I know I'm late, but I hangover binged DAVE yesterday. Spoilers incoming. As it currently stands, I am watching or completed 126 TV shows. 42 of which are still active and making new seasons. I try not to add any shows currently airing unless I think I'll really love it. I was waiting for a couple more seasons of DAVE before I was going to watch, but my hangover partner had other plans in mind. It was awesome. Lil Dicky very well may be a genius talent, but it was GaTa who stole the show.
GaTa (pronounced like alliGATA) plays Lil Dicky's sort of spirit guide and hype man in the show. GaTa meets Dave by chance in the studio and helps him navigate the same music industry that shunned him. He's a motormouth who's fast paced ramblings are seeded in hilariously good counsel. I've already added "let's wiggle" to my own vocabulary. Stole it really.
The fifth episode "Hype Man" is centered around GaTa. You witness his rock bottom and unlikely trajectory that leads him to his friendship with Lil Dicky. There's a scene that really did it for me where it's revealed that GaTa is struggling with being bipolar. The episode is a turning point for the show where the audience realizes it's not all dick jokes and rainbows. There's serious issues going on viewed through a comedic veil. GaTa's revelation to the group comes through a face full of tears. He confesses that he fears constant rejection by his peers due to his illness. Choked up, he delivers my favorite line of the whole show:
"I love yall man. You guys make me feel comfortable. You guys are weirdos just like me bro. This dude rap about havin a small dick all the time. This dude right here rubs acne on his back, no problem. This dude back here dresses cool as fuck, he knows all the hip-hop urban lingo but pronounces all his words properly! And I'm really bipolar bruh, like really bipolar."
And he acted his fucking ass off doing it. It's a sad but funny scene. Kicks you right in the heart balls. But the tears seemed too real and the conversation too authentic. Which ultimately led to me checking DAVE's imdb page. You can imagine my surprise when I found out that "GaTa" was played by none other than GaTa. The dude plays himself.
So I internet stalked him. Turns out GaTa is Lil Dicky's real-life hype man whom he met in the studio. He actually did have a stint in the music industry and has the Instagram pictures with a young Tyga to prove it. GaTa really was diagnosed as bipolar and is currently using his story to spread awareness and acceptance. Dude never acted a day in his life and is now a star of one of TV's best new shows.
I don't have any proof, but Will Ferrell's impulsive pimp alter ego in The Other Guys would make a lot of sense for how GaTa got his name.
DAVE gets my stamp of approval, whatever that's worth. Besides the wit, cringe comedy, big name cameos, and rap, my biggest takeaway so far has been from GaTa. Be yourself, be weird, and if you don't fake your relationships, the ones you want to make will find you.