Jerrod Carmichael says Dave Chappelle Decided To Die with a Sad Legacy
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Recently out stand up comedian Jerrod Carmichael, whose critically acclaimed special Rothaniel debuted on HBO back in May, is featured in the latest issue of GQ and he goes in on Dave Chappelle’s choice to die on the hill of making anti-trans “jokes.”
“Look, I get it. Everybody’s got to create a boogeyman to sell tickets. But it’s not true,” he says, referring to the much-hyped threat of cancel culture. “Who’s getting canceled for what they’ve said? What does that mean, that people are mad on Twitter? Everybody’s fine. These grown men are fine. I think, a lot of times, people who offer nothing truthful or meaningful about themselves then complain about society at large and create this boogeyman. It’s like, listen, that’s the most urgent thing in your life? God bless you. I’m tired of hearing it. Chappelle, do you know what comes up when you Google your name, bro? That’s the legacy? Your legacy is a bunch of opinions on trans shit? It’s an odd hill to die on. And it’s like, hey, bro. Who the fuck are you? Who do you fuck? What do you like to do? Childish jokes aside, who the fuck are you? It’s just kind of played. But he’s choosing to die on the hill. So, alright, let him.”
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Carmichael maintains that he is committed to speaking and living truth.
The real project Carmichael is committed to working on is unflinching honesty: “I’m not hiding anything, anymore,” he says with impassioned urgency. “So now it’s like my 12-Step Truth Program. [Rothaniel] was about the burden of hiding something, keeping the truth away from myself and from the public. And now, it’s like, how do I keep [the truth] at the forefront in my own life and in my work? Confronting the things that are there, the things that I would want to push away or push down. Saying what I mean. Communicating my first thought, my first feelings and not my second,” he laughs. “That’s the one thing about the special, bro… It’s about being as honest as I purport myself to be. Be who you say you are—or hey, [you can] be a full character… [But] I couldn’t handle the purgatory. Like, I’m playing Jerrod Carmichael in my shows, and I’m onstage as Jerrod Carmichael, but I’m not able to fully express myself. It was such a contradiction. It’s hell. You build these little hells [for yourself]. Once I knew that I had the power to tell the truth and I wasn’t… I had no other choice.”
This is Jerrod Carmichael’s mission going forward: to keep telling the truth, at all costs. With as much earnestness as is possible with a camera recording the action. “There’s so much work to be done,” he says, talking about the future creative opportunities his newfound momentum has afforded him—but also talking about himself. “I see the path. Just head down and work.” Describing his mindset post-Rothaniel, post-burden, post secrets, he says “I feel like a man, I guess, if that makes sense. I guess that’s what I’m describing. It’s made me feel like more of a man. And now, it’s time to work, man.” He will survive.
Savas Abadsidis is the co-founder and editor of GayNrd.
