Introducing, the amazing Reggie Reg

by Tasha Lester

It was 2003 and the Kings & Queens Comedy Search Tour was being shot as a TV series. Its object was to go from city to city searching for the next King and Queen of comedy. The grand prize was $24,000.

Twelve contestants competed and would go to each city and were rated by applause. If they did not do well they were given a plane ticket to return to the city they originated from. Every city a comedian made it through, additional minutes were added to their stage time.

On this particular night the tour was in New York City and comedian Reggie Reg was one of the last four remaining comics. He had ten minutes to perform and his performance started out well.

"New York is a sensitive city," he says. "I said 5^th Avenue in Brooklyn and 5^th Avenue is actually in Manhattan. Then, I joked about Jesse Jackson and boos started to arise. I stopped for a minute to look where they were coming from and noticed I had a few minutes left on stage. I thought, if I leave, I don’t get paid. I started to imitate Denzel Washington and the entire place got silent."

Reggie was able to recapture the audience that night with this imitation and received a standing ovation. Female comedians Monique and Adele Givens told him they never witnessed anyone get booed then receive a standing ovation afterwards.

"It was a test," says Reggie. "Even the greatest comedians have been booed. I was not upset about it." – for this was one of his most memorable performances.

When he was young, Reginald Muhammad, a.k.a. Reggie Reg, imitated every comedian he saw. He watched TV shows from Saturday Night Live with appearances by Eddie Murphy and John Belushi to Sanford & Son to Good Times. The comedian who had the greatest influence on him was Richard Pryor.

"He was a trailblazer with forty movies to his name, several albums and a Grammy. He was a comedian genius with impeccable writing abilities. He really dealt with and joked about social issues such as his experiences going to court and seeing nothing but black people in there. He joked about his drug addiction and how he tackled racism. He was the man and truly an inspiration to me," says Reggie.

Along with inspiration comes motivation. Reggie’s drive comes from knowing that he has no safety net. He now does comedy for a living. His objective is to see if he can work the crowd, be funny and earn a living while doing it. For those who said he would never amount to anything, he is doing this for you. Comedy is an attribute he enjoys and is very good at.

Reggie did community work for the Nation of Islam. The Nation put on talent shows and one day he performed in it. He impersonated people there at the show. A brother by the name of Amir Muhammad told him he should be at a comedy club with his talent. Car Wash Jimmy Spinks had a showcase at The Cotton Club where Bernie Mac was the host. Reggie used to go there for open mics and later ran into Damon Williams at All Jokes Aside. By gaining the experience here he officially began his comic career.

You can expect to see creativity at Reggie’s performances. He imitates celebrities and places them in situations to make them funny. Among his imitations are Johnny Carson, Regis Philbin, Denzel Washington, Frank Sinatra, R. Kelly, Michael Jackson and many others.

He is currently working out a contract deal with Saturday Night Live for 2007 and will perform in a sketch TV program that Damon Wayans is producing due to air in the fall or early 2007.

Reggie is forever grateful to the work of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam for their work in the African American community. "It is because of them I am where I am today. They help aid in developing African American men and women. What I do is spring-boarded from them," he says. He would also like to thank his cousin, Ruth Webster, who took care of him in Brookhaven, MS when he was a little boy.

Reggie is truly a talented comedian. Forever you will shine!

Tasha Lester writes and performs poetry. Her goal is to write songs for artists and obtain a law degree.