13 Hall of Fame Jokes from Jay Pharoah

Whether it’s on Saturday Night Live, on the stand-up stage or in films like this weekend’s new release The Blackening, Jay Pharoah always makes his presence felt. His hilarious presence, sharp joke writing and indelible impressions have solidified his space within the comedy community as a multi-threat talent you’d be mistaken in trying to shoehorn into one comedic box.

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With all of this in mind, we want to present this Jay Pharoah highlight reel of jokes and moments for our Comedy Hall of Fame...

13 On White People

“White folks, I love y’all. I used to live in a dangerous neighborhood, and when I saw y’all walking around, I’d feel safe. Because I know when it all come down to it, y’all will get robbed before I will.”

12 Doing Impressions with Jamie Foxx

To raise money for charity on Ellen, Pharoah unleashed some impressions alongside the Oscar winner. Despite also being well-known for his uncanny mimicry, Foxx took a backseat to allow Pharoah to shine by mostly “yes, and-ing” him.

11 On Cuffing Season

10 As Steven A. Smith on ‘SNL’

Pharoah displayed one of his more bombastic impressions as the explosive ESPN shouting head, hitting the high notes perfectly.

9 On the Dangers of Australia

“I just came back from Australia, where everything cuddly can kill you. Just imagine Care Bears with assault rifles.”

8 The ‘Unstoppable’ Movie Trailer

On SNL, Pharoah and his fellow cast members tore down the paper-thin plot of Unstoppable in a parody trailer that showed off Pharoah’s giggle-smiling Denzel Washington impression.

7 As Barack Obama

Pharoah did his impeccable Obama impersonation after the real Obama’s reelection in 2012 and really went for the jugular in terms of with how badly Republicans dropped the ball that year.

6 Thanksgiving Songs

Pharoah appeared on Weekend Update to perform some impressions/raps of new Thanksgiving songs for all of us to listen to while we ignore our families and eat turkey.

5 On the Disrespect of Associate Degrees

“An associate’s degree is basically like a college saying, ‘Yeah, we associate with you, but we just don’t fuck with you.’”

4 As Principal Frye

Pharoah wasn’t only among the funniest impressionists to grace the 30 Rock stage, but he also pulled out hilarious original characters from his comedic bag, such as the strict and uniquely verbose Principal Frye.

3 ‘SNL’s The Jay Pharoah Show

As a means of blending his impressions with cringe comedy in the vein of SNL’s classic Chris Farley Show sketches, Pharoah got to interview Daniel Radcliffe while shoehorning in his various voices.

2 Rapping About Travel

As part of the overlooked YouTube original series Champaign ILL, Pharoah dropped bars about flying and celebrity living with his comedic rap song “Jet Lag.”