July 03, (THEWILL) – Popular stand-up comedian, Gbenga Adeyinka, speaks with Shade Wesley Metibogun about comedy, his love for Bola Ahmed Tinubu, how he rose to become the most sought-after master of ceremony in Nigeria and sundry issues. Excerpts:
How does it feel to be the most sought-after master of ceremony in Nigeria?
It is a very humbling experience. I am grateful to God for it. I have always worked towards it. I thank God and the people who patronise me because they have given me the opportunity to realize that dream.
What are you doing differently that others are not doing?
I think it is grace. I also try to do a lot of research on the kind of event I am doing. I do research and background check on the people coming for the event I will be anchoring. For instance, in preparation for the event I anchored yesterday, I searched Google for the identities of all the traditional rulers in the South-West so that I can recognise them when they step into the event hall without asking the organisers for the names of the dignitaries. That has helped me a lot in handling most of the events that I anchor.
What will you consider to be your staying power over the years?
Be very faithful to your art. Don’t let it get into your head. Be the same person you have always been. Humility helps a lot, too. Also, know that you are only as good as your last job. Try to go above your level. For instance, I learnt from my colleague, Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome aka Ali Baba. If you are a master of ceremony, ordinary things that should not concern you should be of concern because if anything should go wrong, it will affect your job. Things like microphone check, sound check, getting in tune with the musician. Those little things should be considered. I shouldn’t be telling you my entire secret.
How challenging is it being a master of ceremony?
There is no gain without pain. There is nothing you do in this world that is not challenging. Even when armed robbers jump into a property without knowing what is at the other end, they do it at a risk. It is a lot of work. Like I always say, if you are not afraid to make money, you should be ready to work. A lot of people do three jobs abroad, why don’t we do it in Nigeria and pray that God smiles on us as we do it cheerfully.
If you were asked to choose between standup comedy and master of ceremony, which of the two would you choose?
I have always wanted to be a standup comedian that could be a master of ceremony or a master of ceremony that could make jokes. That is what I set out to be from day one. If I have my way, I will keep doing what I have been doing. It will make me last longer in the industry. If you are a standup comedian, you blow people away and you cannot function as a master of ceremony. That is not good enough. Nigerians get tired easily. You have to keep reinventing yourself so that you can stay longer in the industry with God on your side.
Over 10 years ago, you set out to build young talents from the South-West. How far have you gone on that project?
I think God has been extremely kind to my platform, which is known as ‘Laffmattazz With Gbenga Adeyinka and Friends’. Without being immodest, I think that all the comedy greats from the South-West came through our platform. From Ibadan to Abeokuta. It is just that I believe one should not blow his trumpet.
Can you mention some of the talents you have mentored to greatness?
I would like them to say it themselves so that it will not look as if I am taking the glory. As a Christian, I believe no man should take glory. Whatever they say is okay by me, but believe me, they are quite a few. I am happy to be associated with such things.
Are you thinking of extending that dream to other parts of the country?
I am also a realist. One of the biggest challenges of building a platform or structure is funding and sponsorship. As it were, building the platform in the South-West has taken a heavy toll on my finances, but if I get some form of sponsorship from corporate bodies, I will definitely do just that. I do six shows every year now. We used to do five but this year, we added Lagos to it. If I get more sponsorship, we will be able to conquer Nigeria.
Skit makers are doing so well that it seems they are taking the shine off stand-up comedians. Is it right to make such an assertion?
Comedians are also content creators. So it all boils down to how intelligent you are with your content. I have content that is over 12 years-old. I can conveniently start a television station with the contents that I have. Skit makers have grown in leaps and bounds, but then, the sky is wide enough to accommodate everybody. There was a time when it looked as if stand-up comedians were all over the place. Now that the time has come for skit makers to shine, let them enjoy their time. I know that we are an industry that keeps evolving, but I must say I don’t think anybody is taking the shine off others. It is just that a set of new people came with something different and it is accepted. The truth is that it is not everyone that does skits that can do stand-up comedy, just like it is not everybody who does stand-up comedy that can do skits. They are two different things. Some can do skits, but they cannot stand in front of a crowd to do stand-up comedy.
