The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Getting to Know Dem - Andrew Yang | Lena Waithe

Episode Date: November 22, 2019

Trevor highlights 2020 presidential hopeful Andrew Yang, Roy Wood Jr. talks about black contributions to Thanksgiving, and Lena Waithe discusses her movie "Queen & Slim." Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You're listening to Comedy Central. Finding great candidates to hire can be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. You might get a lot of resumes, but not enough candidates with the right skills or experience. But not with Zip Recruiter. Zip Recruiter finds amazing candidates for you fast. And right now you can try it for free at Zip Recruiter's smart technology identifies top talent for your roles quickly. Immediately after you post your job, Zip Recruiter's powerful matching technology starts showing you qualified people for it, and you can use Zip Recruiter's pre-written

invite to apply message to personally reach out to your favorite candidates and encourage them to apply sooner. Ditch the other hiring sites and let Zip Recruiter find what you're looking for, the needle in the haystack. Four out of five employers who post on Zip Recruiter get a quality candidate within the first day. Try it for free at this exclusive web address. Zip Recruiter.com slash zip. that's zip recruiter.com. Sip Recruiter, the smartest way to hire. Hey everybody, John Stewart here. I am here to tell to to to to to to to to to to th. to to th. to th. the the the the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the the the the, the. the, the theer the the theer the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thiiiiiiii. thi. thi. thi. thi. the. the. theer. tooooooooooooooo. teer. too. too. too. the. the. the. the. the. the. the smartest way to hire. Hey, everybody, John Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, The Weekly Show, coming out every Thursday. We're going to be talking about the election, earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking about ingredient-to-bread ratio on sandwiches. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday. Listen to the weekly show with John Stewart wherever you get your podcast.

November 21st, 2019. From Comedy Central's World News headquarters in New York. This is the Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Ears Edition. Welcome to the Daily Show, thank you so much for tuning in and thank you for coming out. Thank you so much for coming out. Let's do this thing, people. I'm Trevor Noah. Thank you so much for coming out. Let's do this thing people. I'm Trevor Noah. in and thank you for coming out. Thank you so much for coming out. Let's do this thing people. I'm Trevor Noah.

Our guest tonight is an actor and a writer whose new film is called Queen and Slim. Lena Waithes joining us everybody. Also on tonight's show, Andrew Yang finally gets to speak. The Grammy nominations are out and Roywood Jr tells us about Black Thanksgiving. So let's catch up on today th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th the thu thu thu the the the the the the the the the the the. I the. I'm the. I the. I'm the. I'm the. I'm the. I th th th th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I'm th. I'm the. I'm the. I'm the. the. the. theate. theateateateateateate. tho. theate. the. the. the. the. the. th nominations are out and Roywood Jr. tells us about Black Thanksgiving. So let's catch up on today's headlines. Let's kick it off with 2020. Yo, with so many exciting nominees and a race we're all excited to watch. And no I'm not talking about the election, I'm talking about the Grammys. Nominations for 2020 Grammy Awards are out and there's a new class in town. Lizzo, one of three newcomers, leads the way with eight nominations,

including album song and record of the year. She's also up for best new artist. 17-year-old Billy Ilish was right behind with six nominations. The two will go head to head in all the major categories. Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, Lil, to, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, Liz, to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to, to, to, to, to, tho, tho, to tho, to tho, to to to to to to to to to to to to who has the blockbuster hit of the year with Old Town Road also picked up six Grammy nominations. Wow, Old Town Road got nominated for six Grammys. That's really surprising. And not that it got nominated,

but that it came out this year. I feel like we've been listening to that song for a decade now. Like, I swear, I had that song on my iPod. I swear it's been around for that long. Yeah, I think that song has been out for so long when it came out, it was just called Town Road. That's what it was. It's always weird to me how much time passes between a song coming out and when it gets announced for the Grammys. You know, it almost feels like when someone responds to your text like a their their their their their their their, their, their, to their, to, their, their, tapap, tap, their, th, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, it's thi, it's thin, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thi's thin, thin, thi's half later, you know it's like no I'm not still up I've got a wife and kids now what the hell and you're with eight nominations give it up for Lizzo everybody I'm genuinely so excited for Lizzo I hope she wins every single category I also hope Kanye doesn't make the mistake of interrupting her speech yeah because because he'll be walking home with a flute up his ass. She

doesn't play games. Oh and there's one more Grammy nomination that everyone in my house is talking about. Trevor Noah nominated for Best Honey album. This is so exciting. Honestly this is so exciting. Honestly, this is so exciting because it really came out of nowhere. I didn't even know the Grammys were being announced, like I found out the morning. A friend texted me, wow dude, Grammy award is so exciting. And I was like, did we get invited?

