Andie Main’s sophomore comedy album Rocky Mountain Bi, out January 12 via Blonde Medicine, is the perfect listen in the new year. On it she hilariously discusses several radical life changes – such as getting sober and becoming a hiker – making deals with her mom, and the pros and cons of ghosting.
Chatting by phone while on a walk with her dog Sadie, Main shared that she is about to make another big change as she is planning to move from her current home in Denver to New York City.
“I decided in the last two weeks that I’m going to move to New York soon. Instead of Rocky Mountain Bi it’s more like Rocky Mountain–Bye,” Main said explaining how her time in Denver, and Portland before it, was integral to developing her comedy as well as her personal growth. “I feel like Denver was a really good lily pad for me just to kind of rest on. I’m really open about my addiction struggles on the album. I was a pretty bad alcoholic and I truly believe that Denver and the sunshine that I got here saved my life. Because as a Portlander, I didn’t even know what it was like to get sunshine regularly. And that changed my mental health. Just getting all this vitamin D, I was inspired to fix a lot of things that were wrong with myself. I’ve been here for almost five years and I got an album. I got a dog. I got sober, and now I think I’m ready for bigger things.”
Much of Rocky Mountain Bi finds Main dissecting her experiences in the dating world. From her predilection for partners named Chris – or Kris – to the unique feeling that comes from being ghosted by a polyamorous couple, each joke is full of hilarity from set-up to punchline.
“I do plan on dating when I get to New York, but I’m not going to be using any apps. I think using apps when you’re in a middle-sized city is okay, but when you get to a place that’s overwhelmingly giant, like New York, you just gotta meet the old fashioned way,” said Main. “I’m moving to New York so I can find a better community for me because being a middle aged woman in comedy is very lonely… A lot of my best friends live in New York and I’m like, “’Why aren’t I having coffee with my best friends right now?’”
She also added, “I want to get really immersed in the queer community. I didn’t quite find my people out here, but I hear there are a couple gay people in New York.”
Elsewhere on the new album, Main tells a joke about getting creative to inspire her mom, who she nicknamed MAGA-Maggie, to get vaccinated and, she shared an update that in real life, a new baby was all it took.
“Oh, MAGA-Maggie! The MAGA-Maggie joke I have where she won’t get vaccinated, well the ending of that joke in real life actually changed because we got our first grandchild. My mom became a grandma and my little sister really stuck to her guns and was like, ‘You have to get vaccinated if you’re going to meet your grand-baby.’ And so, she held that little grand-baby for ransom and it worked out. My mom got her shots,” said Main with a laugh.
As Main gears up to move across the country, she reflected on her time back in Portland – her hometown where she started her career – and Denver, her home of the last almost five years, and how those places shaped her life and her comedy.
“The best part about starting in Portland is that it made me very aware of the ethics that I think are important in comedy about not punching down and about treating people with respect. Even though Portland can be a pain in the butt with political correctness standards, which is not something I say lightly as an incredibly liberal person myself, that was the downside to it, but the upside was I learned how to be a better human and not make fun of sex workers or something,” she said.
“In Denver, I learned who I was because I was single for the first time in my adult life and I had more control over my fate and my future than ever. As far as the comedy scene goes, I guess they just taught me to harness my freedom. When I first got here, I drank a lot because I didn’t have anything holding me back,” Main said proceeding to explain how she got sober in Denver, hiking alone. “I think that’s what Colorado gave me, a sense of independence and toughness so I learned a bunch of lessons between the two cities that made me very prepared for the realities of New York.”
Main is also busy making moves in her career. She recently launched a new podcast entitled, Recovering with Andie Main, that tackles topics surrounding chemical addiction, cancer treatment, and anything that one could recover from.
“I created it because when I was drying out, I was obsessed with listening to people’s stories and memoirs. It’s a way to relate to people. I want anyone who’s going through any type of struggle that’s similar to what my guests have gone through to be able to listen to it and know that they’re not alone,” said Main.
Beginnings are also endings. And as Rocky Mountain Bi enters the world and Main moves to New York, she looked back with love at her time in Denver.
“It’s a little sad because I love Colorado,” said Main. “That’s what I want you to end on, how much I love Colorado, but it just turned out to be a stop and not a destination. And that’s growth.”
Click here to pick-up a copy of Andie Main’s Rocky Mountain Bi and keep up with the comedian on Instagram. Recovering with Andie Main can be found on iTunes, Spotify, and iHeart.