Up-and-coming Nashville comic Aaron Weber says we’re in the middle of a major comedy "boom" right now.

Just ahead of the debut of his comedy special, "Signature Dish," the 32-year-old Alabama native and one of the Nashville comedy scene’s biggest rising stars, marveled at the relevance of the comedy scene in pop culture, as well as the massive popularity of certain standup comedians.

"Yeah, people talk a lot about the comedy boom of the 80s, but we're in the middle of, I think, a way bigger boom now," Weber told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview, adding, "And I think the big part of that is, it's never been easier to consume comedy." 

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Fox spoke to Weber this week from inside Zanies Comedy Night Club, one of the centerpieces of the comedy scene in Nashville and the venue where he filmed his new special.

Premiering this Friday on his friend and fellow comic Nate Bargatze’s YouTube channel, "Nateland Entertainment" – the 30-minute special is jam-packed with the jokes Weber says he has had the "most fun" performing over his nine years so far in the industry. 

"It was nine years of doing standup almost every night that kind of got me to there. That was my 30 [minutes] where I was having the most fun," the comic said. 

Showcasing the earnest yet self-deprecating style he brings to his comedy routines, Weber told Fox that he’s "pretty proud" of the new special, while describing it as a set that’s about "kind of nothing."

"So I'm excited for people to see that. It's a bunch of nonsense. I'm asked all the time, like, what do you talk about on stage? Kind of nothing."

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Hinting at a bit of the nonsensical material covered in "Signature Dish," Weber mentioned how one of the jokes is a riff on everyone’s favorite candy-flavored antacid.

"I talk about Tums for quite a bit on this special, so there's definitely not a lesson that I'm trying to teach anybody. We're just trying to have fun and hopefully people do that."

When asked about the special’s title, the comic said it’s a reference to a bit in there about food, which is a major theme of his standup.

"The special is called ‘Signature Dish,’ which is a line in one of the jokes. I like that. It's food. I like food."

Weber, who was born and raised in Montgomery, Alabama, before graduating from Notre Dame and then moving to Music City to pursue standup, told Fox just how "excited" he is that he gets to be a comedian, even on "the bad nights."

"But on the whole, like this is a crazy thing to get to do for a living. Standup comedy’s so much fun. It's so much fun to perform for people."

Comedy may appear to have been an abrupt turn for Weber, who majored in marketing and minored in philosophy at his alma mater, but he told Fox that he’s always loved the art form and finally took a chance to really pursue it after college. 

"I was a fan of standup comedy for a long time, watched it all the time, had routines memorized. I would perform for the family as a kid, but never thought about doing it until I was in college, and I realized there's no barrier to entry. Anybody can show up."

He mentioned how he started doing open mics "every night when I could" during his post-college job, stating that within a "few months I was taking it pretty seriously."

Eventually, he quit that job and comedy’s "all I’ve been doing since."

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Despite the obstacles and rejection that fledgling comics often face, Weber told Fox that he was committed to making it in the industry, noting that he understood throughout his journey it might be a long and bumpy road. 

"I went into this knowing it's going to take some time. I'm going to make a lot of decisions that make no financial sense. You know, I'm going to leave work early and drive three hours to do a 5-minute spot and make no money. So, you have to do a lot of that before any of this makes sense."

"But the thinking was, ‘I want to do this. I want to get good at this,’" he recalled, mentioning that he "never thought about quitting."

Weber did admit that had he been a bit older and had more responsibilities, he might not have pursued a standup career, stating, "I had no responsibilities at the time, really. So it was a good time to do it."

"I think if I had a daughter like I do now and a family that depends on me, I would have been a little more cautious."

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The comedian spoke to Fox News a bit about the Nashville comedy scene, describing it as a "really good place" for a budding comedian to cut their teeth. "I think there are a lot of opportunities to get quality stage time quickly," he said.

