Dave Chappelle Discusses Kanye West’s Antisemitism Controversy During ‘SNL’ Opening Monologue

Dave Chappelle marked his third time as host on Saturday Night Live over the weekend, while Black Star performed for the first time ever on the comedy sketch series

Dave Chappelle returned to Saturday Night Live over the weekend — and didn’t shy away from controversy.

The comedian, 49, hosted SNL for the third time on Saturday, where he was joined by Black Star, the hip-hop duo consisting of Yasiin “Mos Def” Bey and Talib Kweli, as the evening’s musical guest.

During his opening monologue, which spanned more than 15 minutes, Chappelle focused on Kanye West’s recent antisemitic comments. First unfolding a small piece of paper, Chappelle read from it and told audience members and viewers at home, “I denounce antisemitism in all its forms. And I stand with my friends in the Jewish community. And that, Kanye, is how you buy yourself some time.”

Chappelle then noted that he will often contact West, 45, when the rapper finds himself surrounded by controversy, though this time he opted not to. He also spoke about NBA star Kyrie Irving, who was suspended by the Brooklyn Nets after he shared a link to an antisemitic movie on social media, and he ended his monologue by stating that he no longer enjoys performing in front of large crowds, saying, “It shouldn’t be this scary to talk about anything. It makes my job incredibly difficult.”

Leading up to Chappelle’s hosting gig, there were reports that various SNL staff members were boycotting the controversial star’s involvement on the show, though a representative for Chappelle told CNN in a statement: “We’ve seen nothing to support media reports of a writer’s boycott. In fact, the writers delivered over 40 sketches for Dave’s consideration and collaboration. Just as during Dave’s past SNL appearances, you won’t want to miss it!”

During the show, Chappelle took part in various sketches, including one where he played a barber, and another that focused on “Black Heaven.”

One other moment from the show saw various Chappelle’s Show characters star in a trailer for season 2 of House of the Dragon, the Games of Thrones spinoff series.

Chappelle previously hosted SNL in 2016 and 2020, each time earning him an Emmy for outstanding guest actor in a comedy series. Black Star, meanwhile, made their SNL debut over the weekend.

The group first performed “So Be It” during the beginning half of the show, before later taking the stage once more to sing their track “The Main Thing Is to Keep the Main Thing the Main Thing” towards the end.

Season 48 of SNL comes about as the comedy sketch series navigates a major cast shakeup. Longtime series regulars Kate McKinnon, Pete Davidson, Aidy Bryant and Kyle Mooney exited after the season 47 finale.

PEOPLE then confirmed on Sept. 1 that the series was also losing Melissa Villaseñor and Alex Moffat, as well as featured player Aristotle Athari. Then, Chris Redd announced his departure from SNL after five seasons last month.

On Sept. 15, NBC revealed the four new featured players joining SNL in season 48: Marcello Hernandez, Molly Kearney, Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker.

SNL creator Lorne Michaels recently called season 48 a “transition year,” telling reporters backstage at the 2022 Emmy Awards, “There are new people, and things are changing, and a different generation comes into the show.”

SNL will return on Dec. 3 with KeKe Palmer as host and SZA as musical guest.

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