Katt Williams always knew what he wanted to do and who he wanted to be. He told his parents when he was just 9 years old that he wanted to be a comedian.
Born Micah Williams in Cincinnati, Ohio, Williams was raised in Dayton and spent a year in Haiti on a mission trip with his family. He grew up in a strict religious household, and he often felt like the confines of religion didn’t allow him to fully be himself. He got emancipated from his parents at the age of 13 and left for Florida. Soon, he got a job as a door-to-door salesman.
Katt got his start in comedy when he was still in Ohio doing improv work as a teen. He refined his routines and sets on tours all over the country like a true American Hustler. By 1999, Williams was a regular at The Improv, The Comedy Club, and Hollywood Park Casino.
Although he’s got a style that’s all his own, Williams was no doubt influenced by some of the Black comedic legends of his day. Most notably, he drew inspiration from Bill Cosby, Eddie Murphy, and Richard Pryor.
Katt Williams’s career on stage and screen
Katt Williams has a unique way of infusing nearly any topic with both humor and smart observation. He can be riffing about politics, racial issues, or the state of play between men and women and he’s bound to say something both hilarious and honest. His style of comedy works because it’s ridiculous enough to get a laugh but believable enough to keep you interested in his sharp commentary. In interviews, you can see he’s much more subdued than his high-energy act on stage.
Even though stand-up comedy is Williams’s bread and butter, he’s switched up his primary talents over the years. He changed lanes in the early 2000s and started getting into TV and film. He got his first role on “NYPD Blue,” but his true breakout performance was as Money Mike, the proud owner of the clothing store in the comedy “Friday After Next” in 2002. You might also remember him from “My Wife and Kids,” “Norbit,” and Nick Cannon’s “Wild ‘n Out.”
How Katt Williams unleashes the laughter
In some ways, you can say that Katt Williams himself is the show. His distinct, nasally voice and flat perm adds yet another layer of unseriousness to Williams’s on-stage persona. His flamboyant and sometimes raunchy behavior on stage also brings an element of physicality to his humor.
For Katt Williams, the delivery is just as important as the joke, and perhaps even more so. He’ll often do various impressions for the purpose of storytelling and use a frantic speaking cadence that keeps the audience on edge for the punchline, which he usually reiterates multiple times for maximum effect.
And, it’s not just William’s written material that’ll have you cracking up, but his physical comedy, too. This man will faceplant on the stage in front of thousands of people to get a laugh. Plus, he’s been known to use stools and water bottles as props during his set to ratchet up the humor.
Watching some of Williams’s older work, it’s easy to see how he made a name for himself in comedy. 2006’s “The Pimp Chronicles Pt. 1” is arguably one of the funnyman’s most iconic specials. Fans can probably picture him now in his emerald green suit and flipped-out straight perm. He’s got the audience falling out as he rants about the life-changing power of marijuana, begs people not to put their kids on leashes, and reminds us all why we gotta get us some white friends. In “Live: Let a Playa Play,” the short king poked fun at his own size and pondered aloud why he never grew up to be “big and strong” despite his milk and vegetable consumption.
Katt Williams today
His more recent work has come as Netflix specials. “World War III” in 2022 had him going on about the opioid crisis and his skepticism about the chicken wing shortage, a bit that you already know was complete with an impersonation of a chicken.
Another special, “Woke Foke,” came out in May of 2024 off the heels of his infamous interview with Shannon Sharpe. Katt’s clearly got plenty of life left, but fans noticed a different tone in this special. TheGrio’s own Touré wondered in an opinion piece about Katt’s latest special if he relied too much on his charms and cheaped out on the actual jokes. “He’s not putting in the work to write great jokes, and I know he can do that. I want that from him,” Toure writes. Even so, Williams still gets his bag from these specials, to the tune of $10 million for each one.
Katt’s longevity in the comedy world is pretty impressive. He’s managed to stay relevant and continues to perform all over the country. At full throttle, Katt Williams tours for usually 100 nights per year. Presale tickets are live now for William’s 2025 tour called Heaven on Earth.
You can’t deny that Williams has kept his name in lights thanks to his controversial statements on other comedians. It felt like nobody was safe during his time on “Club Shay Shay” when he unloaded on many beloveds, including Cedric the Entertainer, Steve Harvey, and Kevin Hart.
At one point, Williams dissed Harvey’s comedic talent by saying, “There are 30,000 new scripts in Hollywood every year. Not one of them asked for a country bumpkin Black dude that can’t talk good … and look like Mr. Potato Head. There ain’t none. You have to have range.” Dave Chappelle came for Williams earlier this year after Chappelle thought he unfairly targeted other Black comedians in his interview. Some industry vets, like Marlon Wayans, have come out and said that they think the feuds between comedians are hurting the game.
One thing about Katt Williams is that there might be controversy, but there’s always gonna be comedy.