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Jo Koy
American comedian (born 1971) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Joseph Glenn Herbert (born June 2, 1971[1][3]), known professionally as Jo Koy, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He was a frequent panelist on E!'s late night show Chelsea Lately, and he has since had a total of six comedy specials released by Comedy Central and Netflix.[not verified in body] In 2024, Koy hosted the 81st Golden Globe Awards.
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Early life and education
Koy was born to an American father, John C. Herbert, who was in the United States Air Force stationed in Japan when he married Koy's Filipina mother, Josie Harrison.[4] His stepfather, Fredrick Harrison, also helped raise him.[5] His family moved from Spanaway, Washington, to Tacoma, Washington. He originally attended Spanaway Lake High School and then Foss High School in Tacoma. Soon after he finished high school, the family moved to Las Vegas to be near his ailing grandmother. Jo Koy enrolled in the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, but dropped out to pursue stand-up comedy.[1]
Koy has said that his stage name comes from a nickname his family gave him when he was growing up.[6] It was said during his stand-up routine in Phoenix, Arizona, on September 22, 2019, that back in 1989 he was talking to his cousin about making a stage name when his aunt called him to come to dinner, shouting "Jo Ko, eat!" (Ko means "my" in Tagalog, so Jo Ko means "my Jo"), which he misheard as "Koy," and, deciding that it was a good name, has used it ever since.
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Career
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 | This section of a biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. (January 2025) |
| This section possibly contains original research. (January 2025) |
In 2019, Augustus Welby, writing for the Beat Magazine in Melbourne, described Koy as having performed comedy for 30 years.[7] Soon then moved to open mic nights, before landing regular gigs.[8]
The regular appearances included Catch a Rising Star at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.[1] After that, he rented the Huntridge Theater, also in Las Vegas, and went door to door to sell tickets to his comedy shows.[1]
Koy's appearances as a regular guest at Chelsea Handler's Chelsea Lately was reported by David Tusing of the Gulf News as having given "him prominence in the US".[8] (Koy appeared on that late night show regularly.[7]
Koy hosts the weekly podcast, The Koy Pond with Jo Koy, where he "riff[s] on various topics with... fellow comedians".[8]
In 2019, Koy released another Netflix special, entitled Jo Koy: Comin' in Hot,[8] which was filmed before a crowd of about 8,000 at the Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu, Hawaii.[7] As of September 2019, plans were being made to have Koy's next Netflix special, to be based on his 2020 Just Kidding world tour, recorded at the Blaisdell as well.[7] On February 23, 2019, Koy performed two shows on stage at the Wheeler Opera House, Aspen, Colorado, for the closing night of Aspen Laugh Festival.[7] Joy's subsequent 2020 Just Kidding World Tour took him to the United Arab Emirates, Australia, New Zealand, and the Philippines.[8]
On June 12, 2020, Netflix released Jo Koy: In His Elements, a comedy special featuring Filipino American comedians, DJs, and B-boys.[9] On July 28, 2022, Koy, alongside film producer Dan Lin appeared in the Rise for Comedy festival, where they raised a $75,000 donation to the nonprofit Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA).[10]
Koy was a regular guest on the podcast, The Adam Carolla Show.[when?][7] In 2025, Koy participated in the Riyadh Comedy Festival. Joey Shea, Saudi Arabia researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement that the Saudi government is using the comedy festival to whitewash its human rights abuses.[11][12][13][14]
2023 Golden Globe Awards
On December 21, 2023, Koy was announced as host of the 81st Golden Globe Awards.[15] Koy's monologue as host of the 81st Golden Globe Awards was met with criticism from viewers and critics. Chelsey Sanchez of Bazaar described his monologue as "awkward" and "distasteful".[16] Shirley Li of The Atlantic wrote, "practically every joke failed to land, mostly because the punchlines were dated or obvious".[17] Variety's television critic Alison Herman panned Koy as "woefully unqualified" to be an awards show host. Koy was met with criticism for putting blame on his writers during the monologue, coming after a lengthy 2023 Writers Guild of America strike. Justin Curto of Vulture noted, that when some of his jokes fell flat, Koy "immediately threw his writers under the bus... He yelled. 'Yo, shut up. You're kidding me, right. Slow down. I wrote some of these, and they're the ones you're laughing at.'"[18]
Hershal Pandya of Vulture wrote "Comedians have tanked at the Golden Globes before but none quite as spectacularly as Koy."[19] Marlow Stern of Rolling Stone noted that many of Koy's jokes drew "groans" and "boos" from the audience.[20] Among the barbs that drew the most ire were sexist jokes involving the Barbie movie and Taylor Swift, as well as uncomfortable jokes directed at Meryl Streep and Robert De Niro.[21][22][23][24][25] Nicole Sperling of The New York Times, who was in the audience that night, wrote, "Never seen an audience rebel against an emcee so quickly" and cited a prominent director describing Koy as a "disaster".[26] Viewers online noted stunned reactions from the crowd from people such as Selena Gomez, Helen Mirren and Harrison Ford.[27][28]
Koy responded to the criticism in an interview with Good Morning America, admitting, "I'd be lying if I said the backlash didn't hurt", but also admitted, "I had fun. You know, it was a moment that I'll always remember. Hosting is just a tough gig. Yes, I'm a stand-up comic but that hosting position it's a different style. I kind of went in and did the writer's thing. We had 10 days to write this monologue. It was a crash course. I feel bad, but I got to still say I loved what I did."[29] Fellow comedians such as Steve Martin, Whoopi Goldberg and Kevin Hart, as well as radio host Howard Stern, expressed sympathy towards Koy, with many of them arguing that the job of a comedian is not always easy, especially when hosting an awards show.[30][31][32]
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Influences
Koy has named Bill Cosby, Eddie Murphy, Robin Williams, Billy Crystal,[1] Whoopi Goldberg, Chris Rock, and Steve Martin as his comedy influences.[33] In 2022, Blogtalk with MJ Racadio named him one of the "75 Most Influential Filipino-Americans".[34]
Personal life
Koy was previously married to Filipino-American singer Angie King.[35] Koy has a son, Joseph Jr., from his marriage to King, born at Cedars-Sinai Hospital, in April 2003.[35] Koy and Chelsea Handler were in a relationship between 2021 and 2022.[36][37]
For a time, around the production of his Comin' in Hot special, Koy was described as considering Hawaii as "a second home".[7] As of 2023[update], Koy lived in Los Angeles, and Koy's son lived between the homes of his father and mother, which are "one block down from each other."[35]
Koy's stepfather, retired Army Sergeant Fredrick Harrison, died in 2023, and was eulogized by Koy, who said, "He served 20 years... received 2 Purple Hearts, 2 Bronze Stars and a CIB [Combat Infantryman Badge] badge... [of which] he was most proud... He was a hero. My hero."[5]
Koy's mother is a supporter of the Republican Party and Donald Trump; Koy himself has shied away from politics in his comedy routines.[38][39]
As of January 2023, Koy was described as being a practitioner of Brazilian jiu-jitsu.[40] In 2023, Koy got his arm tattooed by mambabatok Wilma “Ate Wamz” Gaspili at Igorot's Charm Cafe across Baguio Botanical Garden.[41]
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Filmography
Film
Television
Stand-up specials
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References
External links
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