S1: Welcome in San Diego. It's Jade Hindman on this episode of KPBS Midday Edition. Comedian Ilana Glazer on her art , motherhood and activism. This is KPBS Midday Edition. Connecting our communities through conversation. Fans of the sitcom Broad City might know Ilana Glazer as the character Ilana Wexler , known for her passion for marijuana and deep loyalty to her best friend Abbi. But the real life Ilana is so much more than that character. They're an accomplished comedian , actor , producer , activist , and now a mom. And now Ilana Glazer is headed to San Diego for the next stop on their current stand up tour. Ilana Glazer live. They'll be performing at Balboa Theatre tomorrow night and KPBS producer Ashley Rusch sat down with Alana. Here's that conversation.
S2: So I learned that you sold your first script , the pilot , to Broad City , at age 24. So I want to know , you know , when you think back to that 24 year old version of yourself , what kind of emotions come up for you?
S3: Oh my goodness , my mind is blown. I'm in LA right now. I'm sitting here in LA on the terrace of my brother's apartment as I speak to you. And at 39 , which I'm talking about , what about being a middle aged millennial and , uh , man , 15 years ago , it's just like. So it's just so , um , like the passage of time doesn't get less crazy. I think it gets more crazy as you get older. Um , I think of that 24 year old me as , like , just really wanting to do what I'm getting to do today. And I'm , like , just so grateful for it. Uh , I've been touring , um , the country and the world this , this , uh , this year , since May. I traveled overseas for the first time. Toured in Europe and it's been so fun. It's been so , like , funny to laugh through all the all that's going on this year. You know , I'm a very political person. I talk about what's going on , but what I see from , you know , the West Coast of the United States to Europe is that people are really on the same page. People are mostly on the same page , and it's been such a gift. So I , I like when I think of that 24 year old selling her first script , it was it was shocking and amazing and such a broad city was such a magical experience. But like , I've just been a comedy nerd since I'm a kid , you know? And to be able to keep doing what I'm doing is I truly like , thank God for it every day. Yeah.
S2: Yeah. And , you know , you're a mom now to a four year old daughter. Five year old daughter.
S3: That's right. To a five year.
S2: Old , five year old now , um , congratulations. And , um , I guess my first question is I want to ask , is she more of an Abby or an Alana?
S3: Oh , Lord. Um , she is definitely more of an Alana , but my husband's name is David. She's , like , such a David and and Alana. It's. It's so crazy , actually. You're making me think of Abbey and Elena could have a baby that I can actually get. I never thought of that , but I can actually get a sense of that baby now that you ask. But she's. She's an Alana and a David. Both.
S2: How has , um , being a mom , you know , changed your approach to comedy , to your work , to your current stand up tour?
S3: Being a mom has made me feel more confident generally , and same. And the same goes for in comedy. I , um , there's there's some things that , um , I go , I think go from gray to black and white , or at least for me , some things that have gone from gray to black and white. And I'm able to let go of more , just let it go. So I'm , I'm left with the pieces that are more crystal clear of who I am. And it's just so funny being a mom , you know , like , kids are so naturally funny and , um. Oh , it's like kind of funny being tired , even though when you are up late at night , you're like , this is not funny. This is devastating. Um , and , you know , I just , um , just like , right now , what I'm really talking about in my hour is , uh , about parenting is about how much , um , more emotionally advanced these children are than we are. Um , you know , millennials have had , uh , so much therapy relative to generations prior that we have , um , our , our parenting style is called gentle parenting. And it's like , have we all experienced brutal parenting up until this point? And when I say this , everyone's like , yes , yes , um , you know , and it's like , um , but they're so they're so in touch with their emotions , these kids. And , um , my daughter was like my daughter like , I , I genuinely admire how she can name her feelings as they come up. Like , I can't do that. She was like having a cry that I didn't know what was happening. And I asked her why she was crying and she was like , well , my feelings are changing and I don't like when my feelings change. And I was like , that took me 35 years and I'll tell you , years 19 to 34 , pretty much a brownout. You know , she's five years old , stone cold sober. And it's just blowing me away. Blowing me away.
S2: I feel like , um , from the the specials I've seen , you know , you're a really physical comic. I was thinking about the last one. Human magic. Were. You were re-enacting your daughter's , like , movements and things. How do you kind of get in the zone for for that kind of comedy?
