Matt Rogers (born March 5, 1990)[1] is an American comedian, actor, writer, podcaster, television host, and recording artist. He is best known for co-hosting the pop culture podcast Las Culturistas with Bowen Yang since 2016. Rogers has been cited in academic work for his insight into the entertainment industry.[2]
Early life and education
Rogers was born to Richard and Katrina Rogers and raised on Long Island, New York.[3][4] Rogers attended Islip High School and was named prom king at his senior prom.[5][6] Rogers was on his high school's cross country team and ran a 4:36 mile at age 15, and during his senior year of high school he scored a perfect 100 on his New York State Regents English examination and a 5 on both the AP Language and Composition exam and the AP English Literature exam.[7][8] After graduating, he earned a BFA in dramatic writing from New York University (NYU).[9] While studying there, Rogers became a member of the improvisational group Hammerkatz and started studying at the Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) in 2009.[10][4] It was while at NYU that Rogers first met Bowen Yang.[11]
Career
While studying at UCB, Rogers performed in several shows, including Characters Welcome and Amazing Welcome; he also performed in the Maude team and served as the artistic director of the musical sketch comedy group, Pop Roulette.[4] In 2011, Rogers worked as an intern on the set of Teen Mom 2.[12] In 2016, Rogers was recognized as a "Comic to Watch" by Comedy Central.[13]
In 2020, Rogers hosted two television competition series. Gayme Show, co-hosted with Dave Mizzoni, was based on a popular comedy night in which straight men were quizzed on queer culture; the show aired for one season on the streaming platform Quibi.[16] The show was renewed for a second season, but Quibi closed in October 2020 before it could be produced. Also in 2020, Rogers became the host of Haute Dog, which aired on HBO Max and saw dog groomers compete for a cash prize.[17]
As a voice actor, Rogers serves as the voice of several recurring characters on the comedy series Our Cartoon President. Since 2021, he has voiced the character of Twink on the Netflix comedy Q-Force, on which he also serves as a writer.[20]
In December 2022 Rogers released his musical comedy special, Have You Heard of Christmas? on Showtime. The special follows Rogers's journey to entering the Christmas canon as the "Pop Prince of Christmas". The TV special features original songs and guest appearances by Bowen Yang, Josh Sharp, and Aaron Jackson.[21] The comedy special was developed into Rogers's debut album of the same name, which was released in November 2023 under Capitol Records.[22]
Personal life
After living in Brooklyn for an extended period, Rogers moved to Los Angeles as of 2019[update] and has since described himself as bicoastal with homes in both Los Angeles and New York City.[11] Rogers is gay, having come out while a student at NYU.[11][23] Rogers is also red-green color blind.[24][25]