] Bam Margera, Dan Soder, Bonnie McFarlane, Jim Norton, Kurt Metzger, Brandon Wardell, and Dasha Nekrasova.[8]

Many of the show's riffs come from crude puns and rhymes—for example, "Louis SeemsGay"[9] for Louis C.K.—and involved sexually explicit scenarios or ethnic and racial stereotypes.[2][3] Conversations generally centered on the hosts' personal lives, the news, the worlds of stand-up comedy and social media, and pop culture history.[1] Friedland often served as the butt of Mullen's and Halkias's jokes and insults.

Mullen does many celebrity impressions, including Donald Trump, Barack Obama, Tucker Carlson, Michael Douglas, Dennis Hopper, E. Jean Carroll, Dwayne Johnson, Joe Biden, Andrew Cuomo, Patrick Warburton, Rip Torn, Gene Hackman, Jon Hamm, Norm MacDonald, Joe List, Mark Normand, Jason Statham, Ice-T, Dave Portnoy,[10] James Gandolfini, Sean Connery, Regis Philbin and Homer Simpson,[11] with some episodes of the show featuring him trying to perfect a new impression on-air.

Availability and listenership

Weekly free episodes of the show were available via Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Audible, among other services.[12][13][14] Subscribers who contributed at least $5 per month via Patreon gain access to additional weekly premium bonus episodes.[15] During the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the show was conducted via Zoom; episodes were broadcast live via YouTube.

As of June 2022, Cum Town was the 10th-most popular podcast on Patreon and the 12th-most popular creator on the platform overall; with more than 20,000 paying members, it had around $100,000 in monthly earnings.[16] It was the number one podcast on the platform for most of 2017 and 2018.[16] On Apple Podcasts, it was the 17th-most popular comedy podcast in the U.S. and 126th overall.[17]

Hosts

Nick Mullen

Main article: Nick Mullen
Nick Mullen in 2014

Nick Mullen (born December 13, 1988)[18] is a stand-up comedian, comedy writer, and podcaster.[5] Much of his comedy is ironic, observational and self-deprecating, and focuses on internet culture.[19][20]

A nationally touring stand-up, Mullen earned recognition in the early 2010s;[21][22][23] he was a two-time finalist for the Funniest Person in Austin contest (2010 and 2011),[21][24][22][25] was selected as part of Montreal's Just for Laughs festival New Faces program in 2012,[24][26] and was a finalist for New York's Funniest Stand-Up at the 2015 New York Comedy Festival.[27][28] After a break, he resumed performing in 2022.

Mullen's writing credits include Comedy Knockout on TruTV (premiered 2016), Make Me Understand with Jim Norton (2016 IFC television pilot), 2017's Problematic with Moshe Kasher (Comedy Central), and Sacha Baron Cohen's Who Is America.[27]

Stavros Halkias

Main article: Stavros Halkias
Stavros Halkias in 2021

Stavros Halkias (born February 11, 1989)[29] is a stand-up comedian and podcaster.[30] Active since the early 2010s, he is based in New York City and tours nationally. He released his debut comedy special Live At The Lodge Room in June 2022, and left the podcast later that month.

Halkias was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, to Greek immigrant parents.[31] He began performing comedy while attending the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.[32][33] In 2012, he was named Baltimore's New Comedian of the Year.[34] He has written and performed on Adult Swim, IFC, MSG Network's People Talking Sports and Other Stuff, and Comedy Central series including Comedy Central Stand Up Featuring.[33] Since 2019, he has co-hosted the basketball podcast Pod Don't Lie with Sam Morril.[35]

Adam Friedland

Main article: Adam Friedland
Adam Friedland in 2023

Adam Friedland (born April 10, 1987)[36] is a stand-up comedian, sketch comedian, and podcaster.[37][38][39]

Born to South African Lithuanian-Jewish immigrant parents, he primarily grew up in Las Vegas. Friedland got his start in the Washington, D.C. comedy scene by running and hosting comedy shows at the DIY venue Subterranean A; he gained local notability in the local comedy scene for his "alternative" performance piece-oriented comedy.[40][41][42][43][44][45] He performed at the Bentzen Ball in 2013 and 2014 and was named to the annual "Best of D.C." list by the Washington City Paper.[46][39][47][38] He moved to New York City in 2014.[48][37] Outside of Cum Town, he is best known as the host of the live alternative comedy show Funny Moms; the show began in Washington in 2012 with co-host Sara Starmour and moved to Brooklyn in 2015.[49][39][48]

