Dave Chappelle Tells ‘GQ’ That Donald Sterling Should’ve Kept His Team

The end of Dave Chappelle’s hiatus caps off with the funnyman being crowned one of GQ’s Men Of The Year. Describing it as “Superman's self-imposed exile,” Chappelle suited up for the magazine’s cover, as well as stripped its interview. Tackling a few famous friends like D’Angelo and Kanye West, the comedian offered insight on his own career, why he took a step back, and what his future holds. He also offered his two cents on Donald Sterling’s loss of the Los Angeles Clippers.

Peep a few highlights from Dave Chappelle’s cover story:

On his last attempt to call D’Angelo:
I haven't talked to him personally in a while, but the last time I called him, he had a long outgoing message on his machine. It was like a Malcolm X speech. And the last part was so intense. He was like, "The price of freedom is death!" Beeeep! I didn't even leave that dude a message. I just hung up the phone.

Why he took a step back from the public eye:
Mostly it has to do with just disrupting what my life is now. I have a very good life, a high quality of life. I have both money and time. No one has that. My kids are older now, so when I make decisions within the public eye, it affects more than just me.

What’s next on his entertainment bucket list:
For one year, I want to do this thing where I guest-star on as many television shows as I possibly can. I love television. The fact that television ultimately made me famous was very gratifying for me [...] I'd be a zombie in The Walking Dead. A corpse on CSI. I'd be the first black guy to fuck Olivia Pope on Scandal....

On whether or not he ever bought weed from Idris Elba at Caroline’s comedy club:
Oh, okay. So he used to work at Carolines. During that era of my life, there's a high possibility that I bought reefer from Idris.

On Kanye West’s comparison of fame to civil rights:
So is it like the civil rights movement? Not quite. The metrics are a little wrong to make that comparison. But it is a civil rights issue, in a sense. Because how is he supposed to live his life? It's like someone putting their ear to your butt and being like, "Ew, you farted!" Stop listening to my asshole!

On his selfie game:
I have a pretty dope selfie gallery.* Kanye, Kim, Jay and Beyoncé. Jessica Alba. There's a great picture from Radio City of me, Chris Rock, and Aziz. Selfies are my shit. I love taking selfies.... Rob Ford.

On Donald Sterling losing the Clippers:
Ultimately, I don't think he should have lost his team. I don't like the idea that someone could record a secret conversation and that a person could lose their assets from that, even though I think what he said was awful. When you think about the intimacy of a situation, like, can a man just chill with his mistress in peace?*

Flip through for more photos from Chappelle’s GQ Men Of the Year shoot. Read the full cover story here.