When I spoke to Mary Beth Barone, my nails were almost dry to the touch. That matters because having wet nails is what Barone is championing in the second-part premiere of season two of Ride, her podcast with Benito Skinner. In every episode, the two of them champion something—from “girls eating Crumbl cookies in cars” to traditional family values. Barone argues that having wet nails is a sacred state, a moment that’s entirely your own: you’ve turned down hard gel (which has wrecked her nails, just like mine) and chosen the soft life instead. (Skinner, on the other hand, defends bananas.)
Barone is also promoting her Netflix special, Galaxy Brain, after two years of touring and refining the material. Meanwhile, the second season of Overcompensating—which she co-writes and stars in with Skinner—has just wrapped. The special takes sharp, stylish swings, and Barone knows exactly who it will annoy. She even made a list, which she read to me: “J.K. Rowling, Republicans, establishment Democrats, the British, the Irish… Zionists, Mark Zuckerberg, Katy Cats, male comedians, and one specific girl named Tatiana.” She delivers sly, witty jabs at politicians, executives, and straight men in her field with a disarming sweetness. Her jokes are made for the laughs of girls, gays, and theys, and her quick wit won over new audiences when she hosted the last Golden Globes red carpet. (She wore vintage Todd Oldham for that—and for the special, a shimmering lilac corset gown by Wiederhoeft, like something Cher would wear.)
Her rescue chihuahua Pinky, who was born in Tijuana and made her Late Night debut with Barone this week, enjoys a treat while we catch up. “I told her this is really important,” Barone says.
Styling by Kat Typaldos, makeup by Olivia Barad, hair by Netty Jordan.
Photo: Dev Bowman
Vogue: It seems like you’ve barely had a moment to breathe these last two years. How are you feeling?
Mary Beth Barone: I guess I must like it, because I keep doing this to myself. I want to make sure I celebrate this moment, because I’ve had career milestones in the past where I didn’t stop to acknowledge them. I’m making up for that now.
I’m impatient, but I think if we had filmed it faster, it wouldn’t have felt like the right time the way it does now.
What did you want Galaxy Brain to say about who you are now?
My standup really reflects where I am in life. I knew I wanted to talk about politics, but I wanted to find unexpected ways to get there—presenting one idea and then connecting it to something political. I also wanted the comedy to feel very specific. And my goal has always been to make women and queer people laugh. That’s the same mission I’ve had since Thought-Provoking.
Netflix told me I basically have three minutes to show people who I am and make them want to keep watching the rest of the special. I had to really think about how I wanted to present myself to a new audience. What material feels most important to me? What do I want to say right now? That was my guiding light. I watched a lot of women’s specials—though there aren’t many—especially Amy Schumer’s Live at the Apollo. It was a big influence when I was starting out. I’ve always been inspired by her comedic perspective.
Watching the final cut, what surprised you about the comedian you’ve become?
I think I was surprised by how much I’ve grown, even in just the last couple of years. I can see that I’ve really come into my own as a comedian. I feel like my voice is very unique. These jokes are so me, they come straight from my mind. And even though some of them are absurd or ridiculous or might make me sound not so smart, they’re exactly what I want to say.
I’m proud of myself for doing the jokes that were more of a tightrope act—tackling edgy and dark topics. I wasn’t afraid to take risks with the jokes, because—and I even say this in the special—the potential backlash is always in the back of my mind. But my desire to say these things just outweighed whatever the response might be. Even if it’s a joke about Chris…D’Elia or Ozempic, or my Jack Russell Terrier Bailey, who I grew up with and describe as a domestic terrorist—it must have been the Irish in her. It took me a while to land on that last bit about her being responsible for 17 flat tires and three car bombs. My mom’s side is Irish. I think they have a good sense of humor about themselves.
Maybe it’s because I’m a Gemini, but there’s this weird push-pull in me. I don’t want to upset people, but if I’m doing my job right, I will. It’s just about upsetting the right people.
A lot of your comedy looks at love and relationships. Where are you with dating right now?
I’m single. I’m 35. My choices are right in front of me. Sometimes I think that being a comedian, talking about my life on stage, and having this podcast where we’re pretty open might scare off potential partners who could be good for me. But this is who I am, and if my job doesn’t fit with what someone wants in a partner, then they’re probably not the right person for me.