Reception

Dirtbag left association

Cum Town was often associated with the dirtbag left, though it is not expressly political.[50][51][52] A February 2020 New York Times article described Cum Town (by allusion, citing its "unprintable name") as "bards of the new American left", alongside podcasts Chapo Trap House and Red Scare.[53] Several Chapo hosts, including Amber A'Lee Frost, Will Menaker, and Felix Biederman have appeared on Cum Town; Mullen, Halkias, and Friedland have made multiple appearances on Chapo.

Though the hosts occasionally discuss their responses to current events and politics—with all three expressing support for 2020 presidential candidate Bernie Sanders—they deny any specific political agenda. In May 2017, Friedland tweeted, "Cum town is not a socialist podcast it's not a fascist podcast it's a podcast about being gay with your dad."[54]

In July 2021, the hosts disagreed with Andrew Marantz's characterization of the podcast as a "flagship product of the dirtbag left" in a New Yorker article.[55][56] Halkias instead suggested that its motivating force was not political but financial. The hosts initially believed the podcast would be unsuccessful, "and people are stupid enough to give us money, and we are trapped doing [the podcast]".[55]

Criticism

In association with their dirtbag left peers, the podcast and its hosts have been criticized for their use of ironic offensiveness.[2][3][50] Critical bloggers have argued that the hosts' use of slurs and edgy jokes, particularly Mullen's, perpetuates harassment and continually crosses the line into actual hatred and contempt.[57] Others have countered that offensiveness is subjective.[58] In 2018, the co-hosts jokingly compared the treatment of their podcast to Milo Yiannopoulos and Carl Benjamin, who both got their Patreon accounts suspended for similar jokes. Mullen jokingly noted, "we're the good guys...we're on the right side of history."[59]

Some online commentators have made a distinction between the podcast and their listeners, critiquing the show's fan base as opposed to the hosts, or critiquing both in tandem.[52] In 2020, the podcast's subreddit (which was not moderated or endorsed by the hosts) was removed from Reddit due to the platform's new policies on hate speech.[60]

