Entertainment

Parading 10 Richest Nigerian Comedians

Published

10 years ago

May 27, 2016

Duncan Mighty

The stand up comedians
dominating Nigeria’s humour business landscape are funny quite alright on stage, but very serious in business with assets running into billions of naira, they are light years apart from the crops of old comedians who waite on people for meager rations of life.
After a careful study of the careers of the these successful comedians, investigations have shown that a number of them are outstanding. Here are the top 10 in this branch of entertainment, in terms of their assets, the money they charge per show, the various products or corporate endorsements they did and their established brands from which they earn steady income.
(1) Alibaba:
With over 30 years of performing on stage and hosting events for almost all Nigeria’s former Presidents, Ali Baba sits at the apex. Even former President Olusegun Obasanjo once jokingly accused him of being over paid for his performance. His Lekki Mansion where he lives is said to be worth more than N300 million.
Alibaba makes his money through a chain of businesses in Lagos as a reputed motivational speaker, a professional comedian patronized by almost all the big brands and political bigwigs in the country. His net worth is estimated to be over N3 billion. It is estimated that he performs in a minimum of two events weekly at an average rate of 4 to 4. 5 million naira per event. That would add up to about 400 million naira per annum!
(2) Basket Mouth
He has been associated with many companies, signing different endorsement contracts in the last six years. He also has an impressive list of branding deals with Amstel Malta, Globacom Limited and a host of others. including his sold out shows in South Africa, London and America and on his Basket Mouth uncensored platform. He has been consistent since he came into limelight.
His assets are estimated to be worth 2 billion naira. His annual income may be in excess N192 million, while endorsement deals run into over 120 million annually. His international show Basket Mouth uncensored rakes in an estimated N100 million. He makes over N360 million annually.
(3) I Go Dye
United Nation’s Mille Development Goal Ambassador, Amb. Francis Agoda, fondly called “I Go Dye” is the C.E.O. of Revamp Construction Company, a property, real estate and road construction company. An estimate of his annual income stands between 300 and 500 million naira while his net worth is valued at over 2 billion naira.
With properties in choice areas across Nigeria and fleet of luxury cars, he is the man to beat. He also has a special performing relationship with almost all the governors in the country. His business empire is increasing everyday. Presently, he is constructing a bottle water company, Franstel natural bottle water.
(5) Julius Agwu
He made over N20 million alone from the launch of his book when he turned 40. He has properties scattered all over the country, a state-of-the art audio and video studio, and more political affiliates than any other comedian.
For over a decade now, Julius Agwu has been organizing two events, ‘Crack Ya Ribs and “Laugh for Christ Sake”.
He is reputed to own properties in 3 states in Nigeria and is also the C.E.O of Real Laugh Entertainment Company which is an event management firm. His performance fee is between 2 and 3 million naira per event.
His annual take home is estimated at N180 million, while his personally organized events are estimated to be about N140 million annually, His net worth is valued to be N1.5 billion.
(5) A.Y. (Layo Makun)
Since his foray into this money-making business, he has risen faster than anticipated with a performance fee that is between N1 and 2 million per event, while his A.Y Live events organized annually rakes in N160 million. He is said to be earning N280 million annually. His net worth is put at N800 million. He is also working on his MVP club and also runs an event company. His movie 30 days in Atlanda, is a block” buster movie that rakes in millions.
He also has fleet of expensive cars and properties at Lekki area of Lagos.
(6) Gbenga Adeyinka
No comedian anchors more events than him presently. He is constantly busy and a top choice for politicians. He has properties and several business interests, besides his Laffmattaz, which is always a sold out show with over 5000 people in attendance every year.
(7) Okey Bakasi
He anchors upscale events steadily and must have made huge money from politics as senior special assistant on entertainment in Imo State and Canada.
(8) Tee-A
A highly gifted wedding MC. He has equipment and an events company. He anchors many high level events and also does private businesses.
(9) Bovi
He has made a lot of money lately from events, adverts and tours. He is probably the hottest kid in the scene right now.
(10) Yaw
Yaw is into the big league with a choice property in Lagos. He also makes money from MTN adverts, radio presentations, radio hypes, anchoring events, equipment leasing and other businesses.

