I just watched about half of . Really incredible stuff. Basically the host James Lipton works his way through Dave's biography including some honest discussion of Dave's trip to Africa and the general uproar over that.
Though Lipton's not the best interviewer, especially in terms of following up on some of the heavier things Dave drops, at least he stays out of the way for the most part.
Dave is funny, brilliant, insightful and quite willing to expose himself in ways that very few hip hop artists could get away with. In fact, he's far beyond folks in most fields of endeavor and I think this DVD would make an excellent gift as well as offering a lot to discuss in a classroom.
The DVD also has outtakes that I haven't watched yet. Unfortunately, I got about halfway through the feature and when I paused it the DVD software started the whole thing over. That wouldn't be a big deal except that whoever produced this thing does not allow you to skip the trailers, which I let run without sound while I did other things, and it doesn't have a menu for the feature.
It's all one block of data even though the show itself is edited in such a way that it would have been easy to index.
But what's the likelihood that the rest of the show isn't also of high quality. I mean, we're not talking about a hip hop album, you know?
Update:
Still haven't seen the second half but I did check the outtakes and they're pretty cool, especially the one on the creation of Chappelle's Show.
Posted by Clyde on December 17, 2006 in Discussion of the question, Who is Dave Champipple? , has taken off in the wake of in which he references Dave Champipple .
It's widely thought, and I think most likely, that Dave Champipple is Dave Chappelle.
In the comments to the above linked post, where the discussion of this question has raged of late, I jokingly referred to Champipple as a mixture of Champale (which I actually drank with one of my underage brothers for a summer back in the 70s) and Ripple, a beverage of choice for exceptionally poor and/or exceptionally self-destructive individuals for its low price, high alcohol content and sweet taste.
However, a returns references to Sanford and Son where Champipple was a combination of champagne and Ripple.
Man, I can imagine Fred saying it now, Champipple!
Until a more credible authority emerges, I think Fred Sanford gets the last word on the meaning of Champipple.
But who is Dave Champipple?
I think the people have spoken and Dave Chappelle is awarded the shoutout.
Go Dave!
One of the interesting things about moving to North Carolina after a year or so in San Francisco is getting over the feeling that I've moved out into the country.
Actually, I really felt that way for a week or so before I got over it. But Raleigh, where I am now, and the Triangle, Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill, are quite cosmopolitan in their own way without having to constantly remind you of the fact.
Of course, college basketball fans know all about this place, because the major colleges here, NC State, UNC and Duke, tend to kick national ass on a regular basis and all three have been NCAA champions more than once.
In fact, as long as you leave pro sports out of the picture, North Carolina looks pretty good.
I mention the above because I heard some interesting tales from a former employee during breaks in NC State's victory over somebody or other (actually I didn't expect them to win but it was fun being in a crowded bar full of State fans when they pulled it off!).
Charlie Goodnight's was singled out last year by USA Today as one of the in the U.S. Though I tend to mistrust such lists, it is true that they get well known acts, including at least one visit each by Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle.
My acquaintance was the one who got to drive Chris Rock to the club. She's a young white female and said that the Chris Rock experience in person is quite racially charged. In fact, when a black man tried to carry his luggage, he stopped him and demanded that a white person be found because he will only be served by white people.
On the way to the club, he talked on his cell phone the whole time, often referring to the white bitch who was driving him around. He did this multiple times. At the club, he was described as someone who everyone hated by the time he was gone.
Now, I can see the sick humor in this situation, especially for people obsessed with payback regarding whole races of humans, but I was immensely disappointed to hear that Chris Rock, one of my favorite comedians and an important commentator on racial realities, is basically an a-hole. Now, he may well treat other white people (especially those with money and power or big breasts) as fellow humans, but he certainly doesn't feel that way about the white working class. In fact, if you've never dealt with famous people as an underling in passing, there's a very strong chance you don't know much about who they really are.
However, I was quite pleased to hear that people working at Charlie Goodnight's totally dug Dave Chappelle. They said he was a really fine man and a pleasure to work with. I think that says a lot about him when the workers give him props.
Cause, believe me, people who work in such settings get over being starstruck pretty quickly.
Update: I received a follow-up email from my contact after reading the above post. She describes her portrayal as harsh but accurate.
She says that she accepts such languag in performance but feels that terms like bitch should be reserved for the stage. She also says that this was not the first time she had heard about him replacing a black person with a white one to carry his things but that she hopes he tips well!
I know some folks haven't wanted to believe this because they're such big Chris Rock Fans.
