A MARTÍNEZ, BYLINE: Weekend Update has been a recurring segment on "Saturday Night Live" since the very beginning. So many greats have been behind that news desk. For the last 12 years, it's been Michael Che.
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MICHAEL CHE: According to new data, the price of the American dream, which means owning a home, raising two kids and sending them to college, has risen to over $5 million, making it harder and harder for men to start that secret second family.
(LAUGHTER)
MARTÍNEZ: When Che and his co-anchor, Colin Jost, write material for each other, it often winds up being watercooler talk for the rest of the week. He's got a new stand-up comedy special on Netflix. It's called "Michael Che Shot In Minnesota."
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CHE: We went to Pride with him. He told me that gay people are just as discriminated against in this country as Black people. I don't know if it's true, but if it is true, them [expletive] handle it a lot better than normal (ph).
(LAUGHTER)
CHE: I had a [expletive] blast at that Pride with him. I had so much fun. I didn't feel sorry for none of them [expletive], I'll be honest with you.
(LAUGHTER)
CHE: I told him, though. I was like, you want my sympathy, you got to dial back that glitter.
(LAUGHTER)
CHE: It's hard to feel sorry for [expletive] on roller skates.
(LAUGHTER)
MARTÍNEZ: Hey, Michael.
CHE: Hi. How you doing?
MARTÍNEZ: So, Michael, it's obvious that you cannot curse on "Saturday Night Live," which made me think that maybe you were pent up and saved all of your cursing for this special. Were you feeling that way?
CHE: No, I think that's just kind of how I talk. It is pretty colorful, isn't it?
MARTÍNEZ: Do you think people do have a problem with it, especially when they know you only from "Saturday Night Live"?
CHE: You know, sometimes you'll see, like, a family will bring their children to the show.
MARTÍNEZ: Oh, no. Wow.
CHE: But then I think about what I was listening to when I was 14, 15. I was watching George Carlin and...
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah.
CHE: ...Chris Rock, and I was watching Eddie Murphy as a child, like, a very small child. So I turned out OK.
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CHE: White people always try to threaten you with that [expletive]. What if I called you the N-word? Like, I feel like you just did.
(LAUGHTER)
CHE: Right? What the [expletive]? I don't care. I don't care what you say. The N-word only bothers me when I have to listen to white people. Like, if a judge called me a [expletive] in court, I'd be like, well, this is going to be a short trial.
(LAUGHTER)
MARTÍNEZ: Now, you talked about how hearing the N-word doesn't really bother you all that much. Why not? Why doesn't it bother you?
CHE: Well, it's not that it doesn't bother me. I think anything used as a weapon - if anybody - you could be swinging a pillow at me and it could - you know, it'll hurt that you're trying to hit me with a pillow, you know? It doesn't matter what it is. When I say it doesn't bother me, I mean, I don't give it the power to ruin my day. You know, words have power. I don't want to...
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah.
CHE: ...You know, pretend that I haven't been hurt by words, but a stranger's opinion about me or outlook on life isn't going to stop me as much as, you know, they may think it does.
MARTÍNEZ: Do you think that a Black comedian has to weigh what it means to joke about the N-word in front of a largely white crowd?
CHE: Yeah, I do. That's why I try to offer an honest take of how I actually feel, because even if whether the crowd's white, the crowd is Netflix. The crowd's not just who's in that audience. The crowd is everybody, you know? So I try to just say how I feel because I can defend how I feel. I'm not representing all Black people. It's just a Michael Che experience. I think, as Black people, we have to stop trying to represent all Black people. We can only represent who we are. You know, my outlook is different from somebody who's 75 and from Alabama. You kind of got to let Black people speak for themselves, and I think that's important. And I try to - I just try to be honest with how I feel with any audience. I don't care who they are.
MARTÍNEZ: Do you think that sometimes there is too much pressure for comedians of color to feel like they are carrying a torch every time they go on stage?
CHE: Yeah, but I think it's pressure that we put on ourselves, you know? I think it's - I think sometimes we're trying to do too much. Speak for yourself, you know? It's OK.
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CHE: All my friends are, like, married and then relationships. Colin Jost, he's married to Scarlett Johansson.
(CHEERING)
CHE: [Expletive] you.
(LAUGHTER)
CHE: Yeah, you cheer, but I don't think you realize how that makes me feel.
(LAUGHTER)
CHE: We have the exact same job.
(LAUGHTER)
MARTÍNEZ: You and Colin Jost are the longest-serving Weekend Update anchors, by a lot, actually, although he beats you by seven episodes. How long do you think you'll man the desk for? I mean, how long do you want to do it?
CHE: I don't know. I mean, it's something that we're enjoying now. I try not to think about the end when I'm enjoying the present, you know? Like, it's kind of like saying, you know, how long are you going to be with your wife or something? You know, this is like - it's working out. I don't know. I don't really think about that. You know, I'm from poverty. I'm from public housing, you know? I'm from generational ghetto legacy, you know? So, you know, we don't just give up good jobs because it's been too long, you know? So as long as I can continue to make work that I'm really proud of, and I feel like I'm useful at the show, and Lauren allows me to be there, and, you know, I have no problem with staying.
MARTÍNEZ: But I'm wondering, Michael, would you ever anchor alone or with someone else, or is Colin your ride or die?
CHE: I would always - I like working with Colin. We just sort of have a really good chemistry, and it took us a really long time to even find that chemistry because we're never really on camera together. So, you know, oddly, we're sort of sitting right next to each other, but, you know, we work in a single, so it's hard to really find that dynamic and build that relationship for the audience. I enjoy it, you know, and Colin, you know, is obviously an actual friend. So if it ain't broke, don't break it, you know?
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah. Yeah.
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CHE: This is why they don't let me do sketches on "Saturday Night Live."
(LAUGHTER)
MARTÍNEZ: That is comedian Michael Che. His new Netflix comedy special is called "Shot In Minnesota." Michael, thanks.
CHE: Thank you, man. Appreciate it.
(SOUNDBITE OF THUNDERCAT'S "OH SHEIT IT'S X") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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