- Black people are the most honest people on the.
Let me tell you.
You do not have to worry how black people feel about you.
You know either you get booed
or they just get on Instagram.
"Whew.
"Oh my God.
"Who is on?"
Like they're just put they phone
in front of you while you doing.
- Wow
- Oh my.
People can be rude. - They can. They can be.
But, during Def Comedy Jam, which you were prolific on,
there were no phones.
- No phones.
- There were no digital barriers.
- Yes.
- How did you find your way to that stage?
- Well, I was doing stand-up in New York City
and I was just like the hottest comedian in Jersey, right?
I was just like, but I had to break in New York.
It's 30 minutes difference, but seriously.
You know, we had New York comics that was hot already.
I was sort of like the hot and young comedian in New Jersey.
So I used to pop in all the clubs.
They used to be like,
"Yo, that's that dude from Jersey, right?"
So I popped into a place called
Uptown Comedy in Harlem one night.
Charlie Barnett was on stage.
This a true story.
He was murderin'.
Killin'. Killing.
Andre Brown who owned the Uptown in Harlem
told me I couldn't go on that night.
Now get this, because he was like,
"Yo, I don't know if you could follow Charlie Barnett.
"So why don't you come back next week?"
I said, "Nope!"
- Ope.
- "I'm going on tonight 'cause I wrote this joke.
"And it's funny as hell, and I gotta do it."
And he was like, "Yo B, but you can do it next week."
I said, "Nah."
And this is when I wrote Booty Call, cut two.
So I wrote Booty Call on a piece of paper.
I had it in my hand.
It was on a paper towel.
I had my car double parked,
so it was probably gonna get towed.
So I was like, I'm riding the edge, right?
So I said, "Dre, look.
"I don't care what Charlie Barnett is doing.
"Just put me on next."
Cool.
He gets a standing ovation.
So I said, "Ight."
So usually comics, their strongest joke is your ending joke.
So I said, "I'm gonna start with my closer.
"Then I'm gonna throw that new joke.
"I'm gonna do two jokes I got,
"then I'm gonna throw that Booty Call in there."
Right?
Boom.
So I do my closure.
Bam, I got 'em.
Second joke.
Bam, I got 'em.
Then I drop the new joke, Booty Call, in the middle.
Explosion.
- Wow.
- Explosion, right?
So I end up closing on Booty Call.
Cut to Russell Simmons is in the audience.
So, had I not went on stage,
Russell wouldn't've never saw me.
- Wow.
- So cut to, Russell comes running around the back.
He was like, "What's your name?
"That was amazing.
"That's amazin'.
"First of all, I just want to introduce you
"to all these HBO people.
"They're amazing.
"This is so-and-so.
"She's creative director.
"This da-da-da-da.
"We're doing this thing called Def Comedy Jam
"and we're gonna get all these urban comics.
"And we're gonna bring this energy from Uptown to America.
"This is the culture.
"This is this."
And I was like, "Who the hell is Russell Simmons?"
I didn't even know.
- Wow.
- So I get a Def Jam card from Russell Simmons.
I meet like 7 HBO people.
And the rest is history.
- Wow.
- Isn't that crazy? - That is an amazing story.
- So Andre Brown, if you're out there, see?
I ain't listen to you.
- So speaking of Def Comedy Jam,
I unfortunately as a kid did not have HBO.
But even if we had HBO,
I just know that my mother would not let me watch any--
- You had to sneak and watch it, yeah.
- Had to sneak and watch it.
And I was so mad because I think I was in middle school
and like, all the younger kids would be like,
"Hey, you see Def Comedy Jam yesterday?"
- It was such a water cooler moment.
Def Comedy Jam was
iconic laughter.
Like, it was the thing that you looked forward to
because you knew for that 30 minutes,
you were going to laugh until you cried, like.
Especially in the black community.
- I wonder if that show could exist today,
because it was raunchy.
Like, it was like black people being like
their blackest selves. Yeah. - Us!
Being real.
- Yeah! - I mean, I would hope so.
I mean, obviously you know,
now things seem to be so sensitive,
but the beauty of Def Comedy Jam
was to be, you know, authentic.
To be yourself.
To say the things that you felt.
And at that time, HBO wanted to be that.
They wanted to be the platform for, you know, originality.
And if you think back now and watch those jokes,
a lot of them are still funny.
- [Tracy] Hilarious.
- They are timeless!
- Yeah.
- So, shout-out.
Shout-out to Def Comedy Jam.
- What do you want the legacy of Def Comedy Jam to be?