References

  1. ^ a b "Cum Town Live". YEG Live. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Chery, Samantha (May 25, 2023). "The Matty Healy, Ice Spice (and Taylor Swift) drama, explained". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 29, 2023. While a guest on "The Adam Friedland Show" in February, Healy laughed as the two podcast hosts, Friedland and Nick Mullen, made fun of Ice Spice
  3. ^ a b c Graye, Megan (February 10, 2023). "Matty Healy sparks backlash over interview that mocks Japanese, Hawaiian and Scottish people". The Independent. Retrieved May 29, 2023. The 1975 frontman appeared in the latest episode of The Adam Friedland Show with comedians and podcast hosts Friedland and Nick Mullen.
  4. ^ Lindsay, Kate (May 27, 2023). "My Boyfriend and I Are Closer Than Ever, Thanks to the Taylor Swift-Matty Healy Drama". GQ. Retrieved May 31, 2023. The niche comedians behind that podcast are now indirectly responsible for the soft cancellation of one of the music industry's biggest artists. The Adam Friedland Show, known in an earlier iteration as Cum Town, featured Matty Healy as a guest on February 9.
  5. ^ a b "Nick Mullen". The Stand Restaurant & Comedy Club. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  6. ^ Halkias, Stavros [@stavvybaby] (June 25, 2022). "We had a good run 🤍🤍" (Tweet). Retrieved June 25, 2022 – via Twitter.
  7. ^ Halkias, Stavros, with Adam Friedland, Nick Mullen. Episode 11: Interview with David Cross. Cum Town (podcast).
  8. ^ McNamara, Sylvie (October 29, 2018). "Red Scare's Real Offense Is Nihilism". Podcast Review.
  9. ^ "Ep. 118 – Louis SeemsGay from Cum Town". stitcher.com. Retrieved June 16, 2020.[permanent dead link‍]
  10. ^ "Ep 246 - Indiana Loans". Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  11. ^ "Cumtown Nick's Impression Compilatiom". YouTube. September 23, 2021. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  12. ^ "Cum Town". Spotify. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  13. ^ "Cum Town on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  14. ^ "Cum Town: Nick Mullen". Amazon. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  15. ^ "The Cum Boys is creating Cum Town Podcast". Patreon. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  16. ^ a b "The Cum Boys: Patreon Earnings + Statistics + Graphs + Rank". Graphtreon. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  17. ^ "Cum Town Podcast – Listen, Reviews, Charts". chartable.com. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  18. ^ Friedland, Adam [@AdamFriedland] (December 13, 2019). "Happy birthday to my dear friend @nickmullen who brings so much joy to so many people https://t.co/KMhETtqlIE" (Tweet). Archived from the original on December 15, 2019. Retrieved July 26, 2021 – via Twitter.
  19. ^ Ari Shaffir's Skeptic Tank (April 26, 2015). #216: Tenement (Nick Mullen) (podcast). Apple Podcasts. Event occurs at around 1:30:00. It'll be ten years in October [2015] that I'll be doing comedy
  20. ^ "Nick Mullen | Comedians". The Stand Restaurant & Comedy Club. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  21. ^ a b "Nick Mullen". Speakerpedia. Archived from the original on May 1, 2015.
  22. ^ a b "Nick Mullen". SXSW Schedule 2012. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  23. ^ "Your Definitive Guide To The SXSW 2012 Comedy Lineup". The Laugh Button. March 8, 2012. Archived from the original on October 21, 2020. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  24. ^ a b "First look: Montreal's 2012 New Faces, Characters and Unrepped | The Comic's Comic". July 30, 2012. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  25. ^ Brenner, Wayne Alan (May 20, 2011). "Funniest Person in Austin Contest 2011". Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on November 24, 2011. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  26. ^ Fox, Jesse David (July 23, 2012). "Just For Laughs Chooses its New Faces". Vulture. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  27. ^ a b "Nick Mullen". www.timessquarenyc.org. August 9, 2018. Archived from the original on September 17, 2018. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  28. ^ Czajkowski, Elise (November 10, 2015). "New York's Funniest Stand-Up Finalists Gear Up for a Serious Smackdown". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  29. ^ Friedland, Adam [@AdamFriedland] (February 11, 2020). "Happy birthday to my gorgeous and infinitely talented friend Stavros. Love you baby. https://t.co/OnmGXMOp0n" (Tweet). Archived from the original on February 11, 2020. Retrieved July 26, 2021 – via Twitter.
  30. ^ Stavros Halkias [@stavvybaby] (February 11, 2020). "I turned 31 years old today. Here's to 10, 15 more" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  31. ^ "More from Poly's Nick Halkias". Baltimore Sun. October 1, 2008. Archived from the original on July 13, 2021. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  32. ^ Halkias, Stavros. "A Tragic Mistake at One of Baltimore's Best High Schools". Marc Steiner and the Center for Emerging Media. Archived from the original on August 10, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2021. CEM intern Stavros Halkias is an alumnus of Baltimore Polytechnic Institute... Halkias, Sondheim Public Affairs Scholar at UMBC & CEM Intern