Oh, snap! Second mezzanine, here we come! And I'm not going to lie. With most things in life, I can be humble, but to get a Grammy nomination, when you want even a musician, best believe I'm gonna milk this. From now on, I'm a Grammy nominee Trevor Noah.

I actually hope I get arrested just so that the news has to be like comedian Trevor Noah was arrested last night after police found four dead bodies in his freezer. The Grammy nominee was taken away in handcuffs. All right moving on. If you're wondering whether going to college makes financial sense. Well now there's a new tool to help you figure it out. For the first time, the Education Department has released information allowing students to compare earnings and debt averages. The move gives students the opportunity to see averages from specific college programs rather than at the school as a whole. The department's updated

college scorecard website lets students search individual majors at a school. It also let students see how much graduates typically earned and owed the their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their updated college scorecard website lets students search individual majors at a school. It also lets students see how much graduates typically earned and owed a year after graduation. Okay, I think this is a fantastic idea. If you're a young person who is just about to apply to college, this government tool can help you plan your future. And if you're recently out of college and your life sucks, this tool can help you figure out where you went wrong. Yeah. You'd be like like thuu thu thu thu thu thu thu thu thu thu thu thu tho tho tho tho tho tho tho thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, tho tho thu, thu, thu, thu tho thu thu thu thu thu. thu. thu thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. teeeeeeeeeeeeea. too. too. too tooeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee tooeded this tool can help you figure out where you went wrong. Yeah, you'd be like, oh so majoring in underwater pottery is why I have six roommates, I get it. And I will say there really is some fascinating

information on the department's website. For instance, we learned dentistry majors have higher earnings. NYU film majors on average have debt that is four times greater than their salary. And once again, this year, the highest paying major is having rich parents. Good choice. Well, duh, look at you. Although, in all seriousness, though, like, why do we always have to use money as a way to measure success? You know, why don't we measure success by friends or love or Grammy nominations?

I'm just saying, I'm just sad. All right, but let's move on to an airport police chase unlike any you've ever seen. Now to the wild police chase across an airport runway that was caught on camera. Suspected team burglar trying to escape an arrest after landing in Oklahoma. Take a look at the United Flight. It just landed and a 16-year-old squeezes between the jetway and the aircraft and jumps down onto the act of tarmac and starts running. Workers give chase. The 16-year-old was able to get into a mechanical room and into the terminal and then watch as he drops.

You can see from a distance from the roof of the terminal as his pursuers arrive. His landing didn't go well. He actually broke bones in his legs, taken to the hospital. He's in custody. He still faces the charge, guys. God damn! This kid jumped out of a plane and then off of a roof. You know what the problem is here? Everyone thinks they're living in a video game. You can't just jump off of a building. You gotta hit X as you land. That's what you do, as you land.

That's how you roll. And also, kid, what were you doing? The worst place to run away from cops is Oklahoma. Because Oklahoma is just one giant open field. There's no way to hide. Yeah, the cops can just rock up with some folding chairs and be like, there he goes. Yep, and then five hours later, they're like, yep, he's still running, still running. Now, they say that he jumped out of the plane because he was a robbery suspect and he wanted to escape. But I think what happened was they started boarding, and then he realized that he was on a Spirit Airlines flight and that's why he jumped out. Spirit Airlines, they won't take me alive. All right, that's it for the headlines.

Let's move on, top story. There are now just 347 days until the 2020 presidential election. And even though we're less than a year away, there are still 18 Democrats in the race, which is too many people. I mean a year away, there are still 18 Democrats in the race, which is too many people. I mean, look at all those faces. Look at all those faces. Too many candidates there are. So, with a million Democrats left in the race, all the candidates are struggling to get media attention. But there's one candidate who's struggling more than most, Andrew Yang. Andrew Yang. he has not been a media darling. He hasn't gotten a ton of

press and coverage. Andrew Yang, who's got a huge following online, but not necessarily in the broader television electorate. Andrew Yang, he's getting ignored for some weird reason. Andrew Yang was the person that spoke the least during last night's debate. He didn't even get a question for the first 30 minutes of the debate, and then he ended up speaking just six minutes and 53 seconds overall. Wow, in a two-hour debate, Andrew Yang only got to speak for six minutes and 53 seconds. That's nothing. Like, there are rappers who speak more before their song even starts.

