* LISTEN * to a Q&A with Comedian + Singer-Songwriter – MARGARET CHO!

Three time Grammy and Emmy nominee, comedian Margaret Cho is currently on a national U.S. run in support of  The psyCHO Tour . Margaret will hit various cities including Los Angeles (Saturday, November 14th at The Wiltern), Chicago and her hometown of San Francisco before embarking on a string of European dates this winter.

Margaret has been developing brand new material over the last several months and said:

“I’m so thrilled to announce that I will be back out on the road. This show is about insanity, and about the anger I feel about everything happening in the world right now, from police brutality to racism to the rising tide of violence against women. It makes me all so crazy – hence the title: “The psyCHO Tour” – there is no “I” in team but there is a “CHO” in psycho”. When men go off on something – they are “passionate” and “driven” and when women go off on something we are “hysterical” and “crazy”. I’m trying to bring some joy to the hysteria and insanity. ”

From singlehood to Boko Haram to Bruce Jenner’s transition to female empowerment, Margaret tackles difficult subjects with sensitivity and razor sharp insight. A pioneer amongst women in comedy, Margaret doesn’t take anything for granted.

“It’s a wonderful thing to be known as a ‘safe haven’ for people who feel disenfranchised. The audience at my shows don’t necessarily consider themselves traditional comedy fans. I seem to be a secure alternative for people who don’t think they’re being represented in society. They come because my point of view satisfies a lot of what needs to be said out there, and that makes me really proud.”

Margaret Cho‘s powerful new music video “I Wanna Kill My Rapist” premieres today as well, which you can watch here .

Margaret says about the song and it’s content:

“I do not condone violence but cathartic rage has its place in art. I believe if you have been sexually abused, you must ‘murder’ your rapist in your mind. Abuse leads to self abuse, drug addiction, depression, eating disorders, suicide. I want to kill it before it kills me. I’m grateful to all the incredible artists who went into the creation of this song and video, especially the young people who lent their fierce fighting talents. I can see already that kids are building a better world than the one we are currently in.”

Margaret Cho is very much linked into the music world as well. For her debut album, she  collaborated with many talented musicians such as Fiona Apple, Andrew Bird, Jon Brion, Tegan and Sara, Grant Lee Phillips, Ani DiFranco and Brendon Benson to name a few. Cho has more music plans on the way, including her recent appearance in Peaches new video here .

All Access Music writer, Nicole DeRosa had a chance to catch up with Margaret between video shoots and gigs. Read or LISTEN to their chat below!

Hi Margaret! How are you? Where does this interview find you today? What else is on the agenda today besides our interview?

I’ve been working on a music video with Peaches, so I’m going to go back to the set to continue shooting the video today. She’s wonderful. She’s one of my favorite recording artists and a really good friend. We’re having a really good time!

That is fantastic! Peaches is great! So can you tell us a bit more about the premise of the video or is it to remain a surprise?

I don’t think I’m allowed to talk too much about it…but I will say, it’s pretty spectacular! It’s for a song off her new record which should be coming out soon! We’ve been laughing the whole time during the shoot! She’s a tremendous visual artist and always has such a striking appearance. She’s really inspiring and beautiful.

On the topic of visual artists and amazing costumes, let’s go from Peaches to Gwar shall we? (laughs) What is your connection to the band, Gwar?

I love them. I love Gwar. They are the best. I did Bonnaroo with them! I also got to make a video with them and hang out with them. They are so sweet! When you see them in their dressing room and they have these big costumes on…they are just SO SWEET! They kind of remind me of muppets…like heavy metal muppets! (laughs) They are so cute!

Speaking of music festivals, do you have any plans to do Bonnaroo again or maybe even Coachella? Actually, I don’t think Coachella has a comedy stage, but I’m thinking that would be a great addition!

Yeah! I would love it! I mean, I would love to just be able to go and hang out. I love music festivals! Yeah, Bonnaroo had a comedy stage…but your right, I don’t think Coachella has one though. I think they should…that would be really cool.

You are such a Renaissance lady! You perform at music festivals like Bonnaroo, you’re a fashion designer, an actress, director, author, singer-songwriter, AND of course a comedian. You released your first studio album, CHO DEPENDENT (which is your sixth album including your stand-up comedy releases). That album featured notable songs like, “Intervention,” “I’m Sorry,” “Eat Shit and Die” (laughs) and earned you a nomination for a 2011 Grammy award for Best Comedy Album. Any plans to release another music inspired album in the near future?

Yeah, I have two records that are finished and I have to figure out how to put them out. I don’t have a specific plan that I do in comedy that I do with music. So, I’m just gonna be working on stuff over the summer.

The new record will come out sometime in the Fall and it’s called, American Myth. It’s a really fun collection. I did it all with Garrison Starr, who is an artist I really love. She and I did a lot of stuff together on CHO DEPENDENT and she’s really great!

You’re currently in the midst of your PSYCHO tour. How has that been going?

It’s fun! It’s just a show about rage..the whole theme is there’s no I in team, but there is an Cho in PSYCHO. That is my whole title. (laughs)

I love that! (laughs) You cover so much in your comedy and it’s so relatable and it helps to laugh about things that we can all relate to and go through. You have such wonderful fun commentary about the human condition and being able to laugh at life and ourselves is such a great release and outlet.

Comedy is a great connection tool.

For your debut album, you collaborated with many talented musicians such as Fiona Apple, Andrew Bird, Jon Brion, Tegan and Sara, Grant Lee Phillips, Ani DiFranco and Brendon Benson to name a few. What was that experience like for you?

I’m so lucky. It was so exciting and great…I’m so in love with music and all these different artists and it’s a dream. I mean, to go into the studio with people like Tegan and Sara and get into this really intense music space…it’s such a different world from comedy. There’s similarities where you both tour and you’re always on the go but other than that, it’s a very different art form.

Who is in your current playlist? Who are you listening to right now and inspired by?

I always mix it up. I always go back to like a solid New Wave sound like, 1981-84 with bands like Berlin or Missing Persons. That’s the sort of sound I’m always looking for…I would LOVE sonically, to get that Chrissie Hynde vocal down.  I’m close, but I’m not exactly there. There’s so much more warmth to her voice and I’m trying to get close to that.

When I do my comedy show though, it’s very much a comedy show and I always like to put a little music in there for what I think would be good for the show but it’s always something different.

Thank you so much for your time, Margaret. I love that you are constantly doing super fun projects and I love that I get to merge what I do working in music with what you do as well with comedy and music. I can’t wait to see you when the show come to Los Angeles in November!

Awe, thank you so much!

Say hi to Peaches for me!

I will! 

To keep up with MARGARET CHO, including her upcoming tour dates, visit her website HERE  and check her out on her YouTube and Twitter too!