Trevor and Christiana sit down with Chappelle's Show co-creator and former Daily Show colleague Neal Brennan. The three friends discuss the importance of familial dysfunction to a life of comedy, whether jokes about racism, sexism, transphobia, and the like help or hurt move the human race forward in today’s climate, and the rise and fall of anger as a way of life. Well, of Neal’s life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chapter 1: Who is Neal Brennan and why is he significant in comedy?
There are few people I know who have spent more time in comedy than Neil Brennan, like few human beings. And when I say comedy, I mean every level of comedy. TV. Administration. Yeah, no really. Paperwork. No really. Scheduling. You are that guy. Club comedy. Neil Brennan has been in the trenches of the trenches. So I was going to ask you about this, but like, I feel like
There is no comedian who does not have something wrong with them. No good comedian, actually.
I learned that from The Daily Show. I was like, all these people are insane. I was like, these are not normal people.
And it doesn't matter what it is. It might be your family. It might be the country you lived in. It might be just a neurodivergent thing that you have in your own head and you grew up in a fine world.
What's funny is I do a podcast called Blocks where I have people on and we talk about their issues. Yeah. And I know that they're not the real issues. Do you know what I mean? These are the issues that you're willing. These are the showcase issues. Oh, man. And I'm like, the real issue. But do you think they know? A couple days a year, they know.
A couple days a year, they can actually be like, ugh.
But they don't want to look at it.
This is What Now? with Trevor Noah. If you don't know Neil Brennan, you probably don't know comedy, right? Neil Brennan is in many ways like the Forrest Gump of comedy. He has been everywhere. He knows everyone. No comedian who is worth their salt in anything... does not have a story about Neil Brennan. I don't care where they're from. I don't care what they're doing.
I'm talking about comedians from other countries as well, not just in America. Like they know Neil Brennan, right? I know some of your story, but I don't want to miss it, especially for the audience. So Neil Brennan is born where?
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Chapter 2: What familial influences shaped Neal Brennan's comedy?
No.
Okay. I mean, I don't... There's no... comedy, first of all, it's never been more popular. It's never been more lucrative. So this idea that comedy is being hurt or cancel culture or any of that stuff, it's like everyone I know that I want to do a joke like, yeah, you got to be careful as a comedian because, you know, you could say something and then somebody will clip it.
And the next thing you know, you'll be doing arenas. It's everyone I know that gets canceled. You get canceled up. It's like it's like it's the crucible. It's like, how are you going to respond to this? Yes. And then that's how people judge you. And if you if you cower and genuflect and or if you ignore it or if you double down or there's like ways to do it, but it makes the audience.
trust you more i think yes um i remember um i bumped into shane gillis and um and i remember chatting to him and i was like and i genuinely mean this i was like i i'm so proud of shane gillis as a human being and as a comedian because he got fired off of snl people discarded him they're like he's out then he amassed a huge amount of fans who were like yeah Bring more.
They were like, bring more racism. Bring more. They were like, do the thing. And I'll never forget his first shows that he booked. I think it was at The Stand, actually, in New York. Shane comes out and he basically addresses the fact that people have come there to see racist. And he's like, that's not what I do.
Say noodle. Say noodle. Like a Chinese person?
Yeah, and he didn't. And then he subverted the whole thing and he joked about it. And even now, like I go genuinely, Shane Gillis is one of the people where, and I don't think anyone, quote unquote, let's say has an excuse, but he would have had an excuse to be an asshole. Shane was like, no. He's like, hey, man, I made some jokes. You didn't like them. I'm still going to make jokes.
And genuinely now, I think he's one of the best comedians working in the world. And when you watch his comedy, I don't care what you are, by the way, conservative, liberal, whatever you think you are, Shane Gillis is funny, but I also think it's amazing to see somebody who was able to withstand the horde that supports the worst instincts. Because one person can go, Neil, how could you say that?
You get canceled. And then what happens is there's a crowd that comes in to claim you, and they're like, yes, Neil. Yes, join us. All the things, yes. And you know how we feel about those people. And you're like, man, I just made a joke that some people didn't like. And they're like, no, but Neil, do only those jokes.
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