I do feel like we’re in a really strange moment in dating culture. There seem to be endless amazing women—at least for women who date men. And the number of male counterparts just keeps shrinking. I’m a romantic, but I think my hope is starting to fade a little.
You just have to keep hope alive. Even if it means being a little delusional, we’re all trying. I recently watched a movie called Broken English with Parker Posey. There’s a scene where she talks about this feeling of desperation. She says, “People can feel it on me,” and she gets emotional. I really related to her. I love talking about dating and seeing both the light and dark sides of it.
People seem to really open up to you, even during crowd work. Does that help your work?
People really do tell me things—they want me to know their secrets. That even happens in business meetings. I’ll meet an executive, and we’ll dive into a good date they had last night. And I’m invested too. There’s a lot of bad press about parasocial relationships, but I only get the benefits.
When people are fans of Ride, though, they’re usually just referencing our complete nonsense. That’s great too. But there is a deeper message in there.
At the bottom of your vermicelli bowl, there’s meaning.
You have no idea how hard it was for us to sit on the vermicelli bowl bit for the last four months. It happened in week one in Toronto, and without the podcast, we just couldn’t say it.
Styling by Kat Typaldos, makeup by Olivia Barad, hair by Netty Jordan.
Photo by Dev Bowman, scanned by Nice Film Club.
You wear an amazing Wiederhoeft dress in the special. How did that come together?
As soon as I got the offer, I knew I needed something hyper-feminine that would make me feel amazing. I reached out to Wiederhoeft and asked if he’d be open to making something custom. The inspiration for the dress I chose came from that moment in The Little Mermaid where she comes out of the water with what looks like a dress poured over her.
We worked with this beautiful lilac shade that he hand-dyed. And the corset—the corset! We—well, I say we, but obviously I didn’t do this—hand-beaded the corset with a beautiful sketch of the Gemini constellation. I wanted to honor what a big deal this is and feel like a real woman doing it—and prove that there are good Geminis out there.
I notice every hair, every little movement. But that’s okay, because when people watch it on TV, they won’t notice anything I don’t like about myself. As long as their main takeaway is that women are funny.
What can listeners look forward to this season of Ride?
We just did a carpool today for the movie Taken—not the franchise, just the first one. Tomorrow, I’m going to ride for accents. We might ride for shooting the messenger.
And what excites you about returning as Grace in Overcompensating?
Grace is a legendary character. She’s just fabulous. ItOkay, a few episodes should give people a sense of her vibe. Now that they get it, we can really have fun with it. I’m in the writers’ room, and last year Benny came to me about exploring something in the show that I was going through in real life. It’s pretty deep, and it’s been really cathartic. I think it’ll mean a lot to many women. This season is hornier, sadder, and funnier, but it also gives emotions room to breathe. Galaxy Brain is available to stream on Netflix now.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of FAQs about Mary Beth Barones comedy special Ready to Piss Off the Right People written in a natural conversational tone with clear answers
BeginnerLevel Questions
1 Who is Mary Beth Barone
Shes a New York Citybased standup comedian known for her dry selfdeprecating humor and sharp observations about dating anxiety and modern life
2 What is Ready to Piss Off the Right People
Its her debut comedy special Its a onehour show where she riffs on her personal life relationships and societywith the goal of making the right audience laugh not the people who would be offended by her jokes
3 Where can I watch it
Its available to stream on YouTube and other platforms where she releases her content
4 Is it appropriate for everyone
Probably not The title is a warning shes not trying to be universally likable Its best for adults who enjoy dry honest and slightly awkward humor
5 How long is the special
About 5560 minutes
Intermediate Questions
6 Whats the main theme of the special
Its about embracing your own weirdness and not apologizing for it She talks about dating disasters body image mental health and the pressure to be normal
7 What does piss off the right people actually mean
It means shes not trying to offend everyone Shes specifically aiming her jokes at people who would get upset over trivial thingslike fragile egos outdated gender norms or people who hate vulnerability The right people to piss off are those who take themselves too seriously
8 Is this her first special
Yes this is her first fulllength standup special
9 Does she have any viral bits that made her famous
Yes she has a popular bit about being a huge fan of women and a series of videos about her dating life that went viral on TikTok and Instagram
10 How is her style different from other female comedians
Shes very deadpan and lowenergy on stage which contrasts with the highenergy