Being Jewish with Jonah Platt

BJJP_27_TiffanyHaddish_V4
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Tiffany Haddish: [00:00:00] When I am

Jonah Platt: depressed,

Tiffany Haddish: I've run to my Torah.

Jonah Platt: We've got a lot of shit for that. A lot of shit different. And they stopped supporting a program for foster children because you went on a trip to Israel.

Tiffany Haddish: I'd rather be a part of a community that doesn't involve violence except for when you fuck with me.

Jonah Platt: That's right,

Tiffany Haddish: Perry.

Jonah Platt: That's gonna be the opening clip of the show. Every guest on this show is so unique. Somehow today's guest might just be the UniQuest, or should I say Ju UniQuest. She's overcome a stupid amount of adversity in her life, and yet somehow has come out the other side. As a joyful and successful Emmy and Grammy winning star from being homeless to becoming a household name, she is all about growth and being true to herself.

She only learned she was Jewish 18 years ago, but you'd never know it. From how fully she's become one of the community's most visible and dependable voices, and we're lucky to have her. Please welcome the Eritrean comedian, miss Tiffany Haddish.

Tiffany Haddish: My [00:01:00] new name is Ika. My name is Janika. I'm the best. All the DJs, we try to feel my no.

Louis stop. Lucy.

Jonah Platt: I wanna know where that was going. It was going

Tiffany Haddish: somewhere nasty.

Jonah Platt: Okay. Hi. How are you? Welcome. I'm

Tiffany Haddish: happy. How are you? I'm

Jonah Platt: good. It's nice to be here with you in Detroit. We, neither of us live. Yes.

Tiffany Haddish: And it's cold.

Jonah Platt: And it's cold. Yeah. So you grew up in South Central? Yes. Four little siblings. Dad left when you were young already were, that's a lot to overcome, you know?

How did you stay grounded in that? As a young kid,

Tiffany Haddish: I was my mom's helper, you know, and uh, up until my mom had that car accident, she taught me a lot. And she always said, you know, what's the point of being alive if you're not doing something to make it better? Your job here on this planet is to make things better.

So if you're not making it better. What are you doing here now? She kind of said in a more aggressive, meaner way. Okay. Uh, they would kind of hurt my feelings, but it was something that stuck with me. That kept [00:02:00] me, like, anytime I show up somewhere, anytime I'm doing something, I want to be able to make that environment, this place, the situation.

These people better

Jonah Platt: leave it better than you found it when you got there. Yes. Yeah. And

Tiffany Haddish: sometimes I mess it up.

Jonah Platt: I'm a human. We all do. So you mentioned the car accident.

Tiffany Haddish: I begged her to let me babysit that day. Let me babysit. I know how to make rice. I know how to make hot dogs. I know how to make a baby bottle.

I know how to change diapers. We're gonna go to bed in a few hours. Like, let me just babysit. I won. And she left us at home and, um, she didn't come back and I couldn't get ahold of anybody for like three days. We couldn't find her.

Jonah Platt: Oh my God.

Tiffany Haddish: Um, and she was in the hospital.

Jonah Platt: Damn. So she, you know, suffered.

Terrible brain damage. Major

Tiffany Haddish: brain damage

Jonah Platt: made to the point where she was getting violent with you.

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah, well she had to learn how to walk, talk, eat all over again. Right. And then, then her communication skills, her vernacular wasn't what it used to be. Her compassion wasn't what it used to be. It was like, that's my mother's body, but this [00:03:00] something or somebody else in it.

And you could see glimpses of her struggling trying to be there. And I'll never forget the day she left the hospital and the doctor's like, you're gonna have to grow up. Is, you're gonna have to be your mommy's helper. And I'm like, I've always been my mommy's helper. That isn't what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna be her helper.

I didn't know they meant that I was gonna become their, basically a mother.

Jonah Platt: Right. Teaching her how to walk. Literally

Tiffany Haddish: everything that she taught me, I was teaching her. Wow. Everything, every lesson I ever learned from her. Which in a way, um, it still, it kind of hurts my feelings because I wish she could have taught me more.

I wish she could have poured more into me.

Jonah Platt: Mm-hmm. And you're only what, eight, nine years old at this time? Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: Eight, almost nine. It was really hard. It was, it was, you know, I don't know how to control kids except with these fists at the time. Uh, you know, so I probably was not the most, uh, nicest co-parent.

Jonah Platt: You kept the, the little siblings in line and, and guess

Tiffany Haddish: what? None of them are in prison. They're all doing [00:04:00] well, job well done. And you know, my baby brother, he calls me mom from time to time. He was calling me mom those first few years. Um, and I had to keep telling him, I'm not your mom. I'm your big sister.

I'm Tiffany. I'm Tiffany. And, um, by the time, like I guess. I was, yeah, I was definitely 12. And when I say, I guess, I guess I wasn't the best parent at 12.

Jonah Platt: Shocking. And

Tiffany Haddish: yeah. And uh, we ended up in foster care. Right. And that led to me getting to know police and all kind of stuff. So

Jonah Platt: were you with your siblings or did you guys get split up?

No,

Tiffany Haddish: I got separated from them. So my two sisters were together, my two brothers were together. And then I made sure that the social worker took me with her to drop them off so I knew where they were. Right. And I write down their address and 'cause my mom also installed in me. Before that, all you have is your family.

Yeah. That's all you got. At the end of the day. You can build a family, you can do all these things, but your family, your siblings are the most important. Like every chance I got, I went to go check on them. I wanted to [00:05:00] see them, and of course the police would arrest me for being awol. It is what it is.

Jonah Platt: It sounds like in that short period your mom like did an amazing job like that.

You had all this wisdom and values already at that age. Believe on between her

Tiffany Haddish: and my grandma and my aunties, they definitely poured into me. My great uncles. I was one of those kids that was always trying to be an adult's face, always trying to be in their conversations. Don't speak unless spoken to. All right.

But you didn't say nothing about listening to everything y'all talking about. That's

Jonah Platt: right. In your New York Times bestselling book, the Last Black Unicorn, you say that making people laugh is what helped you survive through a lot of that time. What do you mean by that?

Tiffany Haddish: I started to learn once my mom had that accident, that if I made her laugh, she would not be as violent.

Mm. And when I was in school, I figured out that if I made the bullies laugh, they wouldn't be as violent. It's something about making people laugh that makes them feel like, well, I wanna beat you up, but I'm not gonna today. Right. [00:06:00] Disarming,

Jonah Platt: it's charming.

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah. And then it became my favorite sound. It's the safest sound.

The sound of laughter to me is the safest sound. Unless it's one of those like crazy maniacal laughs. Right. And then you can still manipulate that in a certain way to make that work for you too. But for the most part. I feel like, uh, hearing people laugh, it opens up the goodness in their heart and they, they kind of see you for who you are.

They, or they create this image in their head, but they, they don't wanna hurt you as bad.

Jonah Platt: Mm-hmm.

Tiffany Haddish: From my experience,

Jonah Platt: that's deep because I, you know, I. Hearing that nugget coming from the experience you've had. It just, it's makes a lot of sense. I have to ask, what makes you the last black unicorn?

