My background is part of my comedy. Your experiences are where the jokes come from.

I bombed in front of 5,000 people. Anybody that's ever stood in front of 5,000 people that don't like them can tell you, it's an energy associated with that. You don't want to feel that. You ask yourself, 'Do you really really want to do this?'

People who know me know that I'm the last person on earth that wants to be somebody else.

There's only going be one Richard Pryor. You know how many came out after Richard Pryor and died trying to be compared to him? Or Bernie Mac? You got to be like you.

Don't underestimate the power of the Web.

You make shows, and you don't go into it thinking, 'Our show's going to be number one'; you go into it hoping to stay on the air.

The whole thing with the Rick James story sketch and the Prince story sketch - I recounted my past, you know? - and that's what I was doing. It's not like I sat down and said I want to come up with a great story about Rick James. That stuff really happened.

I don't need to wait for someone else to get a bright idea and say, 'I wanna work with this guy.' I can do my own thing and drop it right on the Web and bypass you and your bright idea.

Carolines is the best. It has great sound, you can hear from the front all the way to the back with the same quality. If you want to see the top comics, go to Carolines.

I don't like to go to regular, big stores - I don't like to wear anything anybody else does.

If you can't eat incredible food, then what's the point?

I guess I must have a good metabolism.

When I first started, it was a dare. Someone basically said, 'You're a tough guy... but I'll bet you won't get on a microphone in front of a bunch of people.' I was terrified, but I did it. Once I broke the ice and got onstage and got some laughs, I thought, 'That's not so bad.'

One thing helps the other. My stand-up helps my writing; my writing helps my stand-up; my stand-up helps my acting. They're all interlocked.

I may make you angry or make you feel sorry for me, but in the end, you appreciate my show because it's not one-dimensional.

Comedy has bits, has jokes, has stories, and it has characters.

You have comedians who just do jokes, and they're called comics, not comedians. You have comedians that do bits - a person that has a lot of jokes that have a beginning, a middle and an end, but it's not a real story. And you have someone that does great stories, the one that blends those things together - that person is doing comedy.

Richard Pryor - he had stories, he had characters, he had short jokes, and he had bits. He had all those things. Eddie Murphy has all those things, and he can sing. A comedian is a bunch of stuff; it's not just one area.

'Chappelle's Show' was like the Tupac of TV shows. It came out, it got everybody's attention, it was a bright shining star, but it burned out, and for some strange reason, it burned out quick.

I don't have beef with anyone, only martians.

I wake up every morning, and I am ecstatic.

What I'm pretty much giving you when you see me onstage is me; it's not a fake character.

Several of my uncles are comedians. My father is a comedian; my grandfather was known for his jokes. It definitely runs in the family.

Don't take people for granted.