- To me, the legacy of Def Comedy Jam is
there is no other platform
that has produced more superstars from one platform ever.
TV stars, movie stars, radio personalities.
You just go down the list.
You go down the list, there's no other platform to give
so many young, talented comedians
an opportunity to become stars.
One thing.
I always looked at Def Comedy Jam as the work
of best basketball players.
You could be the man from Ohio.
You the man from Texas.
You the man from New York.
But the night you play Def Comedy Jam,
you gotta the best of the best.
That's what I liked about it.
- So you start off in standup.
- Yes.
- [Tracy] 1997 you find yourself
in a little movie called "Love Jones".
- Ah!
- A little movie,
I don't know if you heard it - Love it, love it,
love it, love it!
- Classic!
- But like, the classicest of classic black movies.
- Yes.
- Hats off to you.
- Thank you.
- So in the movie, you play Wood.
- Yes.
- Kinda controversial 'cause you kinda break boy code
a little bit 'cause you kinda sorta go after Darius' girl.
- I was hatin'.
- Yeah.
You know what, I'm glad that you said it.
I didn't want to be the one to say it.
- Classic hater.
(Tracy laughs)
Classic hater.
- What do you remember most about that role?
- Well, "Love Jones" to me was my first role
that I felt like I had to be a real actor.
And by that, I meant like this wasn't the typical, you know,
sort of Bill Bellamy personality driven kind of character.
This was more of a, not a darker, but a more heavier guy
and a guy who was built around envy.
So I built Hollywood's character around the word envy.
And everything about him was envy, right?
And what was interesting about envy is
that you always want what you can't have.
- Truth.
- And you know, so that character wasn't as charismatic
and have all the ladies going crazy like Darius Lovehall.
But he was a cool dude, but he didn't have that thing.
So he was envious of that.
So when I just kinda leaned into that feeling,
everybody hated me in that movie.
Which was really--
- So you must have done it. - Like they just,
I was like, "I didn't know people really
"believed characters are."
Like it took 6 months to get that up off me.
- Really? So other women was like mm-hmm.
- Women especially.
Women was like, "You know what?
"Bill Bellamy like. - "I can't rock with you.
- "Is that the real you? - "I know who you were.
"You was cute in your other movie but.
"You was hatin' on Darius." - "Now we see the real you."
And they say it like that's his real name.
"Darius Lovehall."
I was like, "The actor.
"I was acting.
"The director told me that those were his words."
- "I'm just doing my job man." - "I'm just doing my job man."
- "Just trying to support my family."
- "Tryin' to take care my kids." (Tracy laughs)
- Back then, did you know
that it would become such a blassic?
You see what I did there? - I like blassic.
- You see that?
- No, I didn't. I knew it was a good movie.
- Yeah.
- I knew it was a really good movie.
I knew it was one,
I thought it was an amazing love story.
I thought that the people
that were in that movie were my friends.
- Yeah.
- [Bill] Like my crew, you know?
Outta college, tryna get our lives together.
I related to it when I read the script so well.
And I was like, "Oh man, I wonder if people gonna like it."
See, because when you're an actor, you do a movie,
you don't know if people gonna like your movie.
- Yeah, that seems terrifying.
- And you just gotta wait.
- That's scary.
- We really, to be honest with you,
it took 10 years later for our movie to get the.
And now at 20 years, we made it to the Academy
as a film noire, right?
And it 20 years for us to become a classic, or blassic.
It's 'cause now, is everyone sees it as a classic, right?
But when it came out, it was small.
It was a cute movie.
Bomb soundtrack.
- Oh my God.
- Buh! Buh! Buh!
- I feel like every black thing from the 90s,
be on that soundtrack.
- You could literally listen to the movie, right,
with your eyes closed, and still get the vibe.
- I know what I'm doing later on tonight.
- You gonna check it out? - Yup.
- I want to bring back soundtracks to movies.
- Will you please?
- Yes, I got you.
- Thank you.
Thank you so much.
- I also love remixes.
You remember when remixes were like remixes
and would sound completely different?
- Yeah, and you get 8 versions of it?
- Yes, Mary J Blige had an entire album just of remixes.
- Ugh
- I miss it.
I miss it. - That's nice.
- So that same year as "Love Jones", 1997,
you're also in Def Jams "How to Be a Player".
- Yes.
- Here you are playing the lead role
- of Mr. Drayton Jackson. - Boom.
- Bam.
Come on, climbing up the ladder.
But first, I feel a little confused
because it's a Def Jam production.
Like, I had to have them write this down
because I was like, "what?"
