Billy Wayne Davis is the thinking man’s hillbilly. With a combination of subtle, disarming intelligence and an unmistakable comfort on stage, he has the rare ability to win over every kind of comedy audience imaginable. Billy Wayne’s comedy really has no discernible category. He can be personal, shocking, political and absurd, but his ability to form an instant connection with audiences allows him to get away with anything and everything. For Billy Wayne Davis, no subject matter is off limits because there is nothing he can’t make funny with his trademark drawl and easy charm. He has worked with some of the biggest names in comedy, including Colin Quinn, Lisa Lampanelli, Louis CK and Mitch Hedberg and has toured as the feature act for national headliner Ralphie May. He has performed festivals, comedy clubs and theaters as diverse as Seattle’s Bumbershoot, The Ryman in Nashville, Comedy Works in Denver and the LA Improv.

Years ago, when B. W. Davis started showing up at the old Tuesday night open mic at The Bar Car in Nashville, he was instantly one of my very favorite people on the planet. He embodied everything I love about my best pals from East Tennessee: disarmingly laid back, completely unpretentious, naturally hilarious and smart as a whip. He was immediately one of the funniest comics to call Nashville home. After he followed up his tenure as house emcee at Zanies by going on the road with Ralphie May, he returned to Nashville a much better, road-seasoned comic. When he moved to Seattle, we started seeing him less often – maybe every six or eight months or so when his tours took him back around to his old home.. but his absence just highlighted his exponential growth as a comic each time he returned. Fast forward to January 2012, when Zanies extended his originally planned week of shows into a three-week residency. Sitting in the green room one night, I heard Zanies’ owner Brian Dorfman say, “He has gotten GREAT.” Yeah.. he has.

The material is original, unique, road-tested, and funny but Billy Wayne Davis’ self-titled debut standup album isn’t a perfect show. Davis is heckled several times – and each time he body slams the drunk, annoying morons with style, grace and wit. During track 18, “Feeding My Ewok,” somebody drops a glass on the floor and he reacts in the moment saying, “Did a Jew just get married? What happened?” This gets him a strange reaction from the Seattle crowd and he instantly calls them on it: “Why did you moan that? That’s what they do at the end of their wedding ceremony is they break a fucking glass. That’s the weirdest P-C shit I’ve ever seen right there: I just said ‘Jew’ with a Southern accent and you’re like, ‘Uh-oh. Oh God, I read about this! This is not good!’ That was weird.” and went right back into his bit.

This, to me, is a perfect example of what B-dub does: While in the middle of a well crafted routine there is a distraction. He addresses it with a funny line and is ready to move on.. but smelled a little bullshit in the crowd’s reaction and dove in to explore that. His off-the-cuff reference is smart, well timed, culturally-informed and misinterpreted. This line (and Billy Wayne in general) contradicts the standard stereotypical caricature so often incorrectly associated with anybody with a Southern accent. Davis handily exposes the hypocrisy and prejudice of the people who assume ignorance and racism where there is none.. and he gets laughs with every improvised line as if it’s a bit he has done for years. Turns out, he’s good at this.

Look, I could have scammed a free copy of “Billy Wayne Davis” no problem, but I bought it as soon as it was available for sale because I KNEW that it would be worth every god damn penny.. and it is. You should buy it right now:
- Amazon.com
- iTunes
- RooftopComedy.com

Here’s a funny promo video Billy made for his new album:

Billy Wayne Davis from Billy Wayne Davis on Vimeo.

Follow Billy Wayne Davis online:
Twitter.com/BillyWayneDavis
Facebook.com/BillyWayneDavis

Billy Wayne Davis is the thinking man’s hillbilly. With a combination of subtle, disarming intelligence and an unmistakable comfort on stage, he has the rare ability to win over every kind of comedy audience imaginable. After making a name for himself in his homeland of Nashville, TN, he has gone on to perform in virtually every corner of the United States, from the deep south to the “alternative comedy” hotbed of Seatte, WA, which he now calls home. Billy Wayne’s comedy really has no discernable category. He can be personal, shocking, political and absurd, but his ability to form an instant connection with audiences allows him to get away with anything and everything. For Billy Wayne Davis, no subject matter is off limits because there is nothing he can’t make funny with his trademark drawl and easy charm. He has worked with some of the biggest names in comedy, including Colin Quinn, Lisa Lampanelli, Louis CK and Mitch Hedberg and has toured as the feature act for national headliner Ralphie May. He has performed festivals, comedy clubs and theaters as diverse as Seattle’s Bumbershoot, The Ryman in Nashville, Comedy Works in Denver and the LA Improv.