When are you planning to retire from stand-up comedy?
I don’t know. Maybe when I become the president of Nigeria or the governor of Ogun State, I might decide to stop. For now, I will still keep going.
Does that mean you are nursing a political ambition in the nearest future?
I am very sure of that because I believe that we all have a duty to determine how we are governed or who governs us. I may not be the one contesting, but I will be actively involved with the person contesting. If I am the one contesting, definitely I will be actively involved in it. I have always been involved in politics. I just felt that it is important to have a source of income so that you don’t become a political jobber. It is important so that one can have something to fall back on if things don’t work out in politics. By the grace of the Almighty God, if people say they need me just like they used to say in politics ‘people called me and I answered the call,’ why not?
Is that the reason for your closeness to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu?
I have always been close to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. I started working for him in 1999. He has been extremely good to me. And I see capacity in the man. When you know somebody first-hand and you know what he can do, you will do anything to advertise him. People who know me and know what I can do advertise my craft a lot. There are some events that I will get to and they will say they don’t know the juju I have done that a particular person just insisted I must anchor his event. For instance, at the event I attended in Owo, Ondo State over the weekend, I was told that one man in the family insisted that I must anchor the event, no matter what it would cost. When you also have the opportunity to sell a good material, you should do it. I believe that if Tinubu is given the chance to lead the country, he will change Nigeria for good.
What exactly has he done for you that you are singing his praise?
He has been a big supporter of my brand over the years. I handle the majority of his family’s events. I have done a couple of things for them. It is a family I know very well. They have helped me to build my career and brand. I have been working for him since he became the governor of Lagos State. His wife is like a mother to me. People don’t like the term pay back, but if someone has been good to you, you must be good to the person, too.
A lot of people have criticised you because of your choice. How do you feel facing such backlash?
I don’t care. I posted a statement on my Instagram page about it. One of the songs I like so much is Oun to baa wu anybody lo le fenuwon so (people are free to say whatever they want to say).
As a human being, I have the fundamental right to association. Just like when someone comes to me and says he is supporting Anini or Shina Rambo who are die hard criminals. I feel it is their right to choose who they love. But they cannot criticise me for what I believe in, just like the way I shouldn’t criticise them for what they believe in. I think the biggest problem we have in Nigeria is that we want everybody to think the way we are thinking. And we want to bully people into accepting our point of view. If at my age, I still allow people to bully me, then my parents should have a meeting and ask themselves if they are truly my parents.
Let me give you an example. I have a lot of friends who are Christians, I have a lot of friends who are Muslims and traditional worshippers, should I stop being friends with them because we don’t belong to the same religion? Some of my best friends are supporters of Atiku Abubakar. Let me give you an example in Lagos State. The guy contesting against Governor Babajide Sanwo-olu is my very good and close friend. I will not like to disclose his name. We belong to a couple of groups and associations, but he is aware in his heart that Governor Sanwo-olu is my preferred candidate. I have made it known to him, but it has not affected our friendship. I am sure if I say this on social media, some of his supporters will come and abuse me, those who love Jesus more than Mary. We still need a lot of education in Nigeria. Who I chose to support should not be a source of fight. When I see the repercussions, maybe I can change my mind. That is how I live my life, nobody can bully me.
Bola Ahmed Tinubu is one of the people who brought a failed government into power. Don’t you think that is enough reason for people to oppose his political aspirations now?
That is subjective. He thought he saw someone who could make Nigeria greater. Is it every decision in your life that turned out right? If things didn’t turn out right, will you stop living because of that? Will you stop being who you are? If you recommend someone for a job and the person failed woefully, does that mean you should not apply for a job? The fact that he supported this present government and things did not work out as planned is just one out of a hundred instances. More so, you are not supposed to score a hundred percent all the time.
