WHY WE’RE A LITTLE OBSESSED WITH ‘A LITTLE LATE WITH LILLY SINGH’

They always say, nothing good ever happens after midnight.

(or was it 2AM?)

Stores lock up, tipsy texts get sent and if you live in LA it becomes surprisingly impossible to find ANY food that doesn’t entail a drive-through (!!!). But if you own a TV, then you may or may not have discovered that each weeknight at 1:35 AM a little show called A Little Late With Lilly Singh takes the stage at NBC.

Now, if you’re as consumed with late-night programming as much as I am (ha – which is not at all), then you know how the long-running, “Big 3” network shows all have a way of blurring together. Sure sure, there are the Jimmys, there’s James, there’s Seth, there’s Stephen. But unless you’re a super fan of a particular host, each show can feel arguably…kind of the same. Mainly because late-night ~clearly~ has a format that’s been used & abused for decades.

You know the one – the monologue, the sketches, the same TV/movie stars that’ve been on a million times before & the photos/articles hand-glued onto the SAME BLACK FOAM BOARD. Yep, that format. And that same, damn foam board. 

But in the midst of the late-night boys club, we now have Lilly! Who’s primarily been making headlines as the first host of a nightly, network late-night show that’s a woman, of color & also queer. Which is great! Of course. But IMO (as well as her own) – that’s only just the start.

From the very beginning it’s been pretty obvious that she’s not afraid to spearhead a show that rages against all the rest. Which is why we’re we’re a little obsessed with this newfound misfit of late-night and had to make a whole list for all the reasons why:

1: WHERE SHE CAME FROM (& NO I DON’T JUST MEAN CANADA)

Yes, Lilly was born and raised in Scarborough, Ontario, but her true claim to fame is being one of the highest paid YouTubers in the entire world. And while these days it’s not like social media stars are a foreign concept in general, bringing a champion of one medium onto another is always far trickier than anyone ever wants to admit.

Even if you have a huge audience on one platform, it doesn’t mean that audience utilizes other platforms in quite the same way. So expecting that a YouTube sensation with nearly 15 million subscribers and billions of views would be a bar none hit taking over a primo late-night slot on network TV traditionally watched by people that can remember what the world was like before everyone was glued to the Internet 24/7…….*exhale* did not go without saying.

Although, Lilly seems to be doing a lot better job than what I think most YouTubers could do. Considering she has great comedic timing, slays at interviewing and has the power to connect with lit-er-a-lly any human there is.

2: BREAKING THE LATE-NIGHT MOLD (…TO AN EXTENT)

As previously mentioned, we’re still talking about NBC here. So it’s not like the show doesn’t come with a lot of the same classic late-night elements in theory. There’s the opening monologue, celebrity guests and games that sometimes were better in theory than execution, but all in all it’s done with a spin that still feels unique and refreshing.

The celebrity guests aren’t necessarily the same A-listers you see making the week-long round to every talk show on the circuit. Instead, they’re people from the acting, music and app/technology scenes that all have clear ties to the types of content that Lilly’s audience consumes. And a lot of the material is also more pop-culture driven with dashes of social commentary, rather than just droning on about the same politically charged toxicity we can’t ever seem to escape in every other facet of life.

3: PUTTING A NEW SPIN ON STAFFING UP

I went to a live taping of the show just last week, and with that stumbled upon yet another super interesting quality: how diverse the crew truly is! Equipped with a MUCH wider variety of people in terms of race, age and gender than that of the average show, A Little Late clearly made it a point to staff up with a huge array of perspective—and it definitely shows. 

(sometimes more brazenly than others)

4: BEING 1000% UNAPOLOGETICALLY HERSELF

Boardroom-crafted personas, GOODBYE. If there’s one thing that’s glaringly obvious from the first ten seconds of ever watching Lilly it’s that, even on network TV, she is totally herself. Charismatic, loud and quirky just like the rest of us, it’s no secret why older, more traditional late-night audiences might not get her appeal whatsoever. But you know what? That’s totally okay.

There’s no way to win ‘em all these days, anyway.

(Photo by: Scott Angelheart/NBC – via Variety)

Like any new show, A Little Late certainly has a lot of room for growth. No matter what the platform, it always takes time to find your voice and carve out a vibe, so fingers crossed the suits will stand by long enough to let this show find its footing.

But needless to say it has a TON of potential, so we’re definitely excited to continue watching how it all turns out!

xxAA

P.S. Sorry for the nuclear long post – but if you’ve checked out the show, we’d love to hear your thoughts about it, too! 

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