In an interview with the CBC on Sunday, Dave Chappelle said that Donald Trump's presidency has been "kind of bad for comedy."
Chappelle agreed that comedy has "a role to play under Trump," but doesn't think the genre is meeting the challenge yet. "Most comics in the states are starting to do the same jokes, just because Trump is so on everybody's mind," he said. "So it'll be nice when we don't have to talk about him that much." However, he said that the state of comedy is still "strong and healthy," thanks in part to the returns of Chris Rock and Jon Stewart.
The interview also touched on Chappelle's perceived reclusiveness from the spotlight. "I enjoy celebrity but it's not something that I completely trust. You get big enough, they blow you up like a balloon animal, they just twist you into whatever shape they think you fit. So I like to just stay out of the fray and focus on the things about my work that I really enjoy."
Chappelle was in Toronto last weekend for the Canadian Screen Awards, where the comedian presented the Icon Award to the Montreal comedy institution Just For Laughs. Last Monday, Chappelle discussed progressive policing at a town hall in Yellow Springs, Ohio.
Two of three standup comedy specials from Chappelle will premiere on Netflix this month.
