Carmichael talks about the weight of keeping this secret throughout his life and career.
At times contemplative, buoyant, and occasionally heartbroken, Carmichael talks about the weight of keeping this secret throughout his life and career, and how coming out has changed his relationships with his friends and family for both the better and the worse.
After telling a story about catching his father cheating, Carmichael takes a beat and looks out at his audience. “After that was out in the open, I was left alone feeling like a liar, because I had a secret,” he says. “One that I kept from my father, my mother, my family, my friends, and you. Professionally, personally. And the secret is that I’m gay.”
After a long silence, the audience claps, to Carmichael’s visceral relief. “I’m accepting the love, I really appreciate the love. My ego wants to rebel against it.” Later, he adds, “I rebelled against it my whole life. I thought I’d never, ever come out. At many points I thought I’d rather die than confront the truth of that, to actually say it to people. Because I know it changes some people’s perceptions of me. I can’t control that.
Carmichael — 34 and born in North Carolina — came to prominence in the Los Angeles stand-up comedy world. He also created the brilliant-but-canceled sitcom “The Carmichael Show,” which ran for three seasons on NBC, and was both topical and semi-autobiographical. Tiffany Haddish as Nekeisha Williams, Jerrod Carmichael as Jerrod Carmichael, Amber Stevens West as Maxine North-Carmichael appear in an episode of "The Jerrod Carmichael show.