Iliza Shlesinger makes jokes, but also has some serious things to say

“Netflix took the comedy market by storm at some point,” Shlesinger said recently in a Zoom interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Nothing lasts forever. Lots of other companies offer comedy, too. At Amazon, I liked the team and the offering. But that doesn't mean I won't go back to Netflix. No door is closed.”

For eight years, she has hosted the popular podcast Ask Iliza Anything, the premise of which is simple: People send in questions about relationships, in-laws, or whatever is on their mind. Iliza, who admittedly has no background in psychology or mental health, simply answers in her own blunt and sensible way.

The podcast draws fans from all over the world, and one recent episode featured a guest woman who said she learned about Shlesinger through her appearance on Joe Rogan's heavily subscribed podcast.

“I think I'm attractive to everyone,” Shlesinger said. “As entertainers, we all do other people's podcasts in the hopes of finding like-minded listeners.”

Shlesinger was excited to be asked about Rogan because she thought it would help people click on the story. “Maybe we should put some Kardashians and a muckbang in the story” (a video in which a host eats large amounts of food and interacts with the audience), she suggested.

She recently joked on social media that she named her seven-month-old son Ethan because she believes Ethans are inherently good-looking.

It doesn't hurt that the most famous actor named Ethan is probably Ethan Hawke. “The fact that we can only name one Ethan helps,” she said. “The name just sounds good. So far he's responded to the name and hasn't rejected it and picked some weird AI binary name.”

Ethan, she said, has been a joy. “At this point, Ethan is still a bit like porridge,” she said. “The first few months are hard work, but nothing much happens. He's starting to have more fun. He's starting to sit up straight, so anything is possible.”

Shlesinger hopes her oldest daughter, Sierra Mae, will get along with Ethan when they grow up. “I can't say yet,” she says. “All I know is that I don't want to be in the middle of it. They can both do taekwondo and then move on. We'll start a little kids' fight club and make bets.”

She also likes to call herself an environmental activist. At her concerts she offers a VIP experience that includes a “biodegradable VIP laminate.”

“I'm someone who collects every laminate I've ever gotten,” she said. “These are things that sit in your office, and if you're a real fan, in a shrine in the living room. Eventually they get thrown out. It's my little way of saving the planet while I fly on the plane to every gig.”

Seriously, she said, these VIP experiences are the highlight of every concert for her.

“My fans are incredibly diverse,” she said. “Not just in terms of race and religion, but also in terms of all walks of life. We have everyone from the far left to the far right. I see people come in that I would assume I have nothing in common with. That's the power of comedy. It crosses boundaries. You never know how you're going to touch people. I try to give every person time to talk to me and have a human moment.”

Shlesinger admits to keeping every hotel key card she's ever had. And since she's been performing as a stand-up comedian for about two decades, that's hundreds of key cards. “My goal is to tile my wall with them so they become a permanent part of my house,” she said.

Recently, she was able to explore her past on the show “Finding Your Roots,” in which host Henry Louis Gates researches the family trees of famous people. She learned that there were members in her family who did not survive the Holocaust.

“I wish everyone had a team of genealogists looking into their family history,” Shlesinger said. “We all have a right to know where we came from. You go in hoping to find Scandinavian royalty and you come out with relatives who lived through the Holocaust.”

“But I think that regardless of our origins, we are all searching for meaning and a place in this world. There is a little laughter along the way in this search. I come from two people who had almost no family. It's good to know that I have roots.”

She also found out that she is a distant relative of fellow comedian Sarah Silverman. “I'm friends with her, so I texted her and told her we're like fifth cousins,” she said. “She was just as surprised to hear that as I was.”

WHEN YOU GO

Iliza Schlesinger

8 p.m., Friday. $29.50–$199.50, Fox Theatre, 660 Peachtree St. NW, Atlanta. foxtheatre.org