Also featuring Dan Whitehurst. Hosted by Gary Fletcher.

$10 at the door or in advance online
7pm Thursday, October 6th, 2011

The Basement
1604 8th Ave South
Nashville, TN
615.254.8006

(facebook event)

Advance tickets are on sale NOW at BrownPaperTickets.com

PunchlineMagazine’s Meagan Kate is in Portland reviewing the Bridgetown Comedy Festival. Here’s what she had to say about our pal, Billy Wayne Davis:

“I also got to see Billy Wayne Davis (finally), whose Southern charm made the audience warm to him immediately, and his material was on point. Also: he is adorable.”

You can read the rest of the write-up here, but that’s the only part that talks about how great NashvilleStandUp alum’s are.

UPDATE:
OregonLive.com wrote a short wrap-up of the festival and closed it with a quote from our pal:

Billy Wayne Davis got a laugh about the “Keep Portland Weird” slogan and its obviousness. “It’s like San Francisco going, ‘let’s keep the Bay here!’”

NashvilleStandUp alumni Billy Wayne Davis was a guest on Seattle’s Delicious Mediocrity podcast:

This week’s guest is Nashville comedian Billy Wayne Davis! Billy tells us about his wedding, impending divorce and the DUI that happened in between. Then a round table discussion breaks out about writing scripts, children and the south. Finally, the show wraps with a creepily in depth discussion about lesbian sex scenes in movies. Enjoy!

Website:
http://www.deliciousmediocrity.com/

iTunes Link:
http://itunes.apple.com/podcast/deli…ty/id382008922

The NashvilleStandUp.com Showcase @ Zanies Comedy Showplace – a showcase of the funniest comedians based in the Nashville area, plus guest sets from traveling comics, and Chad Riden’s IRON COMIC comedy competition with jokes written on the spot based on audience suggestions. Follow and reply to @IronComic to play along at home.

The show is hosted and produced by NashvilleStandUp.com’s Chad Riden. The December 20th show lineup includes: Indiana’s Brent Smalley; former Nashvillian, now Knoxville-based Riley Fox; Nashville to Chicago transplant Ben Bergman; Nashville’s gift to Seattle Billy Wayne Davis; PLUS Nashville’s Brian E. Kiley, Mike James, James Austin Johnson, Johnny Q. Amish, Renard Hirsch, Gary Fletcher, “Happy Birthday Gary“‘s Sean Parrott PLUS a musical sketch from “Glasses 2 Glasses”, and Los Angeles’ favorite former Nashvillian Jesse Case will be headlining the event.

I can’t find any clips of Jesse Case online, but here’s a clip of Billy Wayne Davis from RooftopComedy:

The NashvilleStandUp.com Showcase featuring Iron Comic
Mon., Dec. 20, 2010
doors open: 6:30pm
showtime: 7:30 pm

Zanies Comedy Showplace
2025 8th Avenue South
Nashville, TN 37204

tickets:
$5. available at the door, online, or at the Zanies box office at: 615-269-0221

Facebook event:
Monday, Dec. 20, 2010 – 7:30 pm

More info about the N’Sup Showcase @ Zanies is available at: http://NashvilleStandUp.com/showcase/

TotallyCrushedOut has an interview with NashvilleStandUp alum Billy Wayne Davis. To introduce him, they say:

“Anybody that has been around the Seattle comedy scene knows the name Billy Wayne Davis. He’s a self-described hillbilly who has a distinctly intellectual aspect to his stand-up. His comedy is polished and smart. It is not what you (or Hollywood Agents) expect when you hear his distinct Southern accent. I’ve seen him perform numerous occasions and am always surprised at how well he handles himself and put hecklers in their place.”

B-dub talks about how he got into comedy, his worst day job ever, why he moved to Seattle, fighting the ‘stupid southern hick’ stereotype, and how he balances his life on the road with having a wife and a baby.

