Tony Roberts brings his mastery to the ‘We Them Ones’ Tour

Tony Roberts: The Comedian’s Comedian Who Has Been Making the Industry Laugh for Over 20 Years

Tony Roberts has carved out a distinguished place in comedy over more than two decades, earning a reputation built not on viral moments but on the kind of razor-sharp timing and effortless stage command that commands the respect of his peers. His fellow comedians have long recognized his mastery of the craft, bestowing upon him the rare and coveted distinction of being called a comedian’s comedian, a title reserved for those whose talent speaks loudest in rooms full of people who know exactly how hard the job truly is.

Roberts is currently bringing his signature brand of humor to audiences nationwide as part of the “We Them Ones” comedy tour, a high-energy production featuring some of the most dynamic voices in comedy today. With more than 20 years of live performance experience behind him, Roberts continues to prove that longevity in comedy is no accident; it is the product of an unwavering dedication to the art form, an instinctive connection with audiences, and a relentless drive to deliver every single night.

Your peers have long called you the “comedian’s comedian,” a title that speaks to respect earned in the trenches over 20-plus years. How does that reputation translate into the energy you bring to a tour of this magnitude?

I’ve been hearing that for years, but I never said it to myself; I just accepted it. Every time somebody brings me up, and I can’t say, ” Hey, when you bring me up, don’t say that. I’m just modest. I’m a little bit shy. But until I get on stage, I’m different, but I appreciate that. Yeah, I really appreciate it from my homeboys and my girls that I’ve been coming up in comedy, but even some of the newer comics call me a legend. Yeah, somebody told me I was a legend, just from stand-up. I’ve been in a few things here and there, but just from stand-up, people remember me, and I’m iconic for that. The only person ever called a legend was Bernie Mac. He was a legend right before he got any movies or any TV shows. They finally let him through the door, but he was a legend before that. And I take that. I take that to heart. Like, I appreciate that. But when I get on the show, I don’t even look at people; people don’t know this about me. I never look people in the eye. I look right past the first 15 rows. Yeah, you know who else was like that? Richard Pryor and Robin Williams. It was kind of like keep moving, and don’t focus on one person. Unless we have to talk to them. I just concentrate on my energy and the laughs. If I look at one person, and they have a frown on their face. Man, it’ll mess me up. I mean, what’d I do to you?

As the host of the “We Them Ones” Comedy Tour, you are essentially the glue every single night. How do you approach the responsibility of setting the tone for an audience before Mike Epps and the rest of the lineup take the stage?

Because my job is, like you said, the glue. My job is to keep them interested and keep them excited. And I have the energy for it. I’ve been energetic all my life, and I’m always animated. I have a bunch of antics. I always have to have a mic stand and my stool. I’m legendary for my towel. And it’s like a weapon. I use it for so many acts. I gotta have a bar stool or a chair because I act everything out. I engage them because, when I’m talking, people don’t realize it. I’m moving the furniture around, getting ready for the next joke, and then I realize it. It’s like a play, as a one-man play. It’s gonna be hard for somebody to out-host me because I come with all types of antics. You don’t know what I’m going to be doing. I do songs. I do rap songs. It’s funny. I engage with the people. I don’t know, I just, I’ve just been that way. I’m a good host. But I haven’t been able to host a lot because of my own shows. I’m headlining a lot with my shows, my own personal shows. So I’m glad I got a chance to host.

The tour made more than a million fans laugh in 2025, and now it is back bigger than before. What does it feel like to be part of a comedy movement that is clearly resonating with audiences on that kind of scale?

I’ve thought about that too. But like, I’ve been in comedy shows for the last 25 years, in theaters and packed comedy clubs. But this particular tour has been selling out arenas for 3 years straight. You know, and then I know people who can’t do that. But the group is so powerful. It’s like we are rock musicians. Every night I go, I always look at the crowd, look at the massive people out there every night, and this is amazing. How people love comedy. And I’m the one who’s bringing them up on stage. I’m the guy, like last year, I was closing a lot of the shows, and Mike Epps was hosting. Mike and I are the bookends. We are the OGs. You know, when we started comedy, these guys were in the ninth grade. So they know us, when they started, the idea of doing comedy. They saw people like me, Mike Epps, Earthquake, and Bill Bellamy doing comedy. So, we’re used to. But I am still in awe. Every night, before I go on stage, I go to the side of the stage and look at the crowd. I go, this is God. Look at this. This is amazing. And I go out there with that energy mindset.

Sharing the stage on any given night with Mike Epps, Karlous Miller, DC Young Fly, Chico Bean, and T.K. Kirkland is no small thing. How do you keep your energy sharp and your material fresh when you are surrounded by that level of talent night after night?