Tiffany Haddish: Okay, so that goes back to school and me going ahead and accepting what the bully said.

So I had like a wart growing out my forehead and they would call me a dirty ass unicorn and they would be like a connect the dots. 'cause I had a mole here on my chin. Mm-hmm. This mo here, I had another mole there. They would just like make so much fun of me and I would get mad and at first I would cry and stuff.

And then. [00:07:00] Oh no. I just decided, I'm think, yeah, I'm a unicorn. Yeah, I'm a dirty guy. I'm about to stab him with my horn, so I start chasing him and stuff and then it kind of stuck with me. I'll be the black unicorn. Yeah, I'll be the dirty unicorn. Whatever. Whatever. Like if you nice to me, I'll be nice to you.

If you mean me, I'm gonna stab you. I'm gonna stab you next. Like you ain't got no knife. I'm like, I got my horn. Like claiming the power.

Jonah Platt: Yeah, that's what it's taking their

Tiffany Haddish: power and then flipping it on them. You wanna make fun of me. Well, lemme make fun of you too. Yeah, lemme find something about you and then.

I just love unicorns and I feel like I am a unicorn. I do a lot of things that a lot of people can't do and wish they could.

Jonah Platt: What do you think sets you apart? Like where do you get that superpower from?

Tiffany Haddish: I think I'm fearless. Um, and I believe what I believe, but I'm gonna go with my instincts and I'm going to, uh, explore arenas that the average person might not explore.

Jonah Platt: 1997, a social worker gives you two choices. Psychiatric therapy or Laugh [00:08:00] Factory. Comedy Camp, not exactly Sophie's choice there. What was the experience at that comedy camp where you were like, okay, A, I love this, and B, oh, I'm actually good at this.

Tiffany Haddish: My experience at that comedy camp was a lot. That was the first time a man ever told me I was smart or intelligent, and I didn't feel like they were gonna try to hurt me or violate me.

It was the first time I actually felt seen. Uh, go on stage. We had to go on stage for three minutes and tell a funny story or a monologue, or, that's long. Three

Jonah Platt: minutes. It was when you're new to it. Yeah, it's a

Tiffany Haddish: lot. It was a lot. Or tell a funny jokes. Um, I remember there was some kids that would just do like popular comedians jokes.

Mm. And I was like, I'm gonna do my own thing. So I would talk about riding the bus. I would talk about going to the bathroom. And I will never forget Charles Fleischer. This is day one. And I was. The biggest fan of who framed Roger Rabbit. Still to this day, that's my most favorite movie. Okay. In the world.

And Charles Fleischer, who does the voice [00:09:00] of Roger Rabbit, is there

Jonah Platt: Is at your camp?

Tiffany Haddish: Is at the camp. He's one of the mentors. Oh, cool. I mean, the mentors that would come in and teach us were comedians, world famous comedian. That's amazing. Big deals, like not little deals, big deals. Yeah. And he came in there and I was telling the joke about, uh, old women using the bathroom.

And I, how I could tell when there's an old lady in the bathroom, when you are in a public restroom, you could always tell by the sounds they make. Like when I go to the bathroom, I did, mind you, I was like 16 at the time. Yeah. When I go to the bathroom, I'm quiet. But when somebody that's, oh, go to the bathroom and they be in there

like, like I, so he was like, you should not be talking about bathroom humor. You're a beautiful person and you need to talk about beautiful things. And I was like, but going to the bathroom is beautiful. I always feel better after I go to the bathroom. Yeah, the pretty girls take poops. So

Jonah Platt: wait, was that, was that a comforting feedback?

Tiffany Haddish: It was a lot. It was a [00:10:00] lot. First it was. I felt really good and comforted. Mm-hmm. Second, I felt challenged. Third, I felt like I was in a safe enough. Place to say, well, this is why I wanna talk about this. And then he goes, okay, if you make that choice, you're limiting where you can go in comedy.

Jonah Platt: Mm-hmm.

Tiffany Haddish: So know that.

Jonah Platt: Right. You're, you're being a certain kind of comic. Right. Which

Tiffany Haddish: I didn't understand at the time. Right. I was like, whatever, but I still love you. Yeah. And then like, you know, David Allen Greer came in there, uh, Mo and Sean Wayans. Damien Wayans came in there

Jonah Platt: like the greatest comedy camp ever,

Tiffany Haddish: man. When Richard Pryor showed up.

That was like,

Jonah Platt: this is an insane Allstar lineup. Mm-hmm. Didn't cook. I mean, it was a big deal. How many kids were

Tiffany Haddish: in this camp? There's probably about 20 of us.

Jonah Platt: What age? Eight. Lucky group.

Tiffany Haddish: Ages eight to 18. Wow.

Jonah Platt: I can see why that was so transformative.

Tiffany Haddish: I kind of stuck with it till I was like 18 till I got emancipated and then I was homeless, and then I'm like, this $25 is [00:11:00] not.

Put a roof over my head. I gotta figure this out.

Jonah Platt: Right. Speaking of that time in your life, uh, you, you wrote about a little bit in your most recent book, I curse you with Joy, how you're living in your car, you're doing gigs. You said Kevin Hart really helped you in that moment. Mm-hmm. Can you, can you talk about that?

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah. So I was trying to hide that I was homeless. Right. I wasn't really trying to tell people I was homeless. 'cause I had, I had to learn humility in that it's okay to ask for help. I was living in my car. I had like all this stuff in the trunk. I had my blankets, my pillows, all this stuff. And, um, I used to pull up to, we did this show every Wednesday night at the Laugh Factory.

I would pull up a little late, uh, so nobody could see all that stuff in my car. Mm. Kevin Hart happened to pull up at the same time. And I was like, dang, I'm slip down. Like, don't let him see me and stop me. And he was like, what the hell you doing in this car? So I was like, uh, I'll talk to you after I'm in between homes, I'm just in between like, leave me alone, like, and try to just get in the club and do the show.

And he's like, after this show, we gonna have a conversation. [00:12:00] We need to talk. We had a conversation and um, I told him what was up. I told him, you know what I'm going through. And it was really hard to tell him. Sure. It's embarrassing, right? Yeah. He gave me 300 bucks and said, get you a hotel room for the week and figure it out.

Make a list of goals and achieve those goals. So I went to the snooty Fox, which is this like hourly, uh, place. You could rent it by the hour. Where is that? It's, it's in South Central from Martin Luther. Luther King in Western. It's, it was, it's on the Stro. And so, um, I took a shower. I did not sleep under the covers or even on the covers.

It was more so like, move all this shit over and lay my shit down. At least took a nap. Took a nap. Uh, and then I woke up and wrote out my list of goals, and the next day I got a call about an apartment. I. And I guess Kevin had talked to somebody and they talked to somebody and then, uh, they only wanted like a $500 deposit, which was kind of great.

'cause I had a couple of hundred dollars and his [00:13:00] 300. So I put it together and it was like, here's the deposit and can I change this? Can I do that here? You know? Yeah. And then I still have that place, the same apartment, same place. I still have it. I don't live in

Jonah Platt: it. Right. Are you renting it or.

Tiffany Haddish: It's an amazing closet.

