{"id":136,"date":"2026-05-14T13:06:35","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T13:06:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=136"},"modified":"2026-05-14T13:06:35","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T13:06:35","slug":"ahead-of-charlotte-shows-chappelles-show-comic-weighs-in-on-kevin-hart-roast","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=136","title":{"rendered":"Ahead of Charlotte shows, \u2018Chappelle\u2019s Show\u2019 comic weighs in on Kevin Hart roast"},"content":{"rendered":"

Donnell Rawlings<\/a> is perfectly happy to talk about Charlotte and his upcoming shows<\/a> this weekend at The Comedy Zone.<\/p>\n

Read more Trove of 1800s firearms vanishes from mountain homestead museum, NC sheriff says<\/a><\/p>\n

But at the moment, if you really<\/i> want to fire up the 57-year-old comedian and actor best known for his breakout role as Ashy Larry on \u201cChappelle\u2019s Show,\u201d<\/a> ask him about Netflix\u2019s recent \u201cThe Roast of Kevin Hart\u201d<\/a> and the backlash surrounding some of its most controversial jokes.<\/p>\n

\u201cRoast means fire. Fire means somebody\u2019s gonna get burnt,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Rawlings \u2014 who called CharlotteFive this week from the set of a secret TV series that he says will feature him in a dramatic role audiences \u201caren\u2019t going to expect\u201d \u2014 had more to say about roast culture, stand-up comedy\u2019s current boom, social media comics and why he believes he\u2019s as responsible for \u201cChappelle\u2019s Show\u2019s\u201d success as it is for his.<\/p>\n

The conversation has been edited for clarity and brevity.<\/i><\/p>\n

Q. What is it about stand-up that keeps you interested when you do have opportunities like \u2014 whatever it is \u2014 TV or film work?<\/b><\/p>\n

Well, what keeps me interested in stand-up is that I refuse to get a therapist. (Laughing.) This is my couch. It\u2019s my sofa.<\/p>\n

But the thing that really keeps me going with stand-up is I always try to elevate, always try to evolve in some sense, whether it\u2019s the material I choose to use, whether it\u2019s my appearance, how I connect with the audience. After 30 years, I\u2019m still passionate about stand-up. I still get the same jitters as I did when I did my first open mic.<\/p>\n

I still feel like I got a chip on my shoulder and I have something to prove.<\/p>\n

Q. Stand-up comedy seems to be booming. Shane Gillis was here earlier this spring, Chelsea Handler was here a couple weeks ago, Nikki Glaser is coming in August, the Kevin Hart roast was on the other night. Why do you think comedy\u2019s doing so well right now?<\/b><\/p>\n

Because there\u2019s so many troubles and problems in the world. You need somebody to make fun of it.<\/u><\/p>\n

My good friend Dave Chappelle said, \u201cDonnell, it\u2019s our job to make fun of things that trouble the world.\u201d We live in a society now where every day there\u2019s something crazy that happens, and you need someone to speak on it. And comedians are the last truth tellers.<\/p>\n

I think when we deal with problems, you can do it in a serious fashion. You can do it in a lot of different ways. But there\u2019s something about adding humor to things that trouble us that\u2019s interesting to people.<\/p>\n

Q. Speaking of the roast, there was of course a lot of backlash afterward (mainly regarding jokes made about the deaths of Charlie Kirk and George Floyd). What did you think of it?<\/b><\/p>\n

I think that this world is overly sensitive. I think you should almost be able to joke about anything.<\/p>\n

Read more Garner Amazon worker\u2019s message to founder Jeff Bezos goes viral with 10M+ views<\/a><\/p>\n

There\u2019s a phrase that I say: A joke can be too soon, but it never can be too soon for a funny observation. If it\u2019s not your style of comedy, that\u2019s one thing. But you saying it\u2019s not funny, that\u2019s your<\/i> opinion. The next person might say it\u2019s funny.<\/p>\n

