Donnell Rawlings — Comedian and actor known for Chappelle's Show, The Wire, and The Corner, promoting his Netflix special It's a New Day.
The gist
Donnell Rawlings joins Joe Rogan in a sharp suit, declaring it 'a new day' and reflecting on his start as a professional heckler turned dramatic actor before comedy. The pair discuss the craft of acting versus stand-up, the collapse of Hollywood under AI and tools like Sora, and the death of sitcoms and the agency model. A long stretch covers COVID lockdowns, vaccines, and the nostalgia of the pandemic bubble, plus politics and the 2024 election. The conversation wanders into wildlife in captivity, thousands of monkeys overrunning a Thai city, and finishes with Donnell confronting Tony Hinchcliffe by phone over an allegedly doctored Kill Tony clip.
Big reveals
- Donnell started in comedy as a professional heckler whom audiences came specifically to watch heckle other comics.
- Writer David Simon cast Donnell in The Corner because he 'threw the lines away' and didn't lean into the addiction stereotype.
- Donnell reveals 'It's a New Day' was shot three separate times before Dave Chappelle approved it.
- Joe argues COVID policy was driven more by money than care, citing Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson.
- Donnell claims his Kill Tony 'walk-off' was doctored and he actually went to the bathroom then left for a sushi reservation.
- Tony Hinchcliffe is called live on the podcast and denies editing the clip, escalating the long-running beef.
Things worth remembering
- There are multiple Law & Order franchises, with a 'hate crimes' spinoff reportedly in development.
- Dave Chappelle got noticeably better at stand-up after he quit drinking.
- Tyler Perry reportedly paused construction of an 800 million dollar studio after seeing what Sora could do.
- Donnell claims driving 28 mph on certain New York avenues catches every green light from 33rd to 115th.
- Joe cites an increase in all-cause mortality and excess deaths he attributes to vaccine side effects.
- In India, monkeys reportedly killed roughly 250 dogs in a revenge massacre after a dog killed a monkey.
- A Thai city has been overrun by thousands of monkeys forming rival gangs, worsened during the tourist-free pandemic.
- A wolf's lifespan is up to 20 years in captivity but usually no more than 10 in the wild.
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Portrait of a Lady (Frederic Malle)
Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle (inferred)
“a portrait of a lady oh it's a Arabic company um that's all I know and I got a guy that outsources my colog” — Donnell Rawlings 00:01:07Find it on Amazon
Uncut Gems
Josh and Benny Safdie (inferred)
“he's in um that uncut gems movie and he's great he's not an actor” — Joe Rogan 00:23:10Find it on Amazon
The Corner
David Simon
“I had did HBO's the corner where I played a heroin addict I played the character bread” — Donnell Rawlings 00:30:23Find it on Amazon
The Wire
David Simon (inferred)
“when I was doing HBO's to wire there's one scene when I get pulled over in the car” — Donnell Rawlings 00:34:35Find it on Amazon
It's a New Day
Donnell Rawlings
“tell everybody the name of it it's a new day on Netflix it's a new day” — Donnell Rawlings 02:31:34Find it on Amazon