(Nathan Ferraro / Fourth Estate)

Mason celebrates Homecoming with night of laughter

BY NATHAN FERRARO, MANAGING EDITOR

Comedy influencer and “The Daily Show” star Josh Johnson visited the Center for the Arts as the headliner of Student Involvement’s homecoming comedy show on Feb. 5.

“I loved his vibes,” said senior Biology major Mariam Diaby. “It wasn’t forced or anything.”

Mason alum Rahmein Mostafavi opened for Johnson, blending witty humor with politics, popular culture, current events and social issues. 

Johnson then took the stage, beginning with a line that it seemed would lead to nowhere.

“I have become obsessed with animal release videos,” he said. 

He continued to describe social media videos depicting families “adopting” wild animals, then releasing them without preparing them. 

“Love is trapping something with you and never letting go…” he said. 

“I personally have never seen a Black family do this,” he added.

Johnson continued with a bit about children raised by older parents who tend to act older than they truly are.

The crowd erupted with laughter continuously, hanging on to his every word and waiting for the punchline, which Johnson would masterfully reveal only after teasing it along repeatedly.

He then joked about a video he saw of a boxer whose hair was “punched off” during a fight.

“If I punched somebody and their hair came off, I think I’d just look at my hands like, ‘I didn’t know,’” Johnson said, eyes widening as the audience laughed.

(Nathan Ferraro / Fourth Estate)

He then transitioned from light-hearted humor to discussing current events — with humorous bits interspersed.

“[I] spent all this time scrolling online to try to avoid how bad things are…” Johnson began.

“Sometimes the bad people have a bad day,” he said, talking about the recent release of Epstein files. 

Johnson, like Mostafavi, discussed recent news about immigration and border patrol officials.

“It’s important to remember that no person — no force is all-powerful,” Johnson said. “Like links in a chain … everything you do connects to what someone else is doing.”

He encouraged the audience to vote, especially in local elections, before returning to joking about house parties and family dinners.

Senior Astronomy major Geciara Drew won two free meet-and-greet tickets to the show after placing third in Mason in Color last semester.

Though Drew had not been familiar with Johnson’s content before winning the tickets, she said she watched a few of his Instagram reels to prepare for the night.

After seeing the show, Drew said she enjoyed the mix between political and light humor.

“I will definitely go back and listen to those [reels],” she said. “That made me laugh so hard. It took me off guard a little bit.” 

Diaby said she loved the beginning of the show, noting Johnson’s skilled comedic delivery.

“When he’s making the joke — you know it’s coming,” she said.

Like Drew, Diaby was not a fan of Johnson before seeing him in-person.

“That show was great. 10 out of 10. I would do it again,” she said.