Sebastian Maniscalco, SiriusXM seem unmoved by comics’ pay pleas

See more of our coverage in your search results. After comics launched a heartfelt campaign to restore a vital piece of the standup economy, its targets — Sebastian Maniscalco and SiriusXM — seem largely unmoved. The famed comic recently took over the satellite radio network’s Raw Comedy channel, which had provided a financial lifeline for working club comics by featuring their work on air, providing much-needed royalty checks. However, ever since it became Maniscalco’s Comedy Radio in April, it has featured household-name comics, largely cutting the touring folks out of its programming. Sebastian Maniscalco (seen above at the Newport Beach TV FEST in June) took over the SiriusXM channel Raw Comedy earlier this year. Getty Images for Newport Beach TV FEST The channel had long provided vital royalties for less well-known comics. Getty Images On Monday, comics including Michelle Wolf, Margaret Cho, Dan Soder and Patton Oswalt took part in an online campaign on behalf of their lesser-known colleagues. They begged Maniscalco — who broke records by selling out four nights at Madison Square Garden in 2024 — to put the rank-and-file back on the air. Additionally, industry advocacy group Stand Up for Standup said that many comics who live paycheck-to-paycheck through SiriusXM satellite radio “spins” earn approximately $15 in royalties. “The spins on Sebastian’s channel have drastically shifted from a wider pool of 800+ comedians enjoying spins … to a narrower pool of comedians getting plays per month,” the group explained in a statement. Maniscalco (pictured above last month) is one of the most successful comedians working at the moment. Getty Images “And of those few hundred who are getting spins, over 75% of the plays are going to the top 50 artists, which results in a concentration of wealth among the top echelon, which is largely made up of big-name celebrity comics.” Want more celebrity and pop culture news? Start your day with Page Six Daily. Thanks for signing up! Others pointed out that many of those big names are dead, such as Joan Rivers and Norm Macdonald. Comics including Michelle Wolf have campaigned for Maniscalco to put more touring comics back on his air. ABC via Getty Images Dan Soder also asked Maniscalco to reconsider. Getty Images When Page Six reached out to Maniscalco’s rep for comment, they referred us to Sirius, which sent a statement that didn’t exactly suggest a rush to return to its role as a benefactor to comedy’s middle class. “SiriusXM works together with our creative partners to program the best possible experience for our listeners,” a SiriusXM spokesperson told us in a statement. “The launch of Sebastian Maniscalco’s Comedy Radio introduced a new creative direction and a regularly evolving programming mix for the channel, and SiriusXM continues to invest in comedians more than any other audio platform to deliver a wide range of comedy offerings across our channels.” It sounds like road comics shouldn’t book any island vacations any time soon. Or Seamless. Community Guidelines Welcome to the Page Six Community! Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas in a safe space. In order to do so, we've created a simple set of rules that will improve your experience. Simply put, keep it civil. Your post will/might be rejected if it contains: Spam Insults, profanity, incoherent, obscene or inflammatory language and threats of any kind Attacks on the identity of other commenters or the article's author User accounts will/might be blocked if we notice: Continuous attempts to re-post comments that have been previously moderated/rejected Racist, sexist, or homophobic comments Attempts or tactics that put the site security at risk So, how can you be a power user? Stay on topic and share your passion. Feel free to elaborate to get your point across. 'Like' or 'Dislike' when you are filled with emotions! Protect your community. Use the report tool to alert us when someone breaks the rules. Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Don't forget, freedom of speech is not the freedom of reach!