James LeBuke is a comedian who defies easy description, and he probably prefers it that way. Equal parts absurdist, deadpan, and genuinely unpredictable, James has carved out a lane entirely his own in the local comedy scene — one that somehow connects oversized hats, crowd work, and deeply philosophical pre-show bathroom rituals. He’s the kind of performer who is always on, whether he’s standing in front of a microphone or quietly steering a conversation about cars toward his bit on dating apps.
How would you describe your comedy style?
I think that I am the Marc Gasol of Tim Heidecker’s.
Who are some of your influences?
John Entwistle, Arthur Russell, Brian Wilson, Daniel Johnston, Pinkpanthress, Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Martin Short/Jiminy Glick, Iggy Pop, Megan Stalter, Gregg Turkington, Rachel Dratch, Bailey LeBuke, and Elaine LeBuke.
Who was your favourite comedian growing up?
I think Bo Burnham was the first comedian that I really got into on my own. My family was really into comedy, so I listened to who they would put on, and Mitch Hedberg was my favourite of theirs. The “Sesame” Joke would and still always makes me laugh. Also, I watched a lot of YouTube growing up. Penguiz0 was my favourite, and “Baby Pranks” by H. Jon Benjamin is one of my favourite YouTube videos.
Who is your favourite comedian now?
Connor O’Malley might be my favourite at the moment, or Rory Scovel. Locally, though, I have so many. I tried writing them all down, and the list was over 30. Kevin Appleby was my first friend in the scene here and makes me laugh so much on and off stage! An extreme talent that is very underrated. Love watching him perform, but funnily enough, he’s my least favourite comedian.
What is your pre-show ritual?
“Often we take it for granted that we get to inhabit human spaces and share the energy of the laughter with one another. The universe is a funny thing, especially the fact that we are just bugs in a bug trap we call life. Each day, each minute, each second, and each other get to be a each other in a new way every day (hey, that rhymed!). “No ONE is the smartest around,” they say, but the person who is able to be here and now in the universe (without a spaceship) is the Einstein. The oldest is the youngest, the tallest is the shortest, and the funny is the funny.” -James LeBuke
I think about all that every single time without fail… then I go to the bathroom.
What is your favourite place you have performed? Why?
I feel like I perform every day, especially in the little moments where I tell people I am a comedian and then after they acknowledge it politely. I then think to myself that they don’t fully believe I’m funny. Therefore, I begin to slip parts of my act into the conversation as if I had just come up with it there on the spot. Sometimes the topics don’t come up naturally, so I have to steer the conversation my way. For example, the current topic of conversation may be about cars. Quickly, I have to think about how I can relate cars to dating being hard. So I’ll say, “Hey, I like Cars, I bet working on them is hard. The other day, I saw a car that looked like a dating app. Speaking of which, dating apps are weird, which makes dating hard, am I right?”
Feel free to use that trick for when conversations aren’t going in a direction that allows you to say a joke you had planned prior to the interaction.
What is your favourite bit you have written and why were you proud of it?
Needless to say, I haven’t written the Bible, but, humbly, I think I am not far off/or more accurately HAVE written more timeless material. For example, I have this BIT* (trademark) where I go on stage and wear a hat that is a few sizes too big (on purpose). Usually, people expect to see a comedian with a regular-sized hat or no hat at all (e.g. John Mulaney & Bobby Lee). Whereas I show up and it has the audience going “Hey, look at this guy with an abnormally large hat on! I can’t stop laughing, and milk keeps coming out my nose!” Then I do some crowd work with an audience plant.
I saw another comedian do it, so then I incorporated it into my act.
What is your favourite medium for listening or finding new comics/comedians?
The Voice
Tell us a joke about your city.
To be honest, with humour, I think in terms of comics like in the newspaper. Just off the top of my head, I am thinking of a personified version of the city: slipping on a banana peel, hating a particular day of the week, or, like Dilbert, just observing the absurdity in the mundane or tedious natures of the office life. Oh Dilbert… Now that is a family circus!
Do you have anything to promote right now?
Yes, I have a new season of The James LeBuke Show Starring James LeBuke coming out called: The James LeBuke Show Tonight!.
Also, I have a website called F.U.TV.
Our first episode will be live at China Cloud Studios on June 27th ticket link will be in my Instagram bio soon.
Also, I host a show out of China Cloud Studios every second and fourth Friday of the month called “The Tuesday Show” that I co-host with the hilarious Colin Cowan
Where can we follow you?
PAY IT FORWARD: Who is another local comic/comedian we should know about?
I will recommend someone who hasn’t been written about. Steph Neal is so funny and is someone who I look up to a lot. She is a true performer, and I learn a lot from watching her. I laugh every time.
Also want to make a point that this recommendation has nothing to do with her being my boss. She did not threaten to fire me if I didn’t recommend her. I want to make that clear. This is not a call for help in any way by me or a subtle way for me to tell the world that she is blackmailing me to recommend her in any way, shape, or form.
