Every black American is bilingual. All of them. We speak street vernacular and we speak 'job interview.'
— Dave Chappelle
There's a lot of people who don't want anything from me but to laugh and have a good time. You see them at the show and they like - they dress up to come see your show and stuff. And they pack these auditoriums and it's a lot of fun, man. It's like, this is how I started, and it's still fun for me.
Everyone around me says, You're a genius! You're great! That's your voice! But I'm not sure if they're right.
I love my jokes.
There's something about doing stand-up that's cathartic.
You can't get unfamous. You can get infamous but you can't get unfamous.
I'm famous today. People like me today. Might not like me tomorrow. You can't count on it.
After a while, a joke, if you say it too much, just becomes contrived, or fake-sounding.
I was doing sketches that were funny but socially irresponsible. I felt I was deliberately being encouraged and I was overwhelmed.
I've done 10 or 11 pilots for network television, which is ridiculous.
Comedy is a very approval-oriented field.
The way the people around you position themselves around you to get in your pockets and in your mind is infuriating to me.
I love Ohio.
I enjoy my own thoughts sometimes.
I got real important relationships in my life that are very empowering relationships.
Fame for me is like a place, a country I'm taking a tour through.
One of the things that happens when people make the leap from a certain amount of money to tens of millions of dollars is that the people around you dramatically change.
You can't get un-famous. You can get infamous, but you can't get un-famous.
Because I was surrounded by so much negativity at some point that it took me going back and doing stand-up to realize, you know, people really like me.
If I can make a teacher's salary doing comedy, I think that's better than being a teacher.
The worst thing to call somebody is crazy. It's dismissive.
People don't know what it's like standing up there onstage, when you have a wall of people smiling at you.
When I'm on stage, I get real happy there. Maybe that's the only time in my adult life I feel like myself.
Something about New York, man: You can do more comedy there probably than you can anywhere in the world. If you're interested in being funny, New York is the place to go.
Stand-up is the kind of gig that'll show you where you're at.
If I put forth a legitimate effort, then I feel like, if that doesn't work out, that's all I can do.
I don't care if I ever work in TV again.
I get a little heated when I talk about the past. But I wanted to be clear - I'm not mad at anybody - not anymore.
I love being famous - it's phenomenal.
My wife asked me once if I weren't a comedian what I would do. I couldn't answer the question. I never imagined doing anything else.
I'm cool with failing so long as I know that there are people around me that love me unconditionally.
You know, be able to do something great in your life, you're gonna have to realize your failures. You're gonna have to embrace them and figure out how to overcome it.
The only thing harder than leaving show business is coming back.
You got to be careful of the company you keep.
America, I appreciate you liking me.
Most of the people around me have a vested interest in how much money I make. You know, so a celebrity could find themselves in a position where people could have meetings about their life without them involved. And when I say 'their life' I mean not their professional life either. They could talk about their personal life.
The higher up I went, the less happy I was.
My father told me 'Name your price in the beginning. If it ever gets more expensive than the price you name, get out of there.'
My generation is under-entertained.
The world can't tell you who you are. You've just got to figure out who you are and be there, for better or worse.
I just always loved stand-up. It's like magic. You say something, and a whole room full of people laughs together. Say something else, they laugh again. The fact that people come to see that and participate in that... I don't know, it's just like magic.
Whether it means having a show, or a movie, or just being on a stage, I need an avenue to say what I have to say.
I think extreme sports are really good for relieving stress.
I felt in a lot of instances I was deliberately being put through stress because when you're a guy who generates money, people have a vested interested in controlling you.
I don't want the money. I don't want the drama. I just want to do my show. I want to have fun again.
Being famous is great, it's not like bad or horrible or anything.
I care about the work I do. But I'm not going to say that money's not an issue.
I got a lot of positive people around me.
I want to tell my jokes. I want to have time with my children. I want to entertain people. And at one point, I'll walk away from show business. But I don't want to walk away empty-handed.
I've been a comedian since I was fourteen. But I've never really been a CEO.