Entertainment

‘Lie From The Pit Of Hell,’ Family Debunks Pete Edochie’s death Rumours

Published

6 days ago

February 13, 2026

The Tide

The family of veteran Nollywood actor, Pete Edochie, has dismissed viral rumours circulating on social media claiming that the film icon is dead.

Reacting to the reports in a video shared on his Instagram page on Tuesday, the actor’s eldest son, Leo Edochie, described the claim as false and malicious.

“I’ve been receiving text messages and calls over the nonsense post by some people that our father, Chief Pete Edochie, is dead. It is a lie from the pit of hell,” he said.

Leo added that the actor is alive and in good health, condemning those responsible for spreading the rumour.

“Our father is alive, hale and hearty. And if you wish someone dead, two things usually happen. The person will live very long and you will die before him. Shame to all of you,” he said.

The rumour had sparked concern among fans before the family’s clarification.

Entertainment

‘Mother’s Love’ Challenges Nigerian’s Film Portray Of Motherhood

Published

7 days ago

February 13, 2026

The Tide

Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde critiques Nollywood’s lack of mother-daughter stories ahead of her directorial debut, ‘Mother’s Love.’ See the cast and 2026 release date.

Nollywood veteran actress Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde is making her directorial debut with a different and sharper focus. Speaking recently with Newsmen,, the screen icon highlighted a glaring void in the industry’s catalogue, which is the authentic reality of mother-daughter relationships.

“We don’t have too many films that explore or showcase the relationship between mothers and daughters,” Omotola said during the interview, describing the subject as something deeply personal to her.

Speaking honestly about raising her first daughter, she admitted she had only one mode at the time, which was discipline. “I didn’t do a good job,” she said plainly, explaining that she understood motherhood strictly through control, not softness or emotional openness.

At the centre of Mother’s Love is Adebisi, a sheltered young woman from a wealthy home whose life is shaped by her father’s rigid control. Her first taste of freedom comes through NYSC, where distance from home allows her to begin discovering who she is outside her family’s expectations. She forms a friendship with a young man from a more modest background, and through him, starts to see the world and herself differently.

But the emotional core of the film isn’t Adebisi’s rebellion. It’s her mother. Long after being presented as quiet and compliant, she slowly reveals a resolve when her daughter’s safety and future are threatened. As secrets surface and buried grief comes into view, Mother’s Love becomes less about youthful independence and more about maternal sacrifice, unspoken trauma, and the emotional costs of survival inside a patriarchal home.

The Tide Entertainment reports that the film doesn’t shy away from weighty themes by including PTSD, unresolved grief, and social inequality at the centre of the story. It is far removed from the soft-focus sentimentality that often defines Mother’s Day-style narratives.

It also marks Omotola’s directorial debut, a significant moment considering how long she has shaped Nollywood from the front of the camera. She stars in the film alongside a mix of familiar faces and newer talent, including Ifeanyi Kalu, Olumide Oworu, and Noray Nehita.

Beyond the film itself, Omotola’s interview touched on a tension that has been simmering in Nollywood for a while now: how movies are marketed in the age of TikTok. Addressing the growing expectation for actors and filmmakers to create viral dance content to promote their work, she didn’t mince words. The pressure, she said, is exhausting and unnatural.

For her, the industry wasn’t meant to function this way. Still, she was careful not to judge anyone else’s approach. Everyone invests differently, carries different risks, and should be allowed to promote their films however they see fit.

“Do whatever you can do. It’s exhausting, it’s not natural. For me, the film industry is not supposed to be like that. We are encouraging nonsense if we are doing that. It doesn’t mean that whoever is doing it is wrong.”

