Evan Lazarus joins Shelf

Evan Lazarus is plugged in and pleasantly unpretentious

As the co-host of the Girls Rewatch podcast, they navigate culture with the trained eye of a Brooklyn comedian and the curiosity of someone who still gets giddy over finding a new favorite show. Whether they’re dissecting the layered brilliance of Veep’s dialogue or declaring The Simple Life the comedic apex of reality TV, Evan approaches media with a mix of reverence and irreverence—treating a sharp joke and a cultural shift as equally worthy of deep consideration. Their inspirations range from Lena Dunham and Mindy Kaling to their own circle of friends, whom they praise with the same fervor they reserve for TV icons. In conversation, they’re quick-witted but sincere, folding in digressions about queer Brooklyn comedy microcultures and parasocial dynamics without losing their knack for landing a punchline. Follow along for the full interview and be sure to follow Evan on Shelf for real-time updates into what they’re consuming!

ShelfMAG: As someone who hosts a pretty successful podcast, having ”good taste” is a big part of your job. Who do you think actually decides what “good taste” in culture is right now?

@evanlazarus: That’s a great question. I mean, ultimately, I'm also someone who is in Brooklyn comedy and it's a very insular community as well. And one beautiful aspect of Brooklyn comedy is that there's so many different kinds. I mean it's very specific in the lens that it is mostly stand up improv. It's not always breaking the norms. It does at times and it's only so many people, but everyone has truly taken their own take on it. And one thing I've really been able to notice while existing in a micro culture like Brooklyn comedy (especially like more of the queer aspect and female aspect of Brooklyn comedy) is the true tastemakers are, of course, the people participating. I think great artists are the best at creating great influence as well. Because I always trust those who I deem their art to be something I already enjoy, and where I'd want to look and put my attention. What is informing them as a creative is exactly what I want to look for when informing my own creativity.

I mean there's people like Lena Dunham. I want to understand what media informed her, but also just other comedians that maybe aren't necessarily traditionally successful in the same way. But I find their craft to be so powerful and important and I truly try to understand where they were able to hone that voice—what fed into it and where they look to build that. Personally, the ones that are informing culture (at least around me) are the ones I find to be the most talented and interesting. But from a general scale, it's probably those that are probably best able to connect with their audience in a really parasocial way where everyone is able to look at you as someone that they would also want as a friend.

ShelfMAG: Who —apart from Lena Dunham—are some of the people that inspire you?

@evanlazarus: I truly love Mindy Kaling. We just did Broad City on the podcast, so Abbi and Ilana definitely are of great inspiration in my community. There's actors and comedians like Courtney O'Donnell, who has this fantastic show. She does it at Union Hall called Planet Courtney. It felt very innovative and hysterical. I haven't laughed that hard in a while.

My close friends I also find to be some of those talented people in my eyes. The reason I am close friends with them is because I find them to be so talented and beautiful and unique. And then on a larger scale, I feel like creators like Jake Shane has really built a very parasocial relationship with his audience. And there's not one woman on earth who doesn't like, want that as their GBF. As actual creators, I feel like there's so many people that have followings, but suddenly as a comedian, some people have followings but don't necessarily have influence. It is a really specific situation of you can really build entertaining content, but it doesn't necessarily mean that you're also building influence over others.

ShelfMAG: What's the last piece of media that genuinely moved you? Why do you think it impacted you so deeply?

@evanlazarus: It's a good question. I often return to media I felt moved by in the past and will dive into it in different chapters of my life. Like a rewatch of sorts. I mean, there's a wide variety of shows I'm always rewatching. Veep because I really love the way they're able to structure. I'm a writer, so I like writing either pilots or turning to TV shows that I find so intensely good and uncovering what is making them so strong. Going back to a show like Veep, they have done this really amazing balance of writing great dialogue, allowing actors to do improv, and then turning that improv back into dialogue.

