Comedians should be paid by Federal Government for contributing to the country’s peace —Geejokes

GeeJokes is a fast-rising comedian who has made a name for himself with his wittiness and spontaneity, right from his days as an undergraduate in the University of Ibadan. He speaks to ROTIMI IGE in this interview on why comedians deserve more recognition in Nigeria, his upcoming event, among other issues.

The journey so far

I am Adejobi Omogbolahan Kerry, popularly known as Geejokes. My journey into comedy started in 2014, that was the first time I had a stage performance at my church. We had a children’s day event that Sunday. One of the teachers asked if I would read the Bible verse or attempt comedy. I was scared of forgetting the Bible verse so I chose comedy.

So, that day I had to read online jokes because I’ve never attempted cracking jokes and I was only 15 then… Luckily for me, I performed that day and got a standing ovation, it looks amazing to me, my parents and the church liked it so I started my career as a comedian.

I kept on cracking jokes in my local church and other churches around. I was using my real name-Gbolahan as my stage name but later I just took the ‘G’ in front of my name and added jokes behind and now I’m GEE JOKES.

Tell us about your educational life.

I’m still a student at the prestigious University of Ibadan where I’m in my final year in the department of food technology. Hopefully, with the amazing miracles of Jesus, I would graduate with a first class even though I’m currently in a very STRONG second class lower cadre (Laughs).

What is your definition of comedy?

For me, comedy is not just what you hear, it’s what you see, feel and live by. As long as it makes someone laugh, it’s comedy to me. Comedians should be paid by the Federal Government because we contribute a lot to the country.

What is the most embarrassing thing a fan has done to you?

Hmm, someone once tried to kiss me on stage, a girl obviously. It was on one of my campus tours in 2017. It all happened really fast because I wasn’t expecting such, but God saved me that day I was able to move aside on time.

What are your challenges.

My age! Even now that I’m in my early twenties, people still look at me as the teenage comedian of years past. Sometimes I would be talking to an elderly person and once I mention my age they would start talking to me like their child. I’ve started growing beards though, so maybe things would change.

What do you like most about being a comedian?

Honestly, seeing people happy makes me happy. I’m naturally a very happy person and most times I like sharing my happiness. Comedy has made me bold and outspoken, because I’m a very shy person. I like to keep to myself but being a comedian and a public figure, I’ve been able to learn how to communicate with people of different ages. Through comedy I’ve met a lot of people that are now like family to me. I’ve also being on television, radio and I’ve been able to travel to a few countries.

What don’t you like about being a comedian?

Well, people see you as someone who should joke every time, so they don’t take you seriously  even when you’re really serious. Sometimes people say hurtful things to you or even talk bad behind you all, in the name of ‘I’m just joking’ and they expect you to laugh about it.

Also people stop you on the road and say ‘come and crack joke for us now, Mr comedian’.

When you crack a joke and people don’t seem to get the joke, how do you feel?

I give a tactical approach to my performance, I put a very funny joke as the intro, then the new jokes I want to crack in the middle so just in case it doesn’t work I move to the last joke which would be a tested funny one. So, I plan my jokes in threes but just in case It doesn’t work, I move on and correct my mistakes.

You make other people happy, who/what makes you happy?

My family. I have a very amazing family; my junior sister is even funnier than me. I like to hang out with close friends and listen to music. I love playing games too and meeting new people. Much of my happiness comes from when people say ‘nice performance Geejokes, your jokes took my sorrows away’ or when people refer me for high-paying jobs.

What event have you done in the past or are you planning to do?

Well, I’ve done three shows in my four years as a professional stand-up comedian. I did ‘Jokes Apart’ with Geejokes for three years and now I’m planning a one-man stand-up comedy show called ‘FUNNY NOT FUNNY’ holding on February 14 (Valentine’s Day) at the Wole Soyinka Theatre, in the University of Ibadan. I can’t wait to see everyone there to share their love stories with me.

Where do you see youself in 10 years?

I see Geejokes as a household name. I see myself as an international comedian travelling round the world to make people laugh, promoting my culture and country through great humour. I also look up to the likes of Dave Chapelle, Basketmouth and Kennyblaq and I feel I could do greater someday, through hard work and prayers.