Her comments arrive not long after the public back-and-forth between Kunle Afolayan and Funke Akindele over marketing styles, a debate that quickly turned into a proxy war between prestige storytelling and viral strategy. Omotola’s stance sits somewhere calmer. She understands the shift social media has brought, but she’s also clear about her own boundaries.

Omotola’s critique about the lack of mother-daughter stories isn’t unfounded. In Nollywood, mothers often exist as symbols rather than people. They’re either saintly figures who pray endlessly for their children or villains whose cruelty drives the plot forward. What’s missing is intimacy, the negotiations, and the regrets. The love that exists alongside resentment and misunderstanding.

Films rarely sit with the emotional complexity of women raising daughters in systems that also failed them. There’s little room for mothers who made mistakes but are still trying, or daughters who love their mothers while questioning the damage they inherited. Mother’s Love attempts to occupy that space, offering a more grounded portrayal that reflects lived experience rather than archetypes.

That’s where the film’s potential impact lies, in the decision to centre a relationship that Nollywood has largely flattened. If it works, it could open the door for more stories that treat motherhood as a lived, evolving reality rather than a fixed moral position.

Mother’s Love, directed by and starring Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, had its world premiere at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival on September 6, 2025. The film is set for a nationwide cinema release in Nigeria on March 6, 2026.

Entertainment

Funke Akindele’s Behind The Scenes Crosses ?1.77bn

Published

1 month ago

January 9, 2026

The Tide

Funke Akindele’s Behind The Scenes becomes Nollywood’s highest-grossing film of 2025, earning ?1.77bn in under four weeks.

Multi-award-winning actress and producer Funke Akindele has done it again, and this time, the numbers speak louder than applause.

Her latest film, Behind The Scenes, has officially emerged as the highest-grossing Nollywood film of 2025, pulling in an astonishing ?1.767 billion in less than four weeks.

The Tide Entertainment reports that Funke Akindele Makes Box Office History as Behind The Scenes Crosses ?1.77bn
Earlier in its release cycle, the film’s distributor, FilmOne Entertainment, revealed that Behind The Scenes smashed five opening-weekend records, including the highest single-day gross ever recorded on Boxing Day, with ?129.5 million in one day. That announcement already hinted that something unusual was unfolding.

Reacting to the milestone, FilmOne described the moment as both surreal and communal, crediting audience loyalty for pushing the film to the top spot once again as the number-one movie of the weekend. And that sentiment feels accurate. This wasn’t just ticket sales; it was momentum.

What makes this achievement even more striking is that Behind The Scenes is Funke Akindele’s third film to cross the ?1 billion mark. Before now, there was A Tribe Called Judah, and then Everybody Loves Jenifa, a film that didn’t just open big, but went on to become the highest-grossing Nollywood film of all time. At this point, it’s no longer a fluke. It’s a pattern.

Part of Behind The Scenes’ success lies in strategy. The film enjoyed advanced screenings on December 10 and 11, quietly building curiosity and conversation before its nationwide release on December 12. By the time it officially hit cinemas, audiences already felt like they needed to see it.

Then there’s the cast. The film brings together a lineup that feels deliberately stacked: Scarlet Gomez, Iyabo Ojo, Destiny Etiko, Tobi Bakre, Uche Montana, and several others. Familiar faces, strong fan bases, and performances that kept word-of-mouth alive long after opening weekend.

Still, beyond timing and casting, there’s something else at work here. Funke Akindele understands Nigerian audiences. Their humour, their pacing, their emotional buttons. She doesn’t guess, she calculates, experiments, listens, and refines. That understanding has slowly turned into box-office dominance.

Behind The Scenes crossing ?1.77 billion isn’t just another headline; it’s confirmation. Funke Akindele has moved from being a successful actress to becoming one of the most reliable commercial forces Nollywood has ever produced. Three-billion-naira films don’t happen by luck. They happen when storytelling, business sense, and audience trust align.

And right now, that alignment seems firmly in her hands.