Dave Chappelle knows how to throw a block party, and this 4th of July weekend proved he can even pull off a star-studded, socially-distanced iteration during a global pandemic. The 400 attendees were tested for the coronavirus before gaining entry to the event in Chappelle’s hometown of Yellow Springs, Ohio.
Common, Talib Kweli, and Erykah Badu performed musical sets, while Michelle Wolf, Michael Che, Tiffany Haddish, and Chappelle himself provided comic relief. According to SPIN, Questlove also played music during a fireworks display and actor Jon Hamm worked the crowd throughout the night.
Chappelle’s long term collaborator, photographer Matthieu Bitton posted a picture from the weekend on Instagram writing, “@davechappelle July 4 weekend. All tested. Socially distanced crowd. Thank you Dave for being the realest, most generous host. This is a weekend I will never forget. No one there ever will.”
According to reports, Badu sang Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” Chappelle covered Radiohead’s “Creep,” Kweli and Common joined Chappelle for a cover of Eric B. and Rakim’s “Paid in Full” while Hamm sang Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’.” BrooklynVegan reports that the event was filmed and will eventually be distributed.
The 4th of July event took place not far from his 2019 block party and benefit concert in Dayton, Ohio. The event honored the victims of the Dayton, Ohio mass shooting.