A household name in South Africa – mainly due to his satirical news show Late Nite News with Loyiso Gola – the double Emmy nominee recently completed a South African national tour. In the last two years he has performed in London, Melbourne, Finland, Montreal and New York. Thankfully, traveling is his favourite part of the gig. “Traveling is the best,” he says. “I am going to places I never thought I would go to. The other day I was in Lithuania. I just want to be an act who travels and plays to people of different cultures.” His 2019 Fringe show Loyiso Gola: Pop Culture commentates on the tendency for pop culture to oversimplify what should instead be complex social issues.
Please describe yourself in a few words.
I’m a six foot five comedian from South Africa. I am vegan and I travel the world doing stand up comedy. This feels like a Miss World contest. I am generally a chilled human, a loner who gets great joy from deliberating about seemingly pointless things. All sorts of people find me funny. My act transcends race, age, and gender, but millennials tend to get what I am talking about the most. We are in sync.
What excites you most about the Fringe 2019?
It’s the best comedy festival in the world. It’s the only place where you can do 30 hours of comedy in a month. I have done the Fringe Festival five times before and at the end of each one I feel an improvement in my comedy. This festival has grit and I will always come back.
How has your cultural background influenced your comedy sets?
I grew up in South Africa in the last days of Apartheid. People in London always get shocked when my perspective is different. I aim to encourage my audiences not to rely on Pop Culture to guide them through important issues. They have to apply themselves thoroughly.
This will be his sixth appearance at the Edinburgh Fringe. His show is running at 7pm 3rd-26th August, except the 13th at Pleasance Dome.
