Trevor Noah: Joy in the Trenches (2026)

[bunniefuu]

What an interesting time it's been.

Mm-hmm.

I'm gonna be honest with all of you.

I had a very different show planned.

Yeah, very, very different show.

In fact, when I when I planned this show

in Washington, D.C.,

I had a very different relationship

with the White House at that time.

I had a whole different set planned.

I was gonna tell you some jokes

about me playing pickleball.

And, uh yeah, life happened.

For those who don't know

how it came to be,

uh I'll try and tell you how it unfolded.

I was hosting the Grammy Awards.

It was a good time, a really good time.

And then it wasn't.

I hosted the show,

had to catch a flight

back to the East Coast

to come and do shows, right?

And I don't I don't connect to the Wi-Fi

whenever I'm traveling.

I just like to relax.

And landed in Boston.

And the first time I knew

my life had changed

was when someone walked past me

on the plane

as I was packing my my laptop bag,

and he just held me on the shoulder,

and he's like, "Trevor, you fight."

"You got this. Fight."

"Come on. You got this."

Did I look like

I was struggling that much?

Walking through the airport,

people were giving me

random thumbs-ups of support,

like, "Yeah, come on, you got this. Yeah."

"Hey, yeah!"

Except Black people.

Black people were like, "Hey, man."

And then I turned on my phone,

and honestly, I thought the thing was

was was malfunctioning

because it started vibrating

even before the icons popped up.

It was the Apple logo,

and my phone was like

Bzz-bzz! I was like, "What the hell?"

It was notifications everywhere.

I was like,

"Did Michael Jackson die again?"

"What happened? What is going on?"

'Cause every app,

every app was going crazy.

It was like, iMessage,

"Bling-bling-bling,"

WhatsApp, "Bla-bla-bla,"

Twitter, "Da-da-da,"

Instagram, "Bla-bla-bla."

Even Uber Eats was like, "Yo,

you got some hot sh*t coming in, man."

I went to my messages,

and everyone I've ever known in my life

had texted me. Everyone.

From kindergarten teachers onwards.

"Trevor, oh my God, are you okay?"

"Trevor, where are you? Did you see?"

"Trevor, call me, call me, call me!"

"Yo, don't call me." "Call me."

"Trevor, what's happening?"

"Trevor, did you see?"

One person was like, "Oh my God,

did you see what Trump said?"

And I was like,

"What? What did Trump say?"

"What did Trump say this time?"

"Oh boy, let me check.

What did Trump say? Me?"

Yeah. It hits different

when you're in the crosshairs.

I'm not gonna lie.

It's pretty crazy. I, uh

I hosted The Daily Show for seven years,

and for seven years

we covered news

and politics in America, right?

'Cause that's what the show is.

And in that time, Donald Trump was

in the news and politics all the time,

so I assumed at some point, maybe he would

say something about me or come after me.

He didn't, which I was happy about.

I was like, "Great."

You know, and then I left The Daily Show.

And I relaxed

like an idiot in a horror movie.

And I went off

and started hosting the Grammys.

I was like, "This is delightful.

It's a music show. So much more chill."

Turns out,

the president watches the Grammys.

Yeah, and he was not happy.

He was not happy at all.

No, uh

He had written a post, a lengthy post,

giving me a Google review

of my performance.

And it wasn't it wasn't like a flyby.

It was like a full on

I'll I'll read the full thing to you

'cause I don't wanna misquote anything.

I'll read you

This is this is what I saw

when I when I searched my name and his.

Um it was a post on Truth Social

from @realDonaldTrump.

Fun aside, Donald Trump owns Truth Social,

so it's a little weird

that he doesn't have @DonaldTrump.

It's weird that somebody else got it,

and he was, "Fine, real Donald Trump."

Anyway, uh this is

this is what the message read.

Um

"The Grammy Awards are the WORST!"

Every time I shout,

it's because the word is in all caps.

I'm trying to give you a feeling

of what I was experiencing, all right?

"Virtually unwatchable."

So some parts were good.

"CBS is lucky not to have this garbage

litter their airwaves any longer."

"The host, Trevor Noah,

whoever he may be"

That's a bit bitchy.

Like, I know what he was trying to do,

but I don't think he did it correctly.

You can't say, "The host, Trevor Noah,

whoever he may be"

because that is exactly who I may be.

I understand he was trying to dismiss me,

but you said my full name

and my job title on the night.

You can't be dismissive and be vague

and specific at the same time.

That's not how that works.

"Whoever he may be."

I be nobody else.

There is no "may" in this equation.

That is exactly who I be.

"Trevor Noah, the host.

Social Security number 4576728135."

"Whoever he may be."

No, that is me.

It's weird. Like, You don't use

that phrase when you know the person.

"Whoever he may"

You use that phrase when a stranger

has ridden through your town

and deflowered your daughter.

That's when you use the phrase.

"I'm gonna k*ll that man,

whoever he may be!"

It's also funny

to switch to feudal English

in the middle of a message.

He's like, "Whoever he may be."

"Fee-fi-fo-fum."

"I smell the blood of a South African."

It's random.

So he says, yeah, "The host,

Trevor Noah, whoever he may be,

is almost as bad as Jimmy Kimmel."

Yo, poor Jim. I like Jimmy Kimmel.

All right? And now, because of me,

he's catching strays, like

He was at home, minding his own business.

Doesn't even work on Sundays.

All of a sudden, his phone is like

He says, "Almost as bad as Jimmy Kimmel

at the low-ratings Academy Awards."

Then he goes on.

"Noah said INCORRECTLY about me

that Donald Trump and Bill Clinton

spent time on Epstein Island."

"WRONG!"

Now, just so we're on the same page,

I did not say

Donald Trump and Bill Clinton spent time

on Epstein Island.

I did not say that.

I made a joke at the Grammys.

Right?

One of many random jokes that I made.

Uh, this one came after Billie Eilish

had just won Song of the Year.

All right? And I said, "Congratulations,

Billie Eilish, Song of the Year."

"That is an award that every artist wants,

almost as much

as Donald Trump wants Greenland."

"Because now that Jeffrey Epstein is gone,

he needs a new island

where he can hang out with Bill Clinton."

Okay? That's what I said.

That's what I said.

I did not say he was on the island.

I said that he would like his own island.