S3: I did this run this week. It was unbelievable. A lit show on a Monday night in Denver , a lit show on a Tuesday night in Seattle , and then in Oakland. It was also lit. I was like , okay , weekdays lit. I get you out before 9 p.m. , that's for sure. Um , but like , the show is like so packed with such giggles and such big laughs and physical comedy. And the last show I did in Oakland , I had like a lot of childhood friends and family. Friends come and we were just cracking up. Like , I'm such a nut in my physical comedy. I'm talking a lot these days about like how comedy is just very highly productive , well organized mental illness because I'm like , we are insane. We are insane people. And if we're , you know , it's we're making good use of it. But my physical comedy , I'm , I'm all over the place. I'm like , you know , I find these , like , movements. And then I treat them almost like choreography. And it's just. It just feels so fun. And I really like wearing , like , so you can see my body like a short skirt and black tights that you can , like , really see , you know? So it's like , it's really fun to just to look elegant walking out on stage , but then be like a total nut throughout the performance.
S2: Yeah , that makes a lot of sense. Earlier you mentioned that you're really politically active person. I know activism is a huge part of your life , and I've also heard from a co-worker , actually , that you're connecting with local nonprofits for your standup tours. Is that right? Are you doing that at every stop or.
S3: You know , I , I love having my shows. I feel so fortunate to be able to make my shows like , um , also a community event. So what I like to do is highlight , um , this group headcount that registers people to vote. And uh , also I'm starting to get into pairing local climate organizations with , um , my shows so that people can sign up to be do one simple action to be a climate activist. And they really this this group Planet Reimagined really helps , uh , the community follow through with that action. I think when we hear things like activist , we think of like somebody chaining themselves to a tree , you know what I mean? And I'm like , I actually I don't have time for that. And that , like , scares me. That's that's not the type of bravery I'm able to do. But , uh , local groups like Climate Action Campaign in San Diego can actually tell you , like , they have custom tailored ways that San Diego ends can plug in and help protect the climate and make that fight their own at whatever scale. Mhm.
S2: Mhm. Mhm. Um , speaking of political activism , you also have a podcast and I know you you recently had Miss Rachel on , you talked about how she continues to speak out against the horrors that are happening in Gaza , in a time where many celebrities are refusing to do that. Why does it matter to you to have , you know , honest conversations like that on your platform?
S3: I really am finding this , um , white space where , like Rachel says , you know , people with public platforms and public figures with platforms and so much reach , they want to stay quiet and not be political on issues that matter to their audience , who are paying money and paying time and attention to them. I really think as a public figure , we're in this together and , you know , our as , our our as our , um , you know , reality is being systematically fractured by a handful of billionaires who own the airwaves and news and , you know , the algorithms or whatever. It's so important that artists and their audiences connect or to make a shared reality. It's really important to me to fill that white space with brave , awesome people who will speak up for their neighbors and their audiences. Because I'm seeing this is effective. You know , people are like , absolutely waking up to the power structure and want basic human rights for each other. And it really is , as as Rachel puts it , it's like , um , really surprising and heartbreaking to see artists who won't speak up for their audience.
S2: How do we keep laughing when things are really , really serious and awful?
S3: You know , like I'm doing this interview so that people in San Diego know that my show is happening in San Diego. Um , I really am like , come see my show. It's hysterical. I'm both , you know , addressing what's happening in the world and escaping it. Because believe me , I have plenty of stoner mom jokes to tell. I'm an infinite well , of these , um , you know , but I'm one of these people. But there are many people in my comedy community. We have to seek out laughter and pleasure and joy. It's equally as important as speaking up for our neighbors and speaking up for basic human rights for our fellow Americans. It is , you know , the the activism is only a win. If on the other side of the win is pleasure and joy in the human experience taking place. So I can guarantee everyone in San Diego who's listening to this , they will truly laugh their asses off. We will. We will laugh at things. We will move beyond things. The only for me as a comedian who is absolutely , uh , mentally ill , but making such good use of that mental illness by turning it into a comedy career. The only way I know how to get through things and be brave and speak up is to laugh at at first. It gives you this perspective on how you want to approach it. So comedy is is is absolutely my number one , um , line of defense when it comes to sharing , facing reality and then taking action.
S1: That was comedian Ilana Glazer speaking with KPBS producer Ashley Rush. Ilana is making a tour stop here in San Diego at Balboa Theatre tomorrow night. Details on our website at kpbs.org. That's our show for today. I'm your host , Jade Hindman. Thanks for tuning in to Midday Edition. Be sure to have a great day on purpose , everyone.
