香蕉秀

Joe McCartney 鈥�19, who studied finance and information systems at 香蕉秀, is four years into a successful corporate career. But what he鈥檚 known for鈥攚hat gets him recognized every weekend around Boston鈥攁re the wildly popular comedy videos he posts to social media. In his riffs on the minutiae of life in the city for a young professional, he portrays a variety of familiar characters鈥攁n exhausted participant in an office Zoom meeting, someone on a cringe-inducing first date, or, yes, one of the T subway lines. Capturing these absurdities of modern life has earned McCartney more than one hundred thousand followers on both TikTok and Instagram, and even given him a dose of celebrity in Boston. 鈥淎ny Boston bar I go out to, someone鈥檚 going to point at me and be like, 鈥榊ou鈥檙e the TikTok guy,鈥欌�� he said. His most popular video on that platform鈥攊n which his love of Hulu鈥檚 The Bear inspires him to act like the main character鈥攈as been viewed more than ten million times, a number that would have been unfathomable when he started. 鈥淣ow, if I don鈥檛 even get ten thousand views, I鈥檓 like, 鈥榳hat a waste of time,鈥欌�� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 crazy how quickly the goalposts move as you grow.鈥�

But if McCartney鈥檚 face is well known these days, his name is not. He posts his videos under the pseudonym Fenti Fried Chicken, a version of his original handle, Fentucky Fried Chicken, which was a play on his favorite fast food chain. McCartney, who made his first video in 2021, is usually the only person on camera, wearing just enough of a costume to suggest, say, an office worker or a diehard Boston sports fan as he speaks to an imagined character who is out of frame.聽

Growing up in Massachusetts, McCartney memorized the stand-up routines of his favorite comedians, including one by Brian Regan that he recited in a third-grade talent show. 鈥淕etting that initial laughter from my classmates was a rush,鈥� he recalled. When he got to 香蕉秀, he began writing for the New England Classic, the University鈥檚 satirical newspaper.

These days, McCartney has weekly stand-up gigs at Boston area venues such as Bleacher Bar and Bill鈥檚 Bar. He鈥檚 also diligent about his social media schedule, posting six new videos per week. 鈥淎 lot of times I film three or four videos in one go and edit them all, usually on the bus or the train to a show,鈥� he said. He manages all of this while succeeding in his day job as a senior associate at the professional services network PwC. 鈥淚 like having two jobs,鈥� McCartney said, 鈥渂ecause it forces you to sit down and say, 鈥楢ll right, I can鈥檛 procrastinate.鈥欌��

McCartney said he plans to continue building his business career while doing comedy on the side, and to keep asking himself the important questions about his dual pursuits. 鈥淚t鈥檚, am I enjoying myself? Am I having fun?,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the best perspective."聽聽