I'll have to say it's going to make it tougher for me to take in his act, which is sad because I really do dig his work. It's also a reminder that there are some really nasty people who make great art and hide their nastiness well. Often we don't find out till they're dead or their career has taken a dive and folks are ready to come forth.
In any case, believe it or not as you wish, but it would be an interesting topic for an investigative reporter to pursue.
Posted by Clyde on March 17, 2006 in I would love to know what happens when the guy or gal who won an actually meets the man. I foresee something along the following lines:
"Mr.
Simmons, it's so nice to meet you."
"Nice meeting you and why don't you call me Russell."
"Hold, please, I've got a call.
"
Posted by Clyde on February 22, 2006 in Though aren't focused on hip hop, the list of nominees includes some well-known rappers among the other comedians.
In particular, the Outstanding Theatrical Film category includes three films featuring rappers, Ice Cube's Are We There Yet?, Queen Latifah's Beauty Shop and Will Smith's Hitch.
All three also get nominations for Top Actor or Actress awards.
Eve was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series for Eve while Andre 3000 was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Theatrical Film for Be Cool. HBO's P.
Diddy Presents the Bad Boys of Comedy received a nomination for Outstanding Comedy Variety Series.
The awards show will be taped on Sept. 25th and televised on Tuesday, September 27th at 9 pm.
Official site:
TIME.com has an exclusive interview with Dave Chappelle and reveals that and is processing his success on retreat in South Africa. He doesn't seem to have issues with Comedy Central but reveals that there were problems due to the effects of his success on his inner circle.
Oddly, I'm reminded of the following:
stories I used to read about how weird Mother Theresa's inner circle got; and,
the fact that even the worst drag queen has an ardent group of admirers.
It's interesting to see how personal the Chappelle situation seems to be for many black writers, especially hip hop bloggers, as and reveal.
By the way, I'm also reminded of a pet journalistic peeve.
TIME.com got an exclusive with Dave Chappelle. That means they were the only ones who got to talk to him, though that may not last.
However, you'll often see hip hop sites claim to have an exclusive when they really mean they were the only ones talking to someone at that moment. That's not an exclusive, y'all. But dig this, Dave Chappelle's personal problems covered by TIME.
com? He is so huge, no wonder he needs some time off.
Now the RIAA is .
I guess it really is about the principle rather than the money, although I bet none of the lawyers' billable hours were reduced. No doubt their next step will be to sue the undead.
Better than brains.
Hey, at least they're not suing us for thinking about filesharing. Yet.
This must be my day.
After all that heaviness, comedy is flooding the room. At this very moment, Yahoo News is from Reuters/Hollywood Reporter (at least that's who's credited with providing the article in whatever agreement they have) that's about Martha Stewart. But I'm guessing they're either using automated picture matching like Google News does or, because Kimora is getting into Martha's space (in terms of product lines), I think it was just one of those moments of serendipidy meant to brighten my world.
But that's really so perfect considering what's to come from Ms. Simmons.
If you really need to see the picture and they take it down before you do.
I can send you a screenshot.
[Update: Kimora's picture has been traded for Martha's, but it will always be emblazoned on my memory.]
There are certain things I did not anticipate about doing this project and one of them was keeping up with awards shows.
Thankfully it's more of a seasonal thing because I'm finding myself much more interested in the oddball awards like Wednesday night's taping of , which will be aired December 5th. It sounds like a lot of fun but it feels like it's over before it's begun. Hip hop attendees included Black Eyed Peas, Flavor Flav (with the bigger than life Brigitte Nielsen) and P.
Diddy, who apparently stood under a sign proclaiming his presidential aspirations for 2008. However, he's more likely to run as VP to Russell Simmons after Russell does a turn or two as Mayor of New York. I'm only kind of joking on that one.
I think there's a fairly high probability that Russell will run for office sometime in the next 12 years.
Although I appreciated Solvej Schou's fashion conscious coverage of the event in this article, I think it's fucked up to say, "The blind singer (ironically) received a standing ovation." Since you've obviously never experienced a standing ovation Mr.
or Ms. Schou, let me assure you that when they stand up, you'll feel it whether you can see it or not. But I guess that won't be added to your list of accomplishments.
As I regain my composure, I'm reminded to be grateful that Paris Hilton will not be putting out a hip hop album anytime soon. I didn't sign on to cover really boring people. Although I guess I'll have to make an exception if Jessica Simpson's boyfriend really follows through with his quasi-rap act plans.
However, I did not sign on to cover stabbings either and that went down in my first days on the job.
And, no, my bitterness has nothing to do with .
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