Clearly a joke as well because

he wouldn't go with Bill Clinton, right?

And Greenland is a terrible substitute

for Epstein Island.

Completely different climate,

completely different vibe, all right?

So he says, "And Bill Clinton spent time

on Epstein Island."

"WRONG!"

"I can't speak for Bill"

I love how in the midst

of him calling me the ultimate liar,

he's like, "This guy's a liar!"

"Except about the Bill part.

We gotta check that out. I mean"

"I mean, you know how this guy is."

"But I have never been to Epstein Island,

nor anywhere close."

That's unnecessary.

The proximity to Epstein Island

is not what people are litigating, right?

It's your proximity to the man

who owned Epstein Island.

It's not the land that's an issue.

It's not like,

"Where were you in the Caribbean?"

"Epstein Island?" "No, Jamaica." "Busted!"

No.

Uh "Nor anywhere close."

"And, until tonight's false

and defamatory statement,

have never been accused of being there."

Really?

I was the first?

Before me, no one had ever mentioned

Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein.

I was the first.

I'm the reason his name is mentioned

5,000 times in those files.

I set those dominoes into place,

and I tipped them over.

Yeah. "Not even by the fake news media."

"Noah, a total loser" Meow!

"better get his facts straight

and get them straight fast."

"It looks like I'll be sending my lawyers

to sue this poor, pathetic,

talentless dope of an M.C.,

and suing him for plenty." Cha-ching.

He put a dollar sign.

I don't know what sound that is.

"Ask little George Slopadopolus and others

how that all worked out."

"Also, ask CBS."

"Get ready, Noah."

"I'm going to have some fun with you."

"President DJT."

Yeah, that that last line is something.

Yeah, that is

"Get ready, Noah."

"I'm going to have some fun with you."

You know,

if if you're not trying to sound

like a sexual deviant

this is not the line I would recommend.

Yeah, "I'm gonna have some fun with you"

is what someone says right after

they've strapped on the head dildo.

So yeah, that was my Monday.

And I'll be honest,

I I wasn't I wasn't too worried.

You know,

Donald Trump watches TV regularly,

gets angry about what he sees,

posts about it,

and oftentimes, he moves on.

I thought something else

would come along, right?

Because in many ways, he's like a

he's like a squirrel that watches TV.

Yeah. He'll be fully

Yeah, same size hands.

Um So I was like,

"It'll move. It'll change."

And it did. It did.

The next day,

the big topic in the White House

was the government shutdown.

There was a looming government shutdown.

'Cause you know America's government

is always on the edge of shutting down.

I mean, at this point, I think you guys

should switch to a family plan, right?

The month-to-month thing

is not working out.

But they were interviewing the president

about this.

This is a serious topic.

And in the middle of a conversation

about the government shutdown,

some journalist

from the back of the room shouts out

"Mr. President,

are you gonna sue Trevor Noah

for what he said at the Grammys?"

I'm like, "d*ck."

I was gone.

Yeah, I always wondered what happened

to that kid who was like

"Oh, teacher,

you forgot to give us the homework."

Trump went back in. "Oh yeah, Trevor Noah,

said I was on Epstein, gonna sue him.

Total lightweight. Loser."

Yeah. So now, I might be getting sued

by the President of the United States.

- Woo!

- Yeah.

I don't I don't know if it's a "woo."

I don't know if it's a "ooh." I don't

No, I'll be honest with you.

I don't know how to feel

because I don't know

how this will play out.

If it was a normal time,

I'd be pretty confident.

Donald Trump would sue me.

A judge would throw it out

for a multitude of reasons.

You know, First Amendment protections,

free expression, jokes, satire.

All of these things are covered

in a regular time.

It would be Donald Trump suing me.

Whatever.

But now it's not Donald Trump.

Now I'm being sued

by the President of the United States,

Donald Trump,

and I don't know what that means.

Do I appeal? Do I appeal?

We get to the Supreme Court.

All right? I walk in.

He's waiting there for me.

He's like

"Say hello to my little friends."

- I don't I don't know.

- Woo!

Nobody knows.

Yeah, with him, there is no knowing.

You know?

Just ask Nicols Maduro.

Former president of Venezuela

and current inmate of New York City.

Yeah, he was president of Venezuela.

And then all of a sudden, he wasn't.

The story is even crazier.

What happened was

And you can go check this yourself.

What happened was

Nicols Maduro was on TV

giving an interview,

and then he joked

about how people are threatening him,

alluding to Donald Trump.

And he was like,

"Man, I'll be fine. We'll be good."

And then he played a song.

No w*r, Just Peace.

And then he started mocking Trump

by doing Donald Trump's dance move.

Like, the move, singular.

Right? Yeah, he did the move.

So he came on, then he did the

You know the move, the double jerk-off.

And Trump saw that,

and he was like, "Go get that man."

"Go get that man."

Military went, got Maduro,

brought him in, put him in a jail.

Not just any prison, by the way.

They put him in a prison in Brooklyn.

The same prison

where they are housing Diddy.

Imagine that!

I thought I had problems.

Nicols Maduro, that

I mean, he's having Hooh!

Imagine the irony of his situation.

He was witnessing America

rolling out the most brutal

deportation campaign ever.

And in the midst of that,

you're the one immigrant they import.

Maduro was probably the only immigrant

who supports ICE.

He used his one phone call for them.

He's like, "Hello, ICE,

come get me, man. Come get me."

"Yeah. No. Come on.

I'll fly myself. Let's work together."

"Come on. We can do this, guys.

We can do this"

That's why I say

you don't know how it's gonna go.

Nobody knows anymore.

What a crazy twist of fate.

Can you imagine?

For decades,

you ruled your empire with an iron fist.

You terrorized people around you.

You were violent, never held accountable.

And now, they've taken away all your oil,

and you're in the same prison

as Nicols Maduro.

Ain't that a b*tch?

The one silver lining

of this whole situation

is that now would be

the perfect time for an alien invasion.

There's no good time.

I think we can all agree on that.

But if I had to pick a time,

I would say this is the best time.

Yeah.

'Cause if aliens invade,

it's not gonna be good for us.

We we know we don't stand a chance.

They can travel through space-time.

Our weapons mean nothing.

We're probably just gonna annoy them

with our g*ns. Pew-pew, pew-pew!

They're gonna get here.

We've seen how it turns out, right?

