Dave Chapelle’s infamous skit about Prince’s basketball skills has become the stuff of legends, especially since the singer’s death in April.
Back in 2004, Chapelle told the story of a famous pickup game in which Prince “made it rain” against Charlie Murphy and his crew. Turns out it actually happened! In a new interview with ESPN’s The Undefeated, the game’s witnesses confirmed the truth.
“Everything in that skit is true,” said Micki Free, who is portrayed in the famous “Chappelle’s Show” skit.
–Dave Chappelle announces fall U.S. tour
“I played in that game. And Prince was Steph Curry all motherf—— night!”
The teams were set up like this: Charlie and Eddie Murphy and their uncle Ray against Prince, his brother Duane and Free. Slightly different numbers than in the skit. But the game itself is portrayed true to reality.
“They checked the ball to me, I gave it to Prince and he went to work,” Free said. “You know that one move where Curry dribbles up and they got him covered, but he steps back behind the 3-point line and hits nothing but net? That was Prince.”
–Prince previews new song with Dave Chappelle artwork
Even the funny bits in the skit actually happened. Prince’s team really was wearing “blouses and frilly shirts,” while everyone else wore basketball appropriate attire.
The Chapelle skit ends with everyone eating pancakes, and that happened too. “It was just like they showed on TV,” Free said. “His chef served us blueberry pancakes, for real!”
–The 20 best ‘Chappelle’s Show’ sketches
https://youtu.be/LEPUgJpgVH0