Early stand-up career Esposito began her stand-up career in Chicago, performing in various local venues, including as a regular at The Lincoln Lodge from 2007 to 2011. She has appeared at comedy festivals including
SXSW, the Moontower,
Bridgetown Comedy Festival, and
SF Sketchfest. To supplement her income, she worked in
special education, as a
law clerk, and as a
nanny.
2013–present In 2013, Esposito made her television debut on
The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Fellow guest
Jay Leno expressed admiration for Esposito, calling her "the future of comedy". She has appeared on
Conan and on
Last Call with Carson Daly. She voiced "Carroll the Cloud Person" on an episode of
Cartoon Network's animated show
Adventure Time. Entertainment website
Consequence of Sound named Esposito its comedian of the year for 2014. In the fall of 2014, Esposito created a series of videos with
BuzzFeed Motion Pictures titled "Ask a Lesbian", in which she answers a variety of questions sent in to BuzzFeed staff about lesbianism. The videos also featured then-partner
River Butcher. In addition to touring regularly, Esposito was a regular panelist on
Chelsea Lately with
Chelsea Handler and used to write a regular blog on
The A.V. Club. Esposito's comedy album
Same Sex Symbol was released in December 2014 by
Kill Rock Stars. She appeared on Comedy Central's
Drunk History as a storyteller on October 20, 2015. Esposito co-hosted the stand-up comedy podcast
Put Your Hands Together with River Butcher, which was recorded weekly in front of a live audience at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in Los Angeles from 2013 until July 2019. Esposito is known for her lesbian content creation, especially hers and Butcher's television show
Take My Wife, which streamed on
Seeso until the service was discontinued in November 2017. In March 2018,
Take My Wife was picked up by
iTunes. The show was acquired by
Starz in April 2018. Esposito's podcast
Queery is an interview-style podcast focusing on contemporary queer luminaries and their life experiences. Queery guests have included
River Butcher,
Lena Waithe,
Tegan Quin,
Sara Quin,
Evan Rachel Wood,
Jill Soloway,
Mary Lambert,
Andrea Gibson,
Margaret Cho,
Alia Shawkat,
Roxane Gay,
Trixie Mattel, and
Lea DeLaria. On June 11, 2018, Esposito released
Rape Jokes, an hour-long standup special about sexual assault from her perspective. The special was free to stream on Esposito's website, but viewers could pay to download a copy and proceeds would benefit
RAINN, the United States' largest anti-sexual violence organization. By September 2018, the special had raised $65,000 in donations. On March 24, 2020, Esposito released her memoir
Save Yourself. In 2025, Esposito was announced as a guest performer on the second season of the
panel show Smartypants, on
Dropout. Additionally, on March 21, 2025, Dropout announced a standup special featuring Esposito, titled
Four Pills, as an exclusive release on April 11. In
Four Pills, Esposito explored being diagnosed with bipolar disorder at the age of 40 years old.
Four Pills is Esposito's directorial debut. On May 1, 2025, it was revealed that Esposito would be a guest judge on the upcoming drag king competition show,
King of Drag. ==Personal life==