They fly in.

They're gonna blow everything up.

We've watched Independence Day.

We know how this happens. Right?

Yeah, and even if Will Smith helps, he can

only slap, like, one at a time, you know?

So what do we do?

I think about it all the time.

Genuinely. I think about alien invasions

all the time.

It is it is my Roman Empire.

Like, what are we gonna do?

What are we gonna do?

I never used to think about this.

When I lived in South Africa,

this was nowhere in my mind,

but in America, it's a real thing.

Yeah, 'cause when aliens come,

this is where they're gonna come.

They're gonna fly here.

They come straight to Washington, D.C.

Blow up the White House.

Then they go to other countries. You know?

They go to London, blow up Big Ben.

"You know what time it is!"

Then they fly to other landmarks,

blow everything up.

I know. It's an issue.

America first. I get it.

Yeah.

When I was in South Africa, this is

something I never thought about, ever.

Because I knew when aliens invade,

they're gonna go.

They're gonna blow up the world,

but the one place they don't go is Africa.

Yeah. You've seen the movies.

They never invade Africa.

I used to watch those movies. I'd wait.

In the movie, the president would be like,

"Citizens of Earth,

aliens are invading our planet."

Then you'd see the aliens invade.

Wha-baw, wha-baw, wha-baw.

You'd be like, "Wait, I guess Africa's not

on the planet? What is happening?"

They never invade it. Can you think of

a single movie where they invaded Africa?

- District 9!

- No. What?

- District 9!

- District 9?

No.

Screw you

for trying to mess up my special.

Sitting up there in the balcony

like a king.

"District 9, I tell you."

"Off with his head."

No. District 9,

it's a good attempt, but no.

If you remember the plot of District 9,

the aliens didn't invade Africa.

The aliens crash-landed in Africa.

And then they spent the rest of the movie

trying to escape.

'Cause we don't mess around.

Hollywood is so messed up.

Like, "What's the worst thing

that could happen to aliens?"

"What if they were trapped in Africa?"

Aliens never invade

They don't invade Africa. They never did.

I used to think it was

because they felt bad for us.

Yeah, 'cause as a kid,

I used to love watching those movies.

I still love watching them now.

But as a kid, I loved those movies.

Anything with aliens, I was there.

And my mom, she would

she would give me, like

she would make me

a big bowl of popcorn at home,

and we would sit on the couch together,

and she'd watch all of those movies

with me.

Not She hated them,

but it said "parental guidance,"

and she took that very seriously.

One day she was walking past,

and then it was like,

"We recommend parental guidance

for this film."

She was like, "I've got to watch this,"

and she did it every movie going forward.

I would have to run

and call her sometimes.

A show would just start randomly on TV.

It'd be like "parent" I'd be like, "Mom!"

She'd come in, and I'd be like,

"I need you to guide me!"

But then five minutes in,

I feel like I was guiding my parental.

She would sit there,

the whole movie, she'd be like,

"What's happening, Trevor? Who are they?

Why are they doing this? What's going on?"

I'd be like, "Mom, I'm with you.

I started this movie with you."

So she'd make me,

like, a big bowl of popcorn,

and we'd sit there,

and the movie would start.

The alien invasion, they'd be like,

"Aliens are invading Earth."

The aliens would fly in.

You'd see them blowing everything up.

And I'd be there with my popcorn,

like, "Mm-mm-mm-mm, first world problems."

"Mm-mm-mm-mm-mm."

I I genuinely thought,

I was a little kid,

if you ask,

"How come you never see them in Africa?

I was like, "Because they feel bad."

I thought the aliens felt bad for Africa.

You know, there'd be the ship that would

fly over each continent to blow it up.

Then there would be one

over the African continent,

two aliens in the c*ck,

like, "Brr-brr."

"Prepare to launch photon lasers."

"Ready on your command."

"Three, two, one."

"Wait, wait, wait, hold on.

I think we already did this continent."

"I think we've been here."

"Negative, we've never been here before.

Blow it up."

"What am I blowing up? Look at this sh*t.

Something already happened."

"What the hell's going on, dude?

What am I supposed to blow up?"

"Who did this?"

"I don't know. Checking now." Beep-beep.

"It says it was the British."

Yeah!

Take that, Great Britain.

#NeverForget.

Those alien movies, man,

they made my day, but they terrified me.

'Cause every time it didn't go well,

the aliens fly in, they conquer the Earth.

We win by luck 'cause it's a movie,

but in real life, I don't know.

It's not good. We have no chance.

If aliens invade, we have no hope.

Or at least we had no hope.

Now there is.

And it goes by the name

Donald J. Trump.

Whoever he may be.

I don't like it, but I

but I think it's the only way.

Yeah.

As soon as the alien invasion begins,

we know how it starts.

It's gonna be that giant mothership

that flies into our orbit.

That massive thing

that blocks out the sun.

"Bahhhhh!"

"Bahhhhh!"

They have a giant speaker under the ship

that plays the music.

It creates the ambiance.

Yeah, there's one alien playing

a little organ.

He's like,

"They're not ready for this one, B!"

"Bahhhhh!"

"Ha-ha, yeah!"

"Bahhhhh!"

And then they park the ship outside,

and they send a scout ship down

to give us the bad news.

The one that lands They come out.

"Take me to your leader."

They meet the leader,

k*ll the leader, and then it's done.

They normally pick the most annoying alien

for that job.

Right?

You gotta be a specific type of entitled

to believe you can speak to the leader.

Who are you?

On the alien ship,

they'll normally pick the Karen alien.

They'll be like, "All right."

Chatting to each other, like,

"Who are we gonna send down

to this planet?"

"Listen, Karen, she's the best for this."

"Karen, you're going down."

"Oh my God, why is it always me?

I hate this so much."

"You guys are always sending me.

I wanna speak to the manager."

"She's perfect."

They send that alien down

and give us the bad news.

With Trump, we have hope,

but we have to act quick, people.

Real quick.

As soon as they tell us

the aliens are here,

NASA tells us they've reached our orbit,

we act together as a planet.

And what we need to do

is we make Donald Trump

king of the world.

I see some of you are confused. The good

news is he won't ask any questions.

All right? We go to the White House.

We're like, "Mr. Trump,

you are now king of the world."

He'll be like, "I knew it. I knew it!"

