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Could this mean that VidAngel, instead of streaming latest release movies with filters, will become the online “clean Comedy Central”?
While VidAngel is fighting a lawsuit over their clean movie streaming business, they are setting their sights on cleaning up another niche in entertainment—comedy. For now, that means launching a brick and mortar business. They are opening a clean comedy club this month in the center of Provo, Utah.
In a Facebook event that I was invited to by one of the Harmon Brothers (founders of VidAngel), it states: “VidAngel Studios is proud to present Dry Bar Comedy, Utah's hottest new comedy club! We will be hosting and filming live comedy specials.”
Dry Bar Comedy is a hilarious name because this bar will indeed be dry (hopefully, not as in, boring): the club will not allow smoking or alcohol. So you will be sipping a Coke and snacking on popcorn as you laugh. Since there's no alcohol served they can open up the club to ages 16 and up.
According to Dry Bar Comedy:
What happens when a clean content company moves into an old night club?
You get Utah's hottest new, family-friendly comedy club.
They have shows scheduled through February with Mormon and Christian performers. The first acts are stand-up comedians Aaron Woodall and Heath Harmison. Both have a national audience. Harmison performs regularly on the Las Vegas Strip at Planet Hollywood, The Tropicana, and the MGM Grand. My question is, will you please book Ryan Hamilton next??
My exposure to clean comedy comes mostly from working for The Blogger Network (now Monumetric) where every work day started with a meeting in which we watched a prescreened comedy clip off YouTube. I love a work environment where no matter what happens, you start your day with a laugh!
Dry Bar Comedy an Addition to Provo's Existing Clean Entertainment Scene
To the rest of the world this might seem hilarious to launch a PG or PG-13 comedy club that allows 16 year olds in. But you have to remember that they are launching in Provo, Utah. There's a market for it. The ComedySportz comedy club that is improv based has a location in Provo. They've been entertaining BYU students without booze for over 10 years (note: other locations do serve alcohol). This will add to the killer music scene that already exists in Provo with Velour Live Music Gallery and Muse Music (they don't serve liquor but do have beer and wine). Summers have rocked with jam packed Rooftop concert series. Neon Trees famously hailed from Provo.
Allow me a brief aside about the Provo music scene. When I attended BYU it was just getting started. The ska scene was huge. My then-boyfriend casually mentioned he played in a ska band Swim Herschel Swim that I didn't take that seriously—until I heard them play.
It looks like the Harmon Brothers are taking VidAngel in another direction as also-sued, Utah-founded, clean movie businesses – CleanFlicks and ClearPlay. So far VidAngel has said they will start creating and hosting original movies. I know they plan to add the film Life on Bitcoin, created by Austin Craig and his then-new wife, Beccy (as far as I know the movie isn't publicly available yet).
It looks like VidAngel will add streaming clean comedy shows. Will they add streaming music videos too?
Utah Cleans it Up in Business
As a marketer I'm a huge fan of the Harmon Brothers and their ability to entertain and sell with direct marketing YouTube videos. They crushed it with Purple mattress, Unicorn Gold, Squatty Potty, and more. Their success has been part of my success this year. I've been an affiliate for many of their products – as you can see from the above links to Purple and Unicorn Gold. I attended the première of the Unicorn Gold launch as media and hope to go to the first show at Dry Bar Comedy. Not only do I love how the Harmon Brothers market, I'm a huge fan of the products they've promoted. They've become part of my family. In other words, they have lived up to the hype.
When it comes to clean entertainment or MLM, Provo and Utah in general crush it. Utah is a great state for business – in fact, by some measures we're the best state in the nation for business. We have launched many successful entertainment businesses, both physical and digital. On the digital side, Utah has hundreds of influential bloggers and YouTube stars. We're home to Lindsey Stirling (who was #4 on the Forbes list of top paid YouTube celebs last year), The Piano Guys, and Devin Supertramp. On the blogging side there is everyone from Six Sisters Stuff, to Pink Peonies, and Cara Loren. That's just a tiny sample of the talent we have.
You know I love to root for the home team – so I wish The Harmon Brothers all the success in their new club and new direction. Here's hoping VidAngel and Dry Comedy Bar will clean up in more ways than one.