A show like Daria I have always found to be so singular in what it is, and I find that to be what makes it so great. That's something I've rewatched in the last month. It's a show about a high school girl who's very angsty and has this really existential view on high school and is kind of a nihilist. But she also combats all the normal teen issues as well through her nihilist lens. And it's very comical because of that. It's not necessarily jokey in the writing, and I usually love shows that are very jokey, but that's another great one.

I'm definitely a TV person when it comes to being moved, but there's plenty of books. I just finished ADHD 2.0 and someone with ADHD really was able to provide a lot of great insight into what it means to have ADHD and the best way. There’s so many little tips on how to kind of game your own ADHD a little bit and really what goes into it.

And not to hearken back to what I was saying earlier, but Brooklyn comedy too. It's just another thing I'm always inspired by. And I think the interesting part of getting to do comedy in a community is that you get to see people's progression and it helps you understand how they got better—understand how you can get better from that same information. But also how amazing it is to be doing art in conjunction with others?

It's really a wonderful thing. And I think this community does not exist anywhere else in the whole world. There's, like microcosms of it. And you could say, like in LA, maybe a little bit in Austin, but it really needs a decent amount of people to thrive and that are definitely active in it. It's beautiful to be part of.

ShelfMAG: The next three questions I have are much more lighthearted. I'm curious, if you could say one thing to Lena Dunham, what would it be and why?

@evanlazarus: I know it. No, I mean. I mean, there's probably 8 million things I'd want to say to her, but I feel like the thing I'd most want to say to her is how inspirational it is to watch someone create a piece of media that is both thought provoking, but also so insightful and meticulous in the detail that makes it so humorous. And from someone who's consumed so much tv, it's so singular and so fantastic. And it's probably brought me the most joy out of any thing I've watched on earth or consumed on earth. And I'm jus endlessly grateful that someone was able to make a show that I find really was able to elevate art in a really specific way. And it's informed so much culture. And I hope she understands because of her singularity and art that she created, how much culture she was able to form by it.

ShelfMAG: Damn.

@evanlazarus: I mean, I've had a lot of time to think about it.

ShelfMAG: If you could stalk anyone's Shelf, dead or living, who would it be and why?

@evanlazarus: Amazing question. I mean, of course I have 4,000. I mean, the easy one is I would say—she actually says everything, so I wouldn't. I was gonna say Bethenny Frankel Baugh. Maybe a gay that's been rumored as being gay but never was confirmed. That way we can tell—like, what is he streaming? An Abraham Lincoln type. I could be the person to kind of shepherd that information to the world.

ShelfMAG: A prestige drama is made about your life. Who plays you? Who plays Amelia? And what's the Emmy submission clip?

@evanlazarus: That's so easy. Tina Fey pays me, and Amy Poehler plays Amelia. They'll have to color their hair or something. And the Emmy submission would be a tumultuous scene where two podcast hosts have to reckon with pseudo success along with chasing one's passion, while also living conjunction—like living with their partner at the same time, and how do those two things escalate with one another?

ShelfMAG: I love that this was easy for you, by the way. I’d need at least 30 minutes to answer that question. What item on your Shelf is most likely to stay there forever?

@evanlazarus: Obviously I can't say Girls. There's so many. I’m moved by so much media. The first, second and fifth season of The Simple Life. It's something I can never even imagine myself getting tired of. Watching Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie cause mass chaos because they were enacting like the most basic laws of comedy on a reality TV show and, and no show, I don't even think has come close to it. There are these two high status individuals doing all these low status activities but still acting high status the whole time. And it's so funny to watch. There's not a better show, I swear. God, it's so funny.

ShelfMAG: Sanasa. I concur. No, genuinely, I do. It's one of those shows where if you see a clip of it online, you're never skipping. Like you're going to engage every time. You're going to pause.

@evanlazarus: They said so much. And it captured such a specific cultural moment too.

Curious about what else Evan is into? Get real-time updates at shelf.im/evanlazarus