By Destiny Davis
Philadelphia comedian TaTa Sherise always knew that she could make people laugh—not even a global pandemic could stop that.
In less than four years of comedy she has close to 200 shows under her belt, gracing iconic stages in Philadelphia and Broadway Comedy Club and Caroline’s in New York City. She’s been featured on ‘The Drew Barrymore Show’ Bananamore’s Virtual Comedy Club, season one of Angela Yee’s and Magic Lemonade’s ‘Mastery of Comedy’ digital TV show and is one of the cast members for ‘The Going Live Show’ sketch series in Atlanta, Georgia.
Sherise recently sat down with Metro to discuss comedy, her career, and finding humor amidst a pandemic.
When you were first informed that everyone was forced into quarantine, what went through your mind as far as your career is concerned?
I honestly didn’t take it serious until my third canceled show. By the summer, I had not torched a stage or mic in three months, which was completely out of the norm for me. I performed 2 to 4 times a week or at least 3 weekends out of the month. I started to get a little depressed and realized that all of my therapy can’t come from comedy.
How did you get through the stress of the pandemic?
I chilled with friends, drank a lot of wine, created new sketches, and I even started to get a little into fitness.
During that time, did you find any hidden talents within yourself?
No hidden talents found but my creativity did spike. My business partner Drizz and I did what we do best and created skits for the internet to at least keep engaging with our audience. They led to me doing zoom shows.
If another lockdown is put in place, do you have an alternative way of doing your stand up comedy?
I don’t see a full lockdown happening but if it does I will be focusing on writing and filming different projects. You never are supposed to just stop or stand still too long when it comes to your dreams.
What is one good thing that you learned about the world as a whole over the past year?
I learned the importance of family, friends, and social interaction. Zoom can replace but only so much. Especially with the delayed laughs during a comedy show! So I think the world as whole, I can say appreciation and gratitude for the little things in life was the true lesson learned.
