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Meet the 10 best comedians in Africa – the most popular rib crackers of the moment!
More recently, comedy as an aspect of entertainment has gained much popularity and patronage in Africa. Just like musicians, comedians are becoming stars in Africa and beyond. They also start to earn a lot of fame, recognition and fortune. It will no longer sound strange when a child says they want to be a comedian in the future. With comedy catching on now, many young people in Africa have made comedy careers. Interestingly, African comedians are among the best in the world. They are as good as ever and can easily turn a blue day into a very happy one with their witty and rib-breaking jokes. We have a list of Most Popular African Comedians – Top 10 . Enjoy…
10. BOVI – Nigerians
Bovi is a Nigerian comedian that many people love so much. He began expanding his career in April 2007 on the sitcom Family which he produced, wrote and packaged. The show was very popular and in 2008 Bovi was directing comedy shows and events across Nigeria. He took part in the Nite von 1000 Laughs organized by Grandpa Williams. He gradually gained notoriety and recognition through individual performances and also through bonding with very popular comedians on stage. He is always dating popular Nigerian comedian Bright Okpocha.
His full name is Bovi Ugboma and he was born on 25. September 1979. He is not only a comedian but also a director, producer, actor and writer. A native of Delta State, Bovi has a degree in Theater Arts from Delta State University. Bovi is one of the funniest comedians in Africa right now. He is closely associated with the wave-making Akpos jokes and is the first person to be called that name by a fellow comedian, AY.
9. EDDIE KADI – Congolese
Eddie Kadi is a Congo-born (to be Kinshasa to be precise), British-born comedian who constantly woos everyone with his unique African-influenced brand of comedy and humor, even selling out notable venues in the multicultural UK. It’s basically his quick wit and unpredictability that make him a natural entertainer. Eddie Kadi won the BECA Award for Best Comedy Newcomer shortly after beginning his career as a comedian. The last time Eddie headlined his own show was at the 02 Arena, as the first black British comedian to do so. He is also an actor and musician.
8. JOHN VLISMAS – South African
John Vlismas is a popular but controversial comedian who is always considered offensive. He’s one of those comedians who think comedy isn’t about the comic. He will inform society of the truth, no matter how offensive it may be. Regardless, Vlismas knows how to make his audience laugh with his so-called “insulting jokes.”
7. MICHAEL BLACKSON – Ghanaians
Michael Blackson is a Ghanaian known for his dry jokes, which are always good enough to get his audience laughing. He is actually the oldest of all the comedians on this list: he was born in November 1972. He is popularly known as the African King of Comedy. He was inspired by Eddie Murphy’s comedy.
He has appeared in many well-known comedy competitions such as the USA Comedy Central Tour in Philadelphia, the Schlitz Malt Liquor Comedy Tour in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, and the Urban Comedy Festival in New York City. Blackson also competed in the Laffapolooza Comedy Festival in Atlanta and the Bay Area Black Comedy Competition in Oakland, California.
6. NIK RABINOWITZ – South African
Nik Rabinowitz is a South African comedian and writer who has guest-starred on several comedy shows including the UK panel show Mock the Week . Nik studied at the University of Cape Town, where he earned a business degree. He has become a sought-after national comedian and a household name outside of Cape Town, and according to audience feedback, Rabinowitz is getting funnier by the day and could rise up the list of favorite African comedians in the near future. He is currently presenting The Week That Wasn’t .
Nik, who bills himself as the world’s “leading Xhosa-speaking Jewish comedian,” has been a fixture on the local comedy scene for years with numerous shows up his sleeve. Not to mention he’s appeared in locally produced film productions with fellow funnyman (and doctor) Riaad Moosa’s material. He also co-authored a book, The Youngsters , and opened for the Toronto South African Film Festival in 2014.
5. RIAAD MOOSA – South African
Riaad Moosa is a very funny South African comedian and actor who not only knows verbal jokes but also dances and other forms of comic gestures. He is popularly known for drawing his jokes from his Indian heritage and Muslim faith. He is of mixed race – Indian-Malay. He is a doctor by profession, but has given up his profession as a comedian and uses laughter instead of drugs as a medicine to heal people. His popularity in comedy stemmed from his native Cape Town comedy club circle, where he became known for poking fun at Islamic stereotypes.