Jonah Platt: Nice. Well, it's holding my history. That's what success looks like. That's what it looked like. Wow. In the middle of the hood. That's amazing that, uh, what a mitzvah he did.

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah, it's a huge mitzvah. And then I keep trying to pay him back and then he'll gimme the money back or he'll run away from me.

Jonah Platt: He's doing all right.

He's doing fine. You have this line in that book that I really love. You said, I don't wanna live my life as a professional victim. I'd rather be a professional overcomer. Very Jewish. We don't just survive, we thrive. Right. Can you pinpoint where like that drive comes from to like be that overcomer and like how do you maintain that optimism?

Tiffany Haddish: First of all, I'm sick of hearing about people problems. I don't wanna be, I don't wanna trauma bond with nobody. Okay. I did my trauma. Mm-hmm. Can we [00:14:00] Success bond? Can we bond over good things that we've achieved? Even if it's a little thing like, Hey, I was able to use the bathroom on my own and wipe my own ass.

Okay,

Jonah Platt: hey, we did it. You win it.

Tiffany Haddish: Like, like let's bond over success stuff, right? Yeah. I don't wanna trauma bond. I don't, I feel like wherever you put your energy, that is what's gonna grow. Right? I also though, believe that it's very important to remember. Who you are, your history, what, where you come from, what you've been through, so you don't create those same mistakes, right?

So in sharing those historic things or experiences, you should do it in a way where you also tell the bad, but here are the good things that came out of it. This is what I've learned from it.

Jonah Platt: You parlay your many talents at one point into being an energy producer. Bar and Bat Mitzvahs.

Tiffany Haddish: Yes.

Jonah Platt: My wife used to dance at Bar Bat Mitzvahs before we met.

She was

Tiffany Haddish: an energy producer [00:15:00] then.

Jonah Platt: Is that what the, the dancers are energy producers like the MCs, like they're,

Tiffany Haddish: they're the mc, the dancers, the people that's giving it. Like, I feel like all of those people are producing positive. Right? Yeah. Anybody that's coming in that room to make sure everybody is in here having a great time, we're celebrating this child, becoming an adult, having all this family, all these friends here, and we're celebrating that, that's your, your job is to make sure it's good energy.

You don't know if there's bad blood in that family, right? You don't know if Esther hates Rachel, and it's gonna be a problem if they see each other on the dance floor. And if they do start getting into, you see a little hostile hostility going, you need to come in there and bring some positivity.

Jonah Platt: Yes.

Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: That's your job.

Jonah Platt: That's right. So Courtney Weekly, shout out to Courtney. You're an energy producer, babe. Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: And she's producing great energy with your kids.

Jonah Platt: That's right. Hello. Every day.

Tiffany Haddish: Every day.

Jonah Platt: Did you, um, she's producing you

Tiffany Haddish: too,

Jonah Platt: so it seems like you enjoyed it.

Tiffany Haddish: I did. I loved it. Oh, you loved it? I loved

Jonah Platt: it.

Amazing. Yeah. What, and like, what did you learn about Judaism and Jewish culture through that exposure,

Tiffany Haddish: [00:16:00] getting into that job? Yeah. You know, my grandma, there was my grandma and uh, DJ Timbo. So I met DJ Timbo at one of my school dances.

Jonah Platt: Who's DJ Timbo.

Tiffany Haddish: He was the guy that owned Enterprise

Jonah Platt: Entertainment. The company that you ended up working for?

Tiffany Haddish: Yes. And, um, he asked me to come and do, you know, he saw me at the dance. Everybody's like circled around me and you know, I'm giving off this great energy. And we have, and they're like, oh, Tiffany got Tiffany. He comes up to me, he gives me his card and he goes, I'd love for you to work for my company. We do executive parties and bar mitzvahs and I'd love for you to be there.

And I thought he was such a. Freaking creep. I was like, what a creep. Mm. I go home, I show my grandma. I said, grandma, this man came up to me at the school dancing. He asked me to do bar mitzvahs and executive parties. Can you believe that? That's so gross. And I give her the card. She looks at it. She goes, oh, you better call that man.

That's getting closer to your people. I was like, what? She was like, yeah. I didn't know what a Bar mitzvah was. I thought it was you get on a bar and you show your [00:17:00] mitzvah. I thought this was a mitzvah. Okay. I haven't heard that one before. That's what I. And so I was like, grandma, what do you mean our people?

Are people strip? You thought this guy was like

Jonah Platt: a underage sex trafficker? He

Tiffany Haddish: was like nine. He was 20 or 21. And I thought in the way he was kind of like gangly and skinny and a little like, yeah, like bouncing around. I thought he was a weirdo. I didn't know what it was. Yeah. My grandma starts explaining Judaism to me.

She. Starts telling me about my father, which at that, up to that point, nobody really talked about my dad that much. And every now and then when it came to like money stuff and different things that I would do around the house, my grandma would be like, oh, you so Jewish. Oh you so Jewish. And I just took that as she was trying to say.

I was like, Jesus. Because Jesus was Jewish. Right?

Jonah Platt: Right.

Tiffany Haddish: Okay. Katu, I go have the meeting with the guy. Uh, she comes with me, she talks to him. She goes, yeah, you're gonna work for him. And so I do the first bar mitzvah and I'm just like, I never seen anything like it before. I never seen nothing like. [00:18:00] All these people came from all over and they all love this family and this young man and everybody's celebrating him and lifting him up in the chair and he's dancing with his mom and he's dancing with his grandpa and his grandma and his daddy.

He knows his dad and like it was just so beautiful. Mm-hmm. Then, um, he told me he didn't think I had had what it takes because I was also so shocked that I would be like dancing for a second and then I would see this beautiful thing happening and I would be like. I would just stop. Mm. And now I don't know if it was jealousy coming up inside of me or you know, wow, I can't believe this is happening.

And then I told him I could do it and he has me come back to do another one. And it was a bat mitzvah for a girl. And that was like, I was crying because she got to dance with her dad. Mm-hmm. And then she did her candle lighting and it was like so beautiful that she was able to. Honor all these people in our family, [00:19:00] and I did another one and we had to go to the temple and I got to see the ceremony before and I had never felt my heart.

Fill up. The way it filled. Filled up. Wow. Like, 'cause I got to hear the prayers, everything they read from the Torah. It's all musical. Yeah. And at that point, I had been to the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah Witnesses. I had been to a Baptist church. Catholic church. I had been with the Muslims, right? Mm-hmm. And to hear them read the Torah and to hear them say all the things they were saying, which sounded a lot like the Jehovah Witnesses, but the community.

They had the way they supported each other. And I'm like, I wish we did that. And then, I dunno what it was about just hearing that tour, it filled every cell in my body. Even when like I started making it a point to go earlier to be there when the can's doing their thing. When the rabbis said it would feel my whole soul up and I would feel like [00:20:00] I'm.

Healing. Wow. I would feel like I'm a complete person. I'm like, maybe this is my thing. Maybe I don't dunno.

Jonah Platt: True. So this was just your natural Yeah. And I didn't know vibe with it.

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah. This is just like my soul Yeah. Is like resonating with this. Wow. My spirit is resonating with this. And like, I never felt that way in any type of religious setting before.

