Jay-Z Says ‘Super Genius’ Dave Chappelle ‘Pushed a Lot of Buttons’ with Netflix Special

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Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Alana Mastrangelo

Rap mogul JAY-Z called veteran comedian Dave Chappelle is “super-brave” and “super-genius” friend, adding that while the comedian “pushed a lot of of buttons” with his Netflix special, The Closer, “great art is divisive.”

“He’s super brave and super genius. [If] you spend time with him, he’s brilliant,” Jay-Z said when asked by Vulture’s Craig Jenkins his thoughts on Chappelle’s latest special.

“And I think he pushed a lot of buttons,” Jay-Z added. “But I think that what happens with true art is it has to cause conversation, and sometimes it’s going to be abrasive, and sometimes it’d going to be off-putting to folks, but it opens up an opportunity to have a dialog.”

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“I think great art is divisive,” the rapper said. “Some people like it, some people hate it. When you’re making great art, you have to be fearless, and you have to create something that you believe in.”

Jay-Z also acknowledged that “algorithms” on social media platforms keep people in echo chambers, talking to those they agree with. The rapper suggested that it would be productive for people to speak to those with whom they disagree.

“These algorithms and things on these sites allow you to talk to people that agree with you,” he said. “I think we have to speak with one another when we disagree. That’s how we get to the bottom of it.”

“That’s what therapy is. You gotta sit there, and you gotta deal with yourself in a real way,” he added. “Anything that doesn’t have that tension, it’s not going to be real.”

Since October 5 debut of The Closer, Chappelle has been under fire by transgender activists who were outraged by his jokes. Last month, Netlfix’s corporate office was besieged by outraged transgender activists who took offense to the comedian.

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A few weeks ago, Chappelle said that while he is “confused” about what the woke mob wants to talk to him about, he will nonetheless meet with members of the transgender community, under the condition that anyone who meets with him first watches The Closer “from beginning to end.”

He made it clear that he is “not bending to anybody’s demands.”

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You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.

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