Steve Harvey quit stand-up comedy over cancel culture: ‘Comedy is too hard to do right now’
Steve Harvey isn’t regretting his big move to leave stand-up comedy more than a decade ago. The famous “Family Feud” host, now 68, opened up about it on the latest episode of “The Pivot Podcast.” He explained why he stepped away from the comedy stage amid the rise of cancel culture and changing times in entertainment.
During the chat, podcast host Channing Crowder pointed out how even on “Family Feud,” Harvey sometimes holds back on jokes that might cross the line today. “I can see the clock working where you got a joke, but you’re not allowed to say that joke,” Crowder said.
Harvey nodded along and shared his side. “It’s very hard,” he replied. He quit stand-up around 2012 or 2015—dates blur a bit, but the point stands—because his career had exploded. He was juggling tons of shows, building a huge body of work, and making good money. “I had to let something go,” he said. As a father of seven, touring on weekends would have meant missing out on family time. “I wouldn’t even have a family,” he added with a laugh.
But it wasn’t just about the schedule. Harvey saw the shifts coming in comedy. “Change is inevitable,” he stressed. He knew cancel culture was spreading fast, making stand-up tougher than ever. “Comedy is too hard to do right now,” Harvey said. “All you got to do is look at how cancel culture works.” He chose to bow out before it got too messy, opting to “react or participate” by simply walking away.
Harvey wrapped up his stand-up era with a massive final show at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas back in August 2012. The two-hour special aired live on pay-per-view, marking the end of 27 wild years on stage. At the time, he reflected, “It’s been a wild ride over these years on stage, radio, TV and more. The road to this final show has been an amazing journey… I can’t thank fans enough after reflecting on all those years on stage, and the unforgettable moments and jokes we’ve shared.”
These days, Harvey keeps busy without the comedy grind. He hosts “Family Feud,” “Celebrity Family Feud,” and “The Steve Harvey Morning Show.” He also ran the Miss Universe pageant from 2015 to 2019 and had his own syndicated talk show from 2012 to 2017. To the podcast hosts, he gave some solid advice: “Y’all got a podcast and you’re doing it brilliantly. Please don’t stop. The problem with people is, they get something that’s working and then they wanna find something that works better. You ain’t gotta fix it if it ain’t broke.”
Harvey’s story shows how even comedy legends adapt to new rules in showbiz. Fans of Steve Harvey comedy and “Family Feud” episodes will love hearing his take on why he left stand-up comedy behind.
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