Baddies Comedy Company shares spotlight with Kevin Hart

ST. PAUL, Minn. (KMSP) - Baddies Comedy Company has been open for less than a year, but it has already caught the attention of a Hollywood heavyweight.

For six and a half years, Bruce Leroy Williams has performed in comedy clubs around the Twin Cities, but now he is about to appear on his biggest stage yet.

"I feel good," said Williams. "I've been feeling the love from the city. My phone has been going crazy with notifications, phone calls, texts - not just from the city, but from everywhere."

Earlier this year, Williams along wth fellow comedians, Pierre Douglas and Brandon Riddley started Baddies Comedy Company in St. Paul. Williams says their mission, to cultivate and expand the Twin Cities urban comedy scene, is no joke.

"It was hard to get stage time," said Williams. "There's a lot more clubs for comedians who aren't urban comedians. There's two or three that they'll allow in, but there aren't too many they will let in. We were tired of fighting that, so we decided to create our own opportunity."

Within months of opening, the King of Comedy, Kevin Hart, caught wind of the makeshift club and came to town to tape an episode of his show "Hart of the City", which features undiscovered talent in different cities.

He showcases Williams as well as fellow Twin Cities comedians of color Ali Sultan, Earl Elliot and Greg Coleman II.

"To know what we are doing is paying off in the long run and hear that the number one comedian in the world is going to come and recognize your club, your comedy is definitely verification you are on the right path," Williams said.

Williams says he is grateful for his big break, but he hopes the local comedy scene has the last laugh.

"It's so many crazy talented comedians in the urban comedy scene that people don't even know about," he said. "You gotta get out to their shows. There's shows all the time."

Baddies is transitioning to more of a traveling comedy club and they have a couple of shows planned around the Twin Cities over the next couple of months.

The "Hart of the City" episode featuring Baddies and Williams debuts Friday night on Comedy Central.