Comedy: No longer a laughing matter

Beyond just making people laugh, leading Nigerian comedians are tipping the envelope, proving beyond reasonable doubts that they are equally adept at other endeavours and enterprises. E-Punch examines some of the other things these humour merchants do.

Ali Baba – It is hard to imagine Atunyota Akporobomeriere, pioneer of modern Nigerian comedy known at home and abroad as Ali Baba, in another field. No less because prior to his graduation from Bendel (now Delta) State University, Abraka in 1988 where he read Religious Studies, Ali Baba had been earning enough to keep body and soul together as the funny man on campus, the one individual who can lighten up a graveyard, literally, with jokes. The intervening years have seen him consolidate his position as the number one comedy brand in Nigeria with a clientele base that includes Presidents, Governors and other important individuals.

Thus, when news emerged recently that the ‘King of Comedy’ as he is also known, has taken up another vocation, this time, as the presenter of ‘The Ali Baba Show’,  which airs on weekdays on radio, many were surprised. Was he leaving comedy for good as he once threatened about two years ago? Not really; he says he is only giving vent to another aspiration which he had nursed for a long time.

Basket Mouth – After Ali Baba, Bright Okpocha, aka Basket Mouth, perhaps, is Nigeria’s biggest comedy brand; a fact that is not subject to much debate given his array of endorsement deals and multinational clients. Not only has he remained enduring and consistent since his emergence as one half of a comedy partnership with Teju Babyface, the dreadlocks-spotting comic,  has been hailed as the one comedian who does not just know how to tell a joke but could conjure jokes from the most unlikely situations, situations where you never knew laughter existed. Spontaneous and talented, indeed, there has not been a higher earner in comedy in Nigeria in the last five years than this comedian who hails from Abia State.

Actually, Basketmouth started out as a rapper before comedy overrode that and it did not come as much surprise when he released a single recently entitled ‘Where you dey’,  featuring eLDee and Wizkid. He has opened an ultra-modern discotheque, bar and lounge in the university community of Yaba, Lagos – called EmBARssy.

Gbenga Adeyinka – The 1st – As it happened in comedy; Gbenga Adeyinka the 1st would also find relevance on television as the producer of the syndicated comedy talkshow, Laffmatazz. The show has run on television for about six years and it has spawned other brands – a magazine and a comedy show. The Laffmatazz magazine, the first of its kind by any Nigerian comedian, has outlived many other niche magazines, surviving on the publisher’s ingenuity and the publication’s reader friendliness. Noteworthy is that CFR, as he is otherwise called, is the graphics designer of the magazine.

An English Language graduate of the University of Lagos, Adeyinka, months back, also launched a new television programme, Gbamu Gbamu on Africa Magic. In an interview with E-Punch at the outset of the programme, Adeyinka said, “Gbamu Gbamu is strictly a Yoruba-oriented talk show aimed at Nigerians, who understand the language and non-Nigerians or individuals, who like the Yoruba culture. It is targeted at revisiting and bringing the slapsticks of Baba Sala, Ajimajasan and others, to the worldview in a more contemporary form.”

Julius Agwu – There is something about Julius ‘De Genius’ Agwu that would always make you want to listen to him. There is the voice tone ingenuity. There is the body-contorting ability to illustrate a joke. There is also the ability to repeat a joke and still make you hold your sides from too much laughter. Starting out as a stage actor and later, Nollywood, Julius became popular when he released his musi-comedy album, Okombo, which sampled heavily the music of Congolese Makoussa great, Awilo Longomba’s Coupe Bibamba.

In a few weeks, the University of Port Harcourt Theatre Arts graduate would be launching a new television show, Jokes Apart, which is a serious but comical look at topical issues. He tells E-Punch, “Jokes Apart started in the early 90s as my stage name back in the university. Then, anytime I appeared on stage, I punctuated my performances by saying ‘Jokes’ and the crowd would respond ‘Apart’. But when I relocated to Lagos to begin professional comedy, I decided to push my family name, Agwu as I already had future plans for Jokes Apart.”

Tee A – When you see Tunde ‘Tee A’ Adewale on stage anywhere, you know you are in for a good time. Imagine now seeing him attending to you in an exquisite bar and lounge; running around to ensure your orders are delivered promptly? Well, that was the scenario that used to play out at his Tymeout Bar and Lounge located in the heart of Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos. Tee A ran the club for about two years before the biting realities of the Nigerian business climate forced him to close shop. He is however planning to reopen the bar elsewhere.

The masterstroke for this young man who has devoted the past 14 years of his life to comedy was hosting the first solo comedy show in Nigeria, Live n Naked, which has now been rested. The Linguistics graduate of the University of Lagos has delved into other spheres of entertainment, including hosting his own television show, Tymeout with Tee A in the mid 2000s. The variety comedy show, which now broadcasts in Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and England, was resuscitated last year and the third season hits screens this week.

Teju Babyface – Despite coming from a privileged background and earning a degree in Insurance from the University of Lagos, Teju ‘Babyface’ Oyelakin chose the path of comedy. And he has made good, comparatively even better than those who chose a career in the corporate world. Though he first became a sensation in the entertainment industry with his memorable role in Tade Ogidan movie, Diamond Ring, comedy is what has helped him to consolidate.

While he is not leaving active comedy any time soon, Teju Babyface has not been too visible in his sector as he used to. Reason? His television programme, The Teju Babyface Show, has in a short while become one of the most popular programmes on televisions. The show is highly-rated among advertisers and media monitors. In the last one year alone, it has played host to the major players in the entertainment and socio-political circuits such as King Sunny Ade, K1 De Ultimate, Richard Mofe Damijo, Dele Momodu and Abimbola Fashola.