Nick Cannon Presents Wild ‘N Out Tour with Rising Star Zoie Fenty.Nick Cannon presents his MTV series, Wild ‘N Out, on the road with rising social media star and content producer, Zoie Fenty. Zoie is known for his infamous YouTube channel — about his personal opinions, interactions, and hilariously funny commentary — and is supported by his millions of followers across Instagram and Twitter. With Wild ‘N Out tour dates from August through October, Zoie finds his niche at the home of freestyle comedy fit with live roasting, rapping, and improv.
Zoie Fenty
Wild ‘N Out debuted in the early 2000s and still continues on the legacy of the wildest antics to date. Thirteen years later, the freestyling stakes seem higher with today’s social norms as an added touch for limitless content and so, we asked Zoie about the boundaries of comedy and roasting.
“I feel like there are boundaries to a certain extent. You know? You don’t want to offend a certain type of group. I mean, you can say gay jokes or whatever, but it’s how you say the things you say. Just like with race and with women, you know? You can’t say certain things to women! I feel like women can say whatever to men [laughter], but as far as anything else, there are certain boundaries but not too many.”
The notorious buzzer, the rivalry between the red squad vs. the black squad, the bold and diverse volunteers gracing the stage, all provided a nostalgic sensation, yet Nick Cannon still mentioned the criticism against the show being rehearsed sketches. According to Zoie, roasting on the spot is a true element of Wild ‘N Out and is difficult to do spontaneously.
“I knew about Wild ‘N Out early in the seasons. I didn’t really watch it then. I just got hip to it around season ten. And I [thought] ‘oh my God, they are so funny.’ And I was like I know how to roast but I don’t know how to roast and put it into a rap. That’s really hard, to roast with a rap, and it has to rhyme. So when I finally thought about getting on [the show], I was like (to myself) ‘hey what are you doing?’ They are going to embarrass you [laughter].”
Cast of Wild ‘N Out
The Knockturnal: How did you get invited on the tour?
Zoie: “It was after season, what was it, 12 that we just did? Yeah! And I guess the impact that I had in Atlanta. I guess they were intrigued; they were excited about it and impressed. And so they asked me to come on the tour. I didn’t expect that but they brought me on here and it’s extremely fun!”
The Knockturnal: The How has comedy helped shape you and balance those difficult times in life that are not so funny?
Zoie: “Because I’ve done this — roasting and stuff. In the black community we grew up roasting in the playground with our cousins, and with our brothers. So like, it’s normal for us. So doing it now for the show, it keeps you from getting depressed because you’ve heard so many roasts and what people can say about you so when somebody else says something to you, you’re like, I’ve heard it all before so it makes you have tougher skin and not care what people say. It’s like hey, take it as a joke and you get ’em back. And that’s how it is.”
Zoie on upcoming projects…
“They’re trying to get me a show, but I can’t say what, so hopefully that works! There’s actually a couple [laughter]. But I don’t want to say it because sometimes if you say your ideas, people try to take it. But if they do [the show], it’s going to be the best thing ever.”
Follow Zoie on Instagram and Twitter at: @iamzoie, @gotdamnzo.
Photos curtesy of Wild ‘N Out.