by Congrats to Kiry Shabazz, named today as winner of the 14th Annual StandUp NBC competition.
Shabazz wins a talent holding deal with NBCUniversal and a headlining spot at the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) annual convention where he will perform before talent bookers from across the country. He will also headline the regional semi-finalist showcases for next year’s StandUp NBC.
Shabazz, a Cleveland native who began his comedy career in Northern California, has previously won the Rooster T Feathers Comedy Competition, the World Series of Comedy Satellite Competition, and was selected for the Laughing Skull Festival.
The other finalists for the annual diversity search for new comedic talent: Jourdain Fisher, T. Murph, Dewayne Perkins, Abby Rosenquist, Jess Salomon, Kabir “Kabeezy” Singh, Tom Thakkar and TuRae.
“StandUp NBC has been a remarkably effective platform to help discover the next generation of great comedic talent,” said Karen Horne, SVP, Programming Talent Development & Inclusion, NBC Entertainment and Universal Television Studios. “As with all of our other talent pipeline programs, StandUp NBC was created with the goal of increasing representation of diverse talent in front of and behind the camera, and I could not be prouder that through programs like these we continue to bring new voices to the industry.”
“Kiry’s warmth and relatable humor helped him stand out from an exceptional group of talented comedians,” said Grace Wu, Executive Vice President of Casting, NBC Entertainment. “We are fortunate to have pipeline programs like StandUp NBC that continue to introduce us to fresh, new voices like Kiry’s.”