We give him a little Burger King crown,

then we wait for the aliens outside.

Aliens land. They come out.

That one is just like,

"Brr-brr. Take me to your leader."

We're like, "Yes, welcome to Earth.

Come on. Come meet the leader."

"Take me now."

"Of course. We're gonna take you there."

"You're looking good. You on Ozempic?

You're looking great."

"Come on, come meet the leader."

We get to the White House,

and we're like,

"King Trump, this is the alien."

"Alien, this is King Trump."

"Brr-bah-beep.

Are you the ruler of this planet?"

He'll be like "That's right."

"I'm the ruler of this planet."

"Planet Earth, or as I call her,

Big Blue."

"Beautiful, beautiful Blue,

floating up in space."

"She's up there spinning around,

spinning around,

spinning so fast."

"You know, they say we're spinning.

I never felt it."

"I never felt it,

but they say we're spinning."

"We're spinning around, folks,

spinning so fast."

"And we're up there in space."

"We got a beautiful axis

right through the middle of the planet."

"A big, beautiful, long axis.

They don't make axises like that anymore."

"They really don't. They really don't."

"And we got that axis,

and it's tilted, you know, it's tilted."

"If I was in charge,

I would've straightened it right out."

"Right out."

"But that's okay, that's okay."

"Thanks, Obama."

"And it's up there floating up in space.

A beautiful planet, beautiful Blue."

"We got a tiny moon.

Did you see the moon? Beautiful moon."

"A beautiful moon.

Looks like a nipple on a boob."

"That's what it looks like.

Like one boob floating in space."

"Should be two.

I always say two boobs better than one."

"Better than one,

but one better than none."

"Can I say boobs?

I said it, folks. I said boobs."

"And I'm the ruler of this planet."

"What do you want?

What do you need? What can I do for you?"

They'd be like, "Brr-bah-beep. Sorry,

we didn't know it was already invaded."

"Boo-boo-bee-bee."

"Bee-boo-bree-beep."

And that's how we survive.

Be honest, we wouldn't be shocked

if we found out he was an alien.

I actually think we'd be relieved.

You know, people are like,

"Oh my God, that explains it."

Yeah, if two aliens

that looked exactly like him,

like a mom and dad version of him

came down, and they land on the planet.

"Ah, help us,

we left our son here many decades ago."

"Where's our baby? Where's our baby?"

We'd be like,

"Come on, come on. Come get your baby."

'Cause he is, man,

he's out of this world."

And now,

we are living through history.

- Do you ever think about that?

- Yeah.

Like, we are all living through history.

And not like history

like just time that passed.

'Cause there's that boring history,

like, "And then the people settled here."

Bor Yeah, whatever.

I'm talking about history history,

where some sh*t happened.

When you read the books,

you're like, "What was it like back then?"

We're in the back then.

That's all of us.

My history's terrible now, I've realized.

Because they record everything

that is said at the White House.

It is kept for posterity.

All right? So that means

in, like, 300 years,

there'll be scholars studying

old presidents and the White House,

and they'll be like,

"What was it like 300 years ago?"

You're like, "I don't know,

but the Grammys host was terrible."

"Yes, a total loser, apparently."

"And a bunny was performing

at the Super Bowl, also terrible."

"Absolutely terrible. What a time."

You know, the we the weird thing

about living through history is

it's so much less predictable

when you are the one doing it.

Like, when you read history,

or when we're taught history,

it is often presented

as if it was inevitable.

You read the stories,

you assume that is how

they would've always ended

because that's how they ended.

Like, if I asked most people,

"Do you think the Nazis

will always lose the w*r?"

They'd be like, "Yeah, of course."

And yet, at the time,

the people who were fighting the w*r

thought the Nazis were going to win.

There was a moment

when it seemed like it was in their favor.

When you're in history,

it's a completely different gambit.

Like whenever I'm in Washington, D.C.,

I like to go and visit the National Museum

of African American History and Culture.

And

if you've never been,

let me tell you,

it is one of the most profound experiences

you will ever have in your life.

It is it is a museum unlike any other

I've ever been to for a few reasons.

You know?

One is it is it is as complete a telling

as is possible

of Black history in America,

which is history.

But it's a history that's often not told.

You go to this building,

and unlike other museums,

you can't choose your own adventure.

Normally, you walk in a museum

and it's like, "Dinosaurs or space?"

"You pick."

There, they curate

your moving through time.

And so when you get to the museum,

you start at the very beginning

of Black people in America,

and then it moves all the way

through to the present day. Right?

It starts underground,

literally, you go underground,

and then it starts with sl*very,

spoiler alert.

And they move you, move you, move you

through time,

and then you get to the end,

and then there's Oprah.

That that museum, truly,

it'll make you ask

every question of yourself.

I was there on my most recent trip,

and I was walking

through the the beginning level.

And it's underground,

and it's chattel sl*very,

the transatlantic sl*ve trade,

and then the Underground Railroad.

And so it's an emotional ride as well.

You know, it's painful, it's oppression,

and then there's there's this moment

where you can see

people rising up and fighting

for what they believe in, overcoming.

And because it's so engaging,

you see people experiencing it

in a different way.

There were these two kids next to me,

maybe 14 years old,

and they were having a conversation

I was eavesdropping on.

One turns to the other, and he's like,

"Yo, man, what would you have done

if you was around back then?"

"Would you've been a sl*ve?"

He's like, "What?"

He's like, "Nah, they woulda had

the wrong one, man."

"Yo, I woulda cooked they a*s.

You trying to make me a sl*ve?"

He's like, "You cappin'." He's like,

"For real, I woulda cooked they a*s."

They're laughing and engaging.

I was like,

either this is the delusion of youth,

which is necessary for a revolution,

or that's who they would be.

Either way, it didn't matter.

What I loved is

that they were asking the question.

Who will you be when history calls?

Because of them,

I found myself asking the question, and

honestly, I think I need to work

on my self-esteem

because I came up with nothing as heroic.

If you asked me, "Trevor,

what would you do during sl*very?"

I'd be like,

"I would have worked really hard

and seen what happened."

I I don't think I would've been a hero.

I I I don't have it.

I'm impressed by people who say,

"If I was around, if I was in the store

when they robbed it, I would've"

I don't have that in me.

Like, I would be in the field,

and I'd be working hard,

and I'd be minding my own business.