Do people take low blows on roasts? Yes. They do. Now, if there\u2019s some people telling these jokes at a church service, that would be one thing. If you were telling some of these jokes at somebody\u2019s wedding, that\u2019d be another thing. But you know when you go into a roast, they\u2019re gonna go hard. It\u2019s a roast.<\/i> Roast means fire. Fire means somebody\u2019s gonna get burnt.<\/p>\n

And I\u2019m pretty sure when they got in the writing room, everybody<\/i> knew which joke was gonna go viral, which joke was gonna get the most engagement, which joke people were gonna get offended by. And guess what they said? \u201c(Expletive) it. I\u2019m gonna do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Q. Do you think social media has changed what audiences expect from stand-up?<\/b><\/p>\n

The gift of it is that you don\u2019t have to wait to make yourself popular or relevant. You don\u2019t have to wait to get approved by everybody. You can build your own brand and build your own startup with your phone.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s so hard to tell a new comic or a social media guy that\u2019s got 3 million followers \u2014 that\u2019s making, like, $40,000-$50,000 a month \u2014 to tell them to work on their act. They\u2019re gonna be like, \u201cFor what?\u201d Ultimately, you want to get to the money.<\/p>\n

But when I started, I wanted all those things. I wanted the money, I wanted the women, I wanted the celebrity. But I didn\u2019t want that off of, like, one joke. I\u2019m a comedy purist. I\u2019m a comedian\u2019s comedian. I really believe in it. The most important thing for me was: If I get good at this, I\u2019ll have all the things I want.<\/i> But now you don\u2019t have to get good at it to be successful anymore.<\/p>\n

Social media (comics), they can go bomb and then go do a sketch and make $10,000 off of content. So there\u2019s no incentive for them to get good unless you really love it, and a lot of them don\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Q. Does that make you irritated?<\/b><\/p>\n

No, it just makes me separate myself from those people and lets you know: This is what the real<\/i> deal is. It makes me feel confident that, OK, go see your favorite social media or your favorite TikTok person \u2014 but I guarantee you, if you put them on the stage with me, it\u2019s a whole different ballgame.<\/p>\n

Q. And lastly, in terms of your legacy with \u201cChappelle\u2019s Show,\u201d looking back, what do you think the show changed for you beyond fame itself?<\/b><\/p>\n

I get this question, or something similar to it, all the time: \u201cIf it wasn\u2019t for the Dave Chappelle show, who would know you?\u201d Blah, blah, this and that. But I think it was an even exchange. Dave hand-picked people he wanted to work with, and those people helped him create something that some people call one of the greatest shows in the history of television. And Dave Chappelle\u2019s show gave me a platform for people to see what I\u2019ve been doing for years and how I could be good at this.<\/p>\n

He gave me the platform. It wasn\u2019t like he gave me the platform and I sucked. He gave me the platform and I hit home runs. I hit a three-pointer with zero seconds left on the clock.<\/p>\n

Read more Deadly gunfight erupts after driver shoots into police station, NC sheriff says<\/a><\/p>\n

Where:<\/b> The Comedy Zone, 900 NC Music Factory Blvd., Suite B3, Charlotte NC 28206<\/a><\/p>\n

When:<\/b> 7 and 9:45 p.m. Friday and 6 and 8:45 p.m. Saturday.<\/p>\n

Details:<\/b> cltcomedyzone.com<\/a> or (980) 321-4702<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ahead of Charlotte NC Comedy Zone shows, comedian Donnell Rawlings discusses stand-up, Kevin Hart roast backlash, social-media comics, \u201cChappelle\u2019s Show\u201d legacy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":135,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-136","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-read-todays-edition"],"yoast_head":"\nAhead of Charlotte shows, \u2018Chappelle\u2019s Show\u2019 comic weighs in on Kevin Hart roast - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=136\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ahead of Charlotte shows, \u2018Chappelle\u2019s Show\u2019 comic weighs in on Kevin Hart roast - 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