Ali baba nigerian comedian biography book

A memoir is like a book without a real ending.

It is like a sneeze held in abeyance, a bomb that does not become because a memoir is really no more than a series of accounts from a life still making its orbit.

Okey Bakassi’s poignant and compelling memoir is the third book by a comedian that I have had the pleasure of working on and engaging with at very close quarters.

First was Julius Agwu’s biography which I co-edited with my partner, Peju Akande. Next came Ali Baba’s and now Okey Bakassi’s “The Memoir of an African Comedian.”

I did not write this one but I have been an active participant in its creation.

A casual consideration of the books by these three comedians will reveal that their books have a common thread running through them. This is not surprising since they are all birds of the same feather, united by the very fact of their profession as comedians.

But what I speak of is not the frisson of comedy rippling through the pages. What I want to comment on is something I wish to refer to as “the Lagos stories” of these three men who came from provincial locales and made Lagos home.

Lagos is a major character in all three books and Okey Bakassi may well be the first to define Lagos in such poetic language which nonetheless leaves a chill. He calls the city of Lagos a place of “predation and strife”.

Okey Bakassi’s first digs was a small flat in Ketu which somehow managed to turn into a submarine whenever it rained. His subsequent accommodation led to such unusual strife that he almost committed murder.

But despise not the days of small beginnings, warns the Holy book. Today, Okey Bakassi is among the top tier of Nigerian comedians as anchor of The Other News Show on Channels television, making him Nigeria’s Trevor Noah, if you will.

Okey’s story of lack and homelessness in Lagos juxtaposed against his subsequent stories of

Veteran Nigerian comedian Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome, widely known as Alibaba, recently disclosed that his parents primarily wanted him to study law due to his early reading ability at the age of three.

Alibaba shared this revelation during his appearance as a guest on the Christmas edition of The Honest Bunch Podcast.

“My dad was keen on me pursuing law because parents were remarkably attentive in those days.

“In my case, I began reading at the age of three. I immersed myself in the New Nigerian, the West African Pilot, the Observer Tribune, Sunday Times, and various other newspapers.

“Observing my ability to read, write, engage in conversations, and argue persuasively, my dad concluded that I was destined to be a lawyer and guided me accordingly.”

He recounted scoring 201 in the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) exam in 1984. However, he failed mathematics in the General Certificate of Education (GCE) and was unable to secure admission into the University that year. Yet, upon entering school the following year, he began to refine his comedic skills, despite his father’s lack of support for that career choice.

The 58-year-old comedian also disclosed that his father did not communicate with him for ten years, from 1988 to 1998.

Tags:Alibaba

Nigerian stand-up comedian (born 1965)

Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome, professionally known as Ali Baba, is a Nigerian stand-up comedian, master of ceremonies and actor.

Early life

Ali Baba was born in Agbarha otor, Delta State, Nigeria on 24 June 1965, to the royal family of Agbarha Otor. He is the first son of several children and spent his first 8 years in Warri, Delta State. His father is a retired soldier who served in Lagos.

Education

He attended Command Secondary School, Ipaja, Lagos State, and Ibru College Agbarha-Otor, Delta State. He attended Bendel State University (now Ambrose Alli University), Ekpoma and graduated with a degree in Religious Studies & Philosophy.He was neighbour to Pastor Chris Oyakhilome while at school in university.

Career

After completing his academic degree in 1990, he relocated back to Lagos, to develop his comedy talent he discovered at the university. Originally, he planned to study Law but decided he could be more successful by making people laugh than by defending them.

Professional career

He began his professional career performing at corporate events, appearing on television shows with Patrick Doyle, Charly Boy, and Danladi Bako, and making cameo appearances on radio shows with Bisi Olatilo, Sani Irabor, and Mani Onumonmu. He also worked with Prince Adedapo Benjamin Adelegan of DP Lekki Limited as executive assistant in 1991.

In 2014, Ali Baba started an annual comedy event called the 1 January concert. Comedians come up to review the events of the previous year and a first-class graduate from the