Welcome to his 'Planet'

Ralph Barbosa's latest special is on Hulu, which excites him for what's next: Writing new jokes

- BY NATE JACKSON

JASON ARMOND Los Angeles Times STAND-UP COMEDIAN Ralph Barbosa is working on new material and, to take his mind off that, he's working on old cars too.

From the outside, it appears that Ralph Barbosa has it all.

Aside from A-list comedian status hanging with superstars like Dave Chappelle, he's known to show off his garage full of his favorite cars (even a few that actually run, he says), and he has a brand new comedy special on Hulu, "Planet Bosa," that premiered earlier this month.

But following the release of his new hour, Barbosa claims he's "broke."

For comedians, specials aren't just a celebration of your success, they're also a funeral for your best material. Though he's dubbed his latest trek across the country the Bean Without a Cause Tour, he's also back to square one — a comic without new material, or at least not much of it. "I've got about 10 minutes [worth of jokes] to my name, I'm broke — comedy-wise, I'm broke," he says with a sly grin. "It's the funnest place to be."

It's a feeling most comics can relate to, though few in the last couple years have been on the ride Barbosa's been on. Coming out of relative obscurity from the Dallas comedy scene, he garnered viral fame by being dissed and then apologized to by comedy legend George Lopez, who didn't know who he was at the time despite Barbosa being at the forefront of the next wave of Latin comics, thanks in large part to a breakout set on Don't Tell Comedy. Garnering nationwide buzz since his debut Netflix special "Cowabunga," his latest hour on Hulu finds the 28-year-old reaching the top of his game.