Hatoon Kadi

In our season finale, Hatoon talks about the video that accidentally went viral and made her famous. From being named as BBC’s 100 Women in 2014 to dealing with trolls, this is the journey of Saudi’s first female comedian. Follow Hatoon Kadi on social media: @hatoonkadi. This episode was produced by Hebah Fisher and Dana Ballout, with editorial support by Linah Mohammad and Alex Atack. Sound design by Mohamad Khreizat, and fact-checking by Zeina Dowidar. Our original sting was composed by Ramzi Bashour. al empire is a Kerning Cultures Network production. Search ‘Kerning Cultures Network’ to hear other podcasts like this one, and follow @kerningcultures on Instagram to stay in touch! This episode is supported by Calo, an app that provides personalized meal plan subscriptions. Download Calo here https://bit.ly/41il08u to get 10% off using code KC10 . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hatoon Kadi is a Saudi Arabian comedienne, best known for her YouTube show Noon Alniswa , where she has over 355,000 subscribers. Hatoon uses satire to present social phenomena from a woman's perspective, and is one of the funniest people I've ever met. Perfectly bilingual in Arabic and English, she also teaches Research Methodology at a private university. Hatoon started her career as IT support – that person you call if you're computer gives you blue screen of death, or your hard drive self-combusts. Cables and mouses were not her end game and she pursued her PhD in social science & information systems. Hatoon was inspired to start creating content while she was doing her PhD, when she realized that there were plenty of Saudi Arabian internet comedians, but almost no women at the time. We had a high-energy discussion about her path, going from IT personnel to YouTube comedy. We talked about how Hatoon's career prior to freelance comedy instilled in her habits that have served her well professionally. We talked about the messages we receive as children and why they should be revisited. We covered cyber-bullying, the imposter syndrome and self-worth. Hatoon also shared practical tips on content creation. My two favorite quotes of the episode are: "Knowledge is nothing without sharing it". And "It's brave to quit if things are not working". Hatoon recommended books by two Egyptian authors: Youssef El Sibai and Mustafa Mahmoud - as well as the work of Elizabeth Gilbert. To see Hatoon in action, head to her YouTube channel Noon Alniswa . If you'd like to get in touch with Hatoon, you can find her @hatoonkadi on Twitter and Instagram . Wherever you are, please remember to subscribe to the podcast - and if available, please tap a rating or write a review. Thank you!

Kim Chakanetsa hosts a conversation between one of Saudi Arabia's only female comedians and a Kenyan comic who performs her stand-up routine in the UK. Both love to laugh and to make people laugh. Hatoon Kadi took up comedy when she got bored of her office job. At the time she says the internet in Saudi Arabia was booming with comedy shows, but they were all fronted by men, so she decided to fill a gap in the market. Now Hatoon, and her comedy alter ego 'Noon al-Niswa', have attracted millions of fans across the region with sketches about everyday life for women in the Kingdom. It's not what you might think. Njambi McGrath grew up in Kenya. When she moved to the UK she was shocked at negative depictions of Africa and set herself the mission to try and change perceptions. Africa does have 'hunger, disease and war', Njambi says, but there is fun, laughter and happiness there too. As well as hearing each other's comedy sketches, Hatoon and Njambi talk about overturning western stereotypes of their homelands through humour, the art of developing a thick skin against critics, and how they find their material. (Picture: Hatoon Kadi (L) and Njambi McGrath)