Calhoun Tubbs

Blues singer who was one of David Allen Grier’s regular characters on the 1990-1994 sketch comedy series In Living Color. His shtick was that he’d talk a bit about something, then say “I wrote a song about it, like to hear it? Here it goes.” His songs, accompanied by a simple blues riff, were often quite cutting and offensive, starkly contrasting with Tubbs’ genial non-singing persona.

In a 2018 interview with The AV Club, Grier mentioned Tubbs was based on Shakey Jake, a real performer who used to play around the University of Michigan’s campus.

See also

• Mississippi Fatback Weatherspoon