Slava Bu
City – Hola Prystan (Ukraine)
Language – Ukrainian
Genre – stand-up, improvisation
Creative path
Slava Bu is a popular Ukrainian comedian, improviser, and influencer. He started his stand-up career 8 years ago. The artist hails from the city of Hola Prystan, in the Kherson region. The first performances took place in the format of joint concerts with other comedians. Later, Slava reached the level of solo artists. So, during 2023, a large all-Ukrainian tour “Stand-up Journey” took place, as part of which the comedian visited many regional centers of the country. The successful solo program “Chesny” attracted hundreds of new people to the cohort of the comedian’s fans.
During his performances, Slava tried to feel the mood of the audience to understand which topics for jokes were the most relevant and in demand. Live communication with listeners at concerts turned out to be a great way to find out the views and opinions of the audience. This is how Slava's bright talent as an improviser was revealed. The comedian noticed for himself that many people come to stand-up evenings for the first time. And this despite the fact that the genre has been actively developing in Ukraine for about the last 10 years. That is why the artist carefully notices the most important, bright, significant events in life and tells about them simply, aptly and funny.
Stand-up during war
Slava and his family had to live in occupation for a month and a half. Later, the family moved to the Kyiv region. Slava continued to engage in humor. During a full-scale war, people who come to concerts are inspired to joke. Among them are many military men who always emphasize that they would not want everyone to close in on themselves in a calmer rear, not smile at all and not live a normal life. After all, humor is a good way to relieve emotions. And that is why stand-up during war has the right to exist.
Another important argument for Slava Bu's activities is the charitable component. The comedian's recognition, charisma, and popularity attract the attention of an ever-growing audience. And this allows the comedian to close important gatherings. After all, the needs of our military are not decreasing, and charity concerts are extremely important. So, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Slava has collected over 200,000 hryvnias only through Instagram streams. And in total, volunteer gatherings worth over 1 million hryvnias have been closed.
Slava takes topics for jokes from life. He jokes frankly and freely about the peculiarities of communication, about women's demands on men, the habit of being late, and much more. Patriotic jokes occupy a special place in Slava Bu's humor. The comedian is sure: life is oversaturated with events that deserve to be ridiculed. And hearing a sharp and relevant joke is the most valuable gift for the audience. In turn, the stand-up comedian calls the most significant gratitude for himself not the number of people in the selfie after the concert or the volume of applause, but the scale of laughter in the hall during the performance.
Personal and creative changes
After the full-scale invasion, there was a complete transition to Ukrainian. For Slava Bu, this is a change in everything: in himself, in content, in the direction of development in stand-up. The comedian is sure: even when the war is over, he will definitely not interact in any way with those who one day came and said: “we are one people, therefore – we are taking away your home, city, region…” At the same time, the comedian is not going to prove anything to the Russians. His mission is to educate national consciousness and show that Ukrainian is cool.
Today, more and more people of all ages and with different interests come to Slava Bu's performances. The artist's masterful improvisation is especially captivating, as he harmoniously and interestingly conducts a dialogue with the audience. Thus, literally everyone can become a creator of humor - here and now. And the topics are always thrown up by life, full of various events.
Interesting facts about the comedian
- The comedy star loves to cook. Her favorite dishes include fried chicken with spices, vegetables with grilled chicken or turkey, etc.
- The artist calls Kostya Trembovetsky and Misha Rudya ("The Good, the Bad, the Evil Podcast") his YouTube crushes;
- Slava really appreciates communication and meetings with his family, whom he moved to Brovary to see more often;
- In the evenings, he likes to spend time by the river – walking, riding a scooter along the Obolonskaya embankment. Such leisure activities are a good distraction and help him unwind.