The guy on the horse would be like,

"You better pick that g*dd*mn cotton."

I'd be like, "Yes, master.

I's picking this cotton."

"I's picking away, master."

But as soon as he rides away,

I'd light his a*s up.

Oh, I would I would roast him to bits.

I'd be like, "That dumbass."

"Is he back? No."

But I don't think I would've been a hero.

Yeah, a real hero would've showed up.

Like, Harriet Tubman would show up.

She'd be like, "'Psst, yo, Trev."

I'd be like, "Oh, hi, Harriet."

"How you doin'?"

"I'm doin' sh*t."

"Oh no, what happened?"

"sl*very happened.

What you mean 'What happened?' boy?"

"You stupid?"

"Of course, I shouldn't have asked.

Anyway, what's going on, Harriet?"

"I just came to let you know

that we leavin' tonight."

"Who's we?"

"All of us, Trevor.

We're gettin' outta here."

"We're goin', baby."

"Oh yeah, Harriet, the guy on the horse

says we shouldn't leave."

"He really doesn't like it when we leave."

"I think he has, like, separation anxiety

or something."

"He should see someone about that."

"But he said..."

"I don't give a sh*t what he said."

"We gettin' outta here."

"What, you gonna stay?"

"Yeah, I think I'll stay

and just, you know, see how it goes."

"See how it goes? What's wrong wit' you?"

"You not comin'?"

"No, I'm not gonna come."

"I can't believe you."

"You light skins is all the same."

"What?" "Yeah."

"You scared, ain't ya?"

"You a scared little b*tch."

"I am a b*tch, Harriet. I cannot lie.

I'm a I'm a scared little b*tch."

"Look at you, scared little b*tch."

"You almost as bad as Jimmy Kimmel."

Huh

Um, sorry, sometimes I do jokes

just for me. I'm sorry.

Oh man.

Everyone was asking themselves

the question.

Everyone.

One of one of the most unique encounters

I experienced happened

when, um, there was a group of

a group of white people

who were standing at the exhibit.

And, uh, they were

very, very liberal white people, right?

Like very liberal white

Like very, very liberal white people.

Like, they were feeling it more

than the Black people there. They were

To show how much they were feeling it,

there was a moment where

some of the Black people who were

walking around the exhibit, right?

There's Black people walking,

and there's white people

'cause everyone can go, right?

And and so

The Black people there

were living what I would consider

the full Black experience,

which is being a human being.

So some people were crying,

then they were talking to their friends,

sharing stories, recounting,

laughing, et cetera.

And one person laughed,

was talking to their friends,

like, "Ha-ha-ha, yeah."

And then the woman,

there was a white woman here,

the leader of the crew,

she turned at that laugh,

she was like, "Ha-ha!"

And she was like, "Sh."

That's how liberal they were.

Just when I thought she couldn't top that,

she was looking at a photograph,

one of the first pictures

that's ever really been taken.

And it was a picture

of a white man on a plantation,

standing there, smiling,

standing in a field,

just like smiling in the picture.

This woman is standing,

looking at the picture, and she's like,

"I I"

"If was there

when that was happening,

I swear to God, if I was there

when that was happening,

I would've never smiled!"

You know when a sentence has

the exact conclusion you did not predict?

This was I thought she was going,

"If I was there, I would've fought."

"I would've freed. I would have"

No, no, no.

She's like, "I would've had sl*ves,

but I wouldn't have enjoyed it."

Just be crying, "I'm so sorry

this is happening to you."

"I'm so sorry.

Dust behind the couch as well."

"But yeah, I'm so sorry. I can't."

It was it was really, really something,

you know?

You move through that level.

I was there more than an hour.

At the end of it, I was so taken

by the question that I was asking myself,

"Who will you be when history calls?"

that I texted one of my best friends,

David Meyer.

He's actually the first American

I ever became friends with.

He came to South Africa

by chance 20 years ago,

was on, like, a school project.

We met by chance,

became friends by chance,

and he convinced me

to come to America and do comedy,

which I had never planned.

The rest is history.

We've been friends since that day, right?

And yeah, it's this beautiful story.

And also, our our

our lives are so different.

He's this 6'5", lanky white boy

from North Carolina, right?

Sweetest guy ever, super sincere.

And because of that,

I love I love playing pranks on him.

And as we left that exhibit, I texted him,

and I was like, "Yo, Dave,

I need to ask you a favor."

And he responded, "Yo, dude, what's up?"

And I said,

"If sl*very comes back,

do you promise to have me

as one of your sl*ves

and treat me really well?"

And then he responded,

he was like, "Dude, whaaaaat?"

And I said, "Do you promise

to have me as your sl*ve

and treat me very well?"

He was like, "What are you talking about?"

And I said, "Yes or no?"

And then I just saw the little dots,

and it was like typing,

typing,

typing, typing,

typing,

typing,

typing, typing.

And then he called me. Bzzzz! Bzzzz!

I was like, "What's up?" He's like,

"What are you talking about?"

"What is happening?

What do you mean sl*very?"

I was like, "I just wanna know from you,

Dave, if sl*very comes back,

do you promise to have me

as one of your sl*ves and treat me well?"

He's like, "Dude, no. What do you mean?

sl*very is not coming back."

I was, "That's what they said

about Ghostbusters. Answer the question."

"Will you or will you not have me

as one of" He's like, "No, dude, no, no."

"No, I would never have you

as one of my sl*ves."

"Dude, I would never own sl*ves,

like enslaved people, actually."

"I would never have enslaved people.

I don't think that's right."

I was, "Save your sanctimonious bullshit."

"I wanna know if you would have me

and treat me well."

He's like, "No, I would never do that."

I was like, "Oh, okay, I see."

"So you're just gonna let me be

somebody else's sl*ve, huh"

"sl*very comes back, and now,

they catch me, they're busy whipping me."

"Now I'm Django

out in these streets, huh? Yeah?"

"I'm getting whipped because my best

friend wouldn't use his white privilege

to help by making me one of his sl*ves

so that we could hang out, huh?"

"I'm in a field. I could be with you

in the house playing PlayStation, Dave."

"We could be in Call of Duty,

in Verdansk, like the good old days."

"But no, you wanna be so woke

that I get whipped

by another white person."

He's like, "No."

I was like, "You want me to be a sl*ve?"