Like nothing. Like when I hear the Torah. Wow. Nothing like when I hear the caners sing the songs, when I hear the prayers, when I do my m like it just, for me, it feels like I'm healing. It feels like everything's coming into order, like there's peace. Mm. Even though there's, I might be surrounded in chaos.

There is peace. I feel like God is talking right to me and I don't know why. I guess I get emotional about it 'cause I feel so overjoyed with it. So like I love when they do the motzi. I love like everything, everything, everything. That's amazing. When it comes to traditional stuff, I wish that, like in my [00:21:00] African-American culture, we don't have a lot of that.

We've created all this culture. Mm-hmm. But we don't have. The hundreds of years, we don't know. Right. The hundreds of years. And I ha, and I'm lucky enough to finally get to meet my dad and hear the stories, and hear all the things that he went through and learn from him. The amount of time I got to learn from him, those 11 years was the most impactful, I think 11 years of my whole life.

Yeah. And I'm so grateful. And then at the same time, I'm sad for a lot of my friends and people I know that will never get to have that. Mm-hmm. But, so I feel very lucky unicorn, like in that way.

Jonah Platt: Let's talk about your dad since we're here anyways. Mm-hmm. So how does he reappear in your life? Like, what happens?

Tiffany Haddish: So, um, I met a man on a cruise and, and, uh, and then I lost contact with that man, and then that man. Found me and I said, well dang, if you can find me, maybe you can find my dad. And he said, I'll find your dad, but you gotta marry me. And I was like, all right, [00:22:00] sure. And I was saying that thinking he ain't gonna find my dad.

I've been looking for him since I was 16, like since I started doing those bar and bar mitzvahs. He's not gonna find him. And. He finds my dad and then them three weeks, that man got in my mind and in my heart and in my spirit. He got, he caught.

I knew it was him. As soon as I heard his voice on the phone, it was like the little girl that looked 2-year-old in me was like, daddy, daddy, daddy. Like I need my daddy. Like, and I'm like, wow, this man is beautiful. He's nothing like my mama said, my mama said, oh, you look like your ugly ass daddy. You ain't gonna never be shit like your ugly ass daddy.

All the stuff she would say about him and he was beautiful. And I was like, dang, I'm glad I'm meeting you this way. 'cause if I had met him in a bar, I might've tried to date him. He, to me, he was beautiful,

Jonah Platt: handsome man.

Tiffany Haddish: Anyways, I just wanted to pour into him all the love that I had been [00:23:00] saving for him. And I thought when I met him, I was gonna wanna like kick him in the nuts or punch him, like cuss him out.

Why would you do this? Why would you leave me behind? Do you know how bad my relationships have been with men? Because you weren't there for me. Yeah. Do you know how many mistakes I've made because you weren't there for me. And, um. I never said that until this one night I got drunk and I called him and I just poured my whole heart out crying and stuff.

And he was crying too. And um, he was telling me, my baby, I'm going Even when you're wrong, you're right. Even when you are wrong, you are right. As long as you are learning, you are right. And he was sharing like, you know, all his experiences and, and how like he ended up on drugs and alcohol and he was Jewish.

And then my mom was trying to convert him to be a Jehovah Witness, and he was like, no, you can do that though, but that's not what I'm gonna do. And then he, then that whole thing happened between them and he went on his way. She went on and he was rolling around the country and, uh, he ended up becoming, like he [00:24:00] said, he is a, a, a Jewish Christian because the Christians help him get off of drugs and alcohol.

And he was saying that the respect is different for Jews, for black Jews in America. Than in other places. Right. And he was always telling me I had to go to TRIA and I had to go to Israel. Like, you gotta go see your people. You have to see. He's like, even if you decide to be Christian, uh, you still have to go see because that is where that is in Israel.

Jonah Platt: How much did he tell you about his family history? Like. A lot. So how did they, when did they come to Eritrea? When did he have to leave? 'cause I know there was, you know, civil war there. Yeah, yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: He was there, there no Jews there

Jonah Platt: anymore.

Tiffany Haddish: The family was always there. His dad's family was in a village. In a village, um, just about an hour outside of Asada.

Asma is the capital. Mm-hmm. And his mother grew up in Asada. Her family was. Do well to do. Uh, they were doing pretty good. And she married, [00:25:00] uh, you know, my grandpa Reda. And, um, you know, they did their thing and, but he passed away. My grandpa, and then my grandma took over all the businesses and there was farmland galore houses.

She had a spice business. She had a, uh, like a bar. Wow. And she was popping. She was popping. I had two uncles that were older than my father. They trained in the military with the current president that's there now, and they fought in the war. They passed away during the war. My father, he kind of fled, not even kind of, he fled.

He joined the Italian Navy and was a freedom fighter. From, but from outside the country. Mm-hmm. So like sending money raise, like he was the secretary of the Freedom Fighters and all this stuff, and he raised money and did things to like, help the people. Help them get out of there, get to Israel, get to wherever they gotta get

Jonah Platt: to.

Dang.

Tiffany Haddish: And that's just a short love.

Jonah Platt: Yeah. Because

Tiffany Haddish: we could talk about that for hours and after going there. So

Jonah Platt: that's what I wanna ask you about. And [00:26:00] after going there, so you, after he passed, right? That's when you went? Yeah, I

Tiffany Haddish: took him to bury him.

Jonah Platt: Wow. And

Tiffany Haddish: I probably did it the wrong way, but I did what he asked me to do,

Jonah Platt: which was what

Tiffany Haddish: he asked me to not spend a whole lot of money on him, but to bury him with his mother.

He said, I didn't spend money on you, and I really believe he died from guilt. I know he did. I know he died from the guilt because in the tradition in the culture, you know, it's, it's frowned upon to not raise your child. It's frowned upon to not be there to teach them a way. And now all the things that he would teach me and share with me is like, you know, it was like he was trying to repent.

It was like he was trying to make up for all this lost time and I didn't care about the lost time. Maybe a little bit of me did, but in reality, I wanted to be in the present. I wanted to be in the right now.

Jonah Platt: That's amazing that you were able to That's what I wanted. That's so great. And he

Tiffany Haddish: would always cry about like.

He'd probably be mad at me for saying that he was crying, but he would cry. He would be like, I don't know why you love me so much. Why do you like even talk to me and my [00:27:00] friends, they raised their daughters, and their daughters won't even talk to them like you, you shower me, you protect me, and I should be protecting you.

I should be giving to you everything. And I'm like, but daddy, you did gimme everything. You gave me everything I needed before I even, you know. Here, all like you gave me a piece of your soul, gave me the blueprint to make me who I am. And although life has been really hard, and it might've been better if he was around, but maybe it would've been worse.

I mean, he was on drugs and alcohol, bro. Right? That might, that might've been horrible for me. Mm. So maybe God put it the way he did. And we are together now and that's all that matters. Like right now, we gotta focus on the now because I don't know how much longer I'm gonna be here or you're gonna be here.

So when, um, I took him, he said to don't spend a lot of money. Right. His main thing was, you know, put our people on the map. Let people know that this place exists. Because nobody even knows we exist. [00:28:00]

Jonah Platt: Did he mean like African people? Did he mean the Jews of meant trio? He meant I, I

Tiffany Haddish: believe he, I believe he specifically meant trio.

