Leslie Jones says being funny takes hard work

The comedian ditched the script for the performance of her memoir and tells each story in "Leslie F*cking Jones" exactly how it went.

Yvonne Durant

September 25, 2023

Leslie Jones says being funny takes hard work

Note: Text has been edited and does not match audio exactly.

Yvonne Durant: I'm Yvonne Durant, an editor here at Audible, and today I'm pleased, honored, elated, and over the moon to talk to Leslie Jones about her memoir, Leslie F*cking Jones.

Leslie Jones: (laughs)

YD: And Leslie, I just want to say, according to me, you are fabulous and funny as f*ck. Okay?

LJ: Really? Thank you. I appreciate you.

YD: First question, what was your team's reaction to the way you narrated the memoir? Did you, like, start on script and say, "Nah, I'm going to do it my way"?

LJ: (laughs) Wait a minute, first of all, you've heard the audio already?

YD: Oh, yeah.

LJ: Really?

YD: It's fabulous.

LJ: Okay. It's so weird because every time someone gets on here and they go, "Oh, I read the book," it just freaks me out. So, you’re telling me you heard the Audible?

YD: Yeah, I work at Audible. That's what we're about—audiobooks.

LJ: Oh my God. So you heard it.

YD: All 13 hours. You even did the copyright copy, which is so funny. “If you need permission …”

LJ: My head is exploding right now. Wait a minute, so wait a minute, sis, was it good, though? Like, was it interesting?

YD: It was good. I went walking in the park with it. I listened every chance I got. Sometimes I was laughing. I'm not going to give the scene away, but the Nadia Comăneci thing is just over the top fabulous. And your father—his reaction. I said, "No, this can't be real." But it is. I believe you.

LJ: (laughs) Yeah, yeah. Oh man, I'm so glad you got to hear it. I’d been wondering if it sounds good or not, or if it just sounds like me going crazy.

YD: Oh, it sounds good. It was a 13-hour performance but a performance of truth.

LJ: Wow. Yeah, I started doing the Audible, and every time I would get to a chapter, it would start a story, and I was like, "Okay, this is written, but let me just tell the story.” So, that's what ended up happening. Every time we got to something, I was like, "Listen, this what happened." (laughs) You know.

YD: Yeah, well, your voice—you had to do it in your voice. Okay, so you have an endless wardrobe. A great home with that swimming pool. What else would you give yourself with a vengeance? Like, if I had it that way, I would give myself a beluga caviar hero sandwich at least once a month. What do you give yourself?

LJ: Ooh, okay. And you said besides the house and all that stuff, right?

YD: Yeah, that you have.

LJ: That's a good question. I always try to get a good massage or a good facial. Does that count?

YD: That does.

LJ: Yeah, I always like to get a nice massage or really good facial. Like, really good. A penetrating facial, so my skin can stay kind of nice.

YD: You got to take care of the skin. So, not every funny person can't be a comic.

LJ: Right.

YD: What's in your special sauce? We know it's your delivery, but what else does it take?

LJ: When people say, “Not everybody can be a comic,” well, everybody is funny—it's just a difference between being a professional comedian and just being a funny person. What makes me different is—just like anyone who's a healer, there's a difference between a healer and a doctor. You know, a doctor goes to school; a healer just learns organically. I went to the school of it. You know, I'm professional. While you can make people laugh in the living room, I can make those people laugh in the living room, and then I can make they mama laugh. And then I can make they mama's mama laugh. And then I can make they mama's friend laugh, and they mama's auntie's friends. My shit is just a little bit more trained and focused on. You know what I mean? I did work on it. You know, it takes work. I was funny when I started, but I'm funnier now because I went into the study of it.

YD: Mm-hmm.

LJ: That's what I tell everybody. Everybody's like, "What's the special sauce?" There's no special sauce. Work. Work. That's the special sauce. People think that things just come so easy, and oh, there's got to be a formula. Oh, there's got to be ... Nope, hard work. Hard work and determination. And f*cking studying.

YD: I love when you say, “I'm not conceited; I am convinced.” I will be stealing that from you on a regular basis.