"You want me to be whipped, don't you?"

He's like, "No, okay."

"Okay, fine, dude."

"If sl*very came back, yeah,

I'd have you as one of my sl*ves,

and treat you well."

I was like,

"Aha! So you would have sl*ves."

I was like, "All right, I gotta go."

He's like, 'No!"

He still hasn't forgiven me.

Who will you be when history calls?

So much easier when it's hypothetical.

As you move from one exhibit to the next,

you move through Reconstruction,

Jim Crow,

you get to the Civil Rights Movement.

And it's impressive on its own,

but but because it has now been 60 years

since the "I Have a Dream speech,"

they've expanded the part of the exhibit

that looks

at Dr. Martin Luther King's life.

And you get to see his writings,

his thoughts, his journals,

his letters to other people,

his letters to the public,

his his correspondences with his friends,

interviews, you name it.

Like, you see his life in a detail

that I think very few of us ever have.

And I I don't wanna speak for everyone,

but I feel like

when we're taught about MLK,

it's a really sanitized,

flat version of his life.

Do you know what I mean?

It seems really simple and inevitable.

Whenever you're taught the story,

it's like, "There was a man named MLK."

"He didn't like what was happening,

and he marched on a bridge,

he had a dream,

and he lived happily ever after."

"Happy MLK Day, 50% off your mattress."

But but when you when you see his life,

it's not like that.

'Cause that, like

Genuinely, when people talk about it,

there'll be the "Happy MLK Day!"

It it almost sounds like a Disney movie.

It has the same plot as a Disney movie.

It's just like, "This summer," you know,

"One man, one dream changed the world."

"I have a dream!"

"Timothe Chalamet is Martin Luther King."

"Only on Disney+."

That's how it feels.

But when you see his life laid out

I mean the minutiae of his days.

The things that he and the people

around him were experiencing.

He was arrested

somewhere around like 29 times

over the course of like four years.

Trumped up charges.

Sometimes he was left

in a jail cell by himself,

wasn't given food,

wasn't given a phone call, nothing.

Sometimes he was beaten,

sometimes they just, like

You see this man's life in detail.

They chased him out of towns.

The federal government came after him.

J. Edgar Hoover himself,

the head of the FBI,

designated Martin Luther King

as the most dangerous man in America.

And then the FBI ran a concerted campaign

to destroy him.

They try and break up his friendships

and working relationships,

and the most sinister thing they did

was they tapped his phones,

and they found out

that he was having an affair.

They phoned his wife, Coretta Scott King,

and they snitched on him

because they thought

that that would destroy his marriage

and destroy the movement.

Yeah.

The FBI tried

to dish gossip on Martin Luther King.

Totally changes

how you see the organization.

Right? FBI seems so serious.

Now you get the real picture.

They're in that J. Edgar Hoover building

in the morning.

"What are you working on, Kowalski?"

"Drug enforcement, sir."

"What about you?"

"Sir, criminal crimes,

specifically financial."

"And you?" "Drama!"

You see everything

that happened to MLK, everything.

Some internal 'cause he writes about it,

some external

because people are observing.

One of the sections that really lays out

what it was like is a four-year stretch

where Dr. King and other Black people

would try to go and get served

in restaurants

that were segregating Black people

and weren't allowing them to get food.

They would walk into the restaurants,

they would sit down, dressed to the nines,

and they would get denied service.

They would get kicked out,

they would get cursed at, spat on.

Oftentimes, they were beaten.

Leave with concussions, bleeding.

They'd go home, wash up,

come back, do it again.

Go home, wash up, do it again.

Go home, wash up, do it again.

Now when we talk about it, we go,

"They did the right thing.

Look how it turned out."

Yes, but when you read his life,

you go, "It wasn't inevitable."

There was no guarantee

that it was gonna work.

There was no sign that it was working.

And yet, they persevered.

When I was looking through his life

and reading his works,

I was like, "Was there ever a moment

when he regretted?"

Was there ever a moment when he regretted

what he had gone through,

what he was doing?

Like when he tasted

white people's food for the first time?

You realize, until that point,

it was theoretical, right?

Black people had never been served.

They only wished to be served

in these establishments.

But they had never eaten there.

They'd sit down at the counter,

and the owner would be like, "g*dd*mn it!"

"I don't want your kind around here!

Get outta here, boy!"

And he'd be like

"My brother, I have a dream."

"I have a dream that one day,

regardless of the color of our skin,

all people will be allowed to sit here,

our brothers and sisters,

Black and white alike,

and America will come good on its promise

that all men are created equal."

"I have a dream that one day..."

"Oh, shut up!"

"You've won. They changed the laws.

Look at the TV."

"Here's your food."

Fff! Fff!

"Thank you very much."

"Oh sh*t."

"Now I have a new dream."

"I have a new dream that one day

white people will discover seasoning."

"I have a dream that they will no longer

consider black pepper to be a spice."

"I have a dream we will all come together

to defeat the real white devil,

mayonnaise."

Can you imagine

how awkward it must've been?

That first walk after that first meal.

Martin and his boys

walking into the parking lot.

Dead quiet.

"For this sh*t, Martin?"

"For this sh*t, Martin?"

"I'm so sorry, fellas. I didn't know."

"g*dd*mn it, Martin! You had them

whippin' our a*s for this sh*t?"

"Did you taste that food?"

"I thought it was delicious."

"That's why I thought

they were blocking us. I apologize."

"I'm so sorry, fellas. My bad."

"g*dd*mn it, Martin.

That sh*t tastes like depression, man!"

"Is this the sh*t

we've been fighting for?"

"I'm so sorry, everybody.

I'll make it up to y'all."

"I'll buy everybody Popeyes

on the way home."

Who will you be

when history calls?

Thank you.

You know, the the conundrum of life is

that just because the big is happening

doesn't mean that the small stops.

Just because the big is happening

doesn't mean that the small stops.

You know?

It's one of the conundrums of life.

How much of the big do you focus on,

and how much of the small

do you pay any heed?

It was captured perfect for me.

There was an exchange

that I saw online between two people.

Someone posted, "Just graduated,

really excited, got straight A's,

party at my house, everyone's invited."

It was a joke, obviously. Not everyone's

'Cause the Internet,

not everyone's invited.

And then people started posting.

Then someone jumped in the comments

and was like, "Really?"