Yeah, uh-huh, yeah, uh-huh, yeah, yeah, just like, uh-huh, yeah, yeah, yeah, okay, turn it back up again. Ah-ah-yeah, yeah, yeah, why don't you figure this shit out before you started recording? Why is this on the song? Ah-uh, ah-uh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, th, th, th, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th th, th th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh-uh, uh, uh-uh, uh, uh-uh, yeah, uh, uh-uh, yeah, yeah, sweater from the car? It's a little cold in here. Uh-huh, yeah, yeah. Now, I'm not saying Andrew Yang should get the same amount of coverage as the front runners. But you have to admit, it's a little strange that he gets less attention than other candidates

who poll lower than he does. I mean, for instance, Michael Bloomberg hasn't the tap, thap, thap, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, to toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, thr, thi, thr, too, to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to th. th. th. th. Yeah, th. Yeah, th. Yeah, th. Yeah, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th.. Yeah, th.. Yeah, th. Yeah, thr, thr, thr, thr, thr, thr, thr. Yeah, throwne, thrown thrown thrown thrown thrown thrown thrown thrown throwne, throwne, thr-in, getting more media coverage than Andrew Yang. Yeah, I even turned onto cable news one day and Bloomberg's name was on the screen literally the entire time. What the hell? So who is this mysterious candidate who's not a media darling but is still holding his own in this race? Well let's learn a little bit more about him in our ongoing segment, Getting to Know Them. So, who is Andrew Yang? Other than the man debate moderators turned to when they're sick of being yelled at by Bernie, it turns out he's got a pretty interesting story? His parents immigrated from Taiwan, his father, a physicist. His mother has a master's in math and statistics.

Yang grew up in Schenectady, New York. I was a very nerdy Chinese kid, played piano and had braces. He studied economics and political science at Brown and went to law school at Columbia. Yang made millions helping Americans study harder for standardized tests as CEO of Manhattan Prep. He then founded Venture for America, an organization helping entrepreneurs create jobs in cities like Baltimore and Detroit. And Yang says it helped push him into politics.

He was named a presidential ambassador of entrepreneurship by the Obama administration and a champion of change. Okay, wait, what? I didn't know that. Yang was Obama's ambassador of entrepreneurship. I didn't know that. Like, why does he never talk about that at the debates? Yeah, because if you have anything to do with Obama,

you've got to bring that shit up every time you've got a chance. Every other candidate does it. I was his vice president. I work in his thk in thk in thk in his cabinet. If you squint, I kind of look like him. So Andrew Yang is a lawyer who made millions of dollars as an entrepreneur. But what got his presidential campaign noticed was not how much money he has, but how much money he was willing to give away. He announced in 2017 that barely moved the needle. Then he went on the Joe Rogan experience in February of 2019.

He talked about his universal basic income plan, which would give every American citizen $1,000 a month, and suddenly the mentions of him skyrocketed. Tonight, free money for every American adult, for every month, no strings attached. Presidential Candid Andrew Yang's big idea, give every American adult $1,000 a month. If you've heard anything about me in my campaign, you've heard something like this.

There's an Asian man running for president who wants to give everyone $1,000 a month. Yes, when Andrew Yang started running for president, no one cared, but then when they found out he was going to give out free money, all of a sudden everyone knew his name. And that's the magic of money. It brings people out of the woodwork. Yeah, everyone.

