2023 REVIEW OF THE COMEDY SECTOR IN ENGLISH-SPEAKING CAMEROON

Making someone laugh is one of the high-stakes form of artistic creation. It is intrinsically a demanding task to poke fun especially as “funny” varies from person-to-person.

A failed gag can lead to trolling, especially dealing with a complicated audience like Cameroonians, who are overly evaluative of entertainment. In 2023, the stand-up comedy sector was dormant in the English-speaking regions. Most comedians shifted considerable efforts on digital content creation. There was a significant improvement in the visual quality of their skits.

The comic talent pool in Cameroon’s entertainment ecosystem keeps expanding.

Established comics like Fingon Tralala, 237 Towncryer , Moustik Le Karismatik, Senior Pastor Comedian, Godisz Fungwa, GrandLawrenzo, Spaco Lee, Caro and Copees, Auntie Felicia, Old Pancho CY International, O’Boy Da Comic, Ulrich Takam, Peter Mic , Tik Dengue, Neil Cruz and Rosine Nguemgaing, persistently churned out thrilling content.

Worthnoting, we shall focus on the English-speaking section.

We witnessed the remarkable strides made by budding comics like Pa Ngwa, Linho9_official , Extratwo237 , Phamose , 2Sap, Fuh Denis Zang, Okute, Mami Magret & Pa Joe, Android Man

Cameroonian skit content creation has mushroomed, with the emergence of a new wave of young talents.

2023 was an amazing year marked by the emergence of Jesus Girl, YoungCryer 50 no dey , Ambassador pascal Princekoni Gizzy Flex artist Yatara Da Plug, 237Vawulence King etc

Senior Pastor 

Senior Pastor had a brilliant 2023 in terms of audience and fan attention through comedy shows. He made impressive moves in Stand up comedy in Cameroon and Nigeria. Remarkably, he captivated the Francophone audience in 2023.

He organized his own stand up comedy shows;

Corporate Night of Laughter in January 2023 , another edition in June 2023.

In April, he signed an endorsement deal with MTN Momo. He performed at Level Up at Palais De Sport Yaounde.

He performed at the Experience, alongside Muyiwa, Travis Greene, Naomi Raine, Nathaniel Bassey, Sinach, Dunsin Oyekan, Donnie McClurkin, William McDowell, Ada Ehi, Tim Godfrey, OnosAriyo, Prinx Emmanuel, Moses Bliss, Mr M & Revelation, Tope Alabi and Timi Dakolo

Senior Pastor also performed at the AY Comedy Show in Lagos.

Overall, he was the frontline stand-up comedian in 2023.

237 Towncryer

237 Towncryer is revered for penetrating the Nigerian Comedy industry. He collaborated with Don Jazzy on a comedy skit in August 2021 and Kcee in October 2021, he continued invading the Nigerian market and earning milestone achievements.

In 2023, his fanbase spiked up immensely ; he is one of the most followed Anglophone comedians on Facebook with over 500,000 followers

Sticking to his ”Crying comedy” niche, his content was predominantly based on raising awareness on societal foibles through satire.

His hustle paid off as he flaunted two cars in 2023.

In July 2023, 237towncryer grabbed global media headlines when he made a milestone achievement for a record-breaking 100 hours cry-a-thon.

With his wealth of experience and success, the “King of Pranks” kept on uncovering young English-speaking comedians.

Auntie Felicia

Auntie Felicia is progressively capturing the hearts of fans across Cameroon . He was nominated for Canal D’Or, as Best Web Comedian and performed at the award ceremony.

Dr Kwoh Elonge keeps consolidating his position as a comic gem in the country.

His comedy is quite relatable, which makes him an admirable to all age groups. Aunty Felicia performed Dubai and Canada in 2023.

2023 was a lucrative year for Auntie Felicia. He clinched multiple endorsement and promotion deals from Orange , Waspito etc. As an impersonated female character, Kwoh expresses his art through farce and satire. He was part of the Step Up Dance Mega Dance Concert in December 2023.

Old Pancho Cy international

In 2022, CY International stamped an indelible footprint with “Ya Place Dey comedy show”. However, the show did not take place in 2023. CY focused on the 80/20 campaign to prioritize local content. He released several skits and collaborated with Grand Lawrenzo on “The Clash” in December 2023. CY also collaborated with Mami Dona on “Wandaful pipo”. In 2023, he released another comic song “Congossa people”.

