Top Ghanaian comedians
A few years ago, a lot of people claimed Ghanaians (and for that matter, Ghanaian comedians) were not funny.
In fact, there are still some people who believe that the average Ghanaian does not have a good sense of humour.
At a time when Nigerian comedians had become the staple of comedy for the Ghanaian comedy market, it was very difficult for Ghanaian comedians to be accepted on comedy platforms.
After the slapstick comedy (the concert party type) era, some of our young comedians started doing comedy in English. We had David Oscar, Foster Romanus, DKB, Percy and a few others ploughing that turf.
What they did was not totally new though; Fritz Baffour, Tommy Annan Forson, Kweku Sintim Misa (KSM) and a few others had earlier been in that league too.
But David Oscar and his squad were not liked. They could not impress the ordinary Ghanaian who was used to Nigerian comedy.
This, however, did not discourage the Ghanaian comedians. David Oscar and his friends took up the challenge and kept organizing their own shows to prove to people they could do it.
Today, Ghana can boast of having some pretty good comedy talents. Ghanaian comedians can travel to Nigeria and crack up a whole audience. Event organisers have gained some confidence in the Ghanaian comedian that they can bill them on shows and still have positive feedback.
In this piece, we present the top 10 comedians who are making great strides in the Ghanaian comedy industry at present. This list is premised on the general performance of the comedians, their visibility on the comedy market and the clout they wield among their peers.
1. OB Amponsah
OB Amponsah, an optometrist by training, has suddenly become the toast of the Ghanaian comedy market. He has an unparalleled wit that puts him ahead of his colleagues. His performance at the Lords of the Ribs in Nigeria in 2019 won him a lot of spurs. He has also been on shows like Decemba 2 Rememba, Night of Laughs, Easter Comedy Show, among others.
OB staged his own show dubbed Voices in My Head in December 2019 and is yet to stage another one titled Political Refugee – a concept borne out of the backlash he received after he had made a joke at Decemba 2 Rememba that the name Mahama meant ‘corruption.’
2. Clemento Suarez
Unlike OB, Clemento Ashitey known in showbiz as Clemento Suarez, does more of stage comedy. He’s a comic actor who has also earned a place for himself in that field.
Clemento Suarez professionally started comedy in 2011 after doing a lot of pro bono work. He has worked with creative directors like Latif Abubakar who brought the best out of him. Clemento has featured in Kejetia vs Makola series for TV in Ghana.
Clemento has also featured in plays such as ‘Gallery of Comedy’, ‘Thank for Idiots’, ‘Romantic Nonsense’, ‘Sweet Dreams & Nightmares’, ‘What Can Come Can Come’, ‘Flagstaff House’, ‘Mallams & Pastors’, ‘I Can’t Think Far’, among a blizzard of others (including TV commercials).
3. DKB
Born Derrick Kobina Bonney, DKB shot to fame after his slapping incident at Big Brother Africa in 2012. He latched onto that and soon became a household name. Even though he had also been doing stand up comedy before the BBA incident, his comedy brand got more activated later.
DKB, has performed on a lot of comedy shows in and outside the country. He is also a preferred choice of an MC for a lot of events.
Even though he had been named the King of Comedy by ace satirist KSM, the new whiff of comedy seems to have placed him below the afore-mentioned.
He has a monthly comedy show called Comedy Express.
4. Lekzy DeComic
Lekzy is another brilliant comedian Ghana can boast of at the moment. He has his own comedy show called Laughline Comedy.
Lekzy was awarded the best comedian during the 2017 People’s Celebrity Awards, after he had been awarded the emerging comedian of the year during the 2016 comedy choice awards.
5. Mmebusem
Born Justice Hymns, Mmebusem has been in the local language movie industry for a long time. His breakthrough came when he started doing skits with the Jesus character. His great sense of humour and his creativity has gotten people to like him.
He has so far appeared on a couple of music concerts to put up hilarious skits.
Born Emmanuel Nkansah, the comedian is a graduate of the Takoradi Technical University
Lekzy, whose father had always wanted him to be a medical doctor, is also a graphic designer by profession.
6. Foster Romanus
Foster Amponsah, widely known as Foster Romanus is an actor and a stand-up comedian.
He is also one of the few comedians who championed the revival of stand-up comedy during its difficult times.
He came second to David Oscar in the maiden edition of Stars of the Future reality show. He has since mounted bigger stages in Ghana and outside the country.
Also the host of Late Night Celebrity Show on eTV Ghana, Romanus runs his own comedy event, Romanus Incomplete.
7. Jacinta
The only comedienne in Ghana. She is one of the funniest in the country and despite the fact that the business is male-dominated, she has been able to get through.
Jacinta, who is of both Ghanaian and Nigerian descent started comedy when she was 19. She recounts that she was first given the platform to perform by Buchi.
Her perfect understanding of both the Ghanaian and Nigerian cultures gives her a background to her awesome performances.
Just like her male counterparts, Jacinta has mounted almost all the big comedy platforms in Ghana. She has also had some successful gigs in other countries.
8. Teacher Kwadwo
A teacher by profession, Teacher Kwame (real name Michael Owusu Afriyie) has been able to win the hearts of people with his funny clips on YouTube. He usually does skits that satirically tackle trending issues.
What makes his stand out is his unfettered command over the Twi language and the use of rich Akan proverbs in his presentation.
Also a rapper, Teacher Kwadwo was featured on ‘Ghana’, a song by 2Kz which also had Clemento Suarez.
He currently hosts a segment on UTV’s United Showbiz programme.
9. Khemikal
Daniel Selase, known