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  Bright Okpocha is one of the finest comedians to grace the industry in Nigeria and arguably, Africa. Basketmouth is a household name, and he has been in the art for more than two decades now. From his spontaneity to ribs cracking jokes, he is a must-listen-to, hence many fans of the comedy art. One who is very talented, his talents go beyond just comedy and jokes, it borders on acting, organizing comedy shows and developing other young talents and to add, rapping skills before the limelight came upon him.
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Early life

The man, who is better known by his stage name, Basketmouth is a Nigerian comedian and actor. Bright was born on the 14th of September in 1978 in Lagos State. He hails from Abia State, Nigeria. He has organized popular stand-up comedy concerts like Basketmouth Uncensored across the globe. Bright completed his primary and secondary school education in Apapa, Lagos, Nigeria and then moved on to pursue a degree at the University of Benin, Edo state, where he studied Sociology and Anthropology with his brother, Godwin. Though other sources claimed he only has a diploma in social works.

Career Path

He was once asked, when he was younger, what he like to be when he is older by his friend’s mother and he responded that he would like to be a comedian to the shock of everyone around. He didn’t know that would be his lifetime profession. His breakthrough came in the year 2001 when he went to meet Alibaba in Lagos as a student at UNIBEN. Alibaba said he chose Basketmouth because it defines who he really is.
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But before the big break, he had already developed and honed some skills, including drumming and rapping. He discovered his skill in drumming in 1991 and took to rapping in 1994. He then formed a group called “Da Psychophats” which had 7 members and they started going for shows and rapping in 1995, however they broke up before releasing any material. He went on to form another rap group known as “Da Oddz” with his brother Godwin and Muyiwa Ola-Phillips. They performed at a couple of shows but didn’t have a breakthrough as their brand of rap was not accepted in Nigeria.

Some Prominent Shows And Performances

There hardly is a major comedy show that Basketmouth isn’t a guest at. The list is inexhaustible therefore, the under-listed are something like a minority report. Some of the shows he has performed at include: – Hanging with the boys – Motherland Concert which was hosted by Lagbaja – Choice FM comedy show – International Conference at Ethiopia (where he featured the only Nigerian comedian) In 2005 and 2006, Basketmouth won the National Comedy Award and the awards for Best Stand-up Comedian of the Year. Basketmouth has been starring in the Africa Magic show ‘My Flatmates’ since 2016. He also has his own comedy concert “Basketmouth Uncensored.” One of the acts that made him attain legendary status in Africa was the fact that He had a sold-out concert on valentine’s day in 2017 at Wembley arena which made the public consider him as one of the greatest comedians in Africa. Sources: Wikipedia Nairaland
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This article was first published on 1st July 2020

jeremiah

Jeremiah is a scholar and a poet. He has a keen eye for studying the world and is passionate about people. He tweets at @jeremiahaluwong.

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