However, he also said it’s become a great place to have a standup career in general, whereas in the past, a comic looking to make it would have to "move to L.A., you had to move to New York. Now Austin's up there, too."

"I really don't think that's the case anymore. I think a lot of guys have proven that, guys like Dusty Slay," Weber said, mentioning the Nashville standup star and his co-host on Nate Bargatze’s podcast. The comic added that his colleague has "basically only been in Nashville for his career and is now a theater act with Netflix specials."

"It is possible to have a good career in comedy out of Nashville, and I remember thinking, ‘Well, if I can do that – I love the city. I got a house here with my wife, I want to raise my daughter here,’" the comic said, adding, "’If I can do comedy out of Nashville, that's the dream.’"

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Part of what has made Nashville so special for the young comic and family man is Zanies comedy club. The venue is low-lit, intimate, and has a modest stage framed by a blue-curtain background and a large "Zanies" sign. The venue seats only around 300 audience members, though Weber told Fox that's a large capacity for a comedy club.

Along its walls are rows upon rows of headshots belonging to each of the comedians who have ever headlined the club – a roster that includes comedy giants like Eddie Murphy, Bill Burr, Dave Chappelle, and the late Sam Kinison.

"To me, there's no more prestigious stage in this city than this one," Weber said, referring to Zanies. "Every comedian I've ever cared about, every person I've ever idolized, looked up to, modeled my career and my thinking after, they perform right there on that stage behind me. And I get to touch that stage pretty regularly here, and that's not lost on me at all."

That's high praise coming from someone who maintains that he was the youngest standup comic in history to perform at one of the world’s most renowned stages, the Grand Ole Opry, at the age of 27.

About that, he quipped, "I've done limited research on this, but I think I'm the youngest to ever perform there and nobody's called me out on that yet. So, I'm going to keep saying it till somebody, somebody younger than me does it."

Weber’s other claim to fame is his guest co-host slot on "The Nateland Podcast" – started in 2020 by Bargatze, a standup phenom who had the highest earning comedy tour in 2024, according to Billboard.com.

Weber told Fox that the podcast has been "huge" for his career, saying that much of his standup audience is introduced to him through it. 

"The overwhelming majority of people that come to see me live, that's how they first got to know me," he said. 

"It's almost like a home base for my career. That's what the podcast feels like, and it's just a ton of fun. I mean, I love all three of those guys," he said, mentioning Bargatze, Slay and co-host Brian Bates. "I have a blast recording it every week, so it's yeah, it's a huge part of my career for sure."

When asked about the standup success of his fellow co-hosts, like Bargatze – who broke the attendance record for Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena during his 2023 tour – or the massive prevalence that other podcasters and comedians now have in media, Weber said it’s evidence of the comedy "boom" that’s being driven by social media.

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Mentioning how simple it is to get content to the masses, he told Fox, "Like, I can tape a set tonight, put it up on TikTok and get a million views. And it used to be you had to wait till a network or somebody would offer you a special, and then that special would air on TV for an hour once, you know, and then you hope somebody saw it."

"Comedy’s never been bigger," Weber declared. He pointed to another superstar comic and his massive success as evidence of the medium's relevance. "They're in the mainstream in a way that they haven’t in a while. Shane Gillis is like an A-list celebrity now. Like, he's everywhere… It’s only a handful of comics that have been like that."

As far as his own vision for success goes, the comedian told Fox that he has more modest ambitions than breaking massive attendance records or being an A-lister.

"Five years from now, if I'm still doing comedy as a full-time job, that'll be a win for sure," he said. "But I've already done more than I set out to do when I started, which is just to be able to only do this. So that's a win."

Weber’s "Signature Dish" on the "Nateland Entertainment" YouTube channel is streaming now.

Tom Green has never been a fan of the glitz and glam of Hollywood. 

In a new interview with The New York Times, the comedian and actor, 53, opened up about his decision to move back home to his native country of Canada and explained why he enjoys the simpler things in life. 