Yeah, you win the lottery, you'll get family you didn't know existed. In fact, next time there's an earthquake, right? The personnel should just walk around the rubble, like, I'm giving away free cash. People will the free cash, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people, people. People will, people. People will. People will. People will. People will. People will. People will. People will. People will. People will. the, people. their. their. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. Yeah, the, the, the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the the the the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. thi. the. the. th thr. thr. thr. thr. thr. thr. thr. thr. thr. the. th So, under universal basic income, or as Andrew Yang calls it, the freedom dividend, his proposal is that every single American over the age of 18 would receive a check for a thousand dollars every month, no strings attached, every American, even Bill Gates, even Bill Gates, yeah. And like, what is Bill Gates going to do with a check for a thousand dollars? Just be like, great I can dip this in water and use it as a wet nap. Thank you, US government. Thank you. So that's the policy that made

Andrew Yang famous. And it turns out there's a lot more where that came from. No other Democratic candidate has more policy stances on their website than Yang. From core issues like the Freedom Dividend to more obscure ones targeting airlines and robocalling. Some of his other policy proposals, Medicare for All, gun safety, and even free marriage counseling for all. Yang says that he would pardon every prison inmate convicted of nonviolent marijuana offenses if he gets elected. And Andrew Yang says if he were elected he would promote transparency by declassifying

information about Air Force Area 51. So if I become privy to information about aliens or Area 51 or anything that I am able to share, I will share it. Uh, okay. That's super exciting. If Andrew Yang becomes president, he's going to tell all of us what's in Area 51? That is so dope! That is so dope!

Because we get to learn about aliens and Rudy Giuliani gets to meet his family. Wow! Everybody wins! So that's Andrew Yang, a businessman turned politician who wants to show us the money and the aliens. Oh, and there's one other thing you should know about him. He's probably going to spend his $1,000 a month on the swear jar. If Donald Trump's the scissors, I'm the fucking rock.

There's a lot of bullshit around it too. I call bullshit. And I should really fucking do it. That's right, I did some fucking math. Shit. Fee-feechit. Challenge, f-fee, sir. You are getting fucked. And so because you're getting fucked, you're just like, hey, I don't want to care. And I want to undo that.

I want to un-fuck you. And so if you want to help meq you. I gotta say that's a weird presidential pitch. But it would make a really original R&B song, you know? It's like, if I had known your bed was a mattress on the ground boy, oh, I want to unfaq you. But yeah, it turns out, Andrew Yang doesn't just have tons of policies. He has a ton of curse words. And you know what? That could actually be the key to to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get to get the key to get to the to the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e. thean. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. th have tons of policies. He has a ton of curse words. And you know what?

That could actually be the key to getting him more attention at these debates. Yeah, think about it. Trump didn't get on stage and release a bunch of policy papers. No, he went up there and he said, he said he had a big penis, and if Americans voted for him, the rest of us would have to have, to have, to have, to have, to have, to be, to be, to, to, to to to, to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to be, to be, to be, the to be, to be, to to to to to to to to to to to to to the the to the to the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the, the, the. toda, te. te. te. te. te. te. to, toean, toe. toe. to to to the. thean, th, and Mexico would pay for them. So Andrew Yang, if you want more media attention, you've got to take it, man. The next time you get up on that stage, make your six minutes count. Just come out on stage and be like,

elect me and I'll make it rain every, every motherf-a-hacken, the teat. Univo the basic b-n't-tha, th. This, th. This, th. This, th. This, th. This, th. This, th. This, th. This, th. This, th. This, th. This, th. This, th. th. th. T, th. T, th. T, th. T, th. T, th. T, th. The, th. The th. The th, th, th, th, the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. The, th. The, th. The, th. The, th. The th. The th. The th. The th. The th. The th. The th. The th. The th. The th. The th. th. th. th. th. ta. ta. ta. ta. tip. ta. tip. ta. ta. tip. tip. tip. tha. tha. tha. the, the, th. th work, and you can trust my ass, because I rolled with Baroque, Mother-fee-Bobba. We'll be right back. to me right back. you might get a lot of resumes, but not enough candidates to hire. It can be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. You might get a lot of resumes, but not enough candidates with the right skills or experience. But not with Zip Recruiter. Zip Recruiter finds amazing candidates for you, fast. And right now you can try it for free at Zip Recruiter's smart technology identifies

top talent for your roles quickly. Immediately after you post your job, Zip Recruiters' powerful matching technology starts showing you qualified people for it. And you can use Zip Recruiter's pre-written invite to apply message to personally reach out to your favorite candidates and encourage them to apply sooner. Ditch the other hiring sites and let Zip Recruiter find what you're looking for, the needle in the haystack. Four out of five employers who post on Zip Recruiter get a quality candidate within the first day. Try it for free at this exclusive web address, zip recruiter.com slash zip. Zip Recruiter. The smartest way to hire. Hey, everybody, John Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, the weekly show

coming out every Thursday. We're going to be talking about the election, earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're gonna be talking about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday. Listen to the weekly show with John Stewart, wherever you get your podcast. Welcome back to the day show. Next week, Americans will celebrate Thanksgiving.

