"This is Not Funny At All": Dave Chappelle Gets Raw About George Floyd's Death in Netflix Special '8:46'

Dave Chappelle has released the most striking standup special of his career with 8:46.

On Friday morning (June 12th) Netflix released a new Dave Chappelle stand up special called 8:46. It's unlike any standup special you'll ever see.

The special, which is 27 minutes long and also available in its entirety on YouTube, features the comedian talking extensively about the death of George Floyd and the protests and uprisings that are happening around the world. The special does not have a lot of jokes — in fact at one point Chappelle yells, "This is not funny at all!" — but it features the comedian speaking in an unflinching and passionate manner. You have never heard Chappelle sound like this before.

He started out talking about Floyd and being proud to see the reaction of protesters hitting the streets.  In one of the most striking moments of his career, Chappelle, in detail, talks about the video and the 8:46 police officer Derek Chauvin stood on Floyd's neck — that also happened to be the time Chappelle was born.

“This kid thought he was going to die, he knew he was going to die,” Chappelle said, speaking about Floyd. “When I watched that tape, I understood this man knew he was going to die.”

Chappelle goes on to say:

“What are you signifying that you can kneel on a man’s neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds and feel like you wouldn’t get the wrath of God?” he asked. “That’s what is happening right now. It’s not for a single cop, it’s for all of it.”

The special is only 27 minutes long but a lot of material gets covered. He takes shots at numerous people. He goes after Don Lemon, who had talked down to celebrities for not being more politically active. Chappelle responded by resurrecting his Ja Rule joke and saying “This is the streets talking for themselves. … Why would anyone care what their favorite comedian thinks after they saw a police officer kneel on a man’s neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds?” Interestingly enough, a twitter user noticed that the Don Lemon part was edited considerably and if you put the subtitles on you could see some of his older, more offensive, material on Lemon. 

He also had harsh words for Fox News host Laura Ingraham for telling LeBron James he should shut up and dribble. And he went after ex-Kanye West best friend Candace Owens, who has publicly said that she was bothered to see Floyd be "held up as a martyr,” considering his criminal record. Chappelle responded by saying:“I seen Candace Owens try to convince white America, ‘Don’t worry about it. He’s a criminal anyway.’ I don’t give a fuck what this nigga did. I don’t care what this nigga did. I don’t care if he personally kicked Candace Owens in her stanky pussy. I don’t know if it stanks, but I imagine it does. If I ever find out, I’ll let you know for sure. I’ll tell like Azealia Banks. I’ll tell.”

The special was filmed on June 6 in Yellow Springs, Ohio, where Chapelle lives with his wife and three kids.  You could see the crowd honoring coronavirus social distancing rules, with audience members wearing masks and staying 6 feet apart from each other. At the time, it had been 87 days since Chappelle had performed. (That has changed with the comedian doing a number of intimate gigs since.)

Watch 8:46 below.