David Khari Webber Chappelle is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. His comedy focuses on racism, relationship problems, social problems, politics, current events, and pop culture. After beginning his film career in 1993 as Ahchoo in Mel Brooks’s Robin Hood: Men in Tights, Chappelle landed supporting roles in box office hits including The Nutty Professor, Con Air, You’ve Got Mail, Blue Streak and Undercover Brother. His first lead role was in the 1998 comedy film Half Baked, which he co-wrote with Neal Brennan.
Some of the best quotes from Dave Chappelle are listed below.
- “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.” – Dave Chappelle
- “Fame for me is like a place, a country I’m taking a tour through.” – Dave Chappelle
- “I care about the work I do. But I’m not going to say that money’s not an issue.” – Dave Chappelle
- “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.” – Dave Chappelle
- “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.” – Dave Chappelle
- “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 facts that people come to see that and participate in that… I don’t know, it’s just like magic.” – Dave Chappelle
- “I love being famous – it’s phenomenal.” – Dave Chappelle
- “I’m cool with failing so long as I know that there are people around me that love me unconditionally.” – Dave Chappelle
- “I’m famous today. People like me today. Might not like me tomorrow. You can’t count on it.” – Dave Chappelle
- “If you don’t have the right people around you and you’re moving at a million miles an hour you can lose yourself.” – Dave Chappelle
- “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.” – Dave Chappelle
- “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.’” – Dave Chappelle
- “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. (He found his passion)” – Dave Chappelle
- “One of the things that happen 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.” – Dave Chappelle
- “People don’t know what it’s like standing up there on stage, when you have a wall of people smiling at you.” – Dave Chappelle
- “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.” – Dave Chappelle
- “Stand-up is the kind of gig that’ll show you where you’re at.” – Dave Chappelle
- “The hardest thing to do is to be true to yourself, especially when everybody is watching.” – Dave Chappelle
- “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.” – Dave Chappelle
- “There are 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.” – Dave Chappelle
- “There’s something about doing stand-up that’s cathartic.” – Dave Chappelle
- “When I’m on stage, I get real happy there. Maybe that’s the only time in my adult life I feel like myself.” – Dave Chappelle
- “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.” – Dave Chappelle
- “You got to be careful of the company you keep.” – Dave Chappelle
- “You know you must be doing something right if old people like you.” – Dave Chappelle
- 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.” – Dave Chappelle
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