But maybe while you're biting into your turkey, you should be thinking about black people. Roywood Jr. explains why in another edition of CP Time. Ah, Welcome to CP Time. The only show that's for the culture. Today, we're going to talk about Thanksgiving. The holiday where we gather our families to give thanks for our many blessings. It's also the holiday when your nephew comes home from college with a lot of new woke ideas. I don't give a damn what you say, Theodore.

I don't think dolphins should get to vote. They don't even have hands. Anyway, what many people don't know about Thanksgiving is that from the very beginning, black people have been involved in this American tradition. In fact, one of the first the first the first the first the first the first the first the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th of the the of thoom. thoom. We their new new thoom, new. newe newe newe newe newe newe newe newe newe newe newe new new new new new new new their new new new their new their new their new their new their new their new their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their the. Wea. Wea. Wea. Wea. Wea. Wea. Wea. Wea tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. theateat. theateateateateate. their the beginning, black people have been involved in this American tradition. In fact, one of the first pilgrims who came to America was black. We don't know this man's name because the ship's records only describe him as a blackamore, a term used to describe someone with dark skin from North Africa.

In other words, Blackamore was the pilgrim's way of saying, they're black guy. Back then, there was so few black people in America that everyone knew who you were talking about. Today, that would only work in Seattle. Now, food is another area of Thanksgiving where black people have made major contributions. Black people such as James Hemmings, who trained as a chef in France, but unfortunately in America he was one of Thomas Jefferson's slaves.

James introduced the dish that we all know and love today, macaroni and cheese. Everyone knew about macaroni, but no one ever thought to throw cheese on top of it. Thanks to James Hemmons, we now know that anything tastes better if you just add cheese. Macaroni, potatoes, fridge fries, hamburgers, I add cheese to everything. My doctor says I got five years to live. But it's gonna be a delicious five years. Finally, what would a Thanksgiving Day celebration be without football? A beautiful tradition that allows you to spend time with your family

without having to actually talk to them? And even Thanksgiving football is a tradition that involves black people from the very beginning. In fact, the first NFL game played on Thanksgiving in 1920 featured Fritz Pollitt, who led his team to victory. Even more impressive, Fritz went on to coach the team, fulfilling a dream that every black man has had for hundreds of years, yelling at white people and getting paid for it. Interesting fact, my great Uncle Bebo was also a part of that historic Thanksgiving game.

He was the gold post. It's good, Bebo. Well, that's our Thanksgiving episode. And from all of us at CP time, happy holidays to you and yours. And remember, well, for the culture. Ooh, I wonder if this will taste good with cheese on it. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Four more years. Four more years. Forward to Junie, everyone, we'll be right back. Finding great candidates to hire can be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. You might get a lot of resumes, but not enough candidates with the right skills or experience. But not with Zip Recruiter. Zip Recruiter finds amazing candidates for you fast. And right now you can try it for free at Zip Recruit.com. Zip Recruiters smart technology identifies top talent for your roles quickly. Immediately after you post your job, zip recruiters powerful matching technology starts showing you qualified people for it. And you can use zip recruiters pre-written invite to apply message to personally reach out to your favorite candidates

and encourage them to apply sooner. Ditch the other hiring sites and let Zip Recruiter find what you're looking for, the needle in the haystack. Four out of five employers who post on Zip Recruiter get a quality candidate within the first day. Try it for free at this exclusive web address. Zip Recruiter. the smartest way to hire. Hey everybody, John Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, The Weekly

Show, it's going to be coming out every Thursday. So exciting. You'll be saying to yourself, TGID, thank God it's Thursday we're going to be talking about all the things that hopefully obsess you in the same way that they obsess me. The election. Economics. Earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. And I know that I listed that fourth, but in importance, it's probably second. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday? I mean, talk about innovative. Listen to the weekly show with John Stewart, wherever you get your podcast.

Welcome back to the Daily Show. My guest tonight is a creator, an actor, and an Emmy-winning writer who wrote and produced the new film, Queen and Slim. Please welcome, Lena Waith. Please welcome, Lena Waith. Welcome, Lena Waith. Hey, I love you back. Hey, I love you back. Waii.

