Dave Chappelle Addresses Kanye West’s Anti-Semitic Comments On ‘SNL’: ‘He’s Possibly Not Well’

Dave Chappelle, 49, directly addressed Kanye West, when he hosted Saturday Night Live for the third time on Nov. 12. Responding to the 45-year-old rapper’s recent anti-semitic comments — that lead to the Chicago native being dropped from collaborative deals with Adidas via Yeezy, Balenciaga and many more — Dave took a cue from social media with a prepared statement. “I wanted to read a statement I prepared: I renounce antisemitism in all its forms and stand with my friends in the Jewish community. And that, Kanye, is how you buy yourself some time,” he said to the audience.

.@DaveChappelle going straight at Kanye West and his anti-Semitic remarks during his monologue. “Kanye has gotten in some scraps before and normally when he’s in trouble, I pull up immediately. But this time I was like, ‘you know what? Lemme see what’s gonna happen first’” #SNL pic.twitter.com/9h2CRnmKXU

— Eric Diep (@E_Diep) November 13, 2022

He then added he’s never heard of anyone “do good” after using the phrase “the Jews” in a sentence as he went on to blast the “Flashing Lights” rapper further. “I’ve been doing this 35 years. Two words in English language words you should never say – The and Jews. No one does good after they say that,” he said. 

Dave Chappelle roasts Kanye West during his Saturday Night Live monologue. pic.twitter.com/Xcmoj4ScNG

— Sean Fracek (@seanfracek) November 13, 2022

The comedian added his thoughts about Ye’s current mental state. “I don’t think Kanye is crazy, he’s possibly not well,” he reasoned. “I’ve been to Hollywood, this is just what I saw. It’s a lot of Jews. Like a lot. There’s a lot of Black people in Ferguson, Missouri, doesn’t mean they run the place. You might go out in Hollywood and you might start connecting some kind of lines and you might adopt the delusion that Jews run show business. It’s not a crazy thing to think but it’s a crazy thing to say out loud,” he said.

There was some controversy about Dave hosting SNL this weekend, due to backlash over transphobic comments he made in his 2021 Netflix special The Closer — which he did not address on the Nov. 12 episode. Page Six reported on Wednesday, Nov. 9, that several SNL writers were “boycotting” the show because of Dave. “They’re not going to do the show,” a source told Page Six about the writers. They noted that the entire SNL cast, which includes Molly Kearney, the first non-binary cast member, were doing the show.

Dave’s rep denied reports of a boycott to Page Six. “The room was full of writers. They all pitched ideas and they seemed very excited about it…. Dave is looking to have some fun,” the rep said.

Dave’s hosting gig comes six months after the comedian was attacked during his Netflix Is A Joke show at the Hollywood Bowl. A man, later identified as Isaiah Lee, 23, by the Los Angeles Police Department, reportedly slammed Chappelle to the ground as he held onto a replica gun which could eject a knife blade. Lee was caught and was charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon, but the Los Angeles County’s D.A.’s office ultimately decided to not prosecute Lee for the incident.