Donnell Rawlings: Stand-up comedian and actor best known for Chappelle's Show (Ashy Larry) and HBO's The Wire. A longtime fixture of the New York comedy scene and frequent collaborator of Dave Chappelle.
What this episode covers
Joe Rogan and Donnell Rawlings open with a loose conversation about aging, diet, and bad habits before turning to deceptive marketing, sugar, religion, and lottery scams (including Jeffrey Epstein's company winning a lottery). The bulk of the episode is an extended meditation on comedy culture: the rise of 'beef' and provocateur podcasting, why bitter comedians attack more successful peers, and the importance of focusing on craft over attention. Donnell recounts his on-again contentious history with Kill Tony, his deep friendship with Dave Chappelle, the pandemic comedy 'bubble' shows, and the origin of the 'I'm Rich Bitch' tour that helped launch Charlie Murphy and Bill Burr. The pair celebrate Austin as comedy's new hub and trade legendary stand-up war stories.
The guest's own work
The Wire
David Simon
“No, when I was doing HBO's The Wire, right? This guy I knew, I grew up with”— Donnell Rawlings
Chappelle's Show
Dave Chappelle
“When we were doing the Chappelle show... It was Dave, me and Charlie, like the biggest names on the show”— Donnell Rawlings
Also referenced (named, not recommended)
Tito's Handmade Vodka
Tito's
“I'm eating a steak and I wash it down with Tito's and tonic cuz it it resembles H2O so much”— Donnell Rawlings
Marlboro Lights
Philip Morris
“And also you're you're smoking Marlboros. There's a We had a doctor on the other day”— Joe Rogan
Natural American Spirit cigarettes
Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company
“Marlboro Lights, don't you American Spirits are not nearly as bad for you as uh these cigarettes”— Joe Rogan
The Departed
Martin Scorsese
“that movie that Leonardo DiCaprio starred in with Jack Nicholson... The Departed... That was based on Whitey Bulger”— Joe Rogan
Donnie Brasco
Mike Newell
“Donnie Brasco was the guy who was he was an agent and he pretended to be a mob guy and he got in with the mob”— Joe Rogan
Goodfellas
Martin Scorsese
“And they'd have a party for them celebrate. That's in Goodfellas. You kept your mouth shut”— Joe Rogan
Kill Tony
Tony Hinchcliffe
“Kill Tony is one of the rare places where you can be a comic that's been doing comedy 3 4 years... you can have a career”— Joe Rogan
Insomniac with Dave Attell
Dave Attell
“Remember with the show he had? ... The late night show he go to bars and stuff like that... Insomniac”— Joe Rogan
Roblox
Roblox Corporation
“But I can just give him some Roblox money. He'll be all right”— Donnell Rawlings
Zoom
Zoom Video Communications
“Look what it did to Zoom. Yep, Zoom took off”— Joe Rogan
Big reveals from this episode
- Joe details how Jeffrey Epstein's company Zoro Trust won an $80 million lottery right after his arrest, calling it deeply suspicious.
- Joe says Boston mob boss Whitey Bulger won the Mass Millions lottery, which he frames as a money-laundering scheme.
- Donnell reveals his father pretended to be a real estate agent but was actually a heroin kingpin in DC for years.
- Donnell describes witnessing 'white-on-white' comedy beef firsthand between Bill Burr and Marc Maron in a green room.
- Joe recounts that Maron called Jon Stewart a sellout, then took over the same show Stewart left.
- Donnell claims he is the one who started Charlie Murphy's stand-up career via the 'I'm Rich Bitch' tour.
- Joe explains CNN turned his face green over his Ivermectin/COVID episode, illustrating media bias.
Worth remembering
- A lawsuit alleged American Spirit adds ammonia to maximize nicotine, despite 'all-natural, additive-free' marketing.
- A 1-liter Pepsi contains roughly 115-123g of sugar, about 138% of the recommended daily value.
- Joe notes the Bible never says Adam told Eve not to eat the fruit, and never names it as an apple.
- Roughly 50% of lottery ticket revenue goes to the prize pool, with the jackpot being about one-third of total sales.
- Marc Maron's once-#1 podcast later dropped out of the top 200 with no scandal, which Joe attributes to bitterness.
- Joe explains viruses generally become more transmissible but less potent over time, like COVID did.
- The origin of Bernie Mac's famous 'I ain't scared of you motherfuckers' came after comic Butch Burns bombed before him on Def Jam.
- Donnell says George Wallace once had a deal taking 100% of the club door.
- Bill Burr would buy Donnell and Charlie Murphy 12-piece Popeyes so they'd fall into a 'food coma' on tour.