Comedian and actor Alonzo Bodden is one of the hosts of the Montclair Jazz Festival's Downtown Jamboree on September 9 on Bloomfield Avenue in Montclair, New Jersey. Bodden, who was born in Queens, New York and now lives in Los Angeles, first gained fame as a finalist and eventual winner of the popular TV show Last Comic Standing. His comedy career has taken off since then with TV specials, movies and being a headliner at clubs and festivals.
Bodden spoke with WBGO's Doug Doyle about his love of jazz and why he agreed to be one of the hosts of this year's Downtown Jamboree.
"It's started out with doing the jazz cruises which I started doing in the mid 2000's. Over the years I've got to know all these brilliant jazz musicians. Part of the reason I got the gig on the cruise and kept the gig is I knew the who the musicians were. I'm a big fan of jazz. When I started roasting the musicians on the stage, they seemed to like it. I got know Christian (McBride) and through Christian I got to know Melissa (Walker). After last year, they asked me if would host the Montclair Jazz Festival. I said absolutely."
Bodden says he's looking forward to being surrounded by so many talented musicians.
"They'll be some jokes and fun intros. I love working in the jazz world. They're the coolest audience in the world. They're smart. They're listening. They're aware of what you're talking about. This is a big outdoor festival, people are going to be having a good time, and I'm going to do my best to not interrupt."
Bodden is also been a regular guest on the weekly NPR radio quiz show “Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me,” which looks at the latest news and current events in a humorous way in front of a live audience.
"It's fun. I love it. The NPR audience is just a sharp audience."
Alonzo admits he had no idea how popular the show was when he started being a panel member on "Wait, Wait".
The comedian says the first jazz record he remembers listening was from the legendary fusion super group Return to Forever led by the late Chick Corea.
"I was a fusion nut in the 1970's between Return to Forever and Weather Report. All of my friends were like 'what the hell are you listening to?' and I loved it."
Bodden has feasted on everyday life and the current events of the world for his comedy specials. All of them are now available on Amazon Prime.
"I just see things in a funny way, like when you have something as big as the pandemic and the ridiculousness of being locked in the house.
You can SEE the entire interview with Alonzo Bodden here.