That's what I believe. Because I didn't even know what it was like. Right. It sounds like something next to Narnia or something from the never ending story. Yeah. So like it doesn't sound like a aray. Yeah, a true, yeah, it doesn't sound like a real place. Right. So. When I go, I see all this history, all this culture, all this beauty, but then in the midst of the beauty, there's also a lot of pain and devastation and a lot of people with PTSD, they're like, they survived war.

Right. That lasted for 30 years. Yeah. They watched people die in their arms right in front of 'em and body parts stroll out the streets. Uh, they took me to this museum and I was just like, mind blown. And then, you know, they. To show the exodus of all the Jews leaving.

Jonah Platt: What was that like to be in a place where like the Jews had to flee?

Tiffany Haddish: It was scary. 'cause I, I was under the [00:29:00] impression it's illegal to be Jewish.

Jonah Platt: Mm.

Tiffany Haddish: I was under the impression they probably gonna lock me up. You know, they, they, they say all these things like you read on the internet and these articles and these magazines about, you know, the people that get locked up and the, you know, if they're preaching their religion or doing too much with their religion.

When I. What it, that is not what I'm witnessing here. I'm not witnessing that.

Jonah Platt: It's kinda always the case, right?

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah. The, and you just gotta get there

Jonah Platt: and see for yourself.

Tiffany Haddish: And that's why I believe every religion says to bear witness.

Jonah Platt: Mm.

Tiffany Haddish: You must bear witness to see with your own eyes, so you know. The truth.

Yeah, there's culture everywhere, like, and there are, it is very Christian and Muslim based. Right. But there are some Jews there. There are there. There are maybe two or three. Right. Okay. So

Jonah Platt: did you get to see the synagogue?

Tiffany Haddish: Yes, I got see that.

Jonah Platt: Beautiful. I've only seen pictures. It looks beautiful. It's beautiful.

It's beautiful. You have citizenship there now, right? Yeah, yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: I'm a citizen there and I have property there and [00:30:00] farmland there. How often are you there? Okay. I haven't been in two years, which is kind of making me, driving me a little crazy. But, uh, I've been there four times and every time I go, I invest.

I like, you know. That's so cool. And I'm, and I'm still investing. I'm, you know, I pay my 2%. Um, when you're a citizen, right? You pay your taxes or. Um, yeah, and I keep in communication with family and make sure property taxes are taken care of and things are taken care of. So

Jonah Platt: you find out you're Jewish?

Mm-hmm. Do you remember your first reaction?

Tiffany Haddish: My first reaction was, well, why I didn't have a bat mitzvah and why don't I have any money and why this and why that? Because you know, the, the, the stereotype is Jews have money,

Jonah Platt: right?

Tiffany Haddish: But then as time goes on and I start doing research, it's a lot of Jews that ain't got no damn money.

Yeah. But they have community and so there is sharing, there's protection, there's looking out for, there's, but it's a lot of, a lot of very poor.

Jonah Platt: Statistically there's the exact same amount of [00:31:00] rich Jews as there are poor Jews in this country. So you find out you're Jewish, like what's your first step of like, okay, now I wanna like invest in this and become this fully, like what do you, what do you do next?

Tiffany Haddish: I started studying right away. 'cause I already knew, like I already was playing the, playing the prayers in the house. I'm already dancing to the music, you know, I'm already into it. It's, you know, 11 years into the bar and Bat Mitzvahs. I'm, yeah. In my mind, I'm basically, I basically am.

Jonah Platt: Right, you're already on board.

Basically.

Tiffany Haddish: I was already gonna to Temple Ali, Woodland Hills for quite some time just 'cause I wanted to hear like

Jonah Platt: you just like being there.

Tiffany Haddish: Just like being there. And then they would be like, what are you doing here? They would first, the first like month or two, they were like questioning my presence if then after a while I was just like, oh, that's Tiffany.

Go ahead on. But once he passed I was like, no, I have to make, I have to honor all his wishes, honoring our people, honor God. Make sure they know that re is on them. Make sure they know that like, and I'm gonna honor myself and I'm [00:32:00] gonna do what makes me, I wanna worship God the way I wanna worship God, and I wanna do what makes my soul feel complete and healthy and gives me like peace.

Yeah. Oh yeah. So I started studying, I told um, I told Sarah Silverman that, yeah, I'm studying, I'm gonna have me a bat mitzvah. And she said, you should meet my sister. She. And at that point I didn't even realize there was actual female rabbis. I thought the females were only cantors. And so when I meet her sister, I'm like,

Jonah Platt: her sister is in, is she in Israel?

She's in Israel. That's what I thought. So I

Tiffany Haddish: meet her sister on like a WhatsApp and we get to talking and her sister comes into town to visit. And I'm like, we're talking. I'm like, oh, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. I'm falling in love with this lady. Like is she sharing all this knowledge and, and like really filling in the blanks for me.

I knew a lot of Judaism, but there's a whole lot I didn't know 'cause I'm, what I know is perception.

Jonah Platt: Right.

Tiffany Haddish: So I really didn't know anything.

Jonah Platt: It's deep. There's a deep well there. Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: It's such a deep well that you [00:33:00] could like I understand why people go into, you know, school for years and years. Yeah.

They're studying in their whole life. Yeah. Basically Susan Silverman, she, you know, trained me, taught me, her daughter, helped me with my Hebrew and um, I had a Bat Mitzvah for my 40th birthday. Yeah. And I dropped my comedy special Black Mitzvah. I shared like, you know what? What you're supposed to do as a Jew, share the things that you've learned, make life better for others, and try your best to honor God at the same time.

Jonah Platt: Right? To be honest. So Black Mitzvah, you get brought in on the chair singing Hava Naah. When you were an energy producer, were you like, I'm gonna do that one day. I wanna do that.

Tiffany Haddish: I always wanted to do that. I always wanted to be lifted up in the chair. That's like, it's a good time. Yeah, it's a great time.

It's also scary because it's showing like, I mean, you could get dropped outta that chair.

Jonah Platt: You could,

Tiffany Haddish: to me it represent like. All your communities around you and they're lifting you up in that chair. This is your day [00:34:00] to be lifted. Yeah. And we got you. Even if you fall, we are gonna catch you. We got you.

Yeah. It's like, and I wish there was something like that in the African American culture where it's like, you are protected. You are. There is somebody, we love you, we care, we got you. Like if we all work together, used. Back in the fifties or the, well, 1940, was it 1920 something when the NAACP star

Jonah Platt: somewhere in there.

Around there? We

Tiffany Haddish: were together.

Jonah Platt: Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: We were together and then, you know, systematically been separated.

Jonah Platt: Yep. Did you feel like you belonged right away, or did, was there like an imposter syndrome vibe or you were just like, I'm a Jew, how are you?

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah. I feel like once I decide I am that I am, I am, I am. Nice.

Jonah Platt: And did you feel welcomed right away by the community?

Tiffany Haddish: For the most part. The older ones were con like what there, why you, you know, they little, you know, they [00:35:00] Americanized little racist. Yeah, sure. Little bit messed up, you know? Yeah. Um, but that didn't stop me from communicating with them and showing them that, you know, I see who you are.

