Aida Rodriguez

Aida Rodriguez, born Aida Margarita Parada Rodriguez on August 29, 1977, is an American comedian of Puerto Rican and Dominican descent who is best known for her appearance as a contestant on the eighth season of Last Comic Standing and as a commentator on The Young Turks. She is also an actress, producer, writer, and podcaster. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, she had a turbulent childhood marked by family abductions and the murder of her uncle in a hate crime. She attended Florida State University, where she met her future husband Omar Ellison, studying English and law but leaving before graduating after she became pregnant.

Rodriguez moved to Los Angeles in the early 2000s with her two children after her divorce, and turned to comedy for healing following a bout with anorexia; for a time, she and her children were homeless and lived out of a car. She attempts to transform painful episodes of her life into comedy material, while also addressing difficult issues such as misogyny and racism. She was a top ten finalist in the eighth season of NBC's Last Comic Standing in 2014, finishing in a tie for ninth place after losing a head-to-head showdown against Rod Man.

Rodriguez is a five-time host of the Imagen Awards, which recognise the positive portrayal of Latinos and Latino cultures on screen. Through the stand-up circuit she met Tiffany Haddish, and in August 2019 was featured as one of six comedians in the Netflix anthology series Tiffany Haddish Presents: They Ready, each given a half-hour special. She currently co-hosts The Young Turks, and in collaboration with HBO Max released her debut hour-long comedy special on November 4, 2021.