Trevor Noah
Polished, intelligent and supremely funny, Trevor Noah is about as slick as they come in the world of stand-up – a smiling baby face that hides razor-sharp, satirical teeth.
As might be expected of the offspring of a white father with Swiss-German roots and a black mother of Xhosa ethnicity – whose relationship was illegal at the time of their son’s birth in 1984 in Johannesburg due to South Africa’s strict apartheid laws – Noah’s humour frequently explores racial identity, as he shares painful stories of growing up caught between two worlds.
“You have to work a bit harder to offend me because I’m from the home of some of the best racism in the world,” says the 31-year-old. “I’m a snob when it comes to racism.”
Now that he's arrived in America – where he's landed the plum, prestigious gig as the new host of The Daily Show on Comedy Central, taking over from Jon Stewart last month – he is now wading into prickly United States issues such as police brutality: "I never thought I'd be more afraid of police in America than in South Africa. It kind of makes me a little nostalgic for the old days back home."
Why he matters
His life and experience as a child of apartheid in a Soweto township, along with his growing global perspective, give Noah a fresh and valuable insight into the state of racism in the 21st century – and licence to speak his mind.
Influences
“The kings are indisputable,” says Noah. “Richard Pryor; [Bill] Cosby; for me personally I didn’t know of him before I started comedy, but Eddie Murphy changed my view on the thing and I definitely look up to him as a comedic influence. Chris Rock, in terms of the modern black comedian and Dave Chappelle. Those are the guys who have laid the foundation and have moved the yard stick for all comedians, not just black comedians.”
Big breaks
After his rise to headlining comic, host and television star of many shows in South Africa, Noah gained crucial visibility in the US when in 2012 he became the first South African stand-up comedian to appear on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in, and then the first on the Late Show with David Letterman, in 2013.
Greatest triumph
Being named host of The Daily Show after making only three appearances on the revered comedy institution.
Nastiest scandal
Is Noah a joke thief? The Hollywood Reporter has called him out, inferring that his joke about being a "racism connoisseur" – told this month at Politicon (a ComicCon-style event for politics and entertainment) in Los Angeles – was a complete rip-off from one Dave Chappelle told in 1998.
Trivia
At the tender age of 18 in 2002, Noah was already a television soap star with a cameo role in the South African soap opera Insidingo. Also in his late teens, he hosted the cleverly named radio show Noah's Arc. He's a polyglot who speaks English, Xhosa, Zulu, Sotho, Afrikaans and German.
A joke
On flying as a South African during an ebola outbreak: “Flying has been particularly stressful for me in recent months. Flying into America has been the worst. You go through different lines, there’s extra checks. Especially if you come from what they consider a high-risk ebola region, which apparently is the whole continent – we’re all coughing on each other in one big hut.”
Dave Chappelle
When Dave Chappelle moves his tongue, the result is blunt-force comic trauma, with punchlines that pierce like shrapnel.
Don’t be fooled by his casual, gracious onstage persona – his mind boils and roils like a nuclear reactor when the tsunami hits. Especially in matters of race, this African-American’s comedy is bruisingly confrontational, as he tackles hot-button topics that would make less-confident comics blanch: ebola, Bill Cosby, Charlie Hebdo.
At a July show at the Hammersmith Apollo in London, Chappelle compared Al Qaeda to hip-hop artist Ja Rule – neither have "had a hit since 9/11". Ranked 43rd on Comedy Central's list of the 100 Greatest Stand-Ups of All Time, the 42-year-old – also a screenwriter, producer and actor – has been hailed as "the comic genius of America" by Esquire magazine, and the greatest comedian ever by his contemporary Kevin Hart. Albeit a rare occurrence, his reaction to being booed – as he was earlier this year in Detroit where some audience members wanted refunds – teaches volumes about the strength of mind that made him a global star. In the aftermath, Chappelle dryly observed: "I'm like [the late motorcycle daredevil] Evel Knievel – I get paid for the attempt."
Why he matters
As a politically relevant comedian in today’s fractious race-relations climate, Chappelle believes artists have a responsibility to be activists: “This is a very surprisingly emotionally charged time, so people such as me, I think, are very relevant and necessary in sorting through all this information and emotional content,” he said. “And when we are at our best, hopefully we are doing a great service to many people.”
Influences
Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy, Chris Rock and Mel Blanc.
Childhood
As the youngest of three children of two politically active college professors, William and Yvonne Chappelle, he grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland. At 14, he started performing stand-up in nightclubs. In 1991, he graduated in theatre arts from Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington.
Big breaks
At 19, he won the role of Ahchoo in Mel Brooks's comedy film, Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993), followed by a featured role in Eddie Murphy's reboot of Jerry Lewis's The Nutty Professor (1996).
Greatest triumph
With the launch in 2003 of Comedy Central's wildly popular Chappelle's Show – a surreal sketch series that boldly embraced racial stereotypes, politics and pop culture, along with hip-hop and soul artists and other black comics such as Paul Mooney and Charlie Murphy – Chappelle's fame shot into the stratosphere. His Rick James and Prince impressions added to his renown.
Nastiest scandal
Fans went bananas when he had a falling out with Comedy Central and walked off the set and away from a reported US$55 million (Dh202m) payday during taping for the third season of Chappelle's Show. The entertainment industry was stunned. Chappelle flew to South Africa for a time out "to quiet the ego down", stopped talking to media and moved his family to a tranquil farm just outside the village of Yellow Springs, Ohio, population 3,526.
Family
A convert to Islam in 1998, Chappelle lives with his wife Elaine Mendoza Erfe and their three children on their farm.
Trivia
Bad-boy actor Charlie Sheen is a big fan. During a 2013 appearance on Conan O'Brien's talk show, Sheen said he laughed so hard while watching an episode of Chappelle's Show that he experienced a ruptured hernia and had to be rushed to the hospital.
A joke
On a tiger’s escape from the zoo: “One of the guys the tiger bit was Mexican, and the other two were Arabs .... Who trained this tiger? Homeland Security?”
Trevor Noah performs on Saturday, October 24 on the Dubai Comedy Festival Main Stage (Skydive Dubai) for ages 18 and up. Tickets cost from Dh295 to Dh750. Doors open at 5pm; show starts at 7pm. For booking details, visit www.dubaicomedyfest.ae
Dave Chappelle performs on Thursday, October 22 and Friday, October 23 on the Dubai Comedy Festival Main Stage (Skydive Dubai) for ages 18 and up. Tickets cost from Dh295 to Dh1,200. Doors open at 6pm; show starts at 8pm. For booking details, visit www.dubaicomedyfest.ae
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