Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
The new Netflix special from one Cedric, last name The Entertainer, arrives with voiceover testimonials from the likes of Jerry, last name Seinfeld, and Chris, last name Rock. But they’re not necessary. After all, they aren’t The Original Kings of Comedy.
Cedric is one.
And some sixteen years after Cedric The Entertainer reopened the doors for comedy and stand-up tours to boom in a concert film with Steve Harvey, D.L. Hughley and the late great Bernie Mac, Ced’s back with his first solo hour in six years (Cedric The Entertainer: Live From The Ville) that reintroduces him to audiences after five seasons starring on TV Land as The Soul Man.
Of course, no Cedric The Entertainer show is a solo effort – and Live from the Ville on Netflix opens with the Tennessee State University band marching up the aisles of Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium to announce his presence. In his three-piece suit and matching signature Henschel hat, Cedric is ready to sing and dance along with or without the band onstage with him.
Even if all of that dancing hasn’t caused him to shed the pounds just yet.
As he jokes, “I’m like the last fat brother in Hollywood.”
You’ll never see him in skinny jeans, though. They’re “a gateway apparel” to gay, Ced jokes, in one of more than a few jokes about what is and what isn’t acceptable for heterosexual men. What’s out? “You can’t say ‘bye bye’ to another dude.” Also: Singing along to Beyoncé. Although Ced will sing aplenty, with melodic riffs off of Fetty Wap and Rihanna.
And despite having three children – aged 12 to 26 – he’s still trying to keep up with social media and keep the romantic flame going with his wife.
Speaking of those kids, they’re keeping it real for him, reminding him to remind the younger generation to respect his name and proper profanity grammer: “I’m one of The Original Kings of Comedy! S—t d—n?!
Cedric also keeps it current, referencing Lamar Odom to remind himself that “I was out of the game a little bit” when it comes to his own younger, single life, and sharing a few opinions about the current and prospective occupants of the White House. Donald Trump looks “like he been eating Cheetos and just rubbed them on his face.” Hillary Clinton wants to win so she can pull an “I’m the captain now” line on Bill, Ced jokes. Obama, meanwhile, deserves thanks as the only man who could’ve ably served as our first black president, but Ced wonders if Obama might just get fed up with politics and propriety by his final day in office come January 2017.
Cedric doesn’t forget he’s in Nashville, and jokes how the home of country music is beginning to feel the powerful effect of hip-hop culture. How else to explain “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk?”
Cedric manages to balance the light material and the more serious topics in his act, and breaking into song allows him to segue seamlessly between the two moods.
From celebrities in jail to black men getting shot, from calling up Steve Harvey when he messed up while hosting Miss Universe, to defending his fellow O.G. comedy “king” when he invited Paula Deen on his talk show. From a funny bit about how the Southern accent confused Cedric enough to confuse a man’s identity, to chastising Mary J. Blige for singing about Burger King’s chicken, Ced covers the bases nimbly.
He is Cedric The Entertainer, after all. And he is here once more to entertain you.
[Watch Cedric The Entertainer: Live from the Ville on Netflix]
Sean L. McCarthy works the comedy beat for his own digital newspaper, The Comic’s Comic; before that, for actual newspapers. Based in NYC but will travel anywhere for the scoop: Ice cream or news. He also tweets @thecomicscomic and podcasts half-hour episodes with comedians revealing origin stories: The Comic’s Comic Presents Last Things First.
