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'Ziwe' Variety Show Sets Premiere Date at Showtime

'Ziwe' Variety Show Sets Premiere Date at Showtime

Writer and comedian Ziwe Fumudoh's variety show has a premiere date on Showtime.

The network announced Tuesday at the winter Television Critics Association press tour that Ziwe will premiere Sunday, May 9 at 11 p.m. ET/PT.

The six-episode series will feature interviews, musical numbers, guest stars, sketches and other segments, including unscripted and unexpected interactions with everyday people.

Fumudoh previously wrote for Showtime's Desus & Mero, Our Cartoon President and Dickinson, and rose to prominence with her provocative Instagram Live series where she asks frank questions about race to her guests.

She's also voiced Kamala Harris and other roles for Our Cartoon President, as well as Tooning Out the News, and appears in Pop Show, which she created and performs at Brooklyn's Union Hall with original songs off her album, Generation Ziwe. 

The first-generation Nigerian American told reporters during the virtual panel that her aim for Ziwe is to be "offensive, bombastic and satirical." 

"You're supposed to really connect with these characters on television but they never really reflected my home life. And that's been really interesting is cultivating what it means to be American. It's so many different aspects," she said of her unique perspective. The Massachusetts native spoke about her upbringing growing up in the inner city and attending a prep school in nearby Andover, which is the complete opposite. "I've been able to move through different spaces and come up with a comprehensive understanding of what I believe to be my experience and how I can relay that in my art is always a privilege."

Fumudoh has interviewed Rose McGowan, disgraced food writer Alison Roman and Alyssa Milano on her Instagram Live show, and isn't afraid to critique public figures. 

"I love media. That's really why I'm interested in making a television show is I've been watching television my entire life. I grew up watching talk shows, so I specifically love the way media characterizes Black figures during Black History Month versus the other months of the year. I find that to be so riveting. Any way that I can critique or joke about media construction is really funny to me. And so with these lauded characters who are historical figures we revere and respect, interpret it as me talking about satire."

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