Anthony McKinley, also known as Scruncho, is a comedian making the smoke in Los Angeles. He’s known for being in movies such as How High, Budz House, Easy Money, and more. He was also one of the cast members of “Wild ‘N Out.”
Scruncho spoke with rolling out about being a comedian in Los Angeles and gives tips to young entertainers.
What makes Los Angeles a great place to be a comedian?
It’s the place where everybody goes. Everybody goes to Los Angeles, New York, or Atlanta to get opportunities, and a lot of people will pass you up, but it only takes one person to put you on. Your odds are better here than anywhere else because you might get one chance somewhere, but you’ll have fix or six opportunities here. This is the mecca if you want to get put on.
Who are some of your inspirations?
Los Angeles is weird when it comes to comedy because if you think about the history, from Kevin Hart to Richard Pryor, less than three percent of Los Angeles comedians make it to the elite level. We see people like D.L. Hughley, Tiffany Haddish, and Faizon Love and how they’ve always been inspirational to Los Angeles comedy. It’s just so many that your mind gets cluttered when you think about comedy greatness.
Why should comedians write down their jokes and skits?
A lot of people don’t understand comedy. Everybody is focused on marketing, but don’t focus on the art of comedy. People are more into skits, but that’s not comedy. Everybody is funny until you put a mic in their hand. When you put that mic in their hand, you realize quickly this is an art and it’s a lot of elements to it. I feel sorry for the young comedians because they’re distracted and sidetracked by skits, marketing, and being popular. They’re chasing everything except mastering the art of comedy. That’s why you have all these superstar headliners that have opening act sets, and that’s it.
Where can people find you?
My special is called “A Gangster’s Testimony.” I’m the first comedian to shoot three one-hour specials in a day. The first one is called “Neglect,” the second is called “Respect,” and the third is called “A Blast.” I’m shooting them all in one day in Houston, Texas at the Komedy Lounge. I’m going to live stream, so it’ll be on Roku and Amazon Prime. I don’t have social media. I shut down all my social media because I realized — you keep chasing people to try to follow you but the truth of the matter is that if people wanted to follow you, they’d find you.
