Meet Matt Friend, whose comedy has impressed celebrities, politicians – and King Charles
Friend, whose CNN comedy special aired ahead of the White House correspondents’ dinner, is gaining acclaim for his celebrity impressions
Matt Friend is making waves. The 27-year-old stand-up comedian, who is known for his impersonations of politicians and celebrities, just wrapped up America Laughs With Matt Friend. The CNN comedy special aired on April 24 and was timed to coincide with the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) dinner in Washington DC – which, of course, made headlines when gunshots were fired near the main security screening area. There were no casualties among the dinner guests, and a suspect has already been taken into custody.
The comedy special wasn’t Friend’s first brush with the prestigious event though. In fact, in 2024, he was invited to perform at the WHCA dinner by then-President Joe Biden.
Meanwhile, earlier in the week, Friend met and charmed King Charles with an impression of the monarch on his four-day US visit.
Friend has amassed 2 million followers on Instagram and over a million followers on TikTok at the time of writing. Here’s everything you need to know about Friend, who has 250 impressions up his sleeves.
He wanted to be a comedian since childhood
Matthew Friend was born in Chicago on June 24, 1998. He fell in love with comedy after watching the Austin Powers film series when he was only four years old. He would practice imitating the movie’s characters and do impressions at family gatherings, per Washington Square News, New York University’s independent student newspaper.