Welcome, Lena Waith. Hey, I love you back. What up. Um, I have been a fan of yours for such a long time, but there is an additional element of my fandom that has like increased over the past few years, and that has been your drip. Okay.

Everything that you wear, like, you have become one of the most stylish individuals. Did you just decide one? You were just like, you know what, I'm just gonna, I'm just gonna, I'm gonna stunt on everybody. Yeah, I think it was a, I think it was a Thursday morning. I just said, no, this all stops. With stylish, black, lesbian, masculine presenting, we're gonna shut it down and change the world.

That's exactly what you're not, That's exactly what you've done. And you're not just doing it with the way you dress, you're doing it with the things that you create Queen and Slim. I truly, I'm not blowing smoke up your ass at all. I truly have watched few films that engaged me in the way this movie does. It's a powerful story. Like, I often say like the trailer doesn't thrown, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, I's, thin, thi, I's, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, tho, thin, thi, their, thin, tho, th. th. th. th. th. th. their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, th. th. thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thin, thin, thin, thrown. throwne, throwne, throwne. throwne. throwne, throwne, throwne, throwne, throwne, throwne, thr justice because in the trailer it just seems like a story where there's a couple that is out on a date and then they get stopped by a cop, the stop goes very wrong and the guy, as we saw Daniel Kulia's character shoots the cop and then they're on the run but but it's a complex story. How did

you even begin to write a story like this is an artist's duty to reflect the times. And these are the times in which we're living. It is open season on black bodies. And what I wanted to do, you know, there's a study that says if you're ever being held up at gunpoint, you should tell on her deathbed and I want to see her go. All those things, because what happens is the gunman now empathizes with you and now sees you as a human it makes it more difficult for them to kill you.

So I think with my art, I'm wondering if I can humanize black people enough, maybe they'll stop killing us. It's... It's a powerful story for to to, on the surface a lot of people will think it's a story about black and white, but it's not a story about black and white. Like you don't walk away from this movie going, oh I'm angry at white people, you're like, I'm angry at the system that black people are exposed to. You know, like, there are white heroes in this movie, who are not centered, but there's like white people who are like trying to help, there's allies, there's there's so many complex layers to this.

Why did it? It's not an anti-cop movie. Right, it's not anti-cop either, which is really interesting. Like, why was that important to you to show so many different of their their ofes of their ofers, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, to, to, to, to, to, to, black people. Right. Because I think there is no such thing as black and white. There's so many shades of gray. Just the way not all black people are a monolith, not all cops are the same. They wear the same uniform.

So what that uniform represents to black people is very different. And that it's very interesting because as a young person you grow up and you see videos in the civil rights movement. and th and you and you, and th. And you, and th. And you, and th. And to, and to, and to, and th. th. th. th. th. th. And, th. th. And, th. th. And, th. And, th. And, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, th, th, the, the, the, their, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the the, the the they, they, they, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, they, they, they, they, they, they, they, they, they, they, they, they, they, they, the up and you see videos of the civil rights movement and you see young black students you know who are smart and interesting doing sit-ins and protesting they're being like dogs are sicked on them fire hoses like batons and those are police officers doing that to them right and then the next day they bring a police officer in classroom and says this is your friend kids if ever need help, you call a police officer. So as a young black person, it was very confusing to me.

And then now, imagine being a young black person where you stay on the news, black people being killed in their homes by police officers. So this relationship between police and particularly the black community has been fraught since the beginning of time. And right now no thi is the the the the the the the their the, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, the, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, tho, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th. And, th. And, th. And, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thin, thin, thin, thin, thin, toe, toooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooom. And, toe, toe of time. And right now, I just feel like it's an epidemic. And no one's doing anything about it. And I think, to me, the idea of flipping the narrative in that what happens if not the black person gets killed? And we mourn them and have that story.

But what happens if they stop saying, OK, yeah, you can kill me? What happens if they stand up and say, no, I'm going to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and to live, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, the the the the the the the the the the, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the I'm going to survive. And how that narrative might make people uncomfortable. But that's the narrative I'm putting in front of people, because that's my job as an artist. It is uncomfortable, but at the same time, it captured a complexity that I truly always enjoy in any storytelling, and that is the complexity of black joy and black pain. Absolutely. Because I often say to people, you know, like people say like even on the daily show of anything, they'll be like, oh, but as black people, like, how do you laugh, how do you listen?

