Dave Chappelle Tells Kimmel When It Comes To Comedy, "Fight Club Rules Apply"

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The first rule of a comedy club is: you do not talk about the comedy club. The second rule of a comedy club is: you DO NOT talk about what happens in the comedy club!

Dave Chappelle has a 3 comedy special deal with Netflix and two of those specials have been delivered. The comedic enigma appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live to talk about his new specials (“Deep in the Heart of Texas” and “The Age of Spin“) along with his current state of mind and why he has certain Fight Club type rules for the fans that come to see him perform live.

Among all the things that make up the mindset of the living legend that Dave Chappelle has now become in the comedy world, one is his hard-and-fast rule about absolutely no recording devices being allowed at his shows. He explained to Jimmy Kimmel that as far as he’s concerned, the comedy club is a sacred place and what happens there is a unique moment in time between the performer and the audience and that should only be shared by those in the room when it happens. Chappelle told Kimmel, “Fight Club rules apply” as far as he’s concerned with his live performances. He also added the more logical reasons for the camera ban, like his material either may not be fully formed yet and not ready for a mass audience or if a joke gets out on social media, he’s no longer able to do that bit when he gets to the next town.

An example Chappelle used to demonstrate the uniqueness of the moment that happens in a club is that he was recently joined on stage by LeBron James and Chappelle felt that the NBA star wouldn’t have gone up on stage and joked around the way he did if he knew everyone in the room was recording it and sending it out for mass consumption.

Dave Chappelle also talks to Jimmy Kimmel about how he is finally enjoying his fame. He said he is making it a point to have fun this time around. Not like before when he walked away from a $50 million dollar deal to keep doing his hit series, “Chappelle’s Show” on Comedy Central. Another thing that’s different now is that his kids are older and now find him funny. Plus, he discusses how no matter how famous a comic becomes, he or she still has to deal with hecklers and Kimmel asks Chappelle about his encounters with O.J. Simpson which makes up a lot of one of the new specials, (“The Age of Spin“) and he gives his thoughts on the NBA stars who are convinced the world is flat.

His special “Deep in the Heart of Texas,” was filmed in 2015 in Austin and his second one, “The Age of Spin” was recorded in Los Angeles last year, but Dave Chappelle is not worried about either special being timely. Chappelle told Jimmy Kimmel, “It’s like, I don’t get mad at a photograph because it’s not today.”

Both Dave Chappelle specials are available for streaming now on Netflix and we’re still awaiting word on when to expect the third and final special of Dave Chappelle’s $60 million Netflix trifecta.