If I'd Been Told I'd Be A Comedian, I'll Have Said God Forbid
- Gbenga Adeyinka

Gbenga Adeyinka Gbenga Adeyinka is a comedian per excellence. A graduate of English Language from University of Lagos, now a comedian. In this Interview with Adunola Fasuyi, he speaks about his career and other issues relating to his life. Excerpts:

Can you tell us about your background?
Yeah, my name is Gbenga Adeyinka, The First. I grew up with my maternal grandmother in Surulere, Lagos. I attended a couple of primary schools because while growing up, I was very stubborn and my uncles used to tell my grandmother that she wanted to spoil me and she should allow me to stay with them to imbibe some sense. I would go and live with them, and by the time I showed the man pepper, he will say "it is only your granny that can train and tolerate you," and he would send me back.

So, in view of this, I was moved from one uncle to another; hence, I kept changing school. But it was fun because I got learning a lot about Nigeria because I went to schools in Lagos, Abeokuta, Government College, Eric Moore and International School in U.I, Ibadan for my A' Levels. From there, I went to UNILAG where I studied English. My family is from Abeokuta, Ogun State, but I believe I am a Nigerian.

You said you grew up with your grandmum, what about your parents?
My parents separated when I was very young; so, my mum and I went back to live with my grandmum, and those were the best years of my life because I became something like an akebaje (a spoilt child) who was also being punished at anytime I misbehaved. So, it was an opportunity for me to learn as much as I could, and in fact, I got to know about life at a very tender age. I also learnt to cook because in my house back in those days, everybody had a day to cook and I enjoyed it. Now, I am a very good cook.

When it was your first turn to cook, how was the experience like?
(Laughs!) It was a lot of concoction, but they ate it like that. But having watched continuously and done it regularly, I became an expert at it over time. It’s just a matter of replicating what they did and I became very good at it. I'm good at doing what people do once I watch. Honestly, cooking is very interesting. For me, it was fun growing up. I have one elder brother and two younger sisters.

Were you a brilliant child because ordinarily, changing schools like that will derail academic and intelligence progress?
Oh yes, I was a brilliant child, and that was one thing they love about me. That Gbenga might be stubborn, he might like to play football, but he is intelligent and knows his books. For me, once I listen to you, I digest and assimilate and it sticks to my brain. When I was in school, both secondary and university, I never had notes and it was only the teachers that beat us that I had their notes. All I had to do was come to class, sit down, listen attentively, then I go to the library, read and I am ready for exams.

In those days, I used to do two weeks crash course for my exams; even the classes I missed I’d just do like two weeks serious studying and I go for my exams. One of the things that pain me is that I was very close to making a 2.1 from the university, but came out with a Second Class Lower. And 2.2 of then is equivalent to a First Class of now. But then, if you don’t read, you can’t pass. And that was one of the things that propelled me — that you have to put in an extra effort to whatever you are doing.

So, for me, growing up was a lot of fun. I enjoyed my stubbornness. I played football and at a point, I thought they cursed me with football, because if you sent me to go and grind pepper, I will keep the pepper by the post and start playing football and about four hours later, I would remember that "eh, it's pepper they told me to go and grind oh." I would then start thinking of the lies I would tell them at home — that a car hit me; pepper fell inside gutter; the man took me to the hospital and now gave me money to buy another pepper, so that is why I am late...

All those lies, did they ever work?
For where? They would beat me bastardly. I think what that taught me was that there is no need to lie because my grandmum will tell me "just speak the truth and I will not beat you, but if I find out you are lying, I will beat you." So, I will now confess amid tears that I went to play football. I remember when I was in Form Three in secondary school, then, I was living with my uncle. I was used to coming between First and Seventh positions in the class, but Form Three in particular was bad because I was fond of playing football and I came 17th position.

My uncle then told me, "Gbenga, if you don’t come between First and 10th next term, you will repeat the class. I said "for where?" Second term, I think I came 26th or so. He now took me to school to meet the principal and told him that we had both agreed that I should repeat the class if I didn’t come between First and 10th position. The principal asked me if it was true, I looked at him and said "what am I supposed to say? Will I say it’s a lie? Somebody I am living with?" I said it’s true and that was when I realised that he was serious.

