Jen Fulwiler’s Sharp Schtick

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Photo: jenniferfulwiler.com

Jen Fulwiler

Jen Fulwiler

For Jen Fulwiler, becoming a comedian was a matter of representing underrepresented people. Among them. herself. 

“A big part of my inspiration for going into comedy is that there aren't currently a lot of comedians who speak to the perspective of people like me: lots of kids, practices a faith, drives a minivan, etc. I sensed that there was a need for comedy that talks about that life experience," Fulwiler asserts regarding the niche her artistry fills. 

But whoever wants to laugh at sharp schtick from the vantage point of an atheist-turned Roman Catholic with a brood of six children is welcome to hear her out. The next opportunity to do so in Milwaukee is at her 7 p.m. show at The Back Room @ Colectivo (2211 N. Prospect Ave.) on Saturday, Nov. 5. 

“I want my shows to be community building experiences, so people can bring their teens or their grandmother or whoever wants to come," she explains as to why she keeps her work free of profanity. Also setting Fulwiler apart from her peers, even fellow mom comics, is her unique life circumstances and the outlook it has brought her. 

“My perspective is also different,” she adds, “because I have an atheist background but now have faith, whereas many other comedians went the opposite direction. It’s also unusual for a female comedian to have a big family: I had six babies in eight years.” And just as her spiritual journey has taken a path contrary to many in her current line of work, so has her route into comedy, Though some comics write books after achieving stardom generating, Fulwiler went from the page to the stage. 

Author First

“I was an author first,” Fulwiler states of penning works such as the memoir, Something Other than God, and the motivational Your Blue Flame. “For years, I didn’t think I would do anything other than be a writer. The publicity surrounding my books led me to get hired by SiriusXM, which led to speaking and comedy.” She parlayed her literary notoriety and position as a satellite radio talk show host into the funny business she has now taken up. And she did so in a manner that could have brought her family to financial ruin.  

“That first tour was a such a huge risk,” she recalls, “14 shows where I cold-called theaters and rented them using my personal credit card We could have ended up in bankruptcy if it didn't work.” Wagering so boldly on her popularity and sense of humor, after playing some comedy club dates from which she posted clips online, provided Fulwiler a crash course in matters about which she had no idea.

“There were so many things I didn't see coming, like the fact that we had to get event insurance, liquor licenses, etc. When the first theater asked me for a rider, I had to Google ‘what is a rider,’” she admits of her former naivete. “It was so gratifying when it worked. Almost every show sold out!” 

DIY Dictum

Such a seemingly foolhardy leap into becoming a nationally-known comedian comports with punk rock's do-it-yourself dictum. Fulwiler's enjoyment of what some writers have called punk's African American counterpart makes for one of the more potentially eyebrow-raising moments in her 2020 special, “The Naughty Corner.” She's a hip-hop lover. And no dabbler in the genre either, she.  

“Yes, I truly love hip-hop,” she confirms before listing some of her favorite rappers, “A$AP Rocky, Tee Grizzley, and Toby Nwigwe have great perspectives, and of course Drake always kills it with his lyrics.” With children young as nine years old in Fulwiler's care, however, she is careful as to the lyrical content to which she subjects them. “I do try to avoid songs with crazy lyrics when the kids are around,” though she isn't too much of a stickler about the matter either. “I don't freak out about it. They know what language we think is appropriate and what not to repeat.”   

Anyone wanting to pick Fulwiler's brain for a bit on music, motherhood and most anything else should have the opportunity to do so after her Back Room date, too. “I almost always stay after each show to personally greet anyone who wants to meet me, so even if you have never heard of me before now, come on out!”

Here Fulwiler counters misconceptions about women who have conceived often as she has, including an admission as to where she registered for baby showers after her fourth birth ...