During a recent sit-down with former NFL star Shannon Sharpe, veteran comedian Cedric the Entertainer shared his thoughts on several topics, including his approach to playing it safe with his craft.
During a recent episode of Shannon’s “Club Shay Shay” YouTube show, the two discussed how the culture change and heightened awareness of social justice issues had made specific topics taboo. When asked how he “walk that line,” in comparison to comedian Dave Chappelle, who’s had a more head-on approach, the longtime comedian was transparent.
“I mean, it’s the thing that you have to be most aware of. I think as a comedian, of course, your job is to be, you know, a provocateur, orator of the world and the way you see it. It’s important for comedians to be free to say things in the way they see it and in the way they want to say it. So, I’m a big fan of that, and at the same time, I’m on CBS,” the 58-year-old began.
He continued, “So I pretty much know if I say something that cross the line, it won’t necessarily just affect my livelihood but again, having a big TV show means that you hire … I probably have a crew and a staff of 130 people that work for me, and if I’m willing to just fall on the sword of some joke and ruin it for everybody else, it’s not really responsible, so I think about it that way as well.”
Cedric feels there’s a time and place for everything, stating, “Certain things, yeah, you might want to say it, and then you decide.” The comedian also expressed, “I feel like it’s my duty to be free up there,” but he also acknowledged that his “brand, in general, is not necessarily to offend.”
Following the release of Chappelle’s Netflix special “The Closer,” the comedian faced immense backlash after comments about the LGBTQ+ community, and Cedric cautioned that the star’s response to scrutiny would not pay off in the long run.
During an appearance on “The Domenick Nati Show,” Cedric cautioned Dave, “I think that you just gotta be watching.”
He added, “Once you feel you’re un-cancellable, and you think that that’s what you’re fighting for, that’s the wrong approach to take to say something that you really wanna say. Not in the sense that ‘Oh, can’t nobody cancel me, so I’mma say what I wanna say.’ You can find out. People will cancel your ass.”