Yeah. I love God the way you love God. I hope. I hope you love God. Mm. I hope you love, like I love Yeah. And you're a part of my community and that some people in the community is messed up. Yeah. And some people got warped beliefs, so they've had experiences and they have, you know, their stuff. Uh, but for the most part, I, I feel very welcomed in to the community.

And I had my bat mitzvah, I got a lot of death threats and a lot of, um, you know, when I went to Israel, I got a lot of death threats and a lot of people that I thought were my friends. But I clearly they weren't, they were users, manipulators, hanger, honors, and they talked so poorly of me and didn't even have a conversation with me to find out why.

Why would you go?

Jonah Platt: Mm-hmm. Why do you think it would've even mattered to them?

Tiffany Haddish: No. 'cause they, they were using my name to [00:36:00] promote themselves and then, you know, God taking care of them, that mental illness is real.

Jonah Platt: Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: But I curse them with joy. Curse 'em with joy.

Jonah Platt: That's a good attitude.

Tiffany Haddish: There's obviously jealousy, hate.

Mm-hmm. Pain, misinformation. Mm-hmm.

Jonah Platt: Not

Tiffany Haddish: understanding of what's really going on. I saw the people. I was with the people. Right. I went to the kibbutz. I saw, I saw it.

Jonah Platt: Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: It definitely,

Jonah Platt: you can't see that and be confused.

Tiffany Haddish: Mm-hmm.

Jonah Platt: You know?

Tiffany Haddish: Smelling it.

Jonah Platt: Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah. You could smell it.

Jonah Platt: Oh yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: You could smell it.

You could

Jonah Platt: see it did. Was there fighting happening while you were there? When I was bomb. You hear the machine gun fire, hear the bombs crazy. See the, the

Tiffany Haddish: coming towards and like dispersing on that shield.

Jonah Platt: You saw the iron dome taking stuff out?

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah. Shit's crazy. Was like. Why don't we have that in America?

Jonah Platt: Because no one's shooting rockets at us every day.

Tiffany Haddish: You shoulda have one. Anyway,

Jonah Platt: what was the ceremony like for you? Like what did you prepare? What did you do? Who was there? Where was it?

Tiffany Haddish: Okay, so my tour portion was Jacob's Ladder. And, um, I prepared [00:37:00] five, five months. Um, I learned all the songs. I learned my portion.

I wrote a speech about like, you know, 'cause you have to talk about, you gave

Jonah Platt: the Devar Torah.

Tiffany Haddish: Devar Torah. Yes. And uh, it was beautiful because like, um, ET Rice, my manager at the time, he did an Aaliyah for me. And then, uh, Billy Crystal did Aaliyah for me, who is like my. My Jewish uncle that I love so much, I can call him about anything.

Jonah Platt: That's amazing. And he gives me

Tiffany Haddish: the best advice and I'm like, I needed this when I was way younger. Mm. I really needed somebody like him when I was younger, but I needed to make, you know, everything happens the way it's supposed to. Those mistakes that I made, the things that happened, they made me who I am.

And so I'm grateful, but I could have dealt without it anyways. Um, that was great. Uh, I had a. They're who I call her the Beyonce of, uh, Cantor. She's a Beyonce of the Jews. She's like the best. And it's like my favorite. I go to Stephen, that's White's temple. Mm-hmm. That's where I attend with, uh, [00:38:00] rabbi Yohi.

And he helped with so much of this ceremony. And I, I have to say like Rabbi Yohi is my rabbi now. Even also Susan's my too. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yohi has been the most awesome to me. I feel like he's my big brother. His wife is my sister. They, they care for me. They look out for me when I'm sick. They're there, you know, um, when I'm happy they're there.

They come to my comedy shows and I'm like, you probably should come to this rabbi. He should be at this show. He's a pretty cool rabbi. He's the coolest rabbi.

Jonah Platt: And,

Tiffany Haddish: uh, and he's so funny and I've like taken him with me to the White House. Um, when they had that, they invited,

Jonah Platt: go to the Hanukkah party. Mm-hmm.

No something else? No,

Tiffany Haddish: it was a, it was a day on the line. It was a Jewish heritage month. Oh, cool. And so it was a day on the line or whatever, and he came with me. And when I was. Doing my tour portion and I'm looking out into the audience and I see this [00:39:00] variety of people, people that know Hebrew very well and have been in the religion and practicing for their whole life.

And in people that have never been to a bat mitzvah, never seen anything like this, and to see them experience it. Be together was so beautiful. It, it, my mom was like, I dunno what you said,

Jonah Platt: but I liked it. I wanna get back to, um, the like communal reaction once you come in. Uh, what was the black community's reaction to you saying like, Hey, I'm a juvenile.

What's up?

Tiffany Haddish: Girl, you ain't Jewish. What the fuck You not? What the hell? You just trying to be you fak as shit. What the fuck? What you doing? Why would you even do that? I'm like, why not do that? They killed Jesus. Did they? Did you really read and see who killed them? Was it all of the Jewish community? Did he say, I hate all [00:40:00] of you motherfuckers now?

No, that's not what he saying. He be for their forgiveness. They know not what they do. I said, every day you snitching on somebody, putting somebody in jail, you killed somebody. Get the fuck outta my face. Just because of my religious beliefs does not mean I'm like, fuck all the black people. No.

Jonah Platt: Why would it fuck all the

Tiffany Haddish: Mexicans I'm not.

Fuck no, no. I'm about, let's all come together. From what I've read in the Torah, that's what it's about.

Jonah Platt: No doubt.

Tiffany Haddish: Community.

Jonah Platt: Mm-hmm.

Tiffany Haddish: And never forget it. Where you come from. Never forgetting your history. So you don't repeat it. And I think in the black community is don't tell nobody. Keep it deceit, don't say nothing.

Who you talking too much? You doing too much. Then people gonna forget and it's gonna happen again. And it's a generational curse. We gotta break that. We gotta break these generational bad habits, these ways. We talk to each other, these ways. We talk to our [00:41:00] kids, and I like the way Jewish people talk to their kids.

I like the way they teach them about their business, about money, about family, about growth, about saving, about your soul, and about your ancestors. Your history is so important. We need as human beings to feel like we're a part of something. Yeah. That's why you got gang bangers. 'cause they need to feel like they're a part of something, right?

Yeah. Police, they feel like they a part of something. They we're keeping order. We're just, you need to feel like you a part of something. I'd rather be a part of a community that is trying to make sure everybody eats, make sure there is joy, make sure there is healing and health and family and fellowship that doesn't involve violence.

Except for when you fuck with me.

Jonah Platt: That's right.

Tiffany Haddish: Period. Then I gotta light your ass up. Don't come in my backyard breaking through my door thinking you not get [00:42:00] up. Sorry.

Jonah Platt: No, that was good. That's gonna be, that's gonna be the opening clip of the show. You study Torah now? Mm-hmm. How, what does that look like for you?

Do you do it with Rabbi Yoshi, you do it on your own?

