From February 2009:

"They were saying I smoke crack and using all this innuendo, and I thought a magazine as credible as Newsweek? I was very surprised that this was happening. And then I thought I had to make some real choices. Is that what I want for myself? Did I get TOO big? Because I like people. And I like entertaining. And the higher up I go, for some reason the less happy I am. You know, is it going to get to the point where I'm doing a strip tease on TRL or waving a gun on the street saying they're trying to kill me? No, I'm not going to let it get to that point. I'm going to go to Africa... I'm going to find a way to be myself man, I gotta you know... I'm an artist man, you know I don't need a Sneaker deal. There's only six studios, man. There's only six agencies, man. This is a small controlled thing and I don't... like having to beg for the spotlight, man. You know, the machine is good for us and we're good for the machine and it should be... it should be fair, man. Martin had a stroke, he almost died. And then after that, I saw him and I said oh my God Martin, are you okay? And he said, I got the best sleep I ever got in my life. That's how tough he is. And so the question is, what is happening in Hollywood? That a guy that tough... would be on the street waving a gun screaming 'they are trying to kill me'? What is going on? Why is Dave Chappelle going to Africa? Why is Mariah Carey taking a one hundred million deal and taking her clothes off on TRL? A weak person cannot get to sit here and talk to you. There ain't no weak people talking to you. So what is happening in Hollywood? Nobody knows! The worst thing to call somebody is crazy, it's dismissive. I don't understand this person, so they're crazy. That's bullshit. These people are not crazy, they're strong people. Maybe their environment...... is a little sick."

. . .

From November 2020:

"Do you know why Prince called himself the artist when he came back? He called himself the artist... because that's what they call us in our contracts. Oh, these contracts are crazy... You should hear the terminology they use in these contracts. TO USE YOUR NAME AND LIKENESS IN PERPETUITY THROUGHOUT THE UNIVERSE. Who the fuck could possibly know what that means? Nobody does. It's so complicated in fact, that when you're a kid like me, you have to hire somebody to tell you what that means. And you sit down at a table and you do the contract. And that's how I got with Comedy Central. I signed the contract. But I signed the contract the way a 28 year old expecting father that was broke signs a contract, I was desperate, I needed a way out. And it wasn't good money, it wasn't good circumstances, but eh... What else am I gonna do, I said? And all these white people sitting at that table told me, 'trust us Dave, it's a good contract!' And I looked around the table and they all seemed to agree, it was a good contract. But what if... what if it was like that game of three card monty? What if they were all friends and I didn't know it?"

. . .

"Last week, two weeks ago whenever it was. I call Lorne Michaels and I tell him okay I'll do it. I'll do Saturday Night Live on Election Night. And the day I made that phone call, the day I committed to it, it gets announced that Netflix is streaming Chappelle Show. Not just Netflix, HBO Max is streaming it too. Did you know, before Chappelle Show was at Comedy Central, I pitched that show to HBO? I told them what I wanted to do. Now, these are Executives, all they have to do is say yeah we'll take it or no thank you we won't. But they didn't say either of those things. They went too far. They said literally, 'what do we need YOU for?' That's what they told me, as they kicked me out of the office. What do we need you for? And here we are, all these years later. And they're streaming the very show that I was pitching to them. So I'm asking them. What do YOU need ME for?"

. . .

"People think I made a lot of money from Chappelle Show. When I left that show, I never got paid. They didn't have to pay me because I signed the contract. But is that right? I found out that these people were streaming my work and they never had to ask me, or they never had to tell me. Perfectly legal, because I signed the contract. But is that right?! I'm not saying that Comedy Central gave me a raw deal just because I'm black. I believe that they gave me a raw deal because this fucking industry is a MONSTER! It's the same monster that these MeToo bitches was trying to tell you about. But they hate that monster for how it fucks, and I HATE that monster for how it eats! But my God man, it's the SAME MONSTER!"

. . .

"All my friends would say, 'well then fuck them Dave, why don't you just do Chappelle Show at another network?' Yeah, yeah, yeah... And why doesn't a slave run from one plantation to another because the master over there MIGHT be nicer? My God man I was trapped."

. . .

"To tell you the truth, I've even thought about coming back and doing another Chappelle Show. Well, but if I do, I can't call it Chappelle Show because my name and likeness is being used by them in perpetuity throughout the universe. It's in the contract. You're not supposed to do this in my business. I'm up here doing something that no one else in this business has the balls to do. I'm telling you something that you need to know. I'm trying to explain to you what you're seeing. You're not understanding what you're seeing. And I understand that these network niggas are watching this thinking, 'why... why are you doing this so publicly??' It doesn't feel good to feel flogged publicly. Oh believe me, I know. I know exactly how that feels. When I quit my show they said I was crazy. What was crazy about it?? I just didn't want to do it anymore! They said I smoke crack! That is impossible. I was a devout Muslim I didn't smoke or drink, but I do now bitch 'cause you ruined my fucking life! Now it's their turn. It's their first lesson and I'm honored to give it to them. They're gonna pay for me this show. I called my agent and I said is there anything I can do about this show? And he said no. Well, fuck you too then. If you want something done right... I guess you've gotta do it yourself. So I'm not going to the agents, I'm coming to my real boss. I'm coming to you. I'm begging you. If you ever liked me, if you ever thought there was something worthwhile about me, I'm begging you. Please don't watch that show. I'm not asking you to boycott any network. I'm asking you to boycott me. Boycott the Chappelle Show and do not watch it."