  33. ^ a b "Stavros Halkias | Comedians". The Stand Restaurant & Comedy Club. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  34. ^ The Digression Sessions (January 2013). Ep. 62 – Stavros Halkias! (podcast). Spotify. Episode Description: ...And Mr. Halkias recently won Baltimore's New Comedian of the year for 2012 contest at Magooby's Joke House. Performing regularly in the Maryland, DC, and Virginia area, Stav is constantly on the grind, brah. He also produces and hosts monthly showcases at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and co-hosts the Super Comedy show every third Friday at Dionysus in Mount Vernon, Baltimore.
  35. ^ "Pod Don't Lie". Podchaser. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  36. ^ Friedland, Adam [@AdamFriedland] (April 10, 2019). "I'm 32 today and I beat medical grade dandruff" (Tweet). Archived from the original on April 10, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2021 – via Twitter.
  37. ^ a b "Adam Friedland | Comedians". The Stand Restaurant & Comedy Club. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  38. ^ a b "Contributors". DAVID. 6 (6). JewishINK: 10. October 2015 – via Issuu.
  39. ^ a b c Schweitzer, Ally (May 9, 2014). "Q&A: New York-Bound Adam Friedland On the Last Night of Funny Moms". Washington City Paper. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  40. ^ Brandon Wetherbee (July 8, 2011). "This Could Be Funny: An Excuse to Play This Mencia Clip". Washington City Paper. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  41. ^ "This Could Be Funny: Be Brandon Wardell's Friend". Washington City Paper. September 16, 2011. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  42. ^ Jones, Caroline (January 3, 2014). "ToDo ToDay: Jon B, Moneytown, Aster Aweke, and Modern Moves Festival". Washington City Paper. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  43. ^ Singer, Dan (August 8, 2013). "ToDo ToDay: Paint Branch at Fort Reno, Alt-Comedy at Meeps". Washington City Paper. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  44. ^ "ToDo ToDay: Surrealism, Brewer's Art Tap Takeover, and a Roast of Dan Snyder". Washington City Paper. February 4, 2014. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  45. ^ Brandon Wetherbee (April 20, 2012). "This Could Be Funny: Jon Benjamin Has a Tour". Washington City Paper. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  46. ^ "ToDo ToDay: "Next" and Wayne McGregor". Washington City Paper. May 1, 2014. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  47. ^ "Bentzen Ball, the comedy showcase created by Tig Notaro and Brightest Young Things, is back". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  48. ^ a b "Weekly Comedy Show 'Funny Moms' Comes to Crown Heights Beer Hall Berg'n". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on July 11, 2021. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  49. ^ Jones, Caroline (December 19, 2012). "ToDo ToDay: Chatham County Line! Funny Moms!". Washington City Paper. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  50. ^ a b Tolentino, Jia (May 29, 2023). "Who Is Matty Healy? For the front man of the 1975, fame is its own kind of performance". The New Yorker. Retrieved May 31, 2023. A month later, Healy went on a podcast called "The Adam Friedland Show." Friedland, whom Healy had befriended in the past couple of years, used to host the podcast "Cum Town," a title that reflects the "Borat"-esque level of seriousness that he and his co-hosts generally brought to the table. Friedland is part of a downtown New York scene referred to as Dimes Square, which, during the pandemic, became widely known for an ostensibly transgressive rejection of liberal pieties and a reactionary brand of post-left politics particularly associated with another podcast, "Red Scare."
  51. ^ North, Anna (October 24, 2017). "Listen to what socialist women are saying about misogyny on the left". Vox. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  52. ^ a b Spies, Michelle (September 25, 2019). "I Made the Internet Vote to Determine the Worst Fan Base. Here's What I Learned". Vulture. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  53. ^ Bowles, Nellie (February 29, 2020). "The Pied Pipers of the Dirtbag Left Want to Lead Everyone to Bernie Sanders". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved June 16, 2020. The fivesome of "Chapo Trap House" are not the only bards of the new American left — there is "Red Scare" and another whose name cannot be printed — but they have led the way for a movement that together generates millions of dollars a year.
  54. ^ Friedland, Adam [@AdamFriedland] (May 5, 2017). "Cum town is not a socialist podcast it's not a fascist podcast it's a podcast about being gay with your dad" (Tweet). Archived from the original on June 23, 2020. Retrieved June 23, 2020 – via Twitter.
  55. ^ a b Cum Town. "Episode 270 – semone biles". Apple Podcasts – Cum Town. Event occurs at 36:07. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  56. ^ Marantz, Andrew. "The Post-Dirtbag Left". The New Yorker. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  57. ^ Ross, Alexander Reid (March 8, 2021). "These 'Dirtbag Left' Stars Are Flirting With the Far Right". The Daily Beast. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  58. ^ "We're giving comedy too much credit". The Stony Brook Press. November 4, 2019. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  59. ^ "Sargon My Dick". Patreon. December 20, 2018. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  60. ^ Newton, Casey (June 29, 2020). "Reddit bans r/The_Donald and r/ChapoTrapHouse as part of a major expansion of its rules". The Verge. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
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