"I’m not really a Hollywood guy," Green, who left Los Angeles in 2021, said. "I started to feel like I wasn’t being true to my authentic self." 

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Green, who is promoting his new documentary, "This Is The Tom Green Documentary," said fans are going to get an inside view of what his day-to-day life entails these days. 

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"People are probably going to be surprised that I’m not, like, completely crazy," Green said. "There’s a sort of a wholesome heartwarming thing to this — that I have a close relationship with my family, that I love animals, that I enjoy doing a lot of things that a great many people in the world enjoy doing, like getting out into the woods." 

While Green, who lives on a farm, enjoys the quiet life, he's staying busy with an upcoming U.S. tour that combines stand-up comedy and music from his new country album, "Home to the Country."

Green isn't the only star to ditch Hollywood lately. 

Daniel Stern, best known for playing one of the Wet Bandits, Marv, in the classic 1990 holiday film "Home Alone," spends most of his time raising cattle and creating sculptures on his farm in Ventura, California.

"Hello, as you will come to discover, I live on a farm, and we grow tangerines here," Stern said in a TikTok video that has since gained a lot of attention. 

"I juice them up and then freeze them and give them away to my friends."

Renowned comedian and former television host Jay Leno shares how he helped serve hot meals to California firefighters, praising them as "the best fire department in the world."

Since the outbreak of the Los Angeles County wildfires, a wave of critics have come forth condemning California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other elected officials for their lack of preparedness regarding the response.

"Let me tell you something: These guys can eat. They all look like the guy in a Brawny paper towel ad. These big, beefy guys," Leno said on "The Will Cain Show," recalling how they handed out 700 lbs of ribs and 400 lbs of chicken.

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Leno detailed how he had a "great five days" helping out Los Angeles first responders, describing how they were able to eat and continue running a fire response like a "military operation."

"I was at Bagram Air Force Base. It reminded me of that — airplanes coordinated with guys on the ground, guys on the ground that got big maps laid out of where they think the fire is going to go," he said.

"You know, you hand them a rib, they eat the rib, they point to it [the map] and they're talking to the helicopter. I mean, it's really a military operation," Leno added.

Leno expressed how he was impressed with all the first responders and their ability to avoid the "blame game" regarding who was at fault for the fires. He applauded them for focusing on putting out the fires and keeping people safe.

"You know the great thing about it? No blame game. These are firemen and women," Leno said, explaining how they were focused on questions like, "How can we put this out?" and, "What do we need to do?"

Leno said that even off the record, none of the firefighters were blaming "this person or that person." 

"It was all about, ‘How do we fight this fire?’ And the morale was good," Leno said.

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When Leno handed out hot meals to first responders, he brought a Burbank California Christie fire truck from 1914 just to "cheer them up a little bit."

"You know, like, I thought maybe having that fire engine might look like I'm showing off a little bit. But one of the chiefs said this was such a great morale booster to see this almost 100-year-old fire engine roll in, it's all bright and shiny in the midst of all this dirt and all this gray," Leno said.

"So it turned out to be a win-win all the way around," he said. "It was just a wonderful experience for me. I just enjoyed it so much." 

Fox Nation funny man Jimmy Failla is bringing the laughs in his newest special, 'Night of Comedy,' featuring a lively lineup of fellow comedians.

The new 90-minute comedy special streaming exclusively on Fox Nation features Failla, the cab driver turned professional comedian, and Fox News fan favorite, who hosts and opens the show with a skit tailor-made for his Fox Nation audience. His friends Anthony Rodia, Jim Breuer and Adam Carolla follow with their routines, rounding out an event that is sure to amuse.

As per the show's description, the special has "no rules," "no themes" and "nothing is off-limits."

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Filmed in the Tillis Center in Brookville, NY, Failla opened the show explaining how excited he was about the program.

