Dave Chappelle’s monologue attacks Kanye West & Kyrie Irving

• It was his first appearance since the controversy over The Closer from 2021.
• He didn’t really address the prior scandal.
• But called out celebs like Kanye West and Kyrie Irving.

Last night’s episode of Saturday Night Live was hosted by comedian Dave Chappelle, who was making his third appearance on the venerable programme and his first since the controversy over his Netflix stand-up The Closer from 2021 that centred on the transgender population.

He didn’t really address the prior scandal, but in the opening monologue he called out celebrities like Kyrie Irving and Kanye West who are presently dealing with their own PR crises and said that “all of mankind depends on it.”

Chappelle’s “prepared statement” that began the 15-minute stand-up segment stated his support for the Jewish community and condemned antisemitism.

He advised Kanye, who is still facing criticism for his previous antisemitic remarks, that this is how you “buy yourself some time.”

The first five minutes of his performance were devoted to Kanye West making jokes about Adidas, which he pointed out was established by Nazis. Chappelle then called West out for his remarks, adding that “the pupil outperformed the teacher.”

He then turned the conversation to Kyrie Irving, a Brooklyn Nets player who is now on suspension, another famous person who was embroiled in an antisemitism-related controversy.

The basketball player was suspended after sharing a movie link with numerous antisemitic comments. Chappelle claimed that Irving cannot be held responsible for the crimes that have befallen Jews throughout history, despite the NBA’s growing list of demands that he return to the game.

Irving cannot be held responsible for the Holocaust because he was not present and, as stated in the movie he referenced, “was not even sure it existed.”

After criticising Hershel Walker for being “visibly ignorant” during the recent midterm elections, Chappelle went on to discuss why he thinks Donald Trump was able to connect so well with his following.

He was the first individual that Americans saw within the system to come out and declare the system is fixed because he benefited from it, according to Chappelle, who labelled him a “honest liar.” As a Democrat, he continued, Trump’s victory was “embarrassing” because the opposition party was screaming about his collusion with Russia.

As time passed, “we all learned that he was probably working with Russia,” He then discusses the documents that were confiscated from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club and the conflict between Ukraine and Russia before returning to Kanye and describing how he lost $1.5 billion in a single day.

He ends the monologue by thanking the audience for their support and stating that it “shouldn’t be this scary to talk about anything” and that it makes it difficult to speak to a crowd as he is.

Although Chappelle targeted some of the more recent problematic personalities, he is accustomed to being scrutinized in the same way.

In his sixth Netflix special, The Closer, the five-time Emmy Award-winning comedian made some contentious remarks about the transgender community.

He likened being transgender to wearing blackface and expressed support for people like Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, referring to himself as a member of “team TERF.”

Chappelle’s remarks drew harsh criticism, notably among transgender Netflix employees. At a subsequent comedic performance, Chappelle spoke about the predicament, saying:

“It’s been said in the press that I was invited to speak to the transgender employees of Netflix and I refused. That is not true — if they had invited me I would have accepted it, although I am confused about what we would be speaking about. I said what I said, and boy, I heard what you said. My God, how could I not? You said you want a safe working environment at Netflix. It seems like I’m the only one that can’t go to the office anymore.”

The entire 15-minute Stand-Up Monologue for Saturday Night Live can be seen below.

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