Read the whole interview at totallycrushedoutmag.com. If you visit Billy Wayne Davis’ website over at BillyWayneDavis.com, you can read about his current bus tour with Ralphie May:

This week I’m flying down to Sacramento on Thursday and doing the Crest Theatre with Ralphie May. Then, we hop on a tour bus up to Portland for a show on Friday at the Newmark. End up in Seattle at the Moore on Saturday and the Met in Spokane on Sunday…….I’ll be flip camming the whole trip and updating them on my YouTube page…….more to come.

UPDATE:

We just learned that BW will appear in a documentary about Seattle comedy appropriately called “Seattle Komedy DokumentaЯy.” The first trailer was just released with this note from the producers: “In 2007, Seattle was at the epicenter of an amazing stand-up comedy movement. This documentary follows the very recent rise, fall and rebirth of the alternative comedy scene and proves that Seattle is many things, but one of those things is a place where great players get their start.”

Remember these guys? Jesse Perry, Chad Riden and Billy Wayne Davis wish you a Merry Holidays (circa 2004):

Billy Wayne Davis just checked in to tell us about an incident that happened recently at Parlor Live Comedy Club in Bellevue Seattle, WA. Mr. Davis ws accused of having racist material as a woman tried to justify chucking an ice cube at his head while on stage.

Was Billy Wayne’s material racist? Is this woman ‘tarded? You decide!

Billy Wayne Davis is the thinking man’s hillbilly. With a combination of subtle, disarming intelligence and an unmistakable comfort on stage, he has the rare ability to win over every kind of comedy audience imaginable. After making a name for himself in here in Nashville, TN, he has gone on to perform in virtually every corner of the United States, from the deep south to the “alternative comedy” hotbed of Seatte, WA, which he now calls home. Billy Wayne’s comedy really has no discernible category. He can be personal, shocking, political and absurd, but his ability to form an instant connection with audiences allows him to get away with anything and everything. For Davis, no subject matter is off limits because there is nothing he can’t make funny with his trademark drawl and easy charm. He has worked with some of the biggest names in comedy, including Colin Quinn, Lisa Lampanelli, Louis CK and Mitch Hedberg and has toured as the feature act for national headliner Ralphie May. He has performed festivals, comedy clubs and theaters as diverse as Seattle’s Bumbershoot, The Ryman in Nashville, Comedy Works in Denver and the LA Improv.

This week, B-dub returns to Nashville for one show only Wednesday, October 14th at Zanies. Tickets are available now for $15. Here’s a video clip of what you can expect to see:

Last week, he headlined Side Splitters in Knoxville. WBIR-TV interviewed Billy Wayne to promote his shows, which gave him the chance to repeatedly ask why they would cancel production of The Heartland Series [truly a tragedy and easily the lamest thing to be attributed to "the economy" ever] and relate the story about having the microphone turned off on him at that same Knoxville venue years ago when it was a Comedy Zone franchise. [See the clip on wbir.com.]

For their “web extra” video, BW talked about Seattle, grilled the reporter about The Heartland Series again and told them what’s crazier than a pregnant Puerto Rican lady. [See the clip on wbir.com.]

This Wednesday, Davis returns to Nashville to headline at the comedy club where he got his start. The middle act for the show will be something called “The Comic-Bots Robot Band.” (NOTE: The previously announced feature act “The Comic-Bots Robot Band” will NOT be appearing after all.) Here is a video clip:

UPDATE: The previously announced feature act “The Comic-Bots Robot Band” will NOT be appearing after all. Instead, prepare to enjoy “America’s Favorite Comedian Of All Time” ™ Chad Riden as he performs mostly robot-free stand-up comedy. Here’s video of Mr. Riden:

Billy Wayne Davis. Robots. Chad Riden. One show only! Wednesday, October 14th at Zanies – get your tickets now before the machines rise and buy them all. (The Facebook event is here.)

If you miss that show, you can catch Billy Wayne Davis and Chad Riden Friday and Saturday at Harvey’s South Street Comedy Club in Jackson, TN. (The Facebook event is here.)

Rooftop Comedy recently featured Nashville’s own Billy Wayne Davis as their “comic of the day” with clips from his recent week of shows headlining at Side Splitters in Tampa.

With B-Dub’s first child due later this month, watch his “Pregnant Lady Farts” bit while it’s still timely:

Also check out “Selling Knives At The Airport”, “A Bad Fishing Experience”, and our favorite, “Rednecks And Gay Dudes”.

Visit BW’s profile on Rooftop Comedy, MySpace, Facebook, and his own site, BillyWayneDavis.com.