Entertainment TV Who Is Dave Chappelle's Wife? All About Elaine Chappelle Dave and Elaine Chappelle share three children and have been married since 2001 By Jessica Booth Jessica Booth Jessica Booth is a contributing writer at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2022. Her work has appeared in Brides, Parents, What To Expect, Romper, The Knot and Forbes. People Editorial Guidelines Updated on March 19, 2024 12:37PM EDT Close Photo: Mike Coppola/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal Dave Chappelle and his wife, Elaine Chappelle, have been married for more than two decades. Despite their lengthy relationship, which began in the '90s, the couple have kept their relationship and family life extremely private, and not much is known about the early days of their romance. Elaine rarely appears at public events with Dave, and they keep a fairly low profile living at their home in Yellow Springs, Ohio. They are also parents to three children. The comedian — who stirred up controversy and received backlash from the LGBTQ+ community after making transphobic jokes in his 2021 Netflix standup special The Closer — has said his family prefers the quiet of their Ohio life. "We don't live in Hollywood, there's no paparazzi trying to get their picture," he said during a 2020 appearance on My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman. Dave Chappelle's 3 Kids: Everything to Know Here's everything to know about Dave Chappelle's wife, Elaine Chappelle. She's an extremely private person Kristy Sparow/Getty Elaine keeps a very low profile. She's rarely seen out in public with Dave, and he doesn't speak about her often in interviews or in his comedy. She does have a private Instagram profile and counts Chrissy Teigen as one of her nearly 700 followers. Her bio reads, "Proud mom. Proud wife. Loyal friend. Best little sister. Non-infliuencer." She and Dave met in Brooklyn Ethan Miller/Getty Dave met Elaine in Brooklyn, New York, before becoming a household name. "She was with me when I was poor," the comedian previously joked to Howard Stern. The couple got married in 2001, though they haven't revealed any details about their nuptials. She is a mom of three Paul Morigi/WireImage Elaine and Dave have three kids together: two sons, Sulayman and Ibrahim, and a daughter, Sanaa. In an interview with The A.V. Club, Dave said having his first son was "the best thing that ever happened" to him. She and Dave live in Ohio Jason Merritt/Getty Dave might be one of the biggest comedians out there, but he prefers to keep a low profile in his everyday life. Dave and Elaine live on a 65-acre farm in Yellow Springs, Ohio. At an Ohio music festival in 2006, he said, "Turns out you don't need $50 million to live around these parts, just a nice smile and a kind way about you. You guys are the best neighbors ever … that's why I came back and that's why I'm staying." She didn't know Dave was going to South Africa in 2005 Kevork Djansezian/Getty In 2005, Dave famously abruptly walked away from the third season of his hit sketch comedy series, Chappelle's Show, and fled to South Africa, turning down a $50 million deal in the process. During a 2006 appearance on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Dave joked about his wife's reaction to him turning down the contract. "My wife's still a little salty at me," he said. "She's not mad at me, but don't think you're going to walk away from $50 million and your wife's just going to be cool with that." He later talked to Oprah Winfrey about his decision to walk away. "One, I needed a break," he recalled. "Two, we have family and friends down there. I felt like it was a place where I could really reflect … and here's the other thing: I was only gone for two weeks! They made it sound like it was so mysterious." He also shared that he didn't call Elaine before he left. "It wasn't that I didn't tell my wife," he said. "It was [more] like, 'I'm not telling her until after I'm gone.' Which was a mistake, but it wasn't a crazy mistake." She helps keep Dave in the loop on what people are saying about him Elaine might stay behind the scenes when it comes to Dave's career, but she's also his support system. During a 2017 interview on New York radio station Hot 97, Dave once said he doesn't seek out what people are saying about him online. "My wife, if it gets real bad, she'll let me know, like, 'Oh, you should look into this,' " he said. "But for the most part, I try not to pay attention to it … I try to keep my business small enough so it can still be authentic enough." She's made a few public appearances to support Dave ALEX EDELMAN/AFP Elaine has stepped out to support her husband on a few rare occasions. In 2019, she accompanied Dave to the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., where the comedian was given the Mark Twain Award for American Humor. In a video from the ceremony, Elaine can be seen proudly recording her husband's acceptance speech on her phone. She was also by her husband's side when he was named one of GQ's Men of the Year in 2014. Elaine was also photographed alongside Dave and supermodel Naomi Campbell at the Dior Homme fashion show in Paris in January 2022.