Jerrod Carmichael's new HBO special "Rothaniel" is a masterpiece. I watched it last week and have since watched it two more times and still think about it on the daily.

For those that may not know, Carmicheal is a strong stand up performer, had a very good, very underrated tv show, "The Carmichael Show" and has written a ton of great things for movies and tv. He was also in both "Neighbors" movies, and he was memorable in those as well. He wrote on "Loiter Squad", which is where I assumed he met Tyler, the Creator, and he does the interstitial parts on the epic "IGOR" album. But I think "Rothaniel" is going to open up a whole new level of stardom for this young man.

He opened the show and told the audience that he was going to leave no untold secrets for the hour-long set. He was going to let it all out. And he most definitely did as much. For instance, he revealed that his first name is Rothaniel. He went into a long bit about how he got his name. He said it was two names pushed together, the two names coming from two people in his life. One of which was his father. He then proceeded to tell us all about his father and how he was a lothario. The best part of this bit was when he told the crowd that his best friend saw his father at his house one day and his father lied about who he was. He told this young man that his name was Jerry Rice. This was so hilarious. But underneath it all you could see the pain and anger Carmichael had towards his father for what he was doing. He then told his dad he knew and he wanted him to tell their mom. She needed to know. And he did. He kind of skirted it and made his son's deal with the mom beforehand. But his dad told her, and she forgave him. This also seemed to irk Carmichael.

It was after this reveal when Carmichael told the biggest unknown secret of the evening. Carmichael revealed to the audience that he is gay. This was a powerful and moving moment in the special. And he did not sweat it or skirt it, he just came out with the news, and it was received perfectly. The crowd applauded and told him how much they loved him and how brave he is. He seemed a bit put off by the reaction, but he talked about that too. He said he is still trying to feel good when hearing people applaud him. He is still trying to accept the love. It is just tough. He then, and the rest of the set was about him coming out, telling many stories, both funny and moving, about coming out to his friends and family. I loved when he talked about telling his best friend, and his best friend told him he felt "forced to be friends with a gay guy". He said a lot of his friends actually felt "lied" to. But he did say that his girl friends were super supportive, until he told them he dated white guys. This was a riot. The crowd interaction was tremendous. I loved the back and forth. I also really adored Carmichael's openness. It was nice to see him getting all of this off his chest.

The last fifteen minutes of this set is what puts this special apart from others. He talked about his father accepting it, but his mom not. He is, obviously, devastated by this. He talked about his love for his mom, but he is clearly upset that she is using church and god as an excuse to not accept him. This was when the audience interaction was at his best. It was almost like a live therapy session, which can be intrusive, but this felt right. It was not awkward or intrusive, it was a breath of fresh air. Carmichael let it all out, and he fielded every question from the audience with grace. He was speaking his truth, and I loved it. I was moved by it. It was amazing. Carmichael used his talent to do an extremely brave and commendable thing. Bo Burnham's direction was spot on too. You can tell these two have worked together before.

I loved "Rothaniel". I think everyone should see it. It is one of these HBO specials that will resonate with anyone anywhere. It is a work of art. Check it out.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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