‘Fluffy’ fills Freedom Hall with laughter

Comedian Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias brought the funny in front of a sold-out crowd in Johnson City’s Freedom Hall venue Thursday.

Iglesias made his way on stage around 8:45 p.m. to thunderous applause. He opened his set explaining that he accidentally arrived at the front of the venue and got riotous laughter when he said he thought about parking in the grass like everyone else.

He performed over an hour of new and unique material. His set included his experience at Pal’s Sudden Service, a story about the Dodge Demon he bought with Netflix money, his first experience taking a wine tour and much more.

About the 800-horsepower Dodge Demon, he quipped, “Nobody needs that much power.” He then described just how harrowing the Demon was to drive.

He also had a hilarious take on the true meaning of “Bless Your Heart” whenever he hears that phrase on his visits to Tennessee.

While the doors opened at 6:30 p.m., two long lines filled with eager fans were backed up for hours before the event started. Michael Wolfe and Ayarys Pena were two of those fans.

“My excitement level was on an eight out of 10 because I have been a fan of his for awhile,” Wolfe said.

Pena echoed Wolfe’s sentiment.

“My excitement was at 1,000%,” Pena said. “Like I was so ready for it to start.”

As well as being the headliner for the ETSU Student Government Association’s Fall concert, the concert was also part of Iglesias’ “Beyond the Fluffy” tour. He brought his good friend Alfred Robles, to open the show.

“Alfred was a great opener,” Pena said. “He was super funny.”

Robles’ comedy set lasted about 30 minutes with jokes about family, schooling and relationships.

“Honestly it took me about five minutes to warm up to Alfred, but that was because I was so excited for Fluffy,” Wolfe said. “I thought he was hilarious though.”

Between the two comedians’ sets, there was a 20-minute intermission so the audience could get up and get food and stretch their legs. During the intermission, a “Big Man Contest” was held to see who could get into a 5XL shirt. All contestants lined up, and the crowd cheered for a winner, who won a Fluffy shirt. Other prizes were given out during the break, including a poster signed by Fluffy, a new limited Funko Pop! of Fluffy and free event T-shirts were given out by the ETSU SGA.

“This was my first stand up show, and it was so much more than I thought it would be, and it was a blast,” Wolfe said. “My favorite joke was about Pal’s, and he said he got diabetes when asked what he got.”

“This was my first comedy show as well,” Pena said. “My favorite joke was about his dogs getting sent across the room when he sneezed.”

When asked about returning to Johnson City by the crowd, Iglesias noted that it was the fans and students who voted him to come here and, while he would love to come back, it was up to the audience.

“Yes, I would 100% want to have him back,” Wolfe said. “But if he couldn’t, I would like to see more comedians like Tom Segura, Jo Koy or Dave Chappelle, if possible because I live for stand-up comedy.”

“Yes, he needs to come back,” Pena said. “If not, I would want to see Kevin Hart next, please.”

Iglesias has been performing comedy for over 20 years, has amassed millions of followers and fans worldwide and has appeared in numerous hit movies, while selling out multiple arenas like Madison Square Garden and the Staples Center. He currently has a new Netflix stand-up special called “One Show Fits All” and will be premiering the second season of his hit Netflix show, “Mr. Iglesias,” in June.