So, I started reading harder. Third term, I read and unfortunately for me, I came 10th and my percentage was like 50 something and my uncle said I was not competing against people in my class, that for me to have come 10th, that means people in my class were not brilliant. "You have to repeat this class," he said. So, I repeated. But that was the best thing anybody ever did to me in my life because until then, I was just living a visionless life, I didn’t know that after secondary school, you will go to the university; that you have to sit for JAMB and so on. I knew these things, but they meant nothing to me until I repeated that class. After I repeated, I came First consecutively and I became focused. I met a whole lot of people who shaped my life and turned it around.

Where have you worked after your first degree before shifting into entertainment?
I served at Radio Benue in Makurdi. I was retained. I came back to Lagos. Then, it was the age of finance banks and I was looking for a bank to work with. I didn’t get one and I went to work with my uncle who is an engineer; he had an engineering firm. I worked in his corporate affairs department. From there to an advertising agency where I was their head of creative and concept development. I was not fulfilled and I wanted to do something on my own. So, I started Kiddies Incorporated, where I was doing kiddies programmes, doing MC at kiddies parties and that was when children’s parties were very popular with Mickey Mouse, clowns and so on. I was the king of Ikeja in those days and that was in the early 90s.

When did you realise the comedy talents in you?
I had always had it way back in secondary school. When we were playing football, I just generally made a nuisance of myself and found people laughing. I disturbed people, stunted people. In the class, the teacher would say oh sorry, I made a mistake, that was not what I wanted to say and I’d say "eh, eh." Then, the teacher would say, "Adeyinka, get out of the class." At times, they beat me. But it came to the fore after I did a play in The Gods are not to blame in Form Three. Then, I started to like the arts. So, all my football energy I started diverting into reading seriously, like I read all the Hardley Chase and my mind became very fertile.

So, it was a natural thing that I studied English. I wanted to study Law, but my uncle did not allow me. In fact, I got admission to study Law in LASU but didn’t have a hostel. But one day, my uncle drove me to Ikeja High Court and started showing me lawyers who were poor with faded black suits and unsuccessful, but he didn’t show me the successful ones like Gani Fawehinmi, Rotimi Williams, Falana, among others. I think in his heart, he really wanted me to be an engineer, but I was so poor in Mathematics. After one of my friends had got an admission to UNILAG to study Architecture, he invited me for his matriculation and we went to watch a play; he lived in Makama Bida Hall. There, I made up my mind that I was coming to UNILAG, join Theatre 15, read Theatre Arts, live in Makama Bida Hall and all these I achieved — there was no Theater Arts and Creative Arts in UNILAG then. So, I went for English and Literature.

Then, did you know you would make a living out of it?
For where? If you had told me then that I was going to be a comedian, I would have told you Olorun ma je o (God forbid!). But now, I think everything God did right from my growing up was to just push me to what I am doing now. Because for you to be a good comedian, you must read well, be intelligent, interested in the arts, have a fertile mind and be interested in what you are doing.

Your role model and mentor in the comedy business?
In comedy, my mentor is Alli Baba because he is a first runner who succeeded at what he chose to do. In life, I have two, unfortunately they are both dead. Martin Luther King Jnr. and MKO Abiola. I draw my strength from these two people because without Abiola, there would not have been a June 12 and Nigeria would not have had democracy, without Luther King Jnr., there would not have been an Obama because he said one day, the children of slaves and slave owners will sit at the table of brotherhood to fight for peace, liberty and justice for all and that has happened. Though they didn’t get to the promised land, but they dreamed it. To me, it is not what happens when you are alive that matters most but what people remember you for when you are gone.

How has the experience been like doing MC for government officials?
The thing about working as a comedian is this, when you get into the groove, you just go on and on, it keeps flowing but a good comedian must be very witty on the spot, sensible and intelligent. You don’t say Yar’Adua is a long neck or Tinubu is an Oju y obo. There are comic and sensible ways of passing your message across. For instance, I did something about Governor Babatude Fashola and he was there, I said "your Excellency, I must confess, kiddies are not sure of your religion.

That my two kids were arguing about it, one said you are a Muslim because of the name Raji, the other said no that you are a Christian because there is a chapel in the Government House, they were arguing and one suddenly said no, he must be a Guru Maharaj Ji with the way he is planting flowers all over Lagos. And Fashola laughed and just thumbed at me. I do it in such a way that the message will go, praise you, make people laugh at you and you will laugh at yourself too.