The first Latina cast member of "Saturday Night Live," Melissa Villaseñor is an actress, comedian, impressionist, visual artist and musician.
Why you should listen
Melissa Villaseñor first came to the world’s attention with her impressions of the likes of Barbara Walters and Christina Aguilera on the sixth season of
America’s Got Talent. More recently, she made history as the first Latina cast member of
Saturday Night Live, where she worked for six years. Other credits include appearances in Comedy Central’s
Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens, Freeform’s
Alone Together, Netflix’s
The Stand-Ups and HBO’s
Crashing and
Barry. Villaseñor also voiced characters for
Toy Story 4,
Wreck It Ralph 2, Cartoon Network’s
OK K.O.! and Fox’s
American Dad and
Family Guy. Her latest project sees her leading an ensemble cast in the original scripted comedy
Vendors, following the lives of concession workers and ballpark employees at a minor league baseball stadium in Coney Island, New York.
In 2017, Villaseñor was featured in the
Forbes "30 Under 30" list and
Rolling Stone's "50 Funniest People Right Now." Outside of comedy, Villaseñor is an author, visual artist, musician and host of the podcast
Laughing With Myself. Her first self-help workbook,
Whoops ... I’m Awesome: A Workbook with Activities, Art, and Stories for Embracing Your Wonderfully Awesome Self, was published in 2022.
