I’m ready to be a father – Basketmouth

I am not in a position to say that. I am just here to play my part. What I strive to do is to expand my horizon and continue to get better. I have moved from stand up comedy to reporting on the spot happenings like I did in Ghana. I won’t say I am […]

I am not in a position to say that. I am just here to play my part. What I strive to do is to expand my horizon and continue to get better. I have moved from stand up comedy to reporting on the spot happenings like I did in Ghana. I won’t say I am the biggest.

Your face is everywhere from Malta Guinness to Silverbird’s Evening with Basketmouth?

The reason all that is happening is because I try to be ahead of my game. The Silverbird thing happened because they saw an innovation from me. Before now what we did as comedians was host a show and bring several of our colleagues to perform. Because of the long list of comedians, the host may not perform for more than 30 minutes while the rest will just do 15 minutes. We never really got an opportunity to express ourselves. When I did Basketmouth Uncensored I was on stage for about two hours because it was a one-man show. I did a couple of others like that and that was why Silverbird contacted me. They wanted someone who could hold the crowd for one hour or more. I have made sure that people know me as a stand up comedian not master of ceremonies (MC). That is why someone can have an event and invite me as a comedian and another person as MC. That is why you find that at weddings or corporate gatherings there will be an MC and I will come in later to do my stand up once or twice during the event. My dreadlock has also helped out.

You must read minds because my next question was going to be on your new look.

Of course my look has contributed to creating the Basketmouth brand. I do not consider myself sexy. In fact, there are loads of sexier people out there but the dreadlock makes people give me a second look. I am not that old and I am not quite young either. But the dreadlock makes me look younger than someone my age. You associate things like dread and weave on a male to teenagers or people in their 20s. Here I am in my 30s looking like a youth but with the mind of an adult.

Is that why you grew the lock?

I just wanted to do my own things differently. I wanted to build a brand with features that people will readily recognise. When you mention Basketmouth people will remember the dreadlock. Some people thought it would have a negative impact on my career but I was determined to break a stereotype. Interestingly, many people in the corporate world accepted my new look. I won’t say it’s because of me, but other comedians started wearing dreadlocks. The thing is that when you do something and you are successful others are likely to follow your steps. At least the fight had been fought. It is not about how you look but what comes out of you. If I am wearing dreadlock but I am not well dressed or my jokes are flat it will kill everything. But if I have dreads and I wear good suit and my jokes are top range people will patronise me.

Do you remember that you used to sing?

Music is still a part of me. If you come to my house I am either watching a film or listening to music. I only listen to music while I am driving except when I have a show and I am monitoring my radio hype. My life revolves around music.

Unfortunately, I have been labeled as a stand up comedian and if I want to pursue music as much as I want I might lose my fans for a while. I am working at becoming an international stand up comedian and I do not know how long it will take to get as far as I want in that line. So, music has to wait for now. Besides, the kind of rap I did back then is not the type people listen to now. If I want to start writing rhymes I need to learn a lot from the people on the scene right now.

How did you get all those corporate organisations to buy into you?

It is God’s doing. Usually in Nigeria when a company does business with an artiste others in the same business won’t want to touch him. I do jobs for MTN, Glo and Celtel but I make sure I satisfy each of them equally to the best of my ability.

The first time I saw you was at an Easter Show by Kennis Music at Motherlan’ many years ago. Do those days still come back to you?

I reminded Kenny (Ogungbe) and Dayo (D-One) Adeneye about that show when I saw them in Ghana during the Nations Cup. I remember I broke a microphone stand that day I reminded them of that too. I try to remember where I am coming from and that keeps me in check. The drive was greater in those days because I wanted to break into the big league.

There were a lot of gigs for up and coming stand ups then but the ones these days are mainly for the popular faces. The competition was stiffer then because every new artiste wanted to outdo the other one. These days everybody has his or her clients locked down and artistes just go out there to flaunt their style not really their creativity. The same thing is happening in music.

Do you still call Ali Baba bros?

Yes, because I still learn from him everyday. I owe a lot to Ali Baba. I don’t think I will ever stop calling him bros.

What exactly did he do for you?

I am not going to mention names but when I was at the University of Benin (UNIBEN) and tried to enter the scene a lot of other comedians didn’t give me a chance. Maybe because they were also struggling and Ali Baba was the made one. I remember he was supporting Tee-A at that time too. When he saw me at UNIBEN he gave me his card and said he was going to introduce me to some people in Lagos. When I got to Lagos he took me in his car to see Opa Williams the man behind Nite of a Thousand Laughs. He also took me to Lagbaja and told him I was good. Through him I also got a corporate gig alongside Femi Kuti. My performance at that show wasn’t particularly great because I tried to sound ‘proper.’ But when he got me on a show organised by Femi Akande called Hanging Out with the Homeboys, I finally made my break. He was the anchor of the show but got me to perform not bothered if I would do better than him.

I was in my element then and really delivered my lines. He took me to every show he was doing and I travelled a lot with him. I was raw and untapped but he showed me how to deliver my materials. He gave me books and comedy DVDs and got me to start buying my own. He made me understand that comedy is not all about being funny but also about timing and knowing your audience.

 The news is that you are about to become a father.

Getting married and having children have to come one way or the other. I want to settle down. I think I have played and seen enough. I don’t want to be 50 with a child in primary school. I am even behind time. The plan was that I would settle down at 24 but things didn’t work out that way.

Is the woman carrying your child the one you want to settle down with?

We are taking one step at a time. Right now our focus is on the baby.

Are you ready for fatherhood?

Yes o. I have always painted a picture of what my kids would look like. My father did well bringing me up the way he did and I want to do the same and better. With God I know I am ready. I was not brought up as ‘ajebo’ but I want my kids to have all those things I didn’t have.

At least they won’t grow up in Ajegunle like you did.

No way. But I will take them there so they can appreciate the life they are living.