Trevor Noah
Trevor Noah
Trevor Noah is a South African comedian, television and radio host and actor. He is the host of American late-night comedy/commentary television program The Daily Show, succeeding Jon Stewart...
NationalitySouth African
ProfessionComedian
Date of Birth20 February 1984
CityJohannesburg, South Africa
gone ideal onto setting social straight
My ideal setting is I walk from the streets, backstage, and straight onto the stage. Two minutes, and I am on the stage. That way, in my head I have gone from my world and then into a social setting with my friends.
accessible cultural everybody family groups learn mum speaks start
We've got so many different cultural groups in my family that I've had to learn to accommodate them in different ways. My father speaks different to my mum. My mum speaks different to my grandmother. Everybody speaks different, so you find you start tweaking your language to be more accessible to people.
comedic global happening honest needs politics race relations talked talking whether
When you are honest in your comedy, you have to acknowledge the world that you're in. Through a comedic voice, you're talking about what needs to be talked about, whether it's race relations or politics or anything that's happening on a global or an American scale.
change gonna happens people tackle worst
We get angry about the small things sometimes, I feel, so that we feel like we're doing something, so that we don't have to tackle the big things. And it's fine; let people do that. But I'm not gonna now change because of that. You know? Like, the worst thing that happens to me is you don't like me. And then what?
contact dad father lost six
I lost contact with my father for many years because of apartheid. For, like, six years, I didn't see my dad. And, now, this was the six years of being a teenager.
cancel doctor either finally gave injured perhaps speak voice york
During my New York run, I injured my voice badly. I was getting increasingly hoarse, and it finally gave up. The doctor said I had two choices. Either cancel things, or try my luck and perhaps never speak again. That's not much of a choice.
audience forced knows nobody people prove tough until
As a comedian, I'm forced to have a tough skin. Until people laugh, they are detractors. You walk into a new audience where nobody knows you, they go: 'Make us laugh. Show us what you're made of. Prove why we should be listening to you.'
funny stage
Most of my show is true; like, 90% of everything I say on stage is true. I just have to find the way to make it funny - that's the difficult thing.
score spot
I'm a quarterback. I don't need to score the touchdown. I just need to spot the pass.
family kicked
I was the first in my family to board an airplane. I was the first in my family to get kicked off an airplane.
believe funny
I always believe that funny is serious and serious is funny. You don't really need a distinction between them.
quite south
Comedy is really getting quite popular in South Africa.
america realm saw
America was a thing I saw on TV - that wasn't a real world. That wasn't within my realm of dreaming.
fan issues lives people playing race recurring though
I've always been a fan of issues around race and racialism, and I've loved playing with it. People act as though it isn't an issue, but it's a recurring theme in our lives globally.