CY was conferred brand ambassador for Propelond, Gajo Livestock and ICT University.

Godisz Fungwa (RICHARD)

Godisz Fungwa “Richard” is one of the most loved Anglophone comedian. With a decent audience of 158,000 , he did not stop dropping comic content through out 2023. His content had a wide viewership, shared by renowned celebrities like Basket Mouth and Tunde Ednut.

Grand Lawrenzo

GrandLawrenzo was one of the most consistent comedy content creators in 2023, despite grappling with final year studies in UB.

From January to December 2023, Grand Lawrenzo relentlessly released content. He innovated by mimicking Samuel Eto’o. His Babyl0nian character is gradually losing some steam. His audience engaged more with the Big Mami content.

Spaco Lee

Spaco Lee is one of the pacesetters of Stand up comedy in English-speaking Cameroon. He has been tenacious and relevant in the industry.

2023 was an impressive year for him. He dropped skits regularly and garnered over 100,000 followers on Facebook. He dropped comic songs like 5 for sharp, Ngundeh, Crocodile.

Caro and Copees

Lovert Lambe “Copees ” and Mbeng Lilian “Caro” deserve to be extolled for their consistency and contribution to the renaissance of comedy in English-speaking Cameroon. In August 2022, they traveled to Nigeria and collaborated with Mama Oka and MC Macaroni.

2023 was an exciting year for the duo. They traveled to Dubai and Canada for performances. They earned endorsements with MTN and Kadji Beer.

Dorcas Comedy World

Dorcas Comedy World is an incredibly talented comedian. Renowned for her outrageous makeup, she has portrayed herself as burlesque female character. He was consistent and relevant this year. His most trending video surfaced in September 2023, when he danced to Tyla’s hit song “Water”. The tw*rking video went viral.

Dorcas also participated in the successful Step Up Dance show in December 2023 at the Molyko Stadium.

Yaakii Bella

Yaakii Bella is riding on her own lane of web comedy. She consistently dropped comic content on Facebook and Tiktok. 2023, she witnessed an intriguing growth in her fanbase. She has amassed 147,000 followers on Facebook and 95k followers on TikTok.

Mami Magret

Mami Magret and Pa Joe literally outperformed themselves creatively.

Mami Magret’s conscientiousness and leadership was exceptional. They released comic content consistently and made impactful collaborations. This saw their following on Facebook augmenting over 100,000. They introduced characters like Ambassador Pascal.

Pa Ngwa

Clad in navy blue over red threadbare clothes, a satin hair cap and tattered shoes uniquely identifies Pa Ngwa; an incredibly talented Cameroonian comic actor.

Pangwa comedy ‘s relatable comic content was hard to ignore.

His skits with Manka’a Spice , attracted attention.

Pa Ngwa looks promising . 2024 will definitely be a brilliant year for him.

OKUTE

MR OKUTE STONE with the “grammar”

Okute pokes fun on daily life issues and satirizes social problems. He often plays the role of a stu.pid character, with a comic, yet witty undertone.

He was consistent in 2023. His comedy skits are quite diverting and thrilling to watch. He should be revered for bringing Jesus Girl into the spotlight.

Pa lum

Pa Lum proved his versatility in 2023 and his audience grew gradually.

Apart from his entertaining skits, Pa Lum discovered a distinctive comic niche; dancing to old Makossa, Congolese music and other popular rhythms. It has worked out for him in terms of engagements.

Jesus Girl

Jesus Girl is the revelation of the year 2023. She carved a niche, in satirizing social behavior in a unique manner. She came through distinctively with gossip mongering, as a problem inciter and garrulous persona. She has a bright future.

Boboloh Universal AKA Nzelle Africa

Boboloh had a very controversial year but she kept releasing comic content. She earned several endorsement deals and her following increases significantly.

FUH DENIS

Fuh Denis Zang rose to prominence in 2022 with his self-deprecating comedy and sparking up the trend of the catchphrase ”We go take that cup”.

In 2023, he worked closely with Okute. His popularity however dwindled in 2023.

Overall, the comedy industry witnessed great improvement in the digital content creation sector. This has shifted focus from stand up comedy, which remains a pure and undiluted art-form.

#nexdimempire