"Throwing a party at a time like this?"

"Read the room. Look around you.

Is now the time to be celebrating?"

"This is not the time to throw parties

when we're at"

This whole thing,

it devolved into a huge fight.

I'll be honest with you.

I could actually see

where both people were coming from.

Emotionally, I I I got it.

On the one hand, someone was saying,

"How can you throw a celebration

at a time when it feels like the world

as we know it has fallen apart?"

"How can you be joyous

when it looks like every norm

and institution we have understood

that makes up the fabric of society

is falling apart?"

"Our public trust is falling apart.

Our trust in each other is"

"How can you throw a party?"

But the other person was saying,

"How can I not?"

"I have lived and worked my entire life

to get to this place."

"I have finally achieved it

against all odds,

and so for this moment, I wish to enjoy."

And both are right. Right?

Both both are right.

In every hospital around the world,

there's a ward

where a baby has just been born

and another where somebody has just died.

Jubilation at the start of a new life.

Despair at the loss of someone

you've always loved.

Neither ward incorrect.

But then which one do you focus on?

I got I got an answer for myself

in one of the most random places. I

I was reading a book.

There was accounts from soldiers

who served during, uh, World w*r I,

and they were talking to veterans

who had been there at the time.

And they they were

This book goes through their experiences.

And lot of them talk

about the trench warfare,

which was some of the worst warfare

man has ever invented.

All right? It went on for years

and years and years.

These soldiers would cycle in

and cycle out.

Every day could've been their last.

And in the midst of all of this despair,

there's one common thread that you see

with every single soldier they speak to,

almost every single one.

And that is that they found their joy

in the trenches.

They have these moments

where they host card games,

and they play around.

They they they had a satirical newspaper

that they started.

They'd make jokes

about their commanding officers

and what was happening in the w*r

and each other, and

and one of

one of the wildest things I read was

there was a day when a cow walked

into the b*ttlefield.

It was in no-man's-land.

It was perfectly

between the Allies and the Axis.

So it was like both sides wanted the cow,

and then they shouted across

to the Germans.

They said, "We want the cow."

The Germans were like, "Ve vant ze cow."

They agreed.

They said, "Let's play a game."

"We'll throw up coins in the air,

and we'll try to sh**t them."

"Whoever hits the coin gets

to keep the cow."

And then the English soldiers

shot the coin,

and then the Germans were like,

"Okay, you win the cow,

but we'd like our coins back."

The English soldier went, got the coins,

was like, "They're gonna k*ll me."

Got the coins, gave them to the Germans,

then ran back and got in the trenches.

Then everyone was like, "Fun game!"

You Like, it's littered with stories.

There were stories

of soldiers singing to each other

on evenings, randomly.

They would sing across enemy lines

at the other soldiers,

and the other soldiers would sing back.

Can you imagine that? You're in a trench.

Your feet are rotting.

Everyone's tired, scared.

In the midst of that, all of a sudden,

someone's like

Say you

They found their joy in the trenches.

And I It hit me

because it made me realize

they remembered

what they were fighting for.

They were fighting to live.

They weren't fighting to fight.

If you forget what you're fighting for,

then there's no point in fighting.

You're fighting to be joyous,

you're fighting to explore yourself.

You're fighting to have adventures.

You're fighting to laugh. You're fighting

You don't just fight to fight.

You're fighting to live.

Just because the big is happening

doesn't mean that the small stops.

My therapist told me that I am undateable.

Yeah.

In session, she turned to me and she said,

"Trevor, I think

it is because you are undateable."

I was like, "Huh, I guess

you also didn't like the Grammys."

She told me this at the end of a session,

which I feel like should be ill*gal.

Right? Well, therapists will drop a b*mb

on you at the end of a session

and expect you to wait.

Like, "That's why

your father could never love you."

"You're like, "What?"

"We've run out of time."

"I'll see you next time." "No!"

"No, next video, next video!"

"I don't want to wait a week.

I want Netflix therapy, not HBO!"

I had to wait two weeks,

and in my next session,

I was like, "Where were we? Let's go."

I was like, "Yeah, skip recap."

"Let's go, let's go, let's go."

And she was like, "Trevor, I was thinking

about you and relationships."

We were talking about my inability

to be in a long-term relationship.

I was trying to understand why,

and we're delving into it.

She said, "I think it's because

you are undateable."

Then she broke it down for me.

She said, "There are a few reasons."

Um "I think you work too much.

You love your work, but you work too much,

and that doesn't create a good balance

in your life."

Um, she said,

"Also, you, uh, travel too much,

and being in the same place is crucial

for building a solid relationship."

"Uh, but I'll be honest with you, those

things are really just the side dish."

Right? The main course

and the real issue I have

is, as my therapist put it,

I have an inability

to not say what is in my head.

And she taught me that one of the keys

to a long, successful relationship

is knowing when to think

and when to speak.

Yeah.

I was like, "I don't have that problem.

I'm a good communicator."

She's like, "No, Trevor, you

oftentimes, you have thoughts,

and you immediately say them."

"You have the thought,

and it comes out your mouth."

And Trump was like, "Tell him, girl."

I was like, "I don't know.

I don't think I have that as a problem."

She's like, "No, I've got notes.

Hold on. I've got some notes."

She's pulled out the notes.

"Let's go through some examples."

And there was one example

that really, yeah, it you

She was right. Um

It happened with an ex-girlfriend of mine.

It was the fracture that led

to the end of the relationship, really.

It wasn't the moment,

but that fracture caused the outcome.

We were we were getting ready for bed.

It was an innocuous night,

brushing our teeth,

getting into the covers.

Before we turned off the lights,

we started talking to each other,

and we got really cozy.

You know those moments

with the person you love,

and you you just find yourself

in a rabbit hole

of stories you've never told

and feelings you've never shared,

and you're laughing, and you're gigg

You can feel you're falling more in love.

And we're lying there on the pillows,

looking at each other,

and she's there staring at me.

All of a sudden, she's like, "Hey, um

can I ask you a question?"

I was like, "Yeah."

"Yeah, of course."

She's like,

"If you could change one thing about me"

"what would you change?"

Now I have since learned

that there is a correct answer

to this question.

Uh and yes, one correct answer.

Regardless of how unique

your relationship is,

if you want to win

this game-show question,

the answer you give, if she says to you,

if there's a woman in your life,

and she says, "If there's one thing

you could change, what would you change?"

