11/18/13 via Okayplayer
Never one for interviews, Dave Chappelle made a surprise stop at WCCO 4 in Minnesota to catch up with long-time friend and news anchor Reg Chapman. The two went in on Dave’s recent run at the Minneapolis sound haven First Avenue, chalking up his mini-residency to his obsession with Purple Rain, in which much of the concert footage was filmed. Chappelle said:
“You know what it is, the Purple Rain man. I was like 11 when Purple Rain came out so it has personally the same significance of playing Carnegie Hall or something. For me, personally. I’m not saying it is Carnegie Hall. I don’t know. I like doing stuff I saw in the movies.”
With another nod to the Prince of all things purple, Chappelle went on to discuss the difference between the crowds he’s encountered in Minneapolis to that of say Hartford, Conneticut, attributing his fondness of the crowd to Minneapolis’ historically warm welcome to the embattled comedian. When you’ve got people like Prince roaming the streets, treating an artist as a member of the community and not some deity can help foster that type of fondness with a city and its audience. Chappelle on Minneapolis fans:
“Some people they’ll come, especially if they’ve seen you on television, and they’ll go crazy as if you’re on television still, like you can’t hear them or see them. The crowds here, the etiquette of the audience is impeccable.”
Minneapolis fans should be proud, as their warm and non-threatening reception to recluses like Prince and Chappelle have fostered an atmosphere for entertainers that is simply unrivaled in the country. So cities take note, if you treat an artist like a member of the community, you might very well get to see some more of them. You can catch Dave go in-depth about the Hartford incident, his upcoming workout tape and a prospective new TV stint in the transcribed interview. However, you can also scroll down to peep a few videos from the interview below.
