This Georgia cop-turned-comic mines his former profession for laughs

As originally reported in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution by Danielle Charbonneau
(Published July 16, 2025 – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

On Valentine’s Day in 2019, then-active-duty police officer Daryll Triplett stood nervously onstage at the Earl and Rachel Smith Strand Theatre in Marietta to deliver his first hourlong comedy show in front of a live audience.

Triplett knew he was taking a risk. People had told him he was crazy to attempt it.

First, he was a brand-new comic. Before getting coaching from local comedian Josh Harris, he had bombed every stand-up show he ever tried.

“It’ll never work,” he remembers professional comedians saying to him. “You’ll never be able to pull it off.”

“I said, ‘You know what? You might be right, but if I fail, it’s going to be on my own accord and on my own dime. It ain’t going to be from what you say,” said Triplett.

The second risk: the venue, which sat 500 people.

“I don’t know what in God’s green Earth made me think I could fill up a 500 seat. But it was crazy,” Triplett remembers. “We had about 200.”

Lastly, perhaps the biggest risk of all: Triplett was still an active duty police officer for the Jonesboro Police Department. His comedy set was going to be poking fun at cops. He planned to tell unfiltered stories about his time attending police academy, dating as a police officer and other humor from the front lines of law enforcement.

To top it off, Triplett chose a daring show title: “All Cops Ain’t Bad.”

In 2018 and 2019, there was a string of officer-related incidents that built a narrative that cops are the hotheaded bad guys. Triplett wanted to show people something different: a police officer who could make you laugh. A police officer who didn’t bark orders but cracked jokes.

When he took the stage, he turned to the audience and asked a single question:

“How many weed smokers I got in the house?” he said grinning.

Hands shot up. Smiles crept up faces.

“I’m a police officer,” he deadpanned.

The room howled. The audience’s laughter calmed his nerves. He launched into his hourlong set.

It was raw. It was blue collar. It contained more curse words than he’d be comfortable with today. It worked.

“There were cops, lawyers, doctors, criminals, non-criminals, just regular people, Black, white — and we were all just in there having a good time,” he said. “You get people laughing together, and all the tension in the room goes down. People start to see each other differently.”

Since that first show, Triplett’s done several under his stage persona Officer Keep it Real. He will perform again Friday at Uptown Comedy Corner in Hapeville.

How a Comedy Show Seeded a Nonprofit

That first show not only cemented Triplett’s love of comedy, but also served as the seed for what would, over the next six years, become a broader nonprofit organization.

All Cops Ain’t Bad encompasses several different initiatives, including community events, youth outreach programs and food drives — all with a common mission: to bridge the divide between cops and community.

The nonprofit’s primary objective this year is the launch of a new mobile app designed to help active-duty police officers assist civilians in moments of crisis.

Here’s how it works: Through the app, on-duty officers can submit verified requests for emergency assistance — such as food, shelter, a ride or medication — for people they encounter on calls. Each request is tied to an official case number, routed through an on-duty supervisor and processed in real time.

“We don’t want somebody waiting until the next morning, when a grant officer finishes their coffee and logs in,” Triplett said. “That doesn’t help a mother with five kids at three in the morning who has nowhere safe to go.”

There’s nothing more frustrating, Triplett said, than encountering a citizen on a call that needs small help and not being able to do anything for them.

He’s seen firsthand how, when a police officer shows empathy during a moment of crisis, it changes the perception of officers as merely mean rule enforcers into caring public servants.

“The police officer becomes more than a report writer,” Triplett said. “They become a resource.”

David Simon, a board member and Chief Development Officer for All Cops Ain’t Bad, said he has also seen Triplett’s philosophy work.

“I saw how the community treated him based on his interaction with them. It was better,” said Simon. “I also saw his humor break down walls with the toughest of guys. A light bulb went off. … The narrative has to change. This might be a way to do it.”

Fundraising Efforts & What’s Next

To raise money for the app and the emergency fund used to support it, All Cops Ain’t Bad has planned several fundraisers. On September 28, the organization will host a black-tie gala called The Guardian’s Ball. But first, staying true to its roots, the nonprofit will host a comedy show this Friday.

Six years after his first attempt at an hourlong set, Triplett will return to the stage — this time, with rolled-up sleeves and his trademark honesty — again performing as Officer Keep it Real. This time, the venue is the more intimate Uptown Comedy Corner in Hapeville. And this time, he’s not nervous.

“I’m going to go onstage, and I’m going to keep it real,” he said. “I’m going to tell it like it is.”

If You Go:

What: Daryll “Officer Keep it Real” Triplett Comedy Show
When: Friday, July 18, 2025 – 7:30 PM
Where: Uptown Comedy Corner, 1155 Virginia Ave., Hapeville, GA
Tickets: $25 – www.allcopsaintbad.org/comedy

Original Reporting By: Danielle Charbonneau, Reporter, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Photo Credits: Mike Williams & Abbey Cutrer / Courtesy of All Cops Ain’t Bad & AJC
AJC Article Link: (Include hyperlink if publishing digitally)