Fringe Favourite Jazz Emu on Satisfaction, Satire, and Synthpop Existentialism

Whether he’s riffing on TED Talks in rhinestone suits or unravelling the neuroses behind alpha-male posturing through disco, Jazz Emu is a fever dream of synthpop swagger and existential satire. The brainchild of comedian and musician Archie Henderson, this self-proclaimed “national treasure in waiting” has become a cult hero by skewering modern masculinity, influencer culture, and the endless pursuit of validation - all while wearing tighter trousers than should be legal. With his new show The Pleasure Is All Yours, Henderson dives deeper into the psyche of his narcissistic alter ego. We caught up with him to talk power, performance, and the art of being Psychologically Finished.

Jazz Emu has become something of a cult phenomenon – equal parts pop star parody and existential meltdown. What’s the origin story behind the character, and did you ever imagine he’d resonate the way he has?

I think the impact the Austin Powers trilogy had on my psyche as a ten year old boy can’t be underestimated. My parents got called by school once because I was quoting Fat Bastard in lessons and for some reason they didn’t think it was appropriate for a child to shout “do you find me sexy? Look at my titties” in the back of a science lesson. I always loved big cartoonish comedy worlds like this and when I started performing comedy in my late teens the characters I was working out were all along those lines.

It wasn’t really until lockdown in 2020, when I was bored at home that I really started producing songs in earnest. And all the songs I was writing despite my best efforts were coming out not in earnest but as big stupid braggadocious synthpop numbers - and the picture of this idiotic narcissist musician character started to get formed in my head. Sort of Spinal Tap meets Mark Zuckerberg. I was pretty nervous to put it onstage for a couple of years, in case people found it too big or wacky or annoying. Some people do, to be fair. But we need people like that in the world to serve as a benchmark reminder of what Objectively Wrong looks like. They have my pity. 

In The Pleasure Is All Yours, you dive deeper into Jazz’s psyche – exploring power, identity, and that relentless hunt for validation. What made you want to dig beneath the disco ball this time?

I never truly grew out of that grating toddler mindset of relentlessly asking WHY and it seemed fun to do it with this character: Why did I feel compelled to perform as him? Why do we find the tragedy of these braggadocious male characters so funny? Why do I feel so good wearing nut-bustingly tight 70s flares? These are the great and profound questions of our generation. Honestly, the main motivation was a selfish one, in that I thought digging into the why of it might help me understand the weird hidden bits of my own psyche better. Which bits of the performance of masculinity do I enjoy and think are healthy for me and other people, and which bits are for the bin. I’m glad to say, it did help quite a lot! And I’m very grateful to now be Psychologically Finished.

The show riffs on TED Talks, alpha-male branding and the self-help-industrial complex. What did you want to say about modern masculinity through Jazz Emu’s increasingly desperate pursuit of satisfaction?

That gender is performative, and you have the choice not to perform the role of Prick.

The more Jazz performs confidence, the more fragile he seems. How much of this is satire – and how much is personal reckoning?

Oh you want to get into it! Well, I think for lots of people facing the vulnerability that sits the reality of being a creature that poos and cries and is unconscious for a third of the day is not something we fancy doing. And historically it feels like we’ve built as many structures as possible to avoid having to face that reality. But I’m on a personal mission to get back this place of vulnerability. Spiritually I mean, I’m not trying to poop my pants while crying. I can’t afford another clean-up bill from Sainsbury’s.

You play with music, visuals, character, and cultural commentary – what’s your process like when building a show like this? 

I took a very different process to writing this year - previously I’ve just written a whole script front to back from a story idea, and then swapped a few sections and songs in and out that needed punching up. This time round, I started writing as much material as I could around a theme (satisfaction) and then let the shape of the show grow from the bits that emerged. What I’ve ended up with is lightyears away from what I imagined at the start but I think and hope it’s ended up making it a much more coherent show, and a more interesting look at the ideas I’m trying to send up.

Do you feel like Jazz Emu is still evolving? Is he a persona you can keep building… or do you see a point where he explodes in a puff of glitter and validation quotes?

My favourite thing about the character so far is that he’s pretty elastic and can flex to fit the context I need him to. It means I never get bored and rarely have to put restrictions on what it should be. For better or worse, as there are definitely inconsistencies if you’re willing to look for them. But I’ve never been a big “lore” nerd. I’m more of a concepts nerd. And I’d much rather have the freedom to go wherever I need to go to see the concept to its logical endpoint, it gives me so much more creative energy to make something good. 

You’ve been called everything from a genius to a national disco treasure. But how would Jazz Emu describe Archie Henderson?

A sad little man with some serious issues. 

Fringe is famous for pushing performers to the brink. What’s been your most “Jazz Emu” moment on the Fringe circuit so far? 

Some students I used to teach coming to my show and shouting “yes Mr. Henderson” over the first few jokes of the show. Tough to sustain the illusion of theatre in that context.

The Pleasure Is All Yours runs at Pleasance Dome (Queen Dome) 30th July -24th August. Tickets available HERE.