So is there any association
between Def Jam Records,
Def Comedy Jam,
- Yes - All of that Def stuff?
- There is?
- Yeah, because Russell along with Island Pictures
produced a film.
And the reason why I think they put Def Def Jam
because obviously I was from Def Comedy Jam
and they wanted to bring the branding over.
- Oh.
- And boom, 'cause people knew me from Def Comedy Jam,
it only made sense that I would be in
Def Jam's "How to Be a Player".
And then it was about, you know,
a guy sorta being a ladies man and boom.
- I mean, I'm sure you knew
all about that. - Like come on.
Stop playing.
So I had to do it.
- You were like, "Oh, my autobiography? Sure"
- Oh that sounds like me!
So it was fun.
- That makes sense.
Good, smart branding.
- So this is your first lead role in a movie?
- That was my first lead.
- Were you scared?
Were you nervous?
- Yes.
- [Tracy] Yeah?
- Yeah because, you know, I didn't know
if people would like that because I was just okay well.
After I read the script, I said,
"The only way women are going to be able
"to digest this movie is if he is not arrogant
"and he is fun."
So, I really put a lot of charm into that character
because you got to be able to laugh at him and root for him
in a weird way, you know what I mean?
So the more charm and more funny I made it,
it was easier for, I believe, the women to digest
what I was truly doing.
- That's true.
- Right? 'Cause it's like, "Oh, he's so stupid."
But if I was just a little more cocky,
it wouldn't have felt right.
So, nope, nope, nope.
Get out of there.
And what was interesting was when they tested the movie,
it tested really through the roof.
- Yeah?
- But the women wanted me to get caught.
Boom.
- Yup, I can see that.
- Do you know in "How to Be a Player",
there was a version that I got away with it
and the women went crazy!
- What?
Popcorn throwin. - Y'all was like,
"Shut it down!"
So we had to put back in the version that I got caught
'cause y'all couldn't stomach it!
- [Tracy] I mean--
- That's being honest.
- I feel like that makes sense
because it probably reminds us too much of the dudes
that we deal with in our real lives.
And we just want to see some justice
for one time. - Give me some.
You just wanted some damn justice.
- Just one of y'all to get caught.
- One time!
- That's it.
I feel like that's not
asking too much. - We fixed it.
- Thank you. I appreciate it.
- Thank God.
That would have been a disaster.
- Oh oh, another thing I love about the movie.
Bernie Mac.
- Oh!
- What was it like to work with such a star, such a legend?
- Everything
- Tell me everything.
- It was so much fun working with Bernie.
Well first and foremost, best friends
so Bernie was like my big brother to me.
And you know, there is nothing you can throw
at Bernie that he can't throw back.
There's nothing you can say to out-funny him.
(mumbles)
Like, it is.
"Baby, what's that smell?"
You know? Like, he just made up stuff in the movie.
And I'm sitting there tryna, trying not to.
- Trying not to laugh?
- Like, "Bernie where did you get badussy from?
"Like, that wasn't in the script."
- No?
He improvised that?
- Oh my God.
Bernie, incredible.
One of the funniest person to ever do it, Bernie Mac.
- How and when did you first cross paths?
How'd y'all meet?
- There was a guy that got booed on Def Comedy Jam.
He's the only person that got booed.
Bernie was the guy going on after the dude who got booed.
So Bernie room is across from my room.
And I never forget it, Bernie said,
"I can't believe these motherfuckers booed."
Right, so, so.
"This is a Goddamn shame."
Right so, so I said, I'm like, I'm like,
"Bernie, I think I hear they booing down there."
"I tell ya.
"I tell ya like it T-I is."
He was always saying that,
"Tell ya like a T.
"They ain't runnin'.
"They ain't booin' no Goddamn Bernie Mac."
So Bernie somehow gets the word to Kid Capri.
Now get this, if you remember the set,
Bernie said, "I ain't scared of you motherfuckers."
That wasn't just to be saying it.
He said it because the dude before him got booed.
- Wow.
- So the dude who got booed,
his demise was Bernie's explosion.
So he utilized, every time he said a joke,
"You don't understand."
Because Bernie didn't want to get booed.
Two minutes before that, they had booed somebody.
Then they bring out Bernie, and Bernie like,
"It ain't gonna happen to me."
- He said, "Don't try it."
- "Don't even think you gonna burn me."
"Boo me" I mean.
- I love this story. - See that's a good story.
It's true story.
- So you go from cousin-owned stage in Def Comedy Jam
with Bernie Mac and you're being a player
and then you're in "Cousin Skeeter" on Nickelodeon.