If you fail in one place, you turn around and move. I wouldn’t call Buhari a total failure because he is not. He is not a total failure, nobody has done the infrastructure that the president has done in this country since the days of Awolowo, you can verify yourself. I am not a Buharist, but if I see anything wrong, I will say it out loud. If Asiwaju becomes the president today and things are not going right, I will still talk. That is why my own followership is different.
I campaigned for Buhari, but when I noticed that they were getting some fundamental things wrong, I spoke up. Anyway, anybody supporting anyone will have a reason for supporting that person. I am very clear and open- minded about that. I remember when I first started my career, a man didn’t want to pay the remaining fees. Guess what? He said I was sweating at the event, which is the reason for not paying me in full for working for him. People will also have a reason for doing what they do, but then, it is between them and their God. If you don’t want to vote for Asiwaju, don’t vote for him. If it is Peter Obi that you like, you can go ahead with it. I will respect you for that. I have endured all kinds of abuses on my social media handles because of my support for Tinubu and I have never gone to anybody’s page to write such things about them. They abuse me and my children’s children. I find that so barbaric. Do you understand the perspective I am coming from? I have my choice. If I don’t want to wear clothes and be moving about naked, it is my problem. Charley Boy has a nose ring, tongue ring, earring, belly ring, that is his choice.
Are you happy and satisfied with the way the country is being run under the All Progressives Congress?
Nigeria can be better, no doubt. Anyone who tells you the country is okay is lying to you. And I know and I am convinced in my heart that the person that can set Nigeria right is Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. He can do it because of his capacity. We have made a few silly mistakes, but we cannot say because some people got it wrong, we should now throw away the baby with the bath water.
Don’t you think he is old and his health will deprive him of functioning well?
It’s like you don’t like him, too. Asiwaju is not older than Biden. Age is not a form of competence. We have seen younger people in government who are doing rubbish, I don’t want to mention names but you know. When people mention age, they have forgotten that everyone will grow old one day. Should society cast them aside because they have aged? Let us leave politics, I can go on and on about it. I just pray that the best person that will lead Nigeria right will be our next president. But deep down within me, it is Asiwaju. If God says he is not the person, so be it. He has the ability to identify talents and put them in the right place. I will not go and burn anybody’s house or fight anybody because of it.
Are any of your children taking after you careerwise?
All my children are serious people. I am the only unserious person in my house. But they have the same humour gene that I have. But none of them will do this. As of now anyway, let me not say never, I don’t see them doing it. They are involved in much more “serious things” than their father. I am the only unserious person in my house.
Do you often feel bad that none of them might take over your legacies?
No, I don’t. It must not be my children. I have more children in the comedy industry than I have at home. By building those other ones, the industry is still moving forward. It is not a monarchy. It doesn’t have to be my children. Even if I stop doing laffmattazz today, I might decide to give the franchise to someone else to run. It doesn’t have to be my children. That is the mistake that a lot of people make. if my children are not interested in it, they will not do it to the best of their ability. My son wants to be a pilot, my daughter is in Human Resources and she is enjoying it, my last daughter is in Mass Communication, she is on radio and she is enjoying it. If I now force them into something they don’t want, I won’t even do that. I don’t force what they will do on them, I don’t believe in it.
You ventured into confectionery a while ago, how is the business doing?
We are doing well. We have had our ups and down. You know when you are new in business, Nigeria will show you pepper. I had some staff that almost frustrated me, but we are in a new location now. We have gotten our NAFDAC accreditation. I believe in being slow and steady. I don’t even have all the money in the world to invest in it. We are doing well but not as much as I wanted to when we started. You know when you start a business, you will have so many ideas but turning them to reality is the main thing.
How are you juggling everything together?
If you have good managers, you don’t have to be everywhere. All you need is a good manager and that was the challenge I had at the beginning. I can’t be in the bakery and still be preparing for my shows. It took me a while to get the bakery stabilised, but we seem to making a lot of progress right now.
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