AN AWKWARD CONVERSATION

THERE IS A QUESTION THAT IS ASKED OF ALL stand-up comics. And it is asked most frequently of comics who are being newly discovered by the press. It is seen as the perfect way to really get to know the comedian: “Who were your favorite stand-up comics when you were growing up?”

It’s a simple question. But when the press was first discovering me in the early 2010s, it felt really complicated, because the stand-up comic I loved the most growing up was Bill Cosby. He had been a part of my entire life, from his cartoon Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids in the ’70s to his stand-up, and of course through The Cosby Show in the ’80s. For my high school graduation, I wore a “Cosby sweater” instead of a suit jacket.

But when major media first took interest in me following the premiere of my FX show there were already stories of women accusing Bill Cosby of sexual