There’s A Very Specific Type of Woman Keeping Matt Rife Relevant

On Matt Rife’s Instagram and TikTok accounts, the same crowd-work stand-up routine is pinned. It’s an extended MILF bit about a beautiful blonde in the front row who gifted the comedian a Tupperware of cookies and a shirt that read “I came to Iowa and all I got was this shirt and a blow job.” Rife bites into the cookie, then lauds the woman with compliments on both her baked goods and the cookies. 

The clip was posted more than two years ago on both TikTok and Instagram. On Instagram, it has more than 1.5 million likes and still receives new comments daily. On TikTok, it’s been viewed almost 62 million times. It’s one of several viral crowd-work bits where there’s a flirtation element or where Rife starts taking his belt off for an audience member.

While Rife made headlines for his first Netflix special, where he tried to shirk his predominantly female audience through a domestic violence joke, I don’t think he ever really wanted to be free of that crowd. He even addressed the controversy during a later stand-up set, saying, “I hated that because women are the ones who gave me the career I have right now, and I’d never be anything less than grateful for that,” in December 2023. “I don’t feel like I lost any female fans.” 

According to data from Billboard, Rife was the top touring comedian for June 2025. He grossed over $4.25 million from 52,000 tickets across five shows. He also recently became the youngest comedian to ever sell out Madison Square Garden. 

Now, there’s no official data on the breakdown of the demographics for the ticket holders for these shows, but if you survey his engagement on social media, you can get a pretty good idea of who his primary audience is. A random sampling:

• A middle-aged woman named Wendy on a photo of Rife holding a puppy: “You are so entertaining. Thanks for the laughs.”
• A middle-aged woman named Stacy on a tour announcement poster: “I’m going to see him in August and I can’t freaking wait. It’s the best birthday present I could’ve ever given myself. I hope I can still find my tix!!”
• A middle-aged woman named Tonya on a portrait photo of Rife: “Love this amazing man!”
• A middle-aged woman named Dee on a different photo of Rife holding a puppy: “Need to come to Miami Fl soon! Would luv to see you! We’re huge fans!”

Are you sensing the theme?

Rife is certainly aware of it — in fact, a quick look at his entire public profile quickly establishes that Rife is catering almost exclusively to middle-aged women; the comments above all even came from women with bleach blonde hair, if we’re getting down to exact specifics. It’s why the pinned MILF clip — and the later reunion with the same woman at another show — is so telling. 

Rife isn’t just selling tickets to a comedy show; he’s selling a crowd-work fantasy, mostly to white middle-aged women across the country. It’s a fantasy of getting discovered in the crowd and laden with compliments both to their domestic prowess and their sexual desirability. This fantasy is buffeted with Rife’s constant efforts to maintain his boyish charm: posing with puppies, constant admissions of gratitude and an endless stream of flash photos capturing that sharp, sharp jawline. 

I don’t fault the women who buy into this — I buy into a million fantasies a day when I scroll on my phone. We all do; for this subset of women, it’s Matt Rife.

It’s not unreasonable that women of a certain age are enthralled by the idea that a young, rich, perfectly chiseled man might spend the night telling them they’re just as sexy as their more youthful counterparts. Whether you think that chiseling is plastic surgery is a different conversation for another day; it’s certainly not a debate I’d want to get into with Dee, Tonya, Wendy or Stacy.

Rife isn’t hurting anyone by targeting moms, aunts and the women who are the backbone of administrative teams across the country. It’s just a little bit cynical that it’s his big shtick. 

Just don’t go breaking my mom’s heart, Rife.