LJ: But wait a minute, y'all didn't say that in high school? I got that from high school. There was this girl in high school that used to say that to me all the time. She was like, "Uh-uh, I'm not conceited; I'm just convinced." And I used to think that was just the dopest thing to say. But it's such an old, old saying. I said last night to my friend, "She don't think fat meat is greasy." And he was like, "What the f*ck?" I'm like, "You know, that's from the South." (laughs)

YD: Fat meat is greasy. (laughs)

LJ: Yeah, she don't think fat meat is greasy? She ‘bout to find out.

"Everybody's like, 'What's the special sauce?' There's no special sauce. Work. Work. That's the special sauce."

YD: (laughs) Tell me this, do you remember when the book was finished, that moment? Did you collapse in joy? Did you say like, "Oh man, I forgot about that person, and that time when that thing happened." What was your process?

LJ: All of that. All of that. I think when we finally, finally finished the last edit, the last hard edit, it felt like a big dump. Like I took a big dump.

YD: (laughs)

LJ: But then, two days later, I was like, "Oh shit, I didn't talk about this. Oh, should I have mentioned her? Should I? ..." It was just a lot of things that didn't get to in the book that I didn't realize [until] later. But then, the author was like, "You know, that happens. You picked the best stories that were supposed to go in there, and that's what's, you know." I feel like whatever I didn't cover, I can cover in press.

YD: Right, and I want to build on this. I know your goal was to write a memoir. But by the end, I felt as though I'd listened to a well-being book.

LJ: Wow.

YD: Is there one on the way, or have I just given you a wonderful idea?

LJ: Uh, no. I don't know how to explain it, but I think you might understand this. It's that when you start getting older, things do start making so much more sense. And the things that troubled you before do trouble everyone, and you have this thing in you where you go, "I want people to know that you're not the only person that goes through struggles and still wants to make it." Everybody's human—we all are human. When people look at celebrities and athletes and stuff, they think we have some kind of superpower. No, we just are good at what we do—just like you may be good at what you do. So, the way I am now, I'm always trying to encourage and, I don't know, I just feel like this sense of … I need to give people what it is I know. Because I really feel in my heart that there's gonna be another Leslie Jones. And I don't want her to have to go through what I had to go through. I want her to have it a little bit easier.

YD: Okay. So, you've written many comedy sketches. This was a different process, I'm assuming.

LJ: Yes. Yes. Comedy sketches are sketches, you know. I will tell you, writing and doing the Audible was completely different. Writing a book was like … You know when you're texting someone something, it's so easy to flow with those words, right? But if you have to say it, it's a whole different thing. So when we got to the Audible—I ain't gonna lie—the first hour was so hard because I was reading these words. And a lot of it, I choked up on—especially about the stuff about my family. I was like, "Oh sh-, it's coming out of my mouth. I can't fake how I feel about this." So, yeah. Yeah. I don't know if I answered the question.

"I need to give people what it is I know. Because I really feel in my heart that there's gonna be another Leslie Jones. And I don't want her to have to go through what I had to go through. I want her to have it a little bit easier."

YD: Yeah, you did. You know, that piece about Tom Hanks, how that when you see famous people, how you tell them what they already know, like, "You're wonderful," and all that. And when you said something [to him], he said, "Well, that's a Leslie Jones I want to know." So, if I should see you on the street, what should I do, and what should I not do?

LJ: This is what I tell people, and it's for everybody. We all become a little temporarily insane when we see someone that we admire—people do become instantly, temporarily insane. Because in your head you go, "I gotta meet this person, I gotta ..." All I ask—just don't grab on me. I hate when people grab me. If I'm going to give you a hug, or shake your hand, please let me do it. Don't just come up and go, "Can I get a hug?" Because I really believe in energy, and I believe in it leaving me. And a lot of times, people just take it from you. You know, they just hug it out of you, or shake it out of you. I believe in that type of stuff. So, I don't like when people grab on me. I really like when people come up and go, "Man, I love your work. Is it okay if I get a picture?" Bam. And then that's it. Because I know that you like my work. You came up to me. You know? The worst line—but it's gonna always be said because people don't know how to say anything else—“I don't want to bother you, but ..." (laughs)

YD: (laughs)

LJ: And you be like, "Yes, you do." (laughs)

YD: Yet they're bothering you.