Tiffany Haddish: Um, I do it on my own and sometimes with Rabbi Yohi. Um, I do a lot on my own. I You have

Jonah Platt: you got books? You have commentary? I got books, yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: I have Rabbi Yoshi gimme the books. They gimme like several books and then the Torah, like in English with the Hebrew, uh, next to it, it, I know certain letters when I see them, I can, I'm like, oh, that's what this is, that's what this is, and that's God, that's this, this, that.

Like, I do not, I know that like I know, I know stuff. Yeah. And it makes me so excited. I feel like. It's like literally learning how to read again.

Jonah Platt: I mean literally is literally, it's a new language, how to read

Tiffany Haddish: and like how excited I was when I finally did learn how to read and now I know how I learn, so it's easier for me.

Right. Um, now and it's just, I don't [00:43:00] know when I'm, it's probably. Not when I should study the most, but when I am the depressed or like, uh, the feeling, like the world is attacking me. I run to my Torah and I run to all my little translations and I try to find it, and I don't know why I do this, but that's just, I guess that's like the researcher in me or whatever.

But whatever I find in the Torah, I try to find it in the King James Bible in the New World translation and in the Quran. And if I can find it in all of those, then I know there's some truth in it. It's

Jonah Platt: some words of the sages there. Yeah. That have lasted all this time.

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah,

Jonah Platt: yeah. For a reason. Yeah,

Tiffany Haddish: for a reason.

Jonah Platt: Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: I even like, you know, study into the Hinduism and stuff too, the Hindus, and I'm like, oh, that's this story. That's this thing that's this. Like you can like, mm-hmm. And that's kind of fun connecting the dots. In realizing, you know, we all are pretty. I feel like we, and I could be wrong, but these are my feelings.

I feel like we're all worshiping the same God. We just do it in [00:44:00] a different way.

Jonah Platt: What has it been like career wise for you since you've become like this vocal Jewish presence? Has it. Has it affected your career in any way? Yes,

Tiffany Haddish: it has career-wise. It did hurt me in a lot of ways. Um, and it helped me in a lot of ways.

Like, so there's this like, you know, camaraderie amongst other Jewish people in the community and people that have love for Jewish people. That's been great. I. But then at the same time, like when I went to Israel, you know, uh, you got a

Jonah Platt: lot of shit for that. A

Tiffany Haddish: lot of shit from, uh, everywhere. And they dropped, like I had all these sponsorships for my foundation, I have the She Ready Foundation and we work with foster youth, getting them housed and getting them education, getting them the life skills they need so they can be productive, awesome citizens.

Right? Yeah. And I had all these endorsements. All these different car brand. A different car brand. I'm not gonna say who it is, but you, you know who you are. And they, they stopped

Jonah Platt: supporting a program for foster children because you went on a trip to Israel,

Tiffany Haddish: they pulled back [00:45:00] in, sponsorship, they pulled back and all these different things and, and that's so messed

Jonah Platt: up.

Tiffany Haddish: I was like, well, yeah. You know who's for you and who's not. Yeah. Sometimes crazy things happen in your life and you feel like, oh, why me? Why? I was just trying to do good. I didn't realize it was gonna be this, but sometimes that happens the best stuff. Like, and people drop you, whatever, because you need to make space for the real ones.

Exactly.

Jonah Platt: That's right. Yeah. And they

Tiffany Haddish: weren't really for you.

Jonah Platt: No.

Tiffany Haddish: So anytime someone goes, you're fired or we're not going to, we don't wanna work with Tiffany Hot, I go, thank you. Right. Thank you so much. 'cause you just opened me up for the person or the people or the organization that does wanna work with me.

Yeah. That does wanna make a difference in the community that is not so hung up on the politicalness of things, but more hung up on the health and wellbeing of other human beings. A

Jonah Platt: hundred percent. And it's like every guest I've had on here has basically said what you just said.

Tiffany Haddish: There's [00:46:00] protection in all that rejection.

Jonah Platt: What is still on your Jew to-do list that you haven't, uh, gotten to experience or get into yet?

Tiffany Haddish: Um, my Jew to-do list. I want to go back to Israel. I want to spend time, more time. Yeah. With my elders. I wanna hear more of their stories. Um, I think that's really important. And then maybe, maybe a Jewish husband.

There's a basketball player that's Jewish that's been, you know, sliding in my dms.

Jonah Platt: Oh yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: Mm-hmm.

Jonah Platt: NBA player. Mm-hmm. Okay. Not too many of those to choose from. We can narrow it down pretty quickly. We Good for you, Tiffany?

Tiffany Haddish: I haven't seen him in person, but we talk, we communicate. Okay.

Jonah Platt: We love to hear that.

That would be quite the shit. Ah. If

Tiffany Haddish: you two ended up

Jonah Platt: together, Kevin, how, what's your relationship with Shabbat?

Tiffany Haddish: I love Shabbat, so I go to a lot of my friends' houses for Shabbat, and then I do my own version of Shabbat, and I call it, it's Shabbat game [00:47:00] night.

Jonah Platt: That's fun.

Tiffany Haddish: I basically, uh, invite a lot of my black friends, Hispanic friends, Asian friends, all my Jewish friends.

I invite my rabbi, or, uh, sometimes it's just one of my Jewish homegirls or whatever. And we, uh, we light the candles, we sing and we do the prayer, and then we explain to everybody what's it about? Like, so then they're learning and they're asking questions. That's awesome. So then it's like, you know, there's, it's, it's a mitzvah where it kind like everybody's learning from each other.

Jonah Platt: Yeah. And

Tiffany Haddish: people that would probably have never talked to each other if they saw, you know, one another in a bank or at a party or something. A regular party, they probably might not speak to each other, but in my house. We're sharing. It's, it's so good.

Jonah Platt: That's awesome. The beauty of Shabbat,

Tiffany Haddish: I

Jonah Platt: love Shabbat.

It's the best. Mm-hmm. All. So what's, what's coming up next for you? What's to do with Girls Trip Two.

Tiffany Haddish: Okay. So as far as I know with Girls Trip two is they are finishing up the script.

Jonah Platt: Okay. You gonna Ghana, is that true?

Tiffany Haddish: That's what they [00:48:00] tell me. Okay. I don't know. We might be shooting at Tyler Perry Studios.

I have no idea.

Jonah Platt: Okay.

Tiffany Haddish: You know, but I, I hope we go to Ghana. I feel like we should go to Ghana. I know it's affordable. If we go to Ghana,

Jonah Platt: that's all right. For number three, you can go to Israel. Last thing you're up to right now. You're in the midst of your Funny and Fearless tour.

Tiffany Haddish: Yes. I'm doing a funny and fearless tour traveling all over the country.

Well, to not all over. You're only in like the

Jonah Platt: south and the heartland. What's that about? Yeah, really

Tiffany Haddish: not all over, just in certain places. This place that I never performed at before.

Jonah Platt: So what's the, like, what's the strategy? Why that? Why there? It's,

Tiffany Haddish: um, not that many black folks in these places, right? That I'm going to some places There are a lot.

Um, just, I saw you go to

Jonah Platt: like Kansas and Montana. Oh my

Tiffany Haddish: gosh. I just did, made Kansas and, uh. When I googled the population of Marietta, Kansas, it was like 355. What you doing there? But I was supposed to sell out a 1100 seat theater in the casino. And uh, I'm like, what am I, and then it, it was like only [00:49:00] 3% black in that community and it no Jews at all.