- Had to do something for the children.
- Yeah, you got to remember the kids.
- I didn't even have kids,
but I always wanted to be in animation.
- Really?
- I always wanted to use my voice
and when that opportunity came up, I was like, "Wow."
You know, I went on "Check Out Nickelodeon".
I remember they had "Kenan & Kel" and all that.
- Loved "Kenan & Kel".
- There was like a real nice roster of shows
and I was like, "Dude, man, I want to be a part of
that generation," because I was already here
at the 20s and 30 people.
This was gonna get the teens.
The 10, 11, 12, 13, you know.
So I was like, "cool."
And then I had to come up with the voice. "Bobby!"
- How did you come up with the voice?
- I don't know.
I kept playing with it.
I just kept playing with it.
I knew he was little, so I imagine if I was a kid,
what would my voice be like.
And then I just used that.
- I miss the 90s so much because it was so black,
like as far as media goes.
You had UPN, you had the CW.
- Ugh.
- "In Living Color" - WB
- WB, yeah.
Just so, so much.
Talk to me about that was like compared to, I guess now,
or just the time directly after it when that blackness
just kinda, sorta went away.
- Well, the 90s was a prolific time in entertainment
because, once again, timing is every thing.
We had a group of wonderfully talented
actors and actresses, comedians.
You had young networks that were started
that needed talent, that wanted to win.
You know a lot of those shows built these networks.
You know, "Living Color" and "Martin"
and "Living Single"
and "Family Matters".
I mean, we could go on and on and on.
They literally were the highest rated shows
on a lot of those networks.
So black people were watching TV and supporting these shows.
I had an opportunity to do my own show.
I mean, I've done probably 10 or 12 different shows,
but I was like 4 or 5 of them I was the lead in.
Do you know what I mean? - Mm-hmm.
So I got a chance to you know, strike out
and get back on and get another hit,
you know what I'm saying?
So, it was really good.
And now it's more scarce.
We do have great projects,
but it's just not as many opportunities.
There used to be a lot of opportunities.
- Yeah, so you're sort of pivoting now I feel like
in the type of things that you're doing.
Because you're now filming a Netflix series, right?
- Yes.
- Called "Self Made: Inspired by the Life
of Madam C.J. Walker"
- Yeah. - Talk to me about that.
Like, what is it?
- Wow, this is a different Bill Bellamy for everybody.
I think you'll get a chance to see
me again as an actor-guy
- An actor.
- An actor on this side.
Because this role, the cast is bananas.
Octavia Spencer plays Madam C.J. Walker.
Blair Underwood plays C.J. Walker.
Tiffany Haddish is her daughter.
Carmen Ejogo.
We got Kevin Carroll.
Myself.
Garrett Morris.
So I play Sweetness.
- Ooh.
- So check this out.
So Sweetness is the numbers-runner.
But he is a bad guy.
- How do you prepare for a role like that?
- Well, you just--
- Because now you're like
a bad guy, criminal type person, right?
- Yeah.
Well you know what?
The feeling for Sweetness is hunger.
So my other character was envy.
This was hunger.
When you're hungry, you do anything to eat, right?
So he's the type of guy, wherever the opportunity is to eat,
he is going to eat.
And I just put that in there.
And then you see it.
Because whether it's manipulation,
whether it's, you know, using his leverage with his power
or his relationships to get to x,
he's gotta eat, so Sweetness is that dude.
And he stay hungry.
So there it is.
You're gonna like it.
You're gonna be like, "Ooh, Bill trippin'."
- I'm really excited to see you in this role
because I'm so used to, you know, light, charismatic,
Booty Call and all that other stuff.
- No this was a little slick.
This is a little slick, like, they should be, you know.
They gotta give me that Emmy.
Stop playin'.
Go on give it to me.
Go on now, go on. - Do it, what you waiting on?
- Imma say it now, speak it out now,
"They gonna give it to me. - You gotta claim it.
- "I appreciate it. - Receive it!
- "Thank you so much.
"'Best Supporting in Limited Series', thank you."
- What do you hope people, black people in particular,
take away from this film?
- I think they're going to be inspired
to go after their dreams.
Madam C.J. Walker takes all your excuses away.
I don't want to hear it.
If Madam C.J. Walker, there was no Civil Rights,
there was nothing in order to say,
"Okay, you can do that."
She did it anyway.
So we don't have an excuse.
You want to dream, dream.
But you got to put that dream into action.
And I think that's what this moral of the story is.
See like, self made.
It's like, "Yo, you can make yourself who you want to be,
"but you got to do the work."