The last sentence of The Bird Revelation’s “reckless talk” interlude is worth unpacking.
suggest that perhaps his reckless speech has grown miscalibrated. But reactions to the comic’s New Year’s Eve specials - and. It’s a crazy balancing act, to flirt so closely with losing control, and for years Chappelle has nailed it. Nine times out of ten, he’s Steph Curry on the mic - fast and loose and improvisational, but also dialed in down to the micrometer. Across three decades, the comic has been a habitual reckless speaker, albeit one for whom even the most seemingly careless statements are made with laser-edged precision. Like it or not, that snippet of philosophical waxing embodies the four specials Chappelle released via Netflix in 2017, and, to a certain degree, the way he’s approached his entire career. Otherwise my kids may never know what reckless talk sounds like… the joys of being wrong.
I know that there’s some comedians in the back - motherfuckers you have a responsibility to speak recklessly. About halfway through The Bird Revelation, the second of two specials that Dave Chappelle dropped on New Year’s Eve, he pauses a particularly well-turned joke for a moment of gravitas:Įverybody gets mad because I say these jokes… but you gotta understand that this is the best time to say ’em.
