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Local comedian Andy Bumatai is back on the stage after pandemic hiatus

Courtesy Andy Bumatai

Beloved local stand-up comic Andy Bumatai is preparing to go on his first tour since before the pandemic. He started his career in the 1970s and got his first big break when he replaced Rap Replinger in the comedy troupe “Booga Booga.”

Since that time, he’s starred in two television specials — High School Daze and All in the Ohana — and headlined at several clubs across the country. The Native Hawaiian-Filipino entertainer is best known for his “Daily Pidgin” podcast on YouTube.

The Conversation sat down with Bumatai to talk about cracking jokes in modern times.

"For me, the acid test and I always tell this to people, if you can't tell like a Samoan joke in front of a roomful of Samoans, you can't tell the joke," Bumatai told The Conversation.

He will be performing at Blue Note Hawaii on Wednesday, March 1 alongside Augie T — as part of his "In Denial Tour."

This interview aired on The Conversation on Feb. 28, 2023. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1. 

Russell Subiono is the executive producer of The Conversation and host of HPR's This Is Our Hawaiʻi podcast. Born in Honolulu and raised on Hawaiʻi Island, he’s spent the last decade working in local film, television and radio. Contact him at talkback@hawaiipublicradio.org.
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