Rachel Feinstein (comedian)

This article is about the American stand-up comedian. For the visual artist of the same name, see Rachel Feinstein (artist).

Rachel Feinstein
Feinstein performing at the Eastville Comedy Club in New York City on December 26, 2014
Born	(1980-11-03) November 3, 1980 (age 43) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Medium	Stand-up, film, television
Genres	Observational comedy[1][2][3]
Spouse	Peter Brennan ​ (m. 2018)​
Children	1
Website	rachel-feinstein.com

Rachel Feinstein (/ˈfaɪnstaɪn/; born November 3, 1980) is an American actress and stand-up comedian. Feinstein was a finalist on season 7 of Last Comic Standing (2010). In 2011, she released her first comedy album, Thug Tears. Her first comedy special, Only Whores Wear Purple, was released in 2016 on Comedy Central, and her second special, Big Guy, was released on Netflix in 2024.

Early life

Feinstein was born in Washington, D.C.^[4] and grew up in Bethesda, Maryland.^[5] Her father, Howard Feinstein,^[6] was a civil rights lawyer and a blues musician and her mother, Karen, was a social worker.^[7] Her father is of Russian and Polish Jewish ancestry,^[8] whereas her mother was raised a Methodist,^[9] converting to Judaism upon marrying her father.^[10] Feinstein's mother was raised in the Mojave Desert region of California, and met Feinstein's father while the two were studying at the University of California, Santa Barbara.^[9]

Feinstein has said that she was a poor student and "barely graduated" high school.^[11] She moved to New York City at age 17 with her then-boyfriend, a musician.^[12] After breaking up with her boyfriend, Feinstein "did some theater first. Then I started doing open mics. The first time I went out was at a bar that was doing a comedy night and I bombed wildly. I just kept trying to go up and do those bringer shows where you have to bring like five people just to get on stage. I didn’t know many people in New York, so I would just try to make friends with people and bother them into coming to shows."^[12]

Career

Feinstein was a finalist on season 7 of Last Comic Standing (2010).^[13] She played a comedian performing as herself in the feature film Her Composition (2015), directed by Stephan Littger.^[14] In 2011, she released Thug Tears, her first comedy album, through Comedy Central Records.^[1]

In 2013, she was featured on the video game Grand Theft Auto V, providing the voice of Michelle Makes.^[15] Feinstein released her first comedy special, Only Whores Wear Purple, in 2016.^[12]

She subsequently appeared on the HBO series Crashing (2017–2019),^[16] and in the comedy series Inside Amy Schumer (2013–2022), and Life & Beth (2022).^[17] Feinstein was also featured on an episode of The Standups (2018).^[17] She has performed sets on Conan, The Tonight Show and The Late Late Show.

Personal life

In September 2018, Feinstein married Peter Brennan, a Battalion Chief of the New York City Fire Department.^[18] Best friend and fellow comedian Amy Schumer was her maid of honor.^[19] On February 20, 2020, on the Dudley & Bob with Matt Afternoon Show (93.7 KLBJ-FM), Feinstein stated she was 7 months pregnant. She later gave birth to a daughter.^[20]

Discography

• Thug Tears (2011)^[21]

• Only Whores Wear Purple (2016)

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2008	Turbocharge: The Unauthorized Story of The Cars	Joshua; Jeep Girl
2010	Circus Maximus	Octavia		[17]
2011	Stags	Escort
2013	Peace After Marriage	Sasha
2014	Top Five	Publicist
2015	Trainwreck	Nurse Rachel
2015	3rd Street Blackout	Melanie		[17]
2015	Her Composition	Rachel		[17]
2018	I Feel Pretty	Soulcycle Woman
2021	Hysterical	Herself	Documentary film	[17]

