Tim Hawkins on 'Fist Bump,' clean comedy and why so many comedians are 'searching' for Jesus

By Leah MarieAnn Klett, Assistant Editor Thursday, March 19, 2026

Tim Hawkins’ latest comedy special, “Fist Bump,” draws its title from a cultural moment: The shift away from handshakes and physical closeness in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Was anybody going to shake your hand anymore? Were we going to see any faces anymore, have shows anymore, be in groups anymore? ‘Fist bump’ just kind of came out of that,” the 57-year-old Missouri native told The Christian Post. 

“These guys would fist bump you during COVID like they’re saving the planet,” he said. “It’s like, OK, COVID can’t make it around the back of the knuckles? I don’t get how your science really works here. … That’s almost as fun as writing the jokes, trying to find a title that has a larger meaning.”

Over a career spanning more than three decades, Hawkins, a father of four and a grandfather of four, has built a loyal following in comedy, keeping it clean and family-friendly. The comedian told CP that over the years, he’s leaned into relatability, drawing from family life, church culture and everyday frustrations.

“I think it’s the opposite,” he said of the idea that clean comedy limits opportunities. “There’s more opportunity if you’re clean.”

He pointed to the success of comedians like Nate Bargatze and Leanne Morgan, as well as earlier figures like Jeff Foxworthy, as evidence of a growing audience hungry for humor that reflects their own lives.

“There are a lot of people out there that can connect and relate to what I’m talking about,” Hawkins said. “We’re not out clubbing, we’re home doing family stuff.”

Hawkins, whose career began in open mic nights and grew through viral YouTube videos featuring parodies like “Chick-fil-A” and “Pretty Pink Tractor,” today performs more than 100 shows a year, often in churches and faith-based venues.

Despite the repetition that comes with performing the same material hundreds of times, Hawkins said live audiences continue to energize him.

“When you walk on to perform, and they’re there in front of you and excited, it just injects energy and gratefulness,” he said. “I don’t do this just to get, it’s more of a service-based mentality.”

“Even if it’s one person who hadn’t laughed in five years or just needs this, they took the time to come see a show,” he said. “That’s very flattering, and I’m very grateful for it.”

Hawkins credits much of his career to a leap of faith encouraged by his wife, Heather, who urged him to pursue comedy full time despite financial uncertainty.

“The joke is, I left a six-figure job, but there was a decimal,” he said with a laugh. “She said, ‘If we’re going to be poor, I at least want to have a purpose.’ … It really is a team effort. My wife has held down the fort for so many years.”

Now with decades of life experience under his belt, Hawkins said he continues to mine family life for material, often turning shared experiences into viral songs and sketches.

“The parodies are powerful,” he said. “I’ll pick a song I actually like, and it’s almost an excuse to do that song, but it has to be funny and have a payoff.”

His viral hit “Chick-fil-A,” for example, taps into the universal frustration of arriving on a Sunday when the fried chicken chain is closed.

“You have this meltdown,” he said. “That’s why that song has done so well; people relate to it.”

Hawkins also draws humor from church life, though, as someone who “loves” the church, said he’s careful to keep his observations lighthearted and reverent. Instead of critiquing theology, for example, he pokes fun at modern tithing options like text-to-give to QR codes.

“I don’t go after dogmas or theological issues,” he said. “It’s more the man-made stuff, like, why is there so much hand sanitizer in the church? That kind of stuff hits my brain and says, OK, this is what’s going on here.”

“I always felt loved [in the church],” he said. “When people call Christians hypocrites, I don’t understand that. We’re admitting we need help.”

In a broader sense, Hawkins said he's seeing signs of change within the comedy world itself, with more performers, like Theo Von and Joe Rogan, openly grappling with questions of faith and purpose.

“These guys who are entrenched in the industry and in the world's entertainment business, it's a dirty place,” he reflected. “We're finding out that with certain files and certain the way the world works. 

“Comedy is a lot of fun, but you'd be surprised; I did a little bit of club work starting out, but it was a very depressing place. It was filled with drug addicts. It was filled with depressed people. A lot of comedians just have issues … we're not the most positive people in the world all the time.”

“These entertainers … are realizing there's more to it, that they've been down these roads, and it doesn't end in a fun place. It doesn't end in a good place. It's like, ‘Well, what are the answers?’ It sets them on a journey for a purpose, because they know how to do comedy. But it's like, ‘Why? What's the point?’ I think it's encouraging, and the more the clean performers succeed, that helps guys like me … it really is kind of a team thing.”

For aspiring comedians, Hawkins emphasized that authenticity and helping people feel seen and valued matter more than edginess.

“People laugh harder when they relate to what you’re talking about,” he said. “Be the same person you are in your living room, making your friends and family laugh.”

Ultimately, Hawkins said, his goal isn’t to help audiences escape reality, but to embrace it with humor and hope and maybe find a point of connection with their own lives.

“I don’t think it’s as much escape as leaning into it,” he said. “Especially as believers, we have not just a philosophy, but a person we trust in. Something solid and real and true.”

“Fist Bump” is now available to stream on major platforms.