He recently starred as Ahmed Kathrada in Anant Singh’s epic Oscar and Golden Globe nominated film “Mandela.” Moosa, one of the country’s most beloved and beloved cities, has hailed pranksters with a style all his own known as “The Comedy Doctor,” and he certainly seems to have the cure for the nation’s ills at the moment: a healthy dose of laughter!
4. I GO DIE – Nigerians
Francis Agoda is his name. The comedian is popularly known as “I Go Dye” (which basically sounds like his last name) and hails from the Nigerian state of Delta. One of his most popular comedy shows is called “I Go Dye Standing”. Agoda began his comedy career at the age of 13 in his state. He is one of the most talented rib crackers Nigeria and Africa are blessed with. He has a very quick mouth and can make up witty stories so funny that within seconds his audience will be bursting out laughing.
I Go Dye has been featured in MTV Africa Music Awards and also in the opening and closing shows by world-renowned musicians including Akon, Boyz II Men, Rick Ross, The Game, Kelly Rowland and others. He has won the Creative Award in Africa (CAN), African Best Comedian, TV People Golden Award (New York) and the NIDOE-SPAIN Award for his contribution to uplifting Nigeria’s cultural and artistic values, the Nigeria Best Comedian award (NEA AWARD), National Comedy Award (NCA), Best Comedian in Nigeria, Best Niger Delta Comedian and many more awards.
3. LOYISO GOLA – South African
Loyiso Gola is one of South Africa’s leading comedians after Trevor Noah. He is a co-creator and host of the late night television series Satirical News Late Nite News with Loyiso Gola on e.tv and eNCA, which started in 2010. He was born on May 16, 1983 and began his career as a comedian in 2002. He is known for making satirical jokes which, while witty, usually have serious meanings.
In 2012 he was named Mail & Guardian 200 Young South Africans in the Media & Film category. Men’s Health describes Gola as a “divisive mass attraction” due to the overtly critical nature of his humor and as “a genuine thinker masquerading as a fool and the reluctant voice of a cynical generation”. His younger brother Lazola Gola is also a comedian. He won the 2014 Savanna SA Comic’s Choice Award – the award for Comic of the Year.
2nd basket mouth – Nigerians
I don’t need to tell you about Basket Mouth because even if you’re not a lover of jokes, you can’t help but know and hear him wherever you are. Basket Mouth, real name Bright Okpocha, is a leading artist in the Nigerian comedy industry and the second most popular comedian in Africa. He is 36 years old and hails from Abia, Nigeria. Bright is the host of the groundbreaking comedy show Basket Mouth Uncensored, which ran globally for four consecutive years from 2005-2009. He was the first African comedian to put on a one-man comedy concert at the HMB Hammersmith Apollo, which sold massively. that was on February 21, 2010.
He tried comedy at the University of Benin in his school days, but you won’t believe that his first stand-up comedy was a disaster because the crowd irritated him and booed him off the stage. Later that year (1999) he returned after a series of research into what brand of comedy could be sold at the University of Benin. This was the beginning of Basket Mouth’s introduction and acceptance into the world of stand-up comedy. Basket Mouth have now performed 9 different concerts in the UK including Basket Mouth Uncensored Live @ the O2, Nigerian Kings of Comedy and The African Kings of Comedy. He has also hosted Comedy Central presentations in South Africa, Lords of The Ribs and many more.
1. TREVOR NOAH – South African
Trevor Noah is a popular South African comedian. Usually referred to as “the funny man”, he is popularly known for drawing humor from the events of South African apartheid. Trevor Noah was born on February 20, 1984 in AmsterdamJohannesburg, South Africa. He is currently 31 years old. Although Noah is often thought of as South African, it is actually his mother who is of South African (Xhosa to be precise) origin. His father is Swiss but lived in South Africa where he married and gave birth to Trevor. Trevor doesn’t record his speeches, not even a sketch of them like some other comedians do. He does everything spontaneously and that makes a big difference. He generates humor from whatever he deems appropriate for the situation and audience at that moment.
You might like – Trevor Noah: 12 Interesting Things About The SA Comedian That Didn’t Cross Your Mind
Trevor Noah is one of the hottest artists in international comedy. He is the latest contributor to The Daily Show Starring Jon Stewart , debuted December 4, 2014. He is the first South African comedian to appear on The Tonight Show and is currently the funniest and most popular comedian on the African continent.
