Dave Chappelle Talks the Capitol Riot and Having Covid-19 in a New Stand-up Clip
Photo: Dave Chappelle in 2019, taken by Lester Cohen, courtesy of Netflix
Dave Chappelle’s basically an Instagram comic now? Today his Instagram page published a 12-minute stand-up clip from a recent show at Stubb’s BBQ in Austin (yep, a show during the pandemic, we’re gonna get to that). Titled “Redemption Song,” the video sums up the contradictions and conviction of Chappelle almost too perfectly. He makes some very true, very powerful observations about the D.C. riot and how America’s surveillance state created to keep terrorists in check is now focused on the white terrorists who stormed the Capitol that day, but then he also starts off the video by calling anybody who’s criticized him for doing live shows during a pandemic a coward. We’d argue that it’s actually more cowardly to put your own need to perform above the health of others—especially when you’re worth tens of millions and could easily afford to take a year or two off touring—but we’ll save that for an editorial.
The coronavirus stuff at the start is laughable, and not in a good way, but it’s worth sitting through—or skipping past—to get to Chappelle’s furious insights into the Capitol riot, the rise of white domestic terrorism, and the militarization of law enforcement. You can check it out below. And oh, yes, he also announced that Chappelle’s Show is returning to Netflix, after the comedian and the streamer reached a deal together.
2px); width:calc(100% 2px);”>
music Best New Songs (August 7, 2025) By Paste Staff August 7, 2025 | 3:00pm ![]()
movies Color Theory: Barbarian’s Doorways of Hell By Luke Hicks August 7, 2025 | 11:00am ![]()
books Exclusive Cover Reveal + Excerpt: L.D. Lewis’s The Year of the Mer By Lacy Baugher Milas August 7, 2025 | 10:01am ![]()
music Teethe Build a Dreamy and Terrestrially Agnostic World on Magic of the Sale By Andrew Ha August 7, 2025 | 10:00am ![]()
tv The Best Free TV Shows on Tubi By Paste Staff August 7, 2025 | 9:00am ![]()
music Quadeca Is Cloaked in Magic By Matt Mitchell August 7, 2025 | 9:00am ![]()
tv The 30 Best TV Shows on HBO Max (That Aren't HBO) By Paste Staff August 7, 2025 | 8:30am ![]()
movies With Weapons, Zach Cregger Crafts a Ferociously Wicked, Heady Brew By Jarrod Jones August 6, 2025 | 4:12pm ![]()
movies The Best Sci-Fi Movies on Tubi Right Now By Jim Vorel August 6, 2025 | 3:21pm ![]()
movies Dreamy, Beautiful but Meandering, Boys Go to Jupiter Is a Unique Curio By Jim Vorel August 6, 2025 | 2:22pm ![]()
movies First Trailer for Sci-Fi Thriller Cold Storage has Fungus, Goop and Brains Galore By Ana Carpenter August 6, 2025 | 12:07pm ![]()
music Falling “So In Love” With Curtis Mayfield and Orchestral Manouevres In the Dark By Matt Mitchell August 6, 2025 | 11:30am ![]()
music The Roland GO:PIANO Review: Is It Piano Enough For Your Piano Needs? By Garrett Martin August 6, 2025 | 11:00am ![]()
tv The 5 New and Under-the-Radar Shows You Can’t Miss in August By Amy Amatangelo August 6, 2025 | 11:00am ![]()
music Switcheroo Invites You Into the Colorful, Outrageous Gelliverse By Devon Chodzin August 6, 2025 | 10:30am ![]()
movies The 20 Best Sci-Fi Movies on HBO Max Right Now (August 2025) By Jim Vorel August 6, 2025 | 6:05am ![]()
movies The 20 Best Sci-Fi Movies on Hulu Right Now (August 2025) By Jim Vorel August 6, 2025 | 5:30am ![]()
movies The 15 Best Sci-Fi Movies on Amazon Prime (August 2025) By Jim Vorel August 6, 2025 | 5:00am ![]()
tv Wednesday Season 2 Is a Supernatural Veronica Mars By Whitney Friedlander August 6, 2025 | 3:01am ![]()
tv Paste Power Rankings: The 5 Best TV Shows on Right Now (August 5, 2025) By Lacy Baugher Milas August 5, 2025 | 1:00pm ![]()
music MTV VMAs 2025 Nominees Revealed: Lady Gaga, Kendrick Lamar, and More By Paste Staff August 5, 2025 | 12:45pm ![]()
tv The 50 Best TV Shows on Hulu Right Now (August 2025) By Paste Staff August 5, 2025 | 12:45pm ![]()
movies Freakier Friday Adds More Body Swaps but Keeps the Original’s Charming Comedy By Matt Goldberg August 5, 2025 | 12:00pm ![]()
tv Such Brave Girls Stars Take Burning Questions In the Bath By Lacy Baugher Milas August 5, 2025 | 11:00am ![]()
music Raven Aartsen: Feeling Over Formula By Cassidy Sollazzo August 5, 2025 | 10:00am ![]()
music The Future Is Here And Everything Needs To Be Destroyed, Except For This Album By Andy Crump August 5, 2025 | 9:30am ![]()
music A Surprise Release of 17 Singles Captures Hayley Williams As a Superstar Two Decades In the Making By Matt Mitchell August 5, 2025 | 9:00am ![]()
tv FX’s Alien: Earth is a Smart, Addictive Expansion of the Franchise’s Terrifying Universe By Terry Terrones August 5, 2025 | 9:00am ![]()
movies The 50 Best Horror Movies on Tubi Right Now (August 2025) By Jim Vorel August 5, 2025 | 5:45am ![]()
movies The 50 Best Horror Movies on Shudder (August 2025) By Jim Vorel August 5, 2025 | 5:45am ![]()
movies The 35 Best Horror Movies on HBO Max Right Now (August 2025) By Jim Vorel August 5, 2025 | 5:30am ![]()
tv Alicia Silverstone Is Forced to Face Her Past In This Exclusive First Clip From Irish Blood By Lacy Baugher Milas August 4, 2025 | 4:30pm ![]()
tv Late Night Last Week: Jessica Williams Returns to The Daily Show, Ronny Chieng's Instagram Likes and More By Will DiGravio August 4, 2025 | 3:23pm ![]()
movies Eddie Murphy Is Left Holding the Bag in Dull Amazon Crime Comedy The Pickup By Jim Vorel August 4, 2025 | 12:00pm ![]()
tv Achingly Romantic Prequel Outlander: Blood of My Blood Builds on the Best Elements of Its Predecessor By Lacy Baugher Milas August 4, 2025 | 12:00pm ![]()
music Emily Yacina Wants the Unknown to Become Known By Camryn Teder August 4, 2025 | 11:00am ![]()
music On Alcázares, Impureza Find New Ground In Metal By Andy Crump August 4, 2025 | 10:30am ![]()
music Quadeca’s Vanisher, Horizon Scraper Is a Turbulent, Uneven Epic By Desmond Leake August 4, 2025 | 10:30am ![]()
tv The 50 Best TV Shows on Netflix, Ranked (August 2025) By Paste Staff August 4, 2025 | 9:00am ![]()
tv The Best TV Shows on Amazon Prime Video (August 2025) By Paste Staff August 4, 2025 | 9:00am ![]()