LJ: Just come up and say it. Just come up and say, "Yo, I'm a big fan. I just wanted to let you know, I love your work." And if you want a picture, ask for the picture. Because it's in your eyes—I see you want a picture. Just do it, and do it quick. Be ready, always be ready with your phone. Whenever I want a picture from a celebrity, I walk right up to them and be like, "Hey girl, how you doing? You know I love you. Can we take a picture?" And I'm outta there. (laughs) You know what I'm saying? I just like the quick ones.

YD: Right.

LJ: But I do understand when people stop me and be like, "Oh my god, you changed my life,” and boop, boop, boop, boop. And a lot of times when I'm talking to them—I swear to god, this is the thing that I say—I go, "It's me who changed your life? It's me who saved your life? You saved your life." You know, I don't like when people put so much pedestal on a human. You know what I'm saying? I may have maybe geared something or sparked something, but I didn't change your life. You did. You know?

YD: Do you find yourself avoiding going certain places because of your fame? Like, if you needed to get a box of tampons now that you're famous, would you get a box of tampons or send your assistant?

LJ: It depends on what it is. I go places all the time, girl. All the time. My motto was, I was going to be like Arsenio Hall. Arsenio Hall was famous, so was Magic Johnson, but you saw them everywhere. And that just took away the heat of the fame thing. So, I might go to Ralph's, or I might send my assistant—it just depends on what it is. Most of the time, I go. Especially if I want to get my own tomatoes and stuff like that, I do it myself. You know, it just depends. I'm getting a little bit more and more, so it is a little harder. I try to avoid stuff like festivals or stuff like that … stuff where it's a lot of people. But not really. I'm from Compton, girl. I go everywhere. I drive myself, all that.

"I don't like when people put so much pedestal on a human... I may have maybe geared something or sparked something, but I didn't change your life. You did."

YD: Okay. You know who I've been thinking about? Richard, your ex.

LJ: Ugh. Wow.

YD: Do you keep in touch with him?

LJ: Richard dead, girl.

YD: Oh my lord.

LJ: I thought I put that in the book—I probably should have put that in the book.

YD: You think so? (laughs)

LJ: Yeah, he died. He died, girl.

YD: (laughs) I don't mean to laugh.

LJ: (laughs) I know. I know. And I know it sounds so unloving, but Richard tried to destroy me two days before he died. He tried. (laughs) He tweeted out that I didn't want to help him because he was dying from leukemia, and he needed money for the bill or whatever. And I did the research. They don't let you die from leukemia. You just might have to get charged for the rest of your life, but they ain't gonna let you die. (laughs)

Every year, he would ask me for $9000 for something. It would just always be specifically $9000. So then, when he hit me again, I was like, "No. No." And then, years later, I was in the car going somewhere and I was talking to my sister and I was like, "Yo, I wonder what happened to Richard? Because he stopped asking me for money." And we looked up his name—at first, we looked up Richard Brooks, and we couldn't find it. But then, I looked up his whole name, Richard Kyle Brooks, and she was like, "He passed away." And I was like, "What?"

So, we went to his … Two days before [his death], the things that they have listed under his name is a Twitter post saying, "Leslie Jones won't help her family out." But since he didn't know how to tag me, it didn't never go anywhere. This was two days before he passed. And I was like, "This motherf*cker." (laughs) So, you know, God bless him.

YD: I just want to say for our listeners, I asked Leslie about an ex-boyfriend—who meant a lot to you, and likewise. What I thought was really sweet is when you planned on coming to New York, how he planned that whole trip out for you. And sure enough, there was the restaurant, there was the hotel, and there was the this and the that along the trip.

LJ: Mm-hmm.

YD: So, I thought that was sweet of him.

LJ: Yeah, whatever. (laughs)

YD: Oh. (laughs)

LJ: Girl, he was married. He was married the whole time he was with me.

YD: He was? She wasn't in the house.

LJ: I didn't find out until he passed, in the obituary. His wife did a whole poem. They had been married for 12 years.

YD: Oh my lord. (laughs) I tell you, these men. These men.

LJ: Girl, you know we done been through it with men.

YD: Oh yeah. Yeah, yeah. I got a story to tell too. Google me.

LJ: (laughs)

YD: But anyway, one day I'm going to see you, and I promise, I won't get into your space.