And they're like, well, black people can't wait for everything to be right to laugh. Absolutely. You know what I mean? You know what I'm saying? And in where one moment you are shocked and crying, and the next moment you are laughing so hard, but like a real laugh. It's like real joy. It is, as you say, the graze, it's not just black and white. It's not just a movie about like, black people. It's like, no, black people are human beings, is what they experience,

and joy is part of what they experience. Absolutely. The movie to me is a meditation on blackness. It's a love letter to black people. And that even in the midst of oppression, we find joy. Because we don't have a choice. You know, we live in a world where we still treat it like second class citizens, even though we're walking on land that our ancestors help build for free. And so that is also but it's the opposite. And, you know, and I think for me, the movie is something that everyone can come see because everyone should come experience what the world is like through our lens, you know,

and we have final cut on this film. Everything you see, every look, every word, every glance was a purposeful decision made by myself and Melina. We didn't take any notes from white people on this one. There's no white gaze. And I think that's why it's hitting different, you know, because there's also this weird narrative. Like, how difficult was it for y'all to get this movie made? Man, the industry chased us. We were like, Jesusogelworth and he got game. They were like rolling out the red carpet, what do you need, da da da da da, and I was like on the final cut, I want a fat budget, I want to shoot it and release it in the same year

because this art is urgent and I want to break a new actress and she has to be brownskinned. Let's talk about that, let of the Beyonce music video, you know, in Lemonade. Right, she had a formation and all that. Insecure. And people loved her work and the way she displays, not just the art but black skin. And I mean, only in the most recent years, people have lighting, the toe. thiii. to light, to light, to light, to light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and light, and, and, and, and, and, their, their, and, and their, and, their, and, their, and, she's, she's, she's, she's, she's, she's, she's, she's, she's, she's, she, she, she, she. their, she. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. to formation. to formation. to formation. to. to. to. to. to. to. they. they. they. they. they. they. they. they. they. they. they. they. they. they. they. the they formation. they. they. their formation. their, she's formation. their, she's informto light the different tones of black skin, especially dark black skin. In this movie you've chosen your leads. It seems very specifically. You have dark skin black people who we don't often see leading films. Absolutely. You also have so many different shades of black in the way it's lit,

it's beautiful. It's like playing with all the tones. Why was that important for you? It was important because I think it's something we don't see. And it was also important to see these two brown skin bodies make love on screen because there's nothing more human than making love and once the last time you saw two brown bodies make love on celluloid. I can't remember and we wanted to put that out there because again it's reminding people how human we are and it may seem crazy but there's has to be some disconnect that our black skin is so scary to people that they'd rather shoot first and ask questions later. And so that's

why I think a microphone is much more powerful than a grenade. Our art tells us who we are. And I wanted this, you know, the thing about Gordon Parks, why he inspires me so much, is because what he did was he captured America as it was. You know, one th th th th th th th th th th th, the thing about Gordon Parks, why he inspired me so much is because what he did was he captured America as it was. You know, one of my favorite photographs that he took was little black kids looking through a fence seeing white kids playing joyfully on a playground. There's no, nothing, there's nothing more American than that. You know, there's a carefreeness that white people know that black people will never understand. And those are things that I really wanted to capture in the film. But at the same time, there's a joy. I mean, I love that James Baldwin said that a black smile can light up any room.

And I believe that. And I wanted to show that in this movie as well. This country has a very complicated past. And I think that's why this present is still so complex. And racism is a wound that we haven't healed yet. And I think through my art, I'm working through that trauma. Because to be black is beautiful, but it's also traumatizing. Because you can't watch the news and see black bodies drop. And nothing happened to those that are the reason why those black bodies have dropped. If you're the th you th you th you th you th you th you th you th you th you th you are th you're th you're th you're th you're th th th th th th thoic thoic thoic thoic thoic thoic tho tho why those black bodies have dropped. If you're a black person in America, you're being told that your life is not as valid

as someone else's. You captured that in the film. I hope everybody watches it. I hope everybody watches it. I hope everybody watches it. I hope everybody watches it. I think that, the show. Thank you. Staying 4. You'll be in 4th of November 27th. Ween away from everybody, for real.

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