Do You Know Trevor Noah?

Trevor Noah is a well known international stand-up comedian who was born in Soweto, South Africa on February 20, 1984, to a Black Xhosa mother and a white Swiss-German father. His parent’s union was illegal because of the country’s apartheid system, which officially sponsored racial oppression and segregation. Though his parents tried to conduct their relationship in secret, Noah’s mother was frequently jailed for short periods of time and Noah would often be hidden from authorities. Some of his experiences he had growing up, included the deep poverty his family endured, which became the subject of Noah’s comedic work, which often looked at the racial dynamics of his native country.

Noah appeared in a soap opera in his late teens. He was dared by his friends which lead him to take the comedy stage. His friends noticed that he could speak several languages, about six languages fluently and imitate accents fluently.

The South African Music Awards hosted Noah’s one man show known as “The Daywalker” which was also filmed as a documentary. Little did he know that he was on his way to becoming an International stand-up star. He performed in the United States, had an opportunity to be on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and that made Noah the first South African comedian to appear on the program. He later held his own comedy special on Showtime.