Comedienne - Buff Bay

Nothing brings tears to your eyes and leaves you a gasp like laughter. Laughter is the 

elixir for anger and sorrow and comedienne Rashida Lucas (formerly Buff Bay) knows 

exactly how to humor you until you’re hunched over. The Chicago native took her 

comical cues from Def Comedy Jam & Comic View growing up and became friends with 

comedians such as Shawn Morgan and Baldhead Phillips. Hanging around comedians 

gave her a natural transition into the comedy circuit. Rashida’s support for Shawn 

Morgan’s act turned into her soaking up the art of comedy. “I would watch him on stage 

& say to myself, ‘I can do that,’” Rashida says. Once Shawn Morgan’s career took off 

comedian Baldhead Phillips became her mentor, coaching her in writing sessions and 

prepping her for the stage. Baldhead Phillips couldn’t be more proud and happy for 

Rashida. "She is a hell of a writer who talks about her own life experiences, a strong 

mother and a hell of a good friend and very serious about this craft," he says.

Open mic night six years ago at Jokes & Notes is where she premiered her talent before 

Damon Williams and Deon Cole; two of Chicago’s own comedy veterans. The JSpot in 

Los Angeles and Cloud IX in Atlanta are other comedy clubs Rashida has tickled funny 

bones. But Jokes & Notes has been her home for humor. She’s performed there for the 

Just For Laughs - “5-Star Leading Ladies” show since 2010. Rashida’s edgy comedy 

is all about self reflection that makes light of her lifes circumstances, yet celebrates the 

odds she has overcome. Lessons come along with her laughs. “I want people to learn 

from my mistakes so that they can go about doing things differently,” Rashida says.

Life is no joke for Rashida. Her three daughters are the reason she sets the bar high for 

herself. She has written comedy sketches, acted in the short film "A Man's Gotta Do" 

and hosts "The Laugh & Tears Show" internet radio show. She was even a bouncer in 

clubs for a year and a half. Yet, in a man’s world of comedy, her silliness is never taken 

seriously enough. She is judged before she delivers a joke and labeled before laughter 

erupts from her audience, simply because she is a woman. All of this is displayed in 

the forthcoming “Simply Comedians”, a documentary (featuring Rashida and others) 

that addresses the real lives of upcoming Chicago comedians. Remember the name 

Rashida Lucas. She is well on her way to breaking the glass ceiling of comedy with a 

punch line that goes down in history making her one of the greatest in the business of 

laughter.