Dave Chappelle Slams Saudi Comedy Festival Critics: They Don’t Want a ‘Black Man’ to ‘Make Money Off the Plantation’

Dave Chappelle ripped critics who called him and other comics out for performing in Saudi Arabia, accusing them of being hypocrites who don’t want to see a “Black man make money off the plantation.”

Chappelle talked about the highly-publicized and highly-criticized 2025 Riyadh Comedy Festival during an interview with NPR on Wednesday.

Host Michel Martin started off by asking Chappelle if he knew U.S. intelligence believed Saudi Arabia had killed Washington Post writer Jamal Khashoggi and whether the comedian had “any qualms” about performing in the country as a result of it.

“Oh absolutely,” Chapelle said.

He said he’d been asked to perform in the country years before 2025 and declined to do it for that “very reason.” But Chapelle said his attitude on it changed after seeing how cozy the U.S. and American companies were with Saudi Arabia.

“Since that time, the United States government does business with the Saudis, Netflix does business with the Saudis. Everyone — the Saudis financed tons of movies — I know I seen them financing boxing matches and all these things,” he said. “And none of these things were an issue until I went there.”

Chappelle continued, “Now why is that? As soon as a Black man can make money off the plantation, they try to tell you the money is dirty. Well okay, I’ll go home and spent the money with actual slave owners on it. Where is this clean money you’re talking about?”

Martin then asked him what made him change his mind about performing there. The comic said “time and circumstance” and the “wheels of commerce kept turning.”

He added, “If you wanna be that pure about money, then stop driving your car, stop eating, don’t use your cellphone. Everything is tethered to something that’s just terrible.”

Chappelle’s answer comes after he and performers like Bill Burr and Pete Davidson were lambasted for performing at the comedy festival last year. And that included a healthy dose of criticism from their peers.

Comedians David Cross and Shane Gillis criticized the festival, with Gillis saying he turned down a substantial offer to perform; he added he was taking a “principled stand” and that “you don’t 9/11 your friends.”

And Adam Carolla slammed Chappelle and other comedians for having the audacity to complain about America — only to bite their tongues when they are paid big bucks to perform in Saudi Arabia.

“I think the problem with the Bill Burrs and the Chappelles, or anybody in general, is if you’re going to pitch — like Aziz Ansari — if you’re going to pitch woke bullsh*t here about people and people being oppressed and violence against women and all the shit you throw up every day, spare us when you go over there and take a check,” Carolla said.

Watch above via YouTube.

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