The Dynamic Duo Behind Broad City On How To Provoke the Right Reaction
Fast Company|April 2016

Broad City creators and stars Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer talk about finding a common voice - and always pushing the limits.

KC Ifeanyi
The Dynamic Duo Behind Broad City On How To Provoke the Right Reaction

You two met as improv students at the Upright Citizens Brigade’s training center, created Broad City as a web series in 2006, and cranked out 34 episodes before the show was picked up by Comedy Central. Is anything lost when you transition from a personal project to something bigger?

Ilana Glazer: We’re really lucky that Comedy Central shared our vision and nurtured our creativity. They never put our balls in a vise. I think other networks are catching on. 

Abbi Jacobson: Yeah, they’re realizing that they need to trust [content creators] more or else [shows] get canceled. Stuff gets canceled constantly because [networks] are trying to fit something into a box that they think [people] want, but it doesn’t work—nobody watches it.

There are so many entertainers on YouTube trying to get an ounce of the fame you’ve both achieved. How were you able to get noticed?

AJ: We took [the web series] so seriously. I didn’t know what to do after three or four years of day jobs and trying to do comedy at night. So when we started this, we both sortof duct taped ourselves together. Like, “We’re doing it!” We latched onto it so hard.

IG: No matter what, if you focus your energy on building momentum, you will be rewarded in anything: in a friendship, in a romantic relationship, in volunteer work— anything you do. That’s been the most maturing experience, seeing how time works: You put your time and energy into something and it comes out the other end.

AJ: You can’t just be funny—you have to be strategic.

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der April 2016-Ausgabe von Fast Company.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der April 2016-Ausgabe von Fast Company.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

WEITERE ARTIKEL AUS FAST COMPANYAlle anzeigen
THE NEW RULES OF BUSINESS TRAVEL
Fast Company

THE NEW RULES OF BUSINESS TRAVEL

In the era of hybrid teams, everyone is a road warrior-not just sales teams and C-suite execs. It's part of why business travel spending is expected to finally reach, and perhaps surpass, pre-pandemic levels by the end of the year, according to Deloitte. But, as with everything, work trips are not what they were in 2019. From airlines to banks, companies are finding new ways to make business travel easier-and even a little fun.

time-read
5 Minuten  |
Fall 2024
INTELLIGENT IMPACT
Fast Company

INTELLIGENT IMPACT

BUSINESS LUMINARIES SHARE HOW AI CAN INTERSECT WITH SOCIAL MISSION.

time-read
1 min  |
Fall 2024
REDDIT'S REVENGE
Fast Company

REDDIT'S REVENGE

IN AN ERA OF AI UPHEAVAL. THE CACOPHONOUS SOCIAL HUB EMERGES AS THE HUMAN-DRIVEN INTERNET'S LAST GREAT HOPE.

time-read
10+ Minuten  |
Fall 2024
SO MANY WAYS TO LOSE
Fast Company

SO MANY WAYS TO LOSE

In the Ozempic era, Weight-Watchers is remaking itself to be something for everyone meal-plan program and a tele-health prescription service. But have consumers already lost their appetite?

time-read
10+ Minuten  |
Fall 2024
10/10 - THE 10 MOST INNOVATIVE PEOPLE OF THE LAST 10 YEARS
Fast Company

10/10 - THE 10 MOST INNOVATIVE PEOPLE OF THE LAST 10 YEARS

In honor of Fast Company's 10th Innovation Festival in September, we identified 10 industrious leaders whose groundbreaking efforts defined the past decade in business. We spoke to them about their extraordinary achievements in tech, medicine, entertainment, and more. And we explored how the impact of their work has withstood passing fads, various presidential administrations, a pandemic, and many, many quarterly reports.

time-read
10+ Minuten  |
Fall 2024
The Mysterious Reappearance of the Reggie Bar
Fast Company

The Mysterious Reappearance of the Reggie Bar

How a beloved 1970s candy got called back up to the major leagues.

time-read
8 Minuten  |
Fall 2024
Gabriella Khalil
Fast Company

Gabriella Khalil

Gabriella Khalil, creative director, answers our career questionnaire.

time-read
2 Minuten  |
Fall 2024
The Fast and the Furious
Fast Company

The Fast and the Furious

High prices at McDonald's, Taco Bell, and other chains are sparking consumer revolt.

time-read
6 Minuten  |
Fall 2024
Lost in Truncation
Fast Company

Lost in Truncation

Lost in Truncation Generative AI was supposed to unleash our creativity. Instead, it became our cultural trash compactor. Welcome to the age of summarization.

time-read
4 Minuten  |
Fall 2024
Campus Radicals
Fast Company

Campus Radicals

Welcome to UATX, Austin's new well-funded and controversial anti-woke university.

time-read
10+ Minuten  |
Summer 2024