Ten Tips On How To Become A Successful Comedian – Ali Baba

Ali Baba, Nigeria’s king of comedy, is a rare kind of man – intelligent, generous, always willing to provide veritable platforms for upcoming comedians and give insights that help to drive a successful career. In this interview, Ali Baba highlights how to be a successful comedian. Grasp these top ten tips for a successful career in comedy; you will thank us when you start laughing to the bank.   

1. Develop a funny bone in you. Talent is in the raw state; ferment it to a consumable state.

2. Learn to create at least two jokes a day until you are good enough to create as many as five daily. You are as good as your last jokes. When you tell a joke, consider it gone, especially in this social media age. Let it go. Move on to the next new joke, that way you are fresh. If they keep stealing your jokes, you are a source and a resource.

3. Study your market and know what kinds of jokes appeal to them.

4. Learn to read and comprehend an audience before you step on the stage. Or better still, learn to use the first few minutes to know them.

5. Information is key. Take in as much as you can, but you should have a filtration to determine what is useful and what is not. Then store away the good stuff, especially punchlines; they will tie up with some stories later. Don’t sweat it. Just save.

6. Read. Read. Read. Read. Read

7. Understand the market you are dealing with and operating in. Stakeholders are different and require a different approach. Above all, remember that all rules that work in the business environments apply here too. Comedy is about providing laughter as a service. It’s that service that people want delivered. That is the “golden call” for all players in service industry. Deliver, that’s all.

8. Find a mentor. Monitor his strengths. Observe the pitfalls. Learn how your mentor swims against the tide.

9. You must make sure that you tailor your jokes to suit and blend with the audience and the purpose of the gathering. When the theme is ambiguous, find issues of common interest to help you connect with the listeners.

10. Comedy is a business, run it as such. Set a business structure: call cards; letterheads; office;accounts; publicist; manager; advisory board; quality control mechanism; marketing and promotion strategy; research and development… All the works.

See you at the top!