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Matt Rife

Matthew Steven Rife (born September 10, 1995) is an American comedian and actor. Rife is best known for his self-produced comedy specials Only Fans (2021), Matthew Steven Rife (2023) and Walking Red Flag (2023), as well as his 2023 Netflix special Natural Selection, and previous recurring role on the sketch improv comedy and rap show Wild 'n Out.

Early life

Matt Rife was born in Columbus, Ohio, and grew up in North Lewisburg. He also lived in New Albany and Mount Vernon. Rife first took an interest in comedy at 14 years old, when a teacher said that there would be a talent show at his high school. After a friend encouraged him, he did the show—and started performing professionally a year later at 15. He has four siblings: three older stepsisters and one younger half-sister. His father, Michael Eric Gutzke, died by suicide when Rife was 17 months old.

Career

In 2017, Matt Rife was a host on the short-lived reboot of Total Request Live and appeared on MTV's The Challenge: Champs vs. Stars. In 2018 he played a role in the B-movie slasher film Black Pumpkin. Rife is also a paranormal investigator featured on the YouTube channel "Overnight". He was further featured on the television series Bring the Funny in 2019, where he advanced to the Semi-Final Showcase but was eliminated in week 8, and the Netflix special Natural Selection.

Rife has self-produced comedy specials Only Fans (2021), Matthew Steven Rife (2023), and Walking Red Flag (2023). He also had guest roles on the sketch comedy and improv game show series Wild 'n Out, as Brandon Bliss on the comedy television series Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and as Logan on the sitcom television series Fresh Off the Boat. The New York Times described him in 2022 as "just another struggling road comedian" who then became more popular from TikTok over the following year.

In December 2022, Rife signed with Creative Artists Agency (CAA). In April 2023, he released a self-titled special Matthew Steven Rife on Valentine's Day. He then released another special in June 2023 titled Walking Red Flag, focusing on crowd-work. Rife states that he created an entire special surrounding the topic of audience "red flags" in order to stop audiences from interrupting his future sets with the bit.

On November 15, 2023 Rife released his Netflix standup special Natural Selection, which Vulture reviewed as "half uninspiring dick jokes ... and entirely underwhelming." Cracked stated of the special that the main take aways were "There are lots of women that Rife doesn't care for. He's got it in for waitresses with black eyes (why can't they stay hidden in the kitchen?), hippie chicks, his religious ex, flight attendants who insist on enforcing the rules and the "heavier set." The only women he claims to like are the grandmas he wants to bang."

The special attracted controversy due to a domestic violence joke at the beginning. In a statement in response to the controversy, Rife linked a fake apology note to a website that offered safety helmets for people with disabilities. Rife attracted further controversy in December 2023 after posting a message to a six-year old child that claimed his mother purchased gifts for him from the profits she earned on the website OnlyFans. He deleted the message after a public outcry against his comments.

Influences

Rife has said his biggest influences in comedy are Dave Chappelle, Ricky Gervais, and Dane Cook. Rife performed at Dave Chappelle's 50th birthday show at Madison Square Garden and has called Chappelle a mentor. He has also said Adam Sandler, Jim Carrey, Jim Varney, David Spade, and Robin Williams are people he found influence from.

Personal life

Rife currently resides in Los Angeles, California. Rife briefly dated English actress Kate Beckinsale in 2017 and 2018. In the summer of 2023, he began dating British-Canadian actress. Jessica Lord

Rife mentioned in his comedy special Only Fans (2021) that he had clinical depression and an anxiety disorder.

Rife identifies as a Christian but is not religious, in an Instagram post saying that "I wear a Jesus cross around my neck for the same reason regular dudes wear NBA player basketball jerseys- -I’ve never met the guy, but i tell people i can dunk like him at LA Fitness."