The Meteoric Rise Of Matt Rife: His Post-Veneer Glow-Up, Dark Comedy & Controversies
Many people are super fans of Matt Rife, while others want him canceled.
Tinseltown via Shutterstock / Hadiiiben’s Images via Canva Unless you’ve been under a rock lately, you’ve probably seen some of comedian Matt Rife’s sets on TikTok. He has amassed a following of 14.6 million and people have liked his videos over 241 million times.
Rife has been appearing in television shows for over a decade but has become especially popular after his TikTok videos went viral.
The viral comedian hails from North Lewisburg, Ohio, and he starred in seasons 7-9 of Nick Cannon’s "Wild ‘N’ Out," "Brooklyn Nine-Nine," and "Fresh Off The Boat," and boasts many other shows and appearances on his IMDB page.
But as Rife’s stardom and celebrity have grown, so too has the scrutiny about everything from his looks to his career, and especially his comedic style.
People are digging up Matt Rife's past controversies — the comedian doesn’t shy away from controversial topics.
If you’ve seen Rife’s shows, you know that they are an entertaining combination of crass comedy and sometimes cringey crowd work. He excels in engaging with the audience in an unscripted way, sending barbs off the top of his head and winning fans with each one.
Despite how celebrated the 27-year-old is, like most rising stars, as he becomes more and more well-known, there are many that celebrate him and his musings, while others try desperately to make him the next victim of "cancel culture."
Recently, some controversial tweets from Rife's past resurfaced online.
There is one tweet where he seems to mock sexual assault, which caused a world of backlash.
Photo: Twitter
Though quite jarring, it’s hard to say whether Rife was being sarcastic and pointing out that when men have notoriety, they can get away with anything, or authentically musing about getting to a place where he can do the sadistic things he always dreamed of. Judging by his dark sense of humor, the former is a likely possibility.
Then, there was someone who called him out on Twitter after watching him joke about "child molestation" and another person who claimed that their week had been "ruined" when Rife said on a podcast that women’s private parts reminded him of "stiff socks."
Photo: Twitter
It seems like standard practice for people to dig into a famous person's past in order to see how consistent their views are.
In the past, Rife has been criticized for touching Zendaya without her permission but proudly asked viewers to “Watch me get in Zendaya’s personal space” on his Instagram account.
Photo: Instagram
In addition, Rife has been accused of racism for a tweet that read “Everyone at the Oscars watching to see if the cast of ‘Parasite’ coughs” when the Asian actors attended the Academy Awards.
Photo: Twitter
It was a joke about the accusation that Covid-19 has originated in China, which is rooted in racism, but definitely did not land well. Rife doubled down when he called his critics “a bunch of crybabies” — sounds pretty close to calling everyone a snowflake.
Photo: Twitter
The criticism hasn’t stopped with his jokes, though.
Matt Rife has also changed his appearance with veneers, prompting people to search for before and after pics of his teeth.
Specifically, his veneers have been credited with taking him from 'ugly' to 'handsome Squidward.'
He has admitted to getting veneers. saying his teeth were so messed up that he hated smiling. His confidence has improved immensely since the procedure.
For all of the hate, Rife has his share of supporters and fans that would do anything to see him. Some have jokingly claimed to have gotten neck tattoos of him, while one woman said she was willing to give up her “baby daddy” for Matt Rife tickets.
Love him or hate him, the comedian's career is rising at the speed of light. Comedians like Dave Chappelle, Richard Prior, and Bill Burr have always walked the line between funny and uncomfortable, and that style may not be desirable for everyone.
Only time will tell if Rife continues to be embraced by the masses, or crashes and burns due to his own words.
NyRee Ausler is a writer from Seattle, Washington. She covers lifestyle, relationship, and human-interest stories that readers can relate to and that bring social issues to the forefront for discussion.