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2006	Samurai Love God	Various	3 episodes
2009–2010	The Venture Bros.	Barbara Qantas	2 episodes
2010	Last Comic Standing	Herself	Contestant	[17]
2014	Teachers Lounge	School Nurse	1 episodes
2013–2022	Inside Amy Schumer	Various	7 episodes
2014	Stuck on A		1 episode
2014	Friends of the People	Phyllis	1 episode
2015	Red Oaks	Jean Blum	1 episode
2017	Odd Mom Out	Kara	1 episode	[17]
2017–2019	Crashing	Herself	6 episodes
2018	The Standups	Herself		[17]
2018–2020	Laff Mobb's Laff Tracks			[17]
2019	Historical Roasts	Anne Frank	1 episode	[17]
2022	Life & Beth	Liz	2 episodes
2022	Would I Lie to You? USA	Herself	1 episode	[17]

Comedy specials

Year	Title	Notes	Ref.
2016	Only Whores Wear Purple	Released via Comedy Central	[22]
2024	Big Guy	Released via Netflix	[23]

Video games

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2013	Grand Theft Auto V	Michelle Makes	Voice role

References

1. "Rachel Feinstein Biography". Dead-Frog Comedy Database. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
2. "Rachel Feinstein Biography". Tixel. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
3. "Buffalo's newest comedy club, Helium, to open Thursday". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
4. Feinstein, Rachel (August 25, 2024). "SWORD FIGHT # 13 RACHEL FEINSTEIN". Sword Fight (Interview). Interviewed by Jim Norton, Nikki Norton. Event occurs at 32:39. Retrieved September 8, 2024 – via YouTube.
5. Greenberg, Rudi (June 28, 2012). "On the Spot: Rachel Feinstein". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
6. Rake, Jamie Lee (March 22, 2023). "Rachel Feinstein's Funny Storytelling". Shepherd Express. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
7. "Rachel Feinstein Bio". Cap City Comedy. Archived from the original on October 31, 2011.
8. Kreischer, Bert (December 7, 2022). "Bertcast # 549 - Rachel Feinstein & ME". Bertcast. Event occurs at 33:20. Retrieved July 12, 2023 – via YouTube.
9. Santino, Andrew (December 30, 2022). "Rachel Feinstein". Whiskey Ginger Podcast. Event occurs at 17:50 approx. Retrieved July 12, 2023 – via YouTube.
10. "Comic Rachel Feinstein draws on her Jewish roots". CBC Manitoba. November 16, 2012. Archived from the original on November 8, 2014.
11. Tabachnick, Toby (November 7, 2013). "'Last Comic Standing's' Rachel Feinstein, appears here". Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
12. Kozell, Isaac (April 22, 2016). "How Rachel Feinstein Went From Bombing Without Realizing It to a Comedy Central Hour". Vulture. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
13. "Al Madrigal, Kevin Meaney, Keith Robinson, Rachel Feinstein and More!". The Stand NYC. Archived from the original on May 28, 2014.
14. "Rachel Feinstein". Broadway Comedy Club. 17 September 2022. Archived from the original on March 29, 2023.
15. "Rachel Feinstein Biography". The Improv. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
16. "Rachel Feinstein (HBO, Crashing, John Oliver) at Club 337". KADN-TV. May 18, 2023. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
17. "Rachel Feinstein". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
18. Haas, Mariah (September 17, 2018). "Comedian Rachel Feinstein talks marrying FDNY captain, why she chose Amy Schumer to be her maid of honor". Fox News. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
19. "Exclusive: Comedian Rachel Feinstein on How Amy Schumer (Her Maid of Honor!) Is Helping Her Plan Her Wedding". Martha Stewart Weddings. September 6, 2018. Archived from the original on July 26, 2022.
20. Boylan, Deb (April 21, 2023). "Rachel Feinstein at SteelStacks: juggling comedy, motherhood". Lehigh Valley Press. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
21. "Comedy Central Records Releases Rachel Feinstein's Thug Tears". Comedy Central. November 14, 2011. Archived from the original on August 22, 2016.
22. "Rachel Feinstein tells us about the problems with wearing purple". The Laugh Button. April 19, 2016. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
23. "Rachel Feinstein: Big Guy". Netflix. May 22, 2024.

External links

• Official website
• Rachel Feinstein at IMDb
• Rachel Feinstein's YouTube page
• Rachel Feinstein on Twitter