Jon Stewart has insisted his friend Pete Davidson is fine amid “explosive” claims made by Kanye West.
During an appearance on “The Howard Stern Show,” Stewart touched upon the rapper’s attempts to publicly shame his ex-wife Kim Kardashian over her relationship with the “Saturday Night Live” star on social media.
“I know Pete real well. He’s just a kid trying to live his life. (He’s) one of my favorite people. He’s just a smart, funny kid, trying to live his life,” he commented. “I think he’s doing as best you can in that situation when you’re dealing with something that’s so explosive and loaded, with all kinds of other things. I just love that kid.”
Jon Stewart explained that he had developed a “paternal instinct” towards Pete Davidson and other young comedians.
“He and I know each other from comedy, from going on the road. Dave (Chappelle) and I were doing gigs in Boston and Houston, and Pete came out and performed. And him and (John) Mulaney worked near where I live in Jersey so I would go buy pizza from a place and we just go hang out, and we just became friends from that,” the former “The Daily Show” host explained, adding that he tries to offer advice in a subtle way.
“I always have a very paternal instinct on those guys because I’ve seen too many of my friends get in trouble and some of them die, and you don’t (want that).
“It’s the fun of why we got into it. To not have a real job, to dress like s###, to go out at night and drink and eat lousy food and hopefully hang out with other very funny people… there’s a real camaraderie,” Jon Stewart said.