Mike Epps' raucous Indy comedy night probes Oscar slaps, potholes, R. Kelly and more

For nearly three hours Saturday night, a squadron of richly experienced comics riffed on the COVID-19 pandemic, daily life, American politics and prickly popular culture figures with only a few stray jokes and one comedian's set missing the mark for a packed Gainbridge Fieldhouse audience.

Comedian and actor Mike Epps launched the Straight Jokes! No Chaser comedy tour in his hometown, acting as host and emcee for a stacked bill featuring DC Young Fly, Earthquake, D.L. Hughley and Cedric the Entertainer.

Most of the venerable performers managed to pull off something rare in modern comedy: They waded into controversial subjects, such as Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at last year's Academy Awards, gauged whether the audience was with them and made corresponding moves.

Cedric and Epps, for example, made quick work of the Rock-Smith debacle: If someone that rich would have slapped me, both essentially said, I'd be going to court and getting paid.

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The crowd, largely Black folks over 40, appeared supportive as Hughley and Cedric performed lengthy bits on musician and repeat sex offender R. Kelly. He may be a reprehensible human being, both explained, but they aren't quite ready to let go of his hits. More than once the situation was likened to similar feelings about Michael Jackson's legacy.

One comedian, I believe it was Epps, fired an errant shot into the crowd with a crass joke about pop singer Lizzo's weight. The laughter was a bit more sparse, and he moved on quickly.

Most importantly, no one felt the need to drone on incessantly about "cancel culture" or free speech, nor did they feel the need to poke and prod the controversial subject matter to death — as some of the big Gen X names in comedy seem fixated upon doing. They exercised free speech without narrating that fact through a furry of good, quick jokes on a variety of topics. You know. Stand-up comedy.

Epps was perfectly suited to the host role, dancing and hyping up the crowd between sets. His last comedy special, "Indiana Mike," filmed at the Madam Walker Legacy Center in 2021, featured a lot of similar crowd work. It seems to be a comfort area.

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He did not perform a full set, but he gave the crowd a little taste early on. Epps weighed in on Indianapolis neighborhoods, took a massive swipe at Greenwood and joked about the Fieldhouse's frequent name changes.

Epps also tasted the low-hanging fruit we all subsist on: Potholes.

"I got a flat just looking at one of those holes," he told the crowd.

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It's easy, and it will never not get a laugh. I'm as guilty as anyone. You know what would really show all of these pesky comedians and smartass newspaper people? A well-thought-out, long-term solution from city leaders that deals with this persistent municipal issue. That would be the worst. We would hate that.

Epps's crowd work gave way to DC Young Fly. He was the youngest on the bill and known for his YouTube and social media presence, musical career and time on Nick Cannon's "Wild 'N Out" TV series.

Young Fly took a much more theatrical approach than the joke-heavy sets that followed him, performing multiple characters and singing as part of longer bits. He had me nearly in tears during two such explorations of Black churches and funerals. I may not have been the target audience, but he was genuinely hilarious.

His performance was interrupted several times by shouted sound quality complaints from people in Gainbridge's upper seating areas. He acknowledged the issue, but folks seemed intent on escalating into heckling as he continued on. The young comedian parried the continued interruptions by suggesting they purchase better seats next time, to huge laughs.

Earthquake was next.

I found him to be pretty decent, but the crowd was less enthused. He seemed to labor through some of his jokes and grow a bit combative when they didn't land. He eventually left the stage without much in the way of a closing joke.

Hughley followed with what had to be a near-world record for jokes per minute. He fired a machine gun of new and old material at the crowd: COVID, politics, family life, growing up, making money, Bill Cosby.

Most of it landed beautifully, and his delivery was impressive. He got a lot out without stumbling in his thoughts or speech.

Cedric went last, and he absolutely killed. It was the funniest single comedy set I've seen in years.

He masterfully weaved through controversial, topical and slice-of-life segments. He told the crowd about jumping the COVID-19 vaccination line by sneaking into a pop-up clinic in a rough Los Angeles neighborhood, as well as his struggle to look manly while riding a Peloton bike.

Cedric, a Missouri native, even displayed a little local knowledge by riffing on what he said was Black people's disinterest in the Indianapolis 500.

Epps deserves commendation for launching a big comedy tour's maiden voyage from his hometown port with such a strong show. This lineup could probably draw ticket sales in most U.S. cities, but we got first dibs. Count me in with the thousands of people who left the Fieldhouse late Saturday night grateful we did.

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Rory Appleton is the pop culture reporter and columnist at IndyStar. Contact him at 317-552-9044 and rappleton@indystar.com, or follow him on Twitter at @RoryDoesPhonics.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Review: Mike Epps, Cedric the Entertainer, D.L. Hughley in Indianapolis