Ghana’s comedy still not at same level as Nigeria – David Oscar

Ghana’s comedy industry has made great strides in recent years with a new crop of comedians raising their standards and getting international gigs.

In spite of the gains made, comedian- turned-musician, David Oscar, says Ghanaian comedy is still not there yet.

According to him, Nigerians still rule.

“Our guys here are doing very well, but the Nigerians have the upper hand because of their large population. The Nigerian comedians are exposed and charge huge amounts of money for a performance unlike our comedians in Ghana.

“Our comedians might be funnier than the Nigerians comedians, but in terms of exposure and how much they earn, our comedians cannot be compared to them,” he argues.

According to him, Nigerian comedians such as Basketmouth and Gordons live expensive lifestyles, but the same cannot be said of their Ghanaian counterparts.

“If O.B Amponsah were to be a Nigerian, he would be earning five times what he is earning. Nigerians are willing to pay any amount to see their comedians crack their ribs, but here in Ghana when you charge GHC 300 for a show they will say it is too much. We are growing, but we are not there yet,” he insisted.

He pleads with corporate bodies to invest heavily in comedy, to push it to the top.

“We find it difficult getting sponsorship for comedy events and this shows how we are not prepared to invest in comedy but the corporate entities in Nigeria support their comedy shows.

“In fact, when it comes to content, our comedians are doing very well and can match up to any comedian outside the country. It is just the support they need,” he said.

David Oscar has been in the comedy industry for about a decade.

In 2006, while studying at the University of Ghana, he was voted Best Comedy Icon when he participated in the comedy reality series, Stars of the Future, organised by Charterhouse Ghana.

For some undisclosed reasons, he put his comedy career on hold in 2014 and decided to pursue music full time.