Stand-up comedian, Lekzy DeComic, has opened up on the dire challenges he and his colleagues faced in winning back Ghanaians, including a propaganda campaign aimed at belittling them.
In an interview on Okay FM, the comedian explained that Ghanaian entertainment tastes often shift quickly based on trends.
“During the concert party days, Ghanaians were filling up the auditorium every weekend. But the truth is Ghanaians are quick to move on to the next thing. We hyped Azonto and they eventually we moved to Amapiano,” he said.
He recalled the era when “Night of 1000 Laughs,” a show featuring mainly Nigerian comedians became a massive hit, while local comedians were left struggling.
“Ghanaians flocked to that one because it was different. Meanwhile those comedians that they had been watching were there but they left them for something new,” Lekzy stated.
He revealed that this was fueled by a deliberate “propaganda” campaign that Ghanaian comedians weren’t funny and could not fill auditoriums.
“There was also a propaganda that was pushed over time using some key industry players to push that Ghanaian comedians weren’t funny and could not fill auditoriums,” he said.
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Instead of fighting the system directly, Lekzy said he and his colleagues used a gradual approach.
“We started working with the few who would want to listen to us. If 5 people came and we performed for them, they would also bring 5 more people. So we did it gradually until the mainstream media picked it up and saw that we were actually there,” he explained.
This strategy paid off. They built a dedicated following that eventually led to the successful, ticket-buying audiences seen today.
ID/EB
Also catch the latest episode of Talkertainment with Ghana’s most-sought-after MC/Hypeman, Kojo Manuel, below: