A New York taxi driver playing an episode of “The Don Lemon Show” on his phone as he drove was shocked when his passenger revealed himself to be… Don Lemon.
The long-time television journalist shared a video to his TikTok filmed from the back seat of a taxi earlier this week.
In front of Lemon, his driver could be seen with his phone on the speedometer playing an episode of the journalist’s show.
Lemon asked from the backseat: “Do you know who I am?”
The taxi driver said, “No,” and glanced backward in the rearview mirror before turning around fully with his mouth open and the vehicle still coasting forward. He let out a loud guffaw of laughter as the car came to a stop.
“My man,” the driver said, reaching back to shake Lemon’s hand.
The host exclaimed, “You’re watching me!”
He added: “I swear I didn’t stage this. I was like, ‘I know that music’.”
Lemon’s video attracted almost 748,000 views and more than a thousand comments within three days on TikTok.
‘Such a meta moment’
“He was extremely friendly,” Lemon told Newsweek in an email, “But he was absolutely stunned. We laughed about it for a bit and then he went right back to listening to the show.”
Lemon said that the interaction occurred Friday, December 12, which was a cold day. Lemon was wearing a beanie and a hood, which made it difficult for the taxi driver to see his face.
“When I got in the taxi, I heard the opening theme music of the show and I thought it was coming from my YouTube app on my phone, so I pressed the volume down button on my phone and it did not shut it off,” Lemon explained.
“I looked around, and then I saw that he was playing it from his phone. I immediately opened my camera and started recording it because it was just such a meta moment.”
Lemon added that he wasn’t sure why people were so concerned about the driver playing a YouTube video.
“He was not watching the video,” Lemon said, “He was just listening and using his phone, no differently than people use the touchscreens on their dashboard every single day.”
Before he left the cab, Lemon said took a couple of selfies with the driver.
‘A sign from God’
Lemon gained national prominence as a prime-time anchor for CNN, where he worked for 17 years before his departure in 2023.
Known for his outspoken commentary and coverage of major national and international events, the journalist became a prominent figure during the Trump presidency.
Prior to CNN, he worked at NBC affiliates and served as a correspondent for NBC Nightly News and Today. Lemon also received an Edward R. Murrow Award and several Emmy Awards during his career.
Lemon’s exit from CNN came abruptly in April 2023 following a series of controversies. Since then, Lemon has remained a visible media presence, launching his own digital show, “The Don Lemon Show,” in early 2024.
The host said that the moment in the taxi was “real confirmation” for him that he is doing the right thing.
“People ask all the time for a sign from God,” he told Newsweek, “That was definitely one.
“Imagine all of the people and all of the taxis in New York City and I get into that one where as soon as I get in, the person is playing my show. It was really awesome. Made me cry.
“You never know what your reach is and who’s watching and who’s paying attention. I have little moments like that now throughout the day though that I didn’t have on CNN, where people will say to me, ‘Oh my gosh, I just saw your video. I was just watching you on my phone, I was just looking at your show.’
“My favorite is when they say, ‘I’m a Lemonhead,’ or ‘I’m part of the Lemon nation.’ I’m really grateful for that.”