On Saturday April 9, 2022, Rip Micheals’ annual April Fools Comedy Jam dazzled the capacity crowd of 15,000 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn with performances by event producer and host Rip Micheals, Lil’ Kim, Joe Torry, Ronnie Jordan, Jacob Williams, Michael Blackson, B. Simone, Tip Harris, Tony Roberts, DeRay Davis and Moneybagg Yo.
Tip Harris walked on stage to a standing ovation and thanked Rip Micheals for being the first to hire him as a paid comic. However, cheers quickly turned to boos when Tip’s jokes did not land with the tough Brooklyn audience.
The Grand Hustle boss remained poised and even joked with a White audience member that he will not take the booing from him because gentrification just started in Brooklyn.
After Tip left the stage, Rip Micheals praised him for trying something different and asked DJ Envy to play one of T.I.’s many hit songs, to which the crowd stood up, danced and cheered.
On why he is supporting Tip’s foray into comedy when other comedians have spoken out against it, Rip Micheals said, “Everyone, whether they are rich, poor, famous or not, deserves to follow their passions, but not everyone would have the courage to do what Tip is doing. I am proud to be the first person to hire Tip as a paid comedian. I gave him the opportunity to test his skills in a sold-out stadium at my April Fools Comedy Jam at Barclays Center, knowing how tough the Brooklyn audience would be. I commend him for the way that he handled himself. Everyone gets booed. Welcome to the club, Tip! It was going to happen eventually.”
