Regular Black

The central tension of Godfrey’s performance comes from his dual identity as a Chicago-raised kid of Igbo Nigerian immigrants, caught between the broader African-American experience and his parents’ strict, old-school household rules. Recorded at the UP Comedy Club in his hometown of Chicago, this hour-long special relies heavily on his highly physical stage style and sudden vocal shifts. The title bit comes from a real conversation with American friends who assumed he was just “regular Black,” prompting him to wonder if there was some secret Crayola color chart he had missed. From there, he uses his elastic facial expressions and thick West African accents to contrast his father’s elaborate, inescapable approach to childhood discipline with the softer parenting styles of modern America. Directed by Steven Feinartz, the special debuted on Showtime in August 2016 when Godfrey was already a revered veteran of the New York and Chicago club circuits. Rather than building quiet, cerebral setups, he leans into his strengths as an impressionist, acting out the absurdities of cultural assimilation and offering a memorable riff on how global cultures eagerly copy Black American slang and style while remaining deeply suspicious of actual Black people.