On her new late-night HBO series, PAUSE with Sam Jay, writer-comedian Sam Jay (who most recently was writing on Saturday Night Live) takes a different approach to the late-night format. “I knew I didn’t want to do a desk thing,” Jay shares, “and I didn’t want to do a straight-to-camera monologue thing. All that stuff just didn’t feel like me.” What she happened on was just chillin’. Pouring some drinks, lounging with the squad, and giving viewers a bird’s eye view on topics that have an impact on the Black community. Like the idea of what a “coon” is, in all aspects of the word.
Jay’s quick-wit and blunt delivery makes for honest reactions in real conversation, be it major jokes or more poignant moments. Judging off the first episode, it feels like it could be a place to help facilitate change. Or at the very least for people to take a pause, take in some Black realness, and laugh your ass off along the way.
During a quick chat with Jay, the now late-night host talks how the show got that unique title, the story behind the chill aspect of the series, and what she’s working on next.
I think I understand where the title for the show comes from, but I need you to explain to me what was the decision behind calling the show PAUSE with Sam Jay?
Probably just because I’m an asshole and I like to poke fun at things and do jerky stuff. And I’m very Black and tapped into the Black culture, so I know “pause” is a way to say, “stop doing something homosexual.” And I found that to be very funny, but then also, I think that’s what the show is asking people to do, in a way. And I think it is like, “Hey, take a beat and just give someone who you don’t necessarily think you’ll understand some room to speak.” And also take a beat and think before you’re just yelling reactionary things back. And so it was both of those reasons. Comedically, it was entertaining as hell to me and there was the back end of that.
I know when you’re talking to Prentice there’s one conversation, but when you have to then present that to HBO, was it a conversation like, “Well, what does this mean?” Were they skeptical about allowing that to be the title of the show? Or were they like, “The Sam show let’s go?”
They were like, “The Sam show let’s go.” And I think they honestly only know the other thing. So they only think about it like, “Oh, you’re saying pause.” They’re not tapped in enough to know that it’s also some dickhead shit.
Talk about how the show came to be.
Basically, it just started with me and Prentice talking a bunch about what we wanted it to be and what we wanted it to feel like. I knew I didn’t want to do a desk thing and I didn’t want to do a straight-to-camera monologue thing. All that stuff just didn’t feel like me. It didn’t feel like who I was as a comic and who I was as a voice. It just didn’t seem like the best way to get my voice out there, so I was just trying to find something that fit me. And I’m pretty much at my best when I’m drunk at a party, screaming at somebody, some wild point that I’m trying to make.
So I was at my house hanging out with one of the writers and we were talking about what it could be and I was still not liking the idea we had. It was close, but I was just like, “Oh, this still feels contrived and wack in a way that I don’t like.” And then I was like, “Oh, it should be a party. It should be a party at my house.” And he was like, “Yeah, it should just feel like a hang.” I was like, “Oh, that’d be dope if we could just make it feel like a hang.” And we just started getting into that of like, “Oh, that’s when people are kind of at their most comfortable. That’s when people are honest. That’s when people are uninhibited.” That night I was like, “Yeah and I don’t want people on to do their talking points.” You know what I mean? That just felt like the best kind of mechanism to do that.
I told Prentice the idea and he was like, “Yo, that could be dope.” And I was like, “Yeah, right. It could be dope.” And then we were like, “Let’s see if it’s dope.”
In the first episode, you brought up the idea of having a special, having a joke that you thought was funny and then it turning into something else when people take it in. In seeing how people have been reviewing and dissecting Michael’s stuff, are you preparing yourself for that side of things?
No. That’s the nature of it. Right? You put stuff out there, people are going to interpret it and go however they go. Me and Prentice often will joke and be like, “Either you’re going to love the show or you’re going to hate it.” It doesn’t leave a lot of room for people in the middle. It’s like, you’re either going to get it and you’re going to be like, “I’m in and I get this.” Or you’re going to be like, “How dare she?” You know what I mean? And I don’t know. I’m a person that takes big swings. I don’t know how else to have fun.
It feels like people are trying to re-establish the idea of taking those big swings, taking those risks for the sake of real conversation, and advancing what we’re doing and I think you end up getting real moments. The premise of you talking to two Black conservatives is one thing, and while I don’t want to give it away, there’s a real moment. She shared her truth with you. I’m assuming that came out of nowhere.
Out of nowhere.
What was going through your mind?
I honestly was just like, “Oh shit. Is she really doing this?” I’m 39 years old. I just saw a kid. I just saw a kid who was nervous and scared and confused, but trying to be brave in a moment and was very brave in a moment. And I just wanted to give her a hug and be like, “It’s going to be OK.” All the mama love came out of me. Just like, “Come here, baby. It’s all right.”
As someone who is a comedian who is also writing for shows, now you’ve also got your own show. Are you someone who may be hoarding some of your funnier jokes for your own series? What was the one bit? “The flag made out of Morgan Freeman’s moles.”
Yes and no. And I have to say that that was a Zach Fox pitch.
That makes sense.
It’s such a Zach Fox thing. Some of what’s smart about me is I empower people to be themselves. But also, at SNL, you know the boundaries. You learn them pretty quickly, of where they’re going to allow you to go. This show was definitely a space to fully play.
What else are you going to tackle this season?
We’re talking about celebrity culture. We’re talking about identity and how we don’t allow, especially Black people, to be different and weird, but we do allow some Black people… like we’ll let Andre 3000 have a million iterations of himself and be like, “That’s awesome.” But then as someone living next door to you just dyed their hair, you’d be like, “Bro, what the fuck up with you?” You know what I’m saying? So it was like, what is that about and how do we break out of that and what does that mean for us as a culture and also how do we push past it and how do we embrace this idea of change and growth in that you can be several iterations of yourself and that is absolutely okay. We talk about politics. We talk about money. Yeah. That’s about it.
What else are you working on? What’s next after the world gets to see the show?
Well, what’s next is Jak Knight, Chris Redd, Langston Kerman, and myself, we sold the show called Bust Down to Peacock. They made a six-episode order. We’re going to be shooting that over the summer in Los Angeles. Hopefully, I get to get some touring in. I want to start working on another special soon, maybe in the fall. Hopefully, there’s a PAUSE Season 2. And then hopefully I get to sleep for a long time.
