Bryan Safi is an American actor, comedian, television writer, director, and podcast host. He is widely recognized for playing emergency dispatcher Josh Russo on the procedural drama 9-1-1 and for co-creating the comedy podcast now known as Attitudes!

Bryan Safi’s career spans television writing, digital satire, improvisational comedy, acting, and audio entertainment. He won a Daytime Emmy Award for his work on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and received additional recognition for the web series That’s Gay. His comedy frequently addresses popular culture, politics, LGBTQ+ representation, and social issues.

Profile Summary

Early Life and Background

Bryan Safi is from El Paso, Texas. He has publicly discussed growing up in a conservative environment, an experience that later informed parts of his comedy and commentary.

Reliable information about his parents, siblings, and formal education is limited. Safi has kept much of his family background outside his public career.

Bryan Safi later became involved in the Los Angeles comedy community. He trained and performed with two prominent improvisational institutions: the Groundlings and the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre.

He was a member of the Groundlings Sunday Company and performed on a Maude team at Upright Citizens Brigade. These experiences helped develop the sketch-writing, character, and improvisational skills that became central to his work across television, digital media, and podcasts.

Published sources consistently give July 30 as Safi’s birthday, but his birth year is disputed. Entertainment databases list both 1979 and 1987, while his official professional biography does not provide a year. For that reason, an exact age cannot be stated with confidence.

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Career and Professional Journey

Television Writing

Bryan Safi established himself as a comedy writer before becoming widely known as an actor. One of his most notable early positions was as a writer for The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

His work on the daytime program earned industry recognition. Safi was part of the writing team that received a Daytime Emmy Award in 2010.

He later worked as a writer, performer, and director for Funny or Die, the comedy website founded by Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, and Chris Henchy. His duties there reflected his ability to work on both sides of the camera.

InfoMania and That’s Gay

Bryan Safi became known for creating and hosting That’s Gay, a recurring segment produced for Current TV’s InfoMania. The satirical series examined the ways LGBTQ+ people and issues were represented in news, entertainment, advertising, and popular culture.

The format combined comedy with media criticism. Rather than approaching representation as a purely academic subject, Safi used clips, commentary, and satire to identify stereotypes and contradictions in mainstream media.

That’s Gay received Webby recognition and helped establish Safi as a distinct voice in digital comedy. His work also contributed to his inclusion in Out magazine’s Out 100.

Throwing Shade and Attitudes!

In 2011, Safi and comedian Erin Gibson launched Throwing Shade. The weekly podcast combined humor with discussions of LGBTQ+ rights, women’s rights, politics, entertainment, and social issues.

Safi and Gibson had previously worked together as writers and performers. Their conversational dynamic became the foundation of the program, which developed an established audience and expanded through several podcast networks.

Throwing Shade was adapted into a television series for TV Land in 2017. The televised version retained the podcast’s mixture of comedy, commentary, sketches, and interviews. It ran for one season comprising ten episodes.

In 2020, the podcast was renamed Attitudes! Safi and Gibson continued as co-hosts, maintaining its established focus while adopting a broader title. The show later moved to an independently supported distribution model.

Safi has also participated in related audio projects. These include Groceries, a podcast examining grocery stores and shopping culture, and Throwing Shoscar, a limited series about the Academy Awards.

Other Podcast Work

Beyond Attitudes!, Safi has co-hosted the comedy advice podcast Ask Ronna. The program features Jessica Chaffin performing as the character Ronna Glickman, with Safi contributing under the persona Bryan.

He also launched No Autographs, Please! with comedian Arden Myrin in 2023. The program combines improvisational comedy, conversations, and listener-submitted material.

These projects have made podcasting a substantial part of Safi’s career. They also demonstrate his ability to adapt improvisational and character-based comedy to an audio format.

Acting Career

Safi has appeared in several television comedies and dramas. His guest credits include Modern Family, Superstore, and The Big Bang Theory.

He played Alan Lowenstein in the Freeform sitcom Young & Hungry. The recurring role allowed him to apply his comedy background within a scripted ensemble series.

Bryan Safi also appeared in A Deadly Adoption, a 2015 Lifetime television film starring Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig. The production used the structure and tone of a conventional Lifetime thriller as part of its deliberately exaggerated presentation.

Josh Russo in 9-1-1

Bryan Safi’s most recognizable acting role is Josh Russo in 9-1-1. Josh works as a dispatcher at the Los Angeles emergency call center and appears alongside characters who coordinate responses to urgent situations.

Bryan Safi joined the series during its early seasons and continued in the role as the program developed. The character has been involved in workplace storylines as well as plots dealing with emergency calls and threats to the dispatch center.

The series originally aired on Fox before moving to ABC. Safi remained part of its recurring cast following the network transition.

Major Achievements and Recognition

Safi has received two reported Daytime Emmy nominations and won one award for his writing on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. The honor established his credentials as a professional television comedy writer.

His That’s Gay series earned Webby recognition for its combination of satire and digital media commentary. The project remains an important example of his work addressing LGBTQ+ representation through comedy.

Attitudes! received two Podcast Awards under its original and subsequent identity. The podcast has also accumulated millions of downloads and developed a long-running presence within comedy and LGBTQ+ media.

Safi was selected for Out magazine’s Out 100, which recognizes influential LGBTQ+ figures. The acknowledgment reflected the visibility of his comedy and media criticism.

His sustained role in 9-1-1 represents another significant stage in his career. It expanded his profile beyond comedy writing and podcasting and introduced his work to a broad network television audience.

Personal Life

Safi is openly gay and has incorporated LGBTQ+ subjects into much of his public work. His commentary generally focuses on media representation, civil rights, popular culture, and the experiences of LGBTQ+ communities.

He married Derek Meeker in 2016. A divorce case was filed in Los Angeles County in 2018, and Meeker is therefore accurately described as Safi’s former husband.

Safi has not made extensive details about his current relationships or family life central to his public profile. Claims beyond confirmed public information should be avoided.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Bryan Safi has developed a multidisciplinary career encompassing television writing, digital satire, acting, improvisational comedy, directing, and podcasting. His Emmy-winning work on The Ellen DeGeneres Show established his writing credentials, while That’s Gay brought recognition for his approach to LGBTQ+ media criticism.

As co-host of Attitudes!, Safi helped create a long-running comedy program centered on politics, culture, and civil rights. His recurring role as Josh Russo in 9-1-1 further expanded his television profile. Together, these projects demonstrate the range of a career built across traditional broadcasting, online media, scripted acting, and independent audio production.