Nate Bargatze
Nathanael Bargatze, known professionally as Nate Bargatze, is a comedian born on March 25, 1979, in Nashville, Tennessee. Carol and Stephen Bargatze are his parents; Stephen Bargatze's career included roles as a clown, motivational speaker, and history teacher, whereas Carol Bargatze was employed in the ticket office for the Vanderbilt Commodores. He spent his early education at DuPont Elementary School until fourth grade, followed by Donelson Christian Academy (DCA), graduating in 1997. Though he participated in track and field at DCA, he was cut from both basketball and golf. After briefly attending Volunteer State Community College and Western Kentucky University, where he failed all classes in his first semester, Bargatze pursued various jobs including construction, a cellphone kiosk, furniture delivery, Applebee's, and as a meter-reader. Inspired by The Bob & Tom Show, he decided to pursue comedy. He moved to Chicago in 2002 and attended The Second City and Jim Rauth’s Comedy College, performing at Zanies Comedy Club in both Chicago and Nashville. In 2004, he moved to New York City and took a job as a barker at the Boston Comedy Club. Bargatze's comedy style is considered 'clean,' characterized by a deadpan, monotone delivery, and often draws inspiration from his family and upbringing. Bargatze’s debut on Comedy Central's Live at Gotham occurred in 2008, followed by a performance at the Just for Laughs comedy festival in Montreal later that year. From 2008, he toured with the USO, entertaining troops internationally. He co-hosted the podcast It Could Be Better from 2009 to 2013, and won the New York's Comedy Festival and the Boston Comedy Festival in 2010. His first 30-minute comedy special premiered on Comedy Central Presents in 2011. 2 on the Billboard Top Ten Comedy Charts. Achieving the status of highest-grossing stand-up comic in 2024, Bargatze sold more than a million tickets and established new records in 20 arenas. His Netflix releases consist of three specials: *The Tennessee Kid* (2019), *The Greatest Average American* (2021, Grammy nominee), and *Nate Bargatze: Hello World* (2023), with the latter being Amazon’s most-watched original comedy special within its initial 28 days. He is scheduled to premiere ‘Your Friend, Nate Bargatze’ on Netflix December 24th, 2024 as part of a two-special deal. Nate Bargatze is described by The Atlantic Magazine as "The Nicest Man in Stand-Up" and by CBS Morning as "One of the Funniest People." He is also an author, podcaster, director, and producer. In 2023, he founded Nateland Entertainment, a family-friendly content company, and was ranked #1 earning comedian in the world by Pollstar and #12 in overall live tour ticket sales. He has hosted Saturday Night Live twice in 2023 and again in the fall of 2024. He is scheduled to emcee the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards in September 2025. Bargatze has a contract with Capitol Comedy, a label under Universal Music Group Nashville, and will both star in and produce the family comedy film *The Breadwinner* for TriStar Pictures. He has been married to Laura Bargatze since 2006, and they have a child named Harper.