Patrice O'Neal

An audience-badgering and entirely bold standup comedian, the late Patrice O'Neal is represented in the albums bin solely by Mr. P, a posthumous release that charted Top 40 in 2012. Born in New York City but raised in Boston, O'Neal worked the comedy scene in Boston before returning to N.Y.C. for a regular gig at the Comedy Cellar. A move to the West Coast came next as O'Neal landed an acting role on The Office plus a writing gig at the WWE, then a move back to N.Y.C. meant joining the panel of television’s Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn and becoming a regular guest on radio’s the Opie and Anthony Show. With his career on the rise, O'Neal suffered a stroke in late 2011 and died almost a month later. Tributes from everyone from Chris Rock to Amy Schumer proved he was truly a “comedian’s comedian” while the Top 40 success of his 2012 album, Mr. P, spoke to his legion of loyal fans. ~ David Jeffries