Houston comedian brings life lessons to Tucson show

That could give him a little time to explore downtown and sample our beloved Sonoran-style Mexican food, which we asserted during a phone call last week was quite different from the Tex-Mex the Houston native grew up with.

Big mistake.

"I don't do Tex-Mex. I've never even had it, right," he said, sounding pleasantly indignant at the suggestion that the Mexican food in Houston was any less authentic than what we get in Tucson.

Mexican food in Houston and neighboring McAllen, Texas, is largely inspired by the food in Reynosa, a town in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, about six hours south of the Mexico-Texas border. 

"We're Mexico," he asserted. "I cook Mexican food; I was taught by a Mexican lady who don't even speak English. We don't do Tex-Mex; that's like the suburbs, more towards San Antonio."

It's not likely that Siddiq will be discussing the merits of Mexican food when the 52-year-old comedian takes the Rialto stage for his "The Custom Fit Tour" show. 

Siddiq will be focusing on the merits and rewards of shedding the people and things that no longer fit in your life.

" 'Custom Fit' is based around tailor-making people to be in your life and not, and understand that people, all the people, won't be in your life, just like all the clothes that you own you won't always wear," he explained, like the "canary yellow bell bottom double breasted suit" that fit his style "in the early '90s, but it's not a thing for me now." 

"Some of my friends, some of my old associates don't suit what I do now. I have no need for people who are indulged in the street behavior," he said, referencing his youthful criminal indiscretions, including selling drugs. "I have no need for that. I'm a family man, and I'm not out there living that type of life. If you're not going to change, then we have to cease our existence as being friends because we have two different things. As a married man, I have no need for my single friend. We're on two, totally different pages."

His Tucson show comes weeks after Siddiq made history in March when he became the first independent comedian to win the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Variety Series or Special for his 75-minute special "My Two Sons," a deeply personal show that focused on his life, family and experiences as a father of nine.

The 2025 special aired on the Ali Siddiq YouTube Channel, where the 28-year veteran comedian has posted more than a dozen comedy specials, each attracting tens of millions of views.

His 2022 breakout special "The Domino Effect" garnered more than 17 million views and led to a trio of "Domino Effect" sequels: "Loss," "First Day of School" and "Pins & Needles."

The series was the first time that Siddiq talked at any length about spending time in prison. When he was 19, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison for selling cocaine; he served six years before he was released in 1997.

Later that year, he made his standup comedy debut at Houston's Just Joking Comedy Club. He went on to appear on HBO, Showtime, "Last Comic Standing" and "Def Comedy Jam."

"I did stand up for 17 years before I ever even mentioned I was in prison," he said. "I never wanted to be typecast as 'all he talking about is prison'."

Siddiq would much rather be typecast as the dad "that's at home fixing things."

"I don't live in Hollywood. I don't live in New York. I don't live in Atlanta. I live in Houston," said Siddiq, who has seven children still living at home. "Life is basically simple, and I'm pretty much down to earth. I don't even talk about comedy unless I'm doing an interview while I'm getting ready to do it. That's not my day-to-day life. My day-to-day life is what my kids got going on."

His show on Friday starts at 7 p.m. at the Rialto, 318 E. Congress St. It is a phone-free show; ticketholders will be required to lock their digital devices, including smartwatches, in Yondr bags when they enter the theater.