Ahead of the premiere of his sixth Netflix stand-up special Dave Chappelle: The Closer, the iconic stand-up comedian celebrated the show in his hometown in Northeast D.C. and helped raise funds.
Chappelle spoke to various fans at Angelika Pop-Up in Union Market, talking about his upcoming special. The Closer was aired there on Monday ahead of its Tuesday release.
“Get whatever you want out of it. You want to be offensive, I got something for you,” said he. “And if you want to be happy and laughing and have levity, you can look at it like that too. But this is a good one and I’m very proud of it and I hope everyone enjoys it.”
He also used the event as the means to raise funds for his alma mater Duke Ellington School of the Arts. The school is renaming the theatre after Dave Chappelle.
He spoke of how he started doing stand-up more than three decades ago and attributed his ingenuity and success to the school.
“When I was a beginner I was also a student at the Ellington School. That school informed me artistically,” he revealed.
He added, “It gave me the courage to pursue my dreams. It gave me the context to think of myself as an artist.”
He encouraged fans to support the school that actually helped him create a name for himself in acting and comedy.
Talking about how “special” it is for him to “come back here and finish a body of work” with Netflix and premier it to “benefit my alma mater”, he expressed how “grateful” he was for the place.
“My entire career was predicated on what I learned. I do not have any formal education beyond Ellington, and look what I was able to achieve.”
Watch the trailer for it below:
