Photo: SONIC
If Mary Beth Barone has no fans, I’m dead.
I was first introduced to the stand-up comedian while mindlessly scrolling TikTok when I came across her effortlessly hilarious Golden Globes red carpet interviews. After watching about six back-to-back — and waiting for the next one to drop in real time — I realized… yeah, I’m a fan.
So when the opportunity came to interview Barone about her latest partnership with SONIC, saying I jumped at the chance would be an understatement.
Barone told me she’s still waiting for the other shoe to drop after her viral moment, but honestly? I don’t think it’s coming.
I may not be an OG Baronie — yes, that’s what her fans call themselves — but it does feel like I’m tapping in right as Barone enters her own sort of pop-cultural stratosphere. She’s currently filming the second season of Overcompensating, preparing to launch the next season of her podcast Ride with Benito Skinner, and has a Netflix special, Galaxy Brain, on the way.
Like Thanos collecting infinity stones, Barone seems to collect fans with every project she touches.
Through it all, she’s remained unmistakably herself, building a following that spans comedy lovers, internet obsessives, and anyone who appreciates a sharp, vulnerable, and self-aware point of view. That’s exactly what makes her new commercial with Veronika Slowikowska feel so fitting.
And if this is starting to sound less like an intro and more like a pitch for why you, too, should get on the Barone train… maybe it is.
Keep scrolling to read my full Q&A with Mary Beth Barone.
I have to hop in and just say, I was unfamiliar with your game until the Golden Globes, and I'm now a “Baronie.” I'm tapped in!
Thank you so much. I never knew how many people that evening's content could reach, but I was so blown away and overwhelmed with the response, and now I get to meet you, so it's fabulous.
I'm grateful. I do wanna talk a little bit about that night before we get into the SONIC campaign, because I was watching, and I was like, "I want her on every red carpet." What was the feeling like for you being there?
Well, it was so interesting because I did four hours of interviews. I did 50 interviews, and you're standing in that one spot. [...] They didn't post anything till that evening, and then, they continued to come out that following week.
So, it was almost this thing where I was like, "I think that went well and I had so much fun, I have no idea how it's all gonna cut together and how it'll be received." And then, it was kind of this week of... I felt frenzied, honestly. Because I was just like, "Oh, my God, there's so many of these coming out." People are being so nice to me online. I was kind of just waiting for everyone to turn on me, and it hasn't happened yet, so who knows what it'll be, but it's coming, I know it's coming.
Mary, it's not coming.
It might be coming, we don't know.
It's not coming.
Let's get into the Sonic campaign. I would love to know what it was like working with Veronika.
It's been so great. When the offer came in, I was so excited because Sonic has worked with so many amazing comedians and other talent, like Jane Krakowski, Ellie Kemper, and Paris [Hilton] and Nicole [Richie], of course. So, it's an honor to follow in their footsteps.
And then, when they told me I was gonna be paired with Veronika, I just couldn't be more excited, because we actually haven't crossed paths that much. She moved to New York for a bit, and then, immediately, sort of got cast on SNL. So their schedule was pretty grueling and I'm all over the place with standup. So, it felt like a great way to forge a true friendship with someone … to sit by a pool in the blazing hot sun of Los Angeles for, like, eight hours. The spots are pretty short, so we had a lot of time to gossip, a lot of time to dish. It was, honestly, a dream day. There are certain days on set where you're just like, "I can't believe this is my job," and you just get to drink refreshers and listen to Zara Larsson. It was amazing.
So, what can you tell me about the campaign?
Yeah, the concept for the commercials is this idea of "sip to that," so celebrating these small moments over the summer. And as New Yorkers, you know that we suffer through the grueling winter, and this one was particularly challenging, so we can get to those beautiful summer days and just taking little moments to celebrate.
So, in the first commercial, my phone won't charge, and then, I figure out using a hair clip, which is very innovative, how to keep the charger in, and we continue to listen to “Midnight Sun,” and we sip to that.
And then, the second one, we're in the pool and it's, we're in a shady spot, so we have to find our way back to the sun, and we sip to that. So, I look forward to seeing how everyday people find their opportunities to sip to that.
It feels like my next vocal stim: "Sip to that." Switching gears a bit, as I said, I'm a new fan, so I'm a new listener of Ride. So, I'd love to know when we're getting new episodes?
I can't say too much about the exact timeline, but we have done the photo shoot for the cover art for season four, and it's definitely my favorite one we've done so far. I would say the aesthetic, not to spoil anything, but it's very summer fun.
We will be back this summer, but I can't say when. But we're excited to get back into the studio. We have a little notes-app list of the things we wanna talk about. So, I can't wait to get back in there.
Well, I'm excited! Like I was saying, your comedy feels really special. I was asking myself, like, "What is it that I'm connecting to?" Your humor is smart, it's confident, and honestly, it feels like conversations I have with my friends. So, I would love to know, what do you think people are connecting to in your work?
I think what I really wanna bring to standup, which I think maybe female comedians in the past hadn't been allowed to have the room for, is vulnerability. So, I really try to speak honestly. There's very few things in my standup that I've embellished or made up. And so, sometimes people, I think, don't believe that 'cause some of this stuff is so… insane.
But I do try to bring vulnerability and not punch down. I like to make myself the butt of the joke or the people above me, and you'll see that a lot more in [my Netflix special] Galaxy Brain too.
But I do feel like that's what women and queer people are so good at — it's balancing the comedy and tragedy with vulnerability. So, I don't know exactly what's speaking to people, but I hope that that's coming through because I find that I do prioritize that when I'm approaching my standup.
It's paid off. Your videos have brought me so much joy. The world is crazy, so having these pockets of joy and laughter, it means so much.
That's what I really want. It's such a blessing to be able to make people laugh for work. So, we've been in the edit on the Netflix special, and I am really proud of it. I can't wait for people to see it, and hopefully, you're still a fan after watching it.
Oh, I can’t wait. When is that coming? Is there a timeline you can share?
I can't say. We have the release date. I can't say what it is, but it's the perfect date. I can't wait.
Okay. Okay, I do also wanna talk about the comedians or performers that are making you laugh right now, or who's inspiring you?
I would say it's Benny. Benny is an inspiration to me, even though we're in the same room a lot of the time, which is nice. Then, my friend, Sydnee Washington, I think she's one of the most talented stand-ups that we have currently working today. Patti Harrison. It's so fun to get to be friends with the people that I'm fans of because we just laugh and laugh and laugh. I love Patti so much. Who else is making me laugh these days? Holmes is on [the Overcompensating] set, Wally Baram, of course, everyone on [Overcompensating]. I love that Benny cast a lot from the comedy community. And, of course, Veronika, I mean, we were just laughing our little heads off on set.
This article has been edited for clarity and length.