And then there was no, there's no that. I was like, Ooh, I dunno, this. Fearless.

Jonah Platt: That's right. And this should be funny. I mean, fear standup, you got it. You can't have it. You gotta

Tiffany Haddish: be fearless and it should be funny. And it actually was amazing standing ovation. It was over. So people were, it was standing room and all in the back, like amazing.

They were standing up and they were laughing and then, you know, cheering and it was great standing and yeah, it was great.

Jonah Platt: All right. Lightning round. I'm just gonna throw a couple at you. If you could roast one person from the Bible, who would it be?

Tiffany Haddish: Methuselah. I would roast the hell outta MEUs

Jonah Platt: because he's so old and has so many kids.

Tiffany Haddish: Yes.

Jonah Platt: There's a lot. A lot of material

Tiffany Haddish: there. A pullout game. You're back too old, huh? Yeah, I would roast the hell outta MEUs.

Jonah Platt: What is a black Jewish food combo that has yet to be invented? That the world needs to have

Tiffany Haddish: a holler fried red snapper sandwich. Oh, shit. I've been making those. [00:50:00] Because, you know, I'll be having so much chala and I'll fry some red snapper and then it's better than, do you toast

Jonah Platt: the chala for the sandwich or it's not toasted?

No, not toasted. Not toasted. Okay. Not

Tiffany Haddish: toasted. Put a little bit of tartar sauce and just, it's good. That sounds sometimes. And some, some, some Louisiana hot sauce. Just a little bit. Not a lot.

Jonah Platt: Right.

Tiffany Haddish: And little, uh, like sometimes cabbage.

Jonah Platt: Okay. Little,

Tiffany Haddish: little la claw. Baby.

Jonah Platt: I need one of these.

Tiffany Haddish: Baby.

Jonah Platt: What's one of your favorite Hebrew or Yiddish words?

Tiffany Haddish: I think Mitzvah.

Jonah Platt: Mm.

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah. Mitzvah.

Jonah Platt: That's a good one. Do you know the word Nigo?

Tiffany Haddish: No, but you should watch yourself saying it. No, no. I

Jonah Platt: knew as I was writing this, I was like, I wonder if I'm gonna be introducing her to this. She's gonna say, you're gonna, now you can use this in like a joke. Like, I expect the future.

I feel like I've heard it

Tiffany Haddish: like, go ahead. It's, it's

Jonah Platt: a Jewish melody. Is a Nigo. A Nigo, yeah. Yana. 9, 9, 9, 9. Whatever. That's a neon. [00:51:00] Yeah. Any of those, like old, those melodies mm-hmm. Are all called nego. Do you have a favorite one?

Tiffany Haddish: Mm, my favorite one is, um. Die. Die. Die.

Jonah Platt: Yeah. Beautiful. That's a, that's a good one. What's your favorite Jewish holiday?

Tiffany Haddish: My favorite Jewish holiday would have to be Hanukkah. I think it's Hanukkah, man. I really love Passover too, because family gets together, all the family gets together, the community comes together. But is. Okay. Is Shabbat a holiday?

Jonah Platt: Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: Hell yeah. Is it? Oh, yeah. Well, then Shabbat, because that's every, every Friday, every week

Jonah Platt: get a little holiday. Yep. Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: I love Shabbat

Jonah Platt: least favorite Jewish holiday. So one you don't, you think is lame or boring or not into Oh my gosh. Don't connect with, I,

Tiffany Haddish: I kind of love it, but I hate it. Um, young people.

Jonah Platt: Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: I love it, but I hate it. Yeah. But it's necessary. Yeah. I feel that it's necessary. Mm-hmm. I love that you apologize to people that you may have hurt, even if you [00:52:00] know you hurt them or not. Like you're not sure, just apologizing, like repenting. I think that is so beautiful. Mm-hmm. And I think it's something we should do every month.

Really? Yeah. And I kind of hate it 'cause. Some people I cut off for a reason. I don't wanna talk to your ass no more, but dang, it's young boy. Let me go ahead and apologize for calling you a raggedy ass bitch. 'cause you are, but I'm sorry and I, I do have love for you. That is why I'm letting you know that I apologize.

And I hope that my behavior doesn't encourage you to be the behavior of the raggedy bitch anymore.

Jonah Platt: Have you ever celebrated porn before?

Tiffany Haddish: No, but it's basically Halloween kind of. Yeah,

Jonah Platt: definitely get to dress up and party.

Tiffany Haddish: Yeah, definitely get to dress up and party. I think I've, okay, I've gone to a porn party, but I didn't dress up because I thought porn at that time meant we pouring drinks for him.

You thought it Pour, little pour, pour drinks. That's what I thought.

Jonah Platt: I can't believe I've like never heard that because like that is what happens [00:53:00] at Pur. You're just pouring all the drinks.

Tiffany Haddish: You're pouring drinks, you're the libations are fun. It's dancing, it's ing. Yeah. It's a great time. And it's like rejoicing with characters with this, you know?

Yeah.

Jonah Platt: Kala, do you, do you rip it or do you slice it?

Tiffany Haddish: I rip it.

Jonah Platt: Yeah.

Tiffany Haddish: I rip

Jonah Platt: it.

Tiffany Haddish: It everything tastes better with my hands. I don't know if that's the African part of me, but I love like putting my hands in the food and all that. I even, I use the holler. Oh, you

Jonah Platt: got to

Tiffany Haddish: the speech student, the all, all of stuff.

Jonah Platt: Yeah. To bring us home. Tell my audience please, if you would. How do we all become professional overcomers?

Tiffany Haddish: The way to become a professional overcomer is, it's simple, but it's difficult to do. It sounds very easy and it's look at the situation you're in, right? And no matter how tragic it is, find the funny in it.

And don't be afraid to share it in a joyous way. There's always something funny about it. It might not be right in the [00:54:00] moment and in the moment you're hurting. So go ahead and cry. Go ahead and scream, and maybe the funny will be the way you cry and scream. Maybe the funny will be the way people respond to you crying.

There will be some joy somewhere in that tragedy. Find it. Focus on that and figure out what in this tragedy can make you grow as a human and make you better, and then marinate on that and move forward.

Jonah Platt: Tiffany, thank you so much for dropping the wisdom, dropping the knowledge, spending the time. It's been a pleasure to have you.

Thank

Tiffany Haddish: you.

Jonah Platt: Enormous. Thank you to the last black unicorn for spending her day off with me. That free time is precious. I know. Uh, I know. We all appreciate you sharing your journey and your wisdom with us. As for you all, have you signed up for one Mitzvah a day yet to join our Global [00:55:00] Mitzvah movement?

Thanking all the amazing folks who stand up for Jews in Israel. Text the word mitzvah. That's M-I-T-Z-V-A-H to this number 8 4 4 3 8 4 6 2 4 0. Easy way to make an impact and it really matters. Last, even if you're watching this on jbs, please subscribe to the show on Apple Podcast, Spotify and youtube.com/at being Jewish.

These numbers really are critical for helping to grow the show. Thank you all for your continued love and support, and I'll see y'all back here for the next. Unique episode of being Jewish with me, Jonah Plat.