There’s ‘no Earthquake if it wasn’t for Atlanta’

In a new hourlong comedy special for Netflix, comedian Earthquake speaks directly to the camera before taking the stage at Buckhead Theatre. Atlanta, he says, only had three routes to success when he moved here in the early ’90s: selling drugs, stripping or making music. Despite this, the city became his “comedy home.”

Earthquake relocated to Los Angeles around 2000. But, he returned to Atlanta in May to film “Earthquake: Joke Telling Business.” It marks the comedian’s first hourlong special for the streaming platform and follow-up to the Dave Chappelle-produced “Earthquake: Legendary” from 2022.

The special finds the veteran comic delivering jokes about the economy, President Donald Trump, Diddy and more. He wanted to build a set discussing timely topics but also pay homage to the place that helped launch his career.

“There wouldn’t be no Earthquake if it wasn’t for Atlanta,” he said. “Atlanta is where I learned to tell a joke. I’m still eating off the lesson and the blessings I received when I moved there in ‘91.”

Earthquake, who was born in Washington, D.C., credits Atlanta with being ahead of the curve when it came to Black comedy in the ’90s. He said he initially saw comedy as a side hustle but, ultimately, wanted to be a lawyer.

“I went to Atlanta because CNN said this was the best place to come if you were an African American looking for a good job to prosper,” he said. “I had never been to Atlanta. I just went off that recommendation and stepped out onstage one day and kept going. And I haven’t gotten off since.”

In the early ’90s, Earthquake said he was left frustrated when one of the premier Atlanta venues for Black comics reneged on a promise to let him perform. His mother suggested he open his own comedy club instead.

“She said, ‘You know what I told you when you were little. If somebody don’t let you ride their bike, go get your own bike.’ I told her I couldn’t have my own comedy club, and like a Black woman, she said, ‘Why not?’ So that’s what I did.”

Uptown Comedy Corner opened in Buckhead in 1992 with Earthquake as a partial owner. He remained involved until 2000. The club, which had relocated to Hapeville, closed in July. During its heyday in Buckhead, comics like Chris Tucker, Mo’Nique and Mike Epps were regulars.

Earthquake said this scene paved the way for Atlanta’s current comedy generation, and aspiring comics know “there was another avenue other than the ones I said on my special.”

“We gave our community another option to still be relevant in Atlanta,” he said. “I will always, from the bottom of my soul to the depth of everything that has been the essence of my body and my being, be appreciative of what the 404 has done for me.”

In the comedian’s 2022 Netflix special, producer Chappelle recalls visiting Atlanta in 1993 for his first show in the city and being picked up from the airport by Earthquake. He was impressed by the sight of a Black comic driving a Lexus and owning his own club.

Earthquake’s career has spanned more than three decades, but he said the success he’s had in the past few years made him feel like an “overnight sensation.” Earlier this year, it was announced that he is developing a half-hour sitcom based on his life for Fox.

Reflecting on his latest special, Earthquake said he just wants to showcase the power comedians hold to uplift audiences. “People right now need us,” he said. ”It’s enough out here to make you cry. We need to give them a place, a sanctuary where you leave all your troubles at the door."