Fresh off the successes of the first two installments of Entre Nos, the next edition of HBO Latino’s 30-minute stand-up comedy special, aptly titled Entre Nos Part 3, promises even more of the stomach-crunching laughs which have made it a must-watch series. Airing this upcoming Friday (March 30) at 9:30 p.m. (EST), and hosted by Tonio Skits, for the next go-round, the audience is being served up the hilarious comedic acts of Eric Blake, Aida Rodriguez and Orlando Leyba.
Eric Blake
South L.A.’s Eric Blake. Known as the Black Paisa, the African-American comic uses his close relationships and interactions with Cali’s Mexican community as inspiration for his stand-up routines, which have garnered him the much-deserved love and respect of Latino audiences across the nation. Therefore, it was not surprising when the producers of Entre Nos offered him a spot in the show.
“I think one of the things is that I do have a large Latin following. I am one of the only Black comics to do a stand-up show called ¡Que Locos!, and I think one of the producers saw me in one of the shows and loved how I embraced the Latin community,” the ten-year comedy vet recalled. “I grew up around a lot of Mexicans, so I’m not just going out there and telling stuff that I don’t know. I’m telling stuff that I’ve experienced. I’m an African-American that just happens to love the Hispanic world, and being able to build a bridge between African-Americans and Latinos is very special to me.”
The themes Blake says he’ll be exploring during his set on Entre Nos have to deal with his personal experiences with his wife and her family. “My wife is Mexican, and I was able to take things that have happened between us and her family and portray it in my comedy,” he explained, adding, “I hope the audience sees the love in my set, and that I have embraced the culture. I am not of that descent, but I do love Spanish comedy, and I want to be a bridge for that.”
More of the Entre Nos line up after the jump…
Aida Rodriguez
Former fashion model-turned-comedian, Aida Rodriguez, who gave stand-up comedy a shot after years of living as “a miserable model,” has blessed many stages with her raw, telling-it-like-it-is brand of comedy, including making it to the top ten of NBC’s Last Comic Standing during the show’s eighth season.
For the Puerto Rican/Dominican comedian, hitting the Entre Nos stage was a no-brainer. “I thought it was a good opportunity. The first one was executed beautifully, and Latinos were shown in a very positive light,” Rodriguez told ‘LLERO.
Aside from its execution, Rodriguez feels that Entre Nos is an important platform for Latino comedians, explaining that the show not only debunks Latino stereotypes, but it also showcases Latinos from all different walks of life.
“I think the most important thing that could happen for Latinos as a marginalized group when it comes to imagery is that we could be seen as a spectrum. That people could see that we are a varied people, and that we come from different walks of life, and that we’re not caricatures that they put out. I think that Entre Nos is providing that spectrum for us,” the Latina comedian expressed.
During her set, Rodriguez explained that she plans on showing some much-needed love to Puerto Rico. “I’m very proud of my Puerto Rican heritage, and so, I want to give my people something to be proud of, and let them know that they are not forgotten on March 30, even though that hurricane happened months ago,” she explained, adding, “I’m speaking from the point of view of being Puerto Rican-American. I talk about my family. I talk about feminism, and I blend all of that up.”
Orlando Leyba
Orlando Leyba’s brand of comedy is derived from the perspective of a “domesticated” man, which is what you will see during his Entre Nos set, as he explained that he will be discussing the extremely important topic of personal safety. You know, what domesticated men typically worry about.
“I worry about my safety a lot. I just don’t like to get into trouble, so I worry about streets being well-lit and about self-defense, even though I’m not built for fighting. I’m built for hugging,” he joked.
Always known as the funny guy in his circles, it was Leyba’s wife who suggested that he should take “the stupidness” that he continuously bothered her with to the stand-up stage—and he did just that. Since stepping on stage almost a decade ago, Leyba has appeared in Gotham Live, the Laughing Skull Comedy Fest, the SiriusXM Comedy Fest, and he was even a finalist on NBC StandUp.
Leyba’s induction into the Entre Nos roster came after the show’s producer, Edwin Licona, watched Leyba performing at the Westside Comedy Theater in California.
“I was being me on stage, and he was like, ‘I like him.’ And, he asked Aida Rodriguez about me, and Aida was the ultimate cosign. I believe her words to him were, ‘If you don’t have him on, then you’re stupid.’ And, I always thank her for that,” Leyba told ‘LLERO.
To Leyba, Entre Nos has become a palpable presence in the world of comedy because he believes that they’ve tapped into an audience that is often overlooked.
“Entre Nos is delivering high-quality stand-up comedians, and to a different level, where it’s being catered to Latinos that, yeah, we watched Sábado Gigante, but we’re American,” the Dominican-American comedian explained. “Entre Nos is catering to this whole demographic and new generation of Latino-Americans who either have been here, they grew up here or they were born here.”
Whatever it is that has made the Entre Nos stock rise – whether it’s their talent for finding funny individuals from all walks of life or their ability to tap into the overlooked young Latino-American market – one thing is for sure, Entre Nos is steadily becoming one of the hottest stand-up comedy specials to watch. And, on Friday, March 30th at 9:30 p.m. you can tune into HBO Latino and discover why.