Honestly, it’s my job, and I’m good at my job. I’ve done award shows and served as an honorary host. My energy is like that, with singers, my energy is like that, with speakers. I’m the guy who goes in the middle of all the speakers and pop them out of their seats and just hit them with some crazy. I’m that energy at a church. I don’t care. I’m never dull for nothing. I can have people at my house, we can do karaoke, and we can have a gathering at somebody’s house. I’m the guy. You don’t know what I’m gonna do next. I’m always that guy. Yeah, I’ve had a blessed. Rough up and down, but a blessed life and a blessed career. Got a blessed family. I come from good stock. Yeah, look at God. My kids always say that to me. Ain’t that right, dad? Look at God. I said, you better know it.

Every tour has a moment that stops the show — a night where the audience or a fellow comedian does something completely unexpected. Has “We Them Ones” had that moment yet, and if so, what happened?

Mojo Brooks missed the flight a few weeks ago. So, I did more time. Like, what are we gonna do? Mike Epps goes last, but Mojo’s not here. They said, ” Can you go up there and just stay up there for 10, maybe 15 minutes, and just hit them. So I did just that. Let me get out there and just do a set. I look over to my right if I see you give me the wave, boom. I’m gonna bring them up. But he’s got to be in the building because when you give me the wave, I’m going to bring him up. So that’s the only thing that’s happened with this tour. So we had to stretch the show. And then nobody really wants to go up there and do extra time. I’m the only one who can do extra time, and won’t nobody know the difference. No heckler or anything like that. Not yet, not so far, but we still have 2.5 months left. But we had a girl pass out, and the thing about it was, it never disrupted the show. She’s just been up all day, didn’t eat, and passed out, but the artist didn’t know it. They kind of glance up and see the bodyguards and the EMTs go up there and grab her, and they pull her backstage, and somebody blacked out. They immediately go out there, grab them, and go backstage, so don’t mess with the show at all. We don’t stop the show. Something’s going on over here. Pause for a minute. Somebody’s got EMT. They don’t do that. They run up there, get them, snatch them, bring them up, and get them out of there. The most exciting part of the whole show to me is DJ Fresh. He’s Chris Brown’s DJ, but he’s such a hype man. He goes out in the audience before the show and the intermission and gets people on the big Jumbotron behind us. So he gets people on camera to do all kinds of twerking for a free t-shirt or a chance to finish a song. The girls sing the songs, and they sound like a camel with a cold. It’s so terrible, but they want the free stuff, and it’s so funny.

Every city on this tour carries its own cultural fingerprint. How do you read a room when you land in a new market, and have there been any stops on the “We Them Ones” tour that completely surprised you with how they responded?

I’ve been in these markets for years now, years at the comedy club and in the smaller theaters. It was a couple of shows, cities, when we got out there, they turned out to be the most electrifying city, so far on the whole tour. I forgot what city it was, like one of those down south, small towns, and every time you say somebody’s name or you tell a joke, they explode, and I just stopped in the middle of everything right between the whole show and said So far on this tour, y’all have been number one, the craziest crowd and they just blew up celebrating. It was in Biloxi, Mississippi. Yeah, they don’t get a lot of mail. They’ll be a lot of nothing. It’s like we had passed out bread and juice. But every time we said something, they were jumping on it, jumping out of their seats. I was like, ” Wow, y’all really appreciate comedy. Some people are just late. Some cities are just so laid back. You get some bigger cities like New York, they’re not impressed by anything too much because they get it all.

You are set to perform at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on March 14 — your hometown stage. What does it mean to you personally to bring this tour back to the city that shaped you as a comedian?

Have you seen the movie Gladiator? I have to come out there right away, like, are you not entertained? I gotta be that when I come home. It’s always a little more pressure than any other city because they know me so good. They watched me grow up in comedy. I perform there twice a year. I do the Fox Theater every year and some other stuff. Now I’m hosting, so it’s a good thing because it shows that I’m bringing Detroit all these people. I’m in charge of introducing everyone to the “We Them Ones” tour. So, it looks like it’s a big thing that I am hosting. Like, when we went to DC, Chico Bean from DC, so we let him host that show, and I did a set. But I got to go crazy in Detroit.

What do you want fans who are coming to see “We Them Ones” for the first time to walk away feeling once the lights go down and the show is over?

This is the funniest show in the world. You’ve got everybody on here who is funny. It’s like every time I bring somebody up, we just go on the side and watch them because they’re just funny, and it’s amazing. I’ve been on a lot of tours, and it’s always 5 or 6 people, and not everyone’s that funny; it’s like 2 or 3 people, maybe 4, that stand out as funny. But everybody is funny on this tour. The thing about this tour is that their followers are internet-driven. Followers are different from fans. Fans are more mature in comedy mindset, and they really want a good show, no matter who you are. Followers don’t care if you’re that funny or not; they just want to see you live. No matter what you say up there, they’re going to laugh because they can’t wait to see your live show.