Why family is my focus in comedy – Areoye Qoyyum

Areoye Qoyyum is a theatre artiste and comedian known for his comic skits online. In this interview, he talks about switching character, making people laugh, and more. Excerpts: Why do you like switching character, mainly from a man or woman to a boy? Professionally, I am a theater artiste. From my experience so far in […]

Areoye Qoyyum is a theatre artiste and comedian known for his comic skits online. In this interview, he talks about switching character, making people laugh, and more. Excerpts:

Why do you like switching character, mainly from a man or woman to a boy?

Professionally, I am a theater artiste. From my experience so far in theatre, you can play any role and be anyone you want to be on stage. Switching roles is not difficult for me; I simply change my costumes, voice, and gestures. Importantly, no single character can tell a story. Other characters or things must playout to make a complete story.

I choose family as one of the focus of my comedy skit because everyone on earth is from a family. Naturally, within families, different things happen; it could be good, bad, or funny. I creatively try to harness family events, spice it up and present it as comedy. I portray my character in three different family personalities. One, as an old philanderous man, two, as a typical inquisitive African mother, three, as a boy I depict what he passes through in the hands of his parents. Also, self-editing my videos makes the process of putting out my work online very easy.

What are those things you cannot meddle with using comedy?

I can’t make fun of a struggling family. I have firsthand experience of what it feels like to come from a low-income home. I don’t joke with that aspect because despite being a comedian, thoughts of how we struggled makes me cry. I don’t want to go into that because I believe things can only get better.

What are your worst and best experiences as a comedian?

People have finally adopted me as their clown. They don’t always take me seriously. In fact, they find it hard to believe me even when I am very serious. It could be frustrating sometimes. Most times, when I want to express myself, almost everyone around me chuckles or laughs aloud. For me, it’s not funny. In this case, I can be likened to a stammerer who is genuinely trying to pass an urgent information but sees the audience smiling at him. However, people like me for putting a smile on their faces.

Does your act make you laugh?

It has a unique way of making me laugh. When the idea drops in my mind, I laugh. But that is not the end product I seek to actualize. While acting or editing, my comedy doesn’t make me laugh because I would have rehearsed and edited over and over. Interestingly, when I am bored, my skits brighten my mood.

How challenging can it get to be funny?

It’s not easy to make people laugh. It requires critical thinking. You have to put together anything and everything funny to make people laugh; it could be either ideas or words. When I complete my skit, I forward them to selected critics who are also my friends. They don’t easily get impressed. They make corrections and I re-edit before I release it to the public.

Why online comedy?

It’s because of the convenience, speed, and wider audience. Staging my comedy for online consumption is very convenient for my audience. I don’t need to confine them within the walls of a building to make them laugh. They can do that right on their toilet seat.

Online platforms give my comedy speed. Once I complete the process of creating, I share it online and it speedily reaches a wide audience. Unlike in movies where you have to be a celebrity before you are celebrated, in comedy, your ability to make people laugh makes you a celebrity. People are not after the who but what makes them laugh. I started my online comedy out of boredom in January 2017. I was acting since 2010. Although I enjoy acting, I feel more fulfilled when it makes people laugh.

How do you get ideas?

I choose to use relatable issues for comedy, something people can easily imagine or relate to. That, I believe, makes things funny.

Which would you say is your favourite comedy skit?

My favourite is the one I did on the issue of rape. I played all at once, the role of a father, mother, and son to depict the rise in rape cases in our society. I regard it as my favourite because it teaches moral lessons comically.