Netflix is staying in the Dave Chappelle business with Chappelle's Home Team stand-up series

Netflix is quadrupling down on Dave Chappelle.

The controversial comedian will executive-produce a new series of stand-up comedy specials for the streaming service, featuring performers handpicked by Chappelle. The series will kick off with specials from comedians Earthquake and Donnell Rawlings, with the others to be announced at a later date.

"I've been doing this a long time and comedians like Quake and Donnell are not only friends but have inspired my own career," Chappelle said in a statement Friday. "Anyone in the comedy community knows these names and knows their time to shine is long overdue. I am proud to be a part of this moment." (You can see Chappelle announce the series alongside Earthquake in the video above.)

Earthquake's special, Legendary, will arrive Feb. 28. In it, the comedian will address such topics as "health as wealth, prostate exams, and disciplining kids," according to a news release. The title and release date for Rawlings' special have yet to be announced.

The news follows intense controversy last year over what was billed as the final chapter of Chappelle's Netflix specials, The Closer. In the special, the comedian again made numerous derogatory remarks about transgender people and spoke angrily about the response to his past jokes on the subject. A group of Netflix employees staged a walkout in protest of the special in October, and some called for the streamer to remove it.

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos, however, defended the special in two separate memos to staff, stating that "content on screen doesn't directly translate to real-world harm," though he later said he had "screwed up those communications."

Chappelle, for his part, said through a representative that he was "listening" to "both sides of the street," and that "At some point, when everyone is open, I'm sure our communities will come together."

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