Not everyone applauded when Dave Chappelle won the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album — “The Closer”, this year.
You may recall that leftists from all walks of the political spectrum protested Chappelle’s stand up special on Netflix in 2021. They called it “transphobic” as well as staging violent demonstrations.
It is therefore not surprising that 2023 leftists decried anyone who would vote for “The Closer” to win a Grammy for best comedy album.
Was that what they were decrying?
The Hollywood Reporter ran the headline “Dave Chappelle Wins Grammy For Netflix Special Condemned For Being Transphobic.” (It should be noted that some people mocked the headline’s structure by pointing out they didn’t know that there was a Grammy for “Netflix Special Consdemned for being Transphobic.”
The Advocate was even more direct: “Chappelle Wins Grammy For Transphobic Netflix Special.”
Zoe Rose Bryant, Entertainment writer, tweeted that “the industry that’s giving itself a pat on the back tonight for making Kim Petras first trans woman win pop duo/group performances at the #Grammys also gave Dave Chappelle another Grammy. It’s nice that hypocrisy is still alive and well.”
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Eric Degans, TV critic and media analyst at National Public Radio tweeted: “Wow. Grammys don’t really care: One year after awarding Louis C.K. an award for his harassment, they awarded one to Dave Chappelle’s transphobic and homophobic Netflix special. Sigh.”
Harvey Mason Jr., Recording Academy CEO, told the Hollywood Reporter that he didn’t have control over the votes for Chapelle or Louis C.K. Voting for a creator is up to the voters. We are not going to decide someone’s moral position, or how they should be rated on the morality scale. My view is that our job is to assess the art and its quality. We can ensure that our spaces are secure and that people don’t feel threatened. We let the voters decide on the nominations and awards.
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After word spread about “The Closer,” a well-known Netflix showrunner quit. The company also suspended three employees, including a queer trans worker, for their participation in crashing an executive meeting on Chappelle. Netflix also fired the organizer of a planned walkout over leaking confidential data regarding Chappelle’s special.
The Associated Press and Variety claimed that a Chappelle supporter shouted profanities, and were the aggressor in the Netflix walkout. Both outlets issued retractions.
Chappelle, for his part, stated early that he would not bow to public pressure. “I am refusing to bend to anyone’s demands,” he declared. Additionally, Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s co-CEO, resisted pressure to pull “The Closer”, arguing that “content onscreen doesn’t directly translate into real-world harm.”