"So I'm just giving you a heads-up, because a lot of you know me from TV," Failla said. "You're seeing me in my natural habitat tonight."

He later added, "We're going to talk to you tonight about a lot of stuff that we can't necessarily say on TV, because comedy is a chance to treat each other like adults who know the difference between a joke and a hate crime."

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The three guest comics featured in the special all have different stand-up backgrounds. Rodia, who has amassed over half a million followers on Instagram for his humorous social media videos, is currently traveling across the country for his "Laugh Till It Hurts" tour.

Breuer, meanwhile, is known for his time on "Saturday Night Live" as a cast member from 1995 to 1998. He also has a YouTube show called "Jim Breuer's Breuniverse," which boasts over 350,000 subscribers.

Carolla — who is no stranger to FOX — has become a household name with the success of his popular podcast, "The Adam Carolla Show," which ranks among the top comedy podcasts in the country.

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"We at FOX put this night of comedy together because we want to be able to laugh about things going on in the country," Failla said in the special. "And comedy is a way of bringing people together, because we don't agree on a lot."

Fox Nation programs are viewable on-demand and from your mobile device app, but only for Fox Nation subscribers. Go to Fox Nation to start a free trial and watch the extensive library from your favorite Fox Nation personalities.

Jay Leno paid his dues by appearing on fellow comedian Bill Maher's "Club Random" podcast.

The former "Tonight Show" host clarified a floating rumor that injuries to his face were from a beating by the mob due to owed gambling debts.

In November, Leno revealed that he broke his wrist and sustained significant bruising on his face and body after falling down a 60-foot hill outside his hotel.

Hours after the fall, the acclaimed stand-up comedian took the stage for a show wearing an eye patch.

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Maher asked Leno about the rumors, to which Jay responded, "Well, I like the idea that they wouldn’t just take one of my cars for the gambling debt."

Leno, a long-time automobile enthusiast, is known to have hundreds of collectible cars in his personal garage worth millions of dollars.

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He did, however, remember an encounter with the mafia when he was a young comedian.

"I was pretty smart," he said. "I remember years ago I was at Catch a Rising Star, and I was onstage, and this guy – a mob guy – comes up to me afterwards, and he goes, 'Hey, you’re a funny kid. You’re a funny kid.'

"He takes $100, and he puts it in my pocket. I say, ‘Oh, thank you.' I say, ‘Look, I don’t mean any disrespect but, you know, give it to the church or something… I’m OK, but thank you.’ And he says to me, ‘You know, you’re a smart kid. You don’t take money from people like me. That’s smart.’ And nobody ever bothered me again."

While Leno admitted he never had any trouble, he witnessed the mob "kick the crap out of comics left and right" for being "wise a------s" onstage.

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He also didn't understand the rumors simply because he doesn't like losing money.

"I don't gamble," Leno confessed. "Losing 100 bucks makes me feel stupider than winning one thousand makes me feel good. Because I go, ‘I could have taken my wife to dinner.'"

Last month, the comedian told "Inside Edition" that he broke his wrist, sustained significant bruising on his face and body and lost a fingernail after falling down a rocky 60-foot hill. 

His hotel fall was just the latest in a string of traumatic incidents for Leno, who was also "knocked off" his motorcycle in January 2023.

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Leno sustained two broken ribs, broke his kneecaps and a collarbone after being clotheslined while riding his motorcycle through a parking lot. 

"I turned down a side street and cut through a parking lot, and unbeknownst to me, some guy had a wire strung across the parking lot but with no flag hanging from it," Leno told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

"I didn’t see it until it was too late. It just clotheslined me and, boom, knocked me off the bike. The bike kept going, and you know how that works out."

In 2022, Leno underwent multiple surgeries after suffering third-degree burns in a gasoline fire. Leno reportedly suffered significant burns to his face and hands as well as his chest while working underneath a car in his Burbank-area garage.

Fox News Digital's Lauryn Overhultz contributed to this report.