Stephen Lynch

Upon his arrival, a friend at the West Bank Cafe on 42nd Street suggested Lynch play, for an audience, some of the comic songs he had written while attending university.

He soon found success in comedy clubs and other venues around the city (notably Catch a Rising Star and Caroline's ), and became a regular on radio shows such as Opie and Anthony.

Lynch spent his early years in New York City doing what he called "totally mindless work" as a temp worker.

Stephen Andrew Lynch (born July 28, 1971) is an American comedian, musician and actor who is known for his songs mocking daily life and popular culture.

Lynch has released four studio albums and four live albums along with a live DVD.

He has appeared in two Comedy Central Presents specials and starred in the Broadway adaptation of The Wedding Singer.

He received a theater scholarship to attend The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., before transferring in 1990 to Western Michigan University, where he graduated with a BA in drama in 1993.

While attending Western Michigan University, he began to write comedic songs.

Considering himself a musician first and a comedian second, Lynch cites singer/songwriters Paul Simon and Joni Mitchell as his childhood inspirations, rather than comedians.

He was inspired to go into show business after seeing the mockumentary This is Spinal Tap.

The first song that he wrote was a country song titled "Beefy Burrito".

After spending his first year out of college with friends in California, Lynch moved to New York City in 1996 with the intention of becoming an actor.

This musical production was based on the 1998 New Line Cinema film The Wedding Singer, starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore.

The musical, Lynch's Broadway debut, co-starred Tony winner Laura Benanti in the role of Julia Sullivan, played by Barrymore in the film.

He has also appeared in five short films, including The Love Seat in 1999, and The Confetti Brothers in 2001.

Both films were written and directed by Kirker Butler.

He quit such temporary jobs permanently, signing with What Are Records? in 2000 and Vision International in 2002.

Over the next few years, he toured colleges, universities, and nightclubs around the country, avoiding the comedy club circuit as much as possible, which he has stated is not to his taste.

He periodically returned to Michigan to do summer stock.

He gained national exposure with his highly rated Comedy Central Presents special in 2000.

He has made appearances on Comedy Central's Premium Blend, The World Comedy Tour, and The World Stands Up.

He has also made four appearances on Last Call with Carson Daly, and has performed at the Just for Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Lynch has opened for comedians Jay Mohr, Jeff Foxworthy, Steven Wright, Bobcat Goldthwait, and Lewis Black.

The Confetti Brothers, a satire, screened to packed houses at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival.

It continues to play the film festival circuit.

In the summer of 2004, he went on a tour co-headlining with Mitch Hedberg.

The tour was such a success that they added an extra leg and ran into 2005.

This was Hedberg's last tour before his death.

In April 2006, Lynch starred as Robbie Hart in the Broadway musical The Wedding Singer, which ran on Broadway from April 27, 2006, through December 31, 2006, at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre.

The April 2006 opening followed a successful preview run in Seattle at The 5th Avenue Theatre, which ran from January 31 through February 19.

His performance has earned him nominations for Tony, Drama League, and Drama Desk awards, According to interviews after, he stated that, due to the rehearsals for the show, he had forgotten most of his own songs.

During his March 6, 2009, appearance on The Bob and Tom Show, Lynch mentioned Steel Toast as the name of the band in which he first performed.

As of the start of his 3 Balloons tour in Spring 2009, Agency for the Performing Arts books all of his concert dates.

Lynch often played venues more often suited to music than to comedy, including locations such as the House of Blues, The Town Hall and the esteemed Carnegie Hall.

Lynch released a double-disc album, Lion, on November 13, 2012.

In 2016, he released a live concert video, Hello Kalamazoo.

He released his studio/live album My Old Heart in 2019.

Lynch was born in Abington, Pennsylvania.

His family later moved to Saginaw, Michigan.

Lynch would perform in community theatre and musical theatre while attending Arthur Hill High School and The Center for Arts and Sciences.