The correct answer is

Nothing.

Uh-huh. Yes. I wish you were all there

with me that night.

Yes.

The correct answer is, "Nothing."

You say, "Nothing, babe.

I would change nothing about you

because everything you are

makes you perfect for me."

"If anything Can I be honest?"

"I would change myself."

"I would change myself

so that I would be better able

to receive the love you so freely give."

"That is what I would change."

That's the unabridged answer,

should you wish to use it.

Yeah.

That is not the answer I gave.

Nope. I said what was in my head.

She looked at me, she said,

"If you could change one thing about me,

what would you change?"

And I was like, "Oh, one thing."

"Oof. One thing."

"Oh, one thing, one thing."

"Wow, that's a tough one. One thing."

"Only one."

"Okay, let me think.

Hold on. Let me think."

"If it's only one thing,

what would I change?"

"What would I change?

Okay, okay. Um I think I got it."

"If I could change

only one thing about you,

I would change how you communicate

during sex."

And she was like, "What?!"

Yeah, and then it snowballed.

I I know I was wrong,

so please don't judge me.

I know I was wrong, and I'm working on it.

I'll explain to you

what was going through my head, all right?

What happened that night, uh

is, first of all,

I thought it was a real question. Okay?

Secondly, secondly,

I was trying to express

a feeling that I had,

and that feeling was a confusion

that I would often have,

and sometimes a frustration,

when my girlfriend

and I would be getting intimate.

We'd be in an intimate setting,

and she would say

I'm not trying to be lewd.

She would be like, "Oh, I'm gonna come,

I'm gonna come, I'm gonna come." Right?

Which, by the way, ladies, is the greatest

phrase you can ever say to a man,

like ever, ever, ever.

There is nothing a man wants to hear more

in his life than that sentence.

You say that sentence, we have reached

the pinnacle of manhood.

We have achieved. We have arrived.

Yes, you say that,

and we're like, "Me Tarzan."

It's it's done. It's done.

And it is so powerful on us, ladies,

that we will

we will reach a level of our masculinity

that we didn't even know we possessed.

You say that to us,

and we'll become stronger.

We will overcome things we couldn't.

Our fatigue goes out the window.

Yeah, yeah, we forget about that cramp.

We, like, any situation,

like, sometimes, sometimes,

we can't breathe, you know?

Sometimes we can't breathe.

Sometimes our nose is blocked, and

And what we're doing at that time is

we're moving from breath to breath, right?

So we're doing our thing,

we're doing our thing,

and then when we run out of air,

we, like a whale breaching,

we'll we'll pop up, "Bahhh,"

and then we'll dive back

into the depths of your pleasure, right?

And this is fine.

It's a rhythm that every man

has figured out for themselves, right?

But ladies, understand we are going

from breath to breath.

And when you say, "I'm going to come,"

we then go,

"This is not the time to breathe."

"This is my calling."

"I have but one breath,

and I shall use it well."

And so we hold it, and we keep going,

we keep going, we keep going,

and we try to get you there.

Now, the thing I didn't know at the time

was, when my ex would say the phrase,

"I'm going to come,"

what she actually meant was,

"The action you're performing on me

is quite pleasurable,

and I would like you to continue."

"Please continue

exactly what you are doing right now

at the same cadence

and preferably same pressure."

"Don't get excited

'cause I said that phrase."

"Don't switch things up."

"Just do exactly what you are doing now

'cause you're on the right track."

"You got this, champ. Keep going."

"Before, you were all over the place,

but this is it."

"If you do this, there's a good chance

that I am going to reach my cl*max."

"So you keep going, buddy. You got this."

"I believe in you. You're getting warmer."

That's what she meant.

Right?

But you gotta understand that's confusing.

That's confusing, ladies, right,

because you're saying this thing.

"I'm going to come."

And I understand now, like, fellas,

when women say, "I'm going to come,"

they're saying it the way

a person at a bus stop would say,

"The bus is going to come." Right?

They mean you are at the correct location

for a bus to coincide with yourself.

This is where the bus will come to.

But the when is the issue.

The when is where we are not connecting.

Because, ladies, men,

we are quite literal about this.

When women are saying it,

it's theoretical.

"I'm going to come,"

it just means

that this is the right direction.

Going could be three minutes.

She could come in 15 minutes.

It could be her next relationship.

Nobody knows.

But you gotta understand, ladies,

we're not breathing.

We're not breathing.

We're holding our breath.

We are at our limit.

You need breath to live.

This is probably why men live on average

ten years younger than women

because of all the breaths we've missed

waiting for this to happen.

There's nothing wrong

with it not happening.

We didn't know

because we're a lot more literal.

We're simple creatures, men.

It is what it is.

Like a dog.

"Where's the ball? There's the ball."

When men say, "I'm going to come,"

it means that the come is going.

The moment is imminently upon you, ladies.

That is what I mean.

When a man says, "I'm going to come,"

this is the time.

There is no other.

There is no ad break you can take.

There is no pause you can make.

The come is happening in this moment.

You cannot blink.

You step in the road,

the bus will hit you.

The bus is there now.

The bus is there right now.

You'll be like, "Where's the bus?"

There's the bus.

When he says, "I'm going to come,"

that is it.

That is Sometimes we already have.

I'm not gonna lie.

Sometimes it's already happened.

I'm gonna be honest.

Sometimes it's already happened,

and we were trying to not,

and then we're like a kid

snitching on ourselves.

We just mess up the tense.

"Mommy, I'm going to break

something in the kitchen."

It's already broken.

It's already broken.

That's why the worst thing you can say

at that moment, ladies, is, "Not yet."

No, yet has already occurred!

Yet has concluded.

Now our manhood has been crushed

with this tiny little phrase.

You say, "Not yet,"

and then we're like, "Uh"

And then we try, but you cannot.

It's finished.

It's fading away. We know it is.

We go, "I'm gonna do it anyway."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm doing it anyway."

"I can't believe you wouldn't wait."

"I'm a man. I do whatever I want.

You can't tell me when I should."

"So you don't care about me?" "I don't"

And that's why I'm still single.

Yo, D.C., you guys have been amazing, man.

Thank you so much for coming out tonight.

Thank you for coming.

Have a wonderful evening.

Good night.