Hi, America, I'm Dave Chappelle's Cigarette

AUSTIN, TX - AUGUST 23: Comedian Dave Chappelle performs on stage during the tour opener in support of the Oddball Comedy & Curiosity Festival at Austin360 Amphitheater on August 23, 2013 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Rick Kern/WireImage)

Hi, I'm Dave Chappelle's cigarette.

I know this probably comes across as strange — an inanimate object discussing its relationship with one of the most prolific comedians of the 21st century. But bear with me please.

November 12, 2016, should've been a more festive night. That's not to say that it wasn't — it was — but there was supposed to be more to celebrate that Saturday. Dave was making his first big televised appearance in over a decade as the host of Saturday Night Live; the remaining members of A Tribe Called Quest (#RIPPhifeDawg) were serving as the night's musical guests and performing songs from their recently released sixth and final album, We Got It From Here...Thank You 4 Your Service; and we were basking in the election of our first female president, Hillary Clinton.

Unfortunately, the latter didn't happen. On the morning of November 9, 2016, most of America awoke to the news that Donald Trump had been elected President of the United States.

That Saturday night even I wondered: What was Dave going to say? What was he going to do? How would he articulate the collective anger, fear, sadness and surprise that plenty of people were feeling?

The moment came. Dave walked onstage as the band played and the audience cheered. As a silence came over the room we anxiously awaited Dave's opening words.

Then: "You know, I didn't know Donald Trump was going to win the election. I did suspect it. Seemed like Hillary was doing well in the polls and yet — I know the whites. You guys aren't as full of surprises as you used to be."

The crowd roared with laughter as Dave proceeded to give a 10-minute monologue on the current political and racial climate of America, his comical delivery insightfully poignant.

There is power in laughter. Dave knows this — he's known this ever since he was a child.

Now, I can't tell you the first time Dave and I met. But throughout the years we've become inseparable. Sure, I've had to share him with marijuana on a number of occasions (Mary Jane works in ways tobacco simply doesn't), but we've developed an everlasting friendship.

I guess you could say I've been something of a hype man for Dave — always present before, during and after his performances. What I find most fascinating about Dave and I's relationship though is the way in which I'm used in a particular space, specifically for his stand-up shows.

By now it's a normality: if you go see Dave live you're probably going to see him smoke one, two, three — a chain of cigarettes. But even then there's something rebellious about the act — lighting up in front of thousands of people in a public space, most of which are considered historical institutions.

The act sets the tone and reminds spectators that for two-and-a-half hours they are about to enter Dave's world.

Dave has refined his craft since his start. The energetic, quick fire delivery that made Killin' Them Softly and For What It's Worth memorable have transformed into something more controlled and direct. A low timbre now accompanies Dave's jokes; he allows silence to build behind his punchlines, sometimes on the most tense of subjects.

He maintains a pace through me. Sometimes he'll take one puff; others two or three. The pauses give Dave a moment to breathe (ironic, I know) and make his next move.

Sometimes I get something of a night off: there was that one impromptu performance in London where the manager made sure Dave put me out (but not without roasting him a few times).

Then there was that three night residency at Toronto's Winter Garden Theatre, where Dave attempted to get approval from the late Rob Ford to smoke throughout the performances and was denied (he still proceeded to smoke on the final night, in which the theatre received a warning from Toronto Public Health).

As much as I'm a conduit for Dave I'm also a reminder of the legacy he's built for himself. To be an uncompromising, rule-breaking black man that once refused $50 million in 2006 only to flip that into $60 million a decade later, is no easy feat.

Dave smoking on a nationally televised show watched by millions isn't an act of rebellion, as much as it is a testament to being in a league all his own, and every single person being aware of that.

He respects and understands the institution of comedy while redefining it on his own terms. Performing unannounced? Performing in juke joints? Performing back-to-back shows that sell out in seconds?

Dave always has the last laugh, and a nice smoke to go along with it too. And I look forward to seeing what we do together next.