The Comedian Michelle Obama Once Sent Praising Fan Mail To
The following article includes mentions of miscarriage.
Former first lady Michelle Obama knows how to dole out a compliment that would make anyone feel incredibly special — case in point, a video posted on X, formally known as Twitter, for her friend Beyoncé following the release of the singer's "Homecoming" film started with: "Hey, queen! Girl, you have done it again. Constantly raising the bar for us all, and doing it flawlessly." Beyoncé isn't the only star who has gotten glowing commendations from Obama, however. Comedian and "Always Be My Maybe" actor Ali Wong has also been on the receiving end of Obama's kind words.
While talking about Wong on Instagram for Women's History Month 2023, Obama called Wong "one of my favorite comedians" and raved about Wong's comedic talents. She described watching Wong's comedy special "Baby Cobra" and said: "Throughout the special, she struts the stage at seven and a half months pregnant, wearing a body-hugging dress and red horn-rimmed glasses, appearing fantastically and almost defiantly female while delivering a raunchy, no-holds-barred monologue about everything from race to motherhood. She manages to be fierce and real all at once. To riveting effect, she shows us her whole self." Obama then reminded her Instagram followers to follow Wong's footsteps and be themselves always.
While being interviewed on "The Kelly Clarkson Show" in April 2023, Wong talked about that social media shout-out and the amazing experience of receiving a letter from Obama a few years prior.
Ali Wong mentioned her miscarriage in Baby Cobra
While interviewing Ali Wong on her talk show, Kelly Clarkson mentioned Michelle Obama's post about Wong and asked how that felt. Wong said: "It felt amazing. She had actually reached out to me a couple years ago and sent me a letter, like a handwritten letter, and it's framed in my house where she wrote me about how touched she was that I talk about women's bodies and what happens to our bodies and make us laugh at the same time. And she was like, 'I think that's really important.'" Wong added that since the compliments came from Obama, they were super special.
The "Baby Cobra" comedy special included a joke about Wong's miscarriage of twins. In a 2016 interview with The Guardian, Wong talked about the benefit of discussing what she went through, saying, "But it really helped me when I had a miscarriage to talk to other women and hear that they'd been through it, too." Wong said knowing other people who'd personally had miscarriages helped lessen unnecessary feelings of guilt, more so than just knowing how many people have miscarriages.
Wong discussed more about her own insecurities following her miscarriage and the difficulty of having to share the news with people. She added, "So being able to joke about it was such a relief."
Ali Wong wasn't feeling pressure to get another letter
Ali Wong's work may have resonated with Michelle Obama so much because she's been through similar struggles. Obama's 2018 memoir "Becoming" was published two years before "Becoming" became a Netflix documentary, and the memoir included an account of her own miscarriage and going through IVF treatments. In Wong's 2019 book "Dear Girls," she mentions that, writing, "([Michelle Obama] had a miscarriage too and writes about it in her awesome book)"
As wonderful as the shout-outs from Obama are, Wong was determined not to let it affect her comedy. In a March 2023 interview with The Cut for her show "Beef," Wong was asked if there's "pressure to have your comedy mean something more than just laughs?" The comedian said: "Before 'Baby Cobra' came out, I couldn't get an interview with 'The Sacramento Bee.' Two weeks afterward, I was like, 'I cannot talk about miscarriage anymore.'"
Wong mentioned her letter from Michelle Obama, which she said is on display in her living room. On Obama's kind words, Wong said: "It meant a lot to me, but I can't set out every special being like, 'I'm going to do this hour to get another letter out of Michelle Obama.' I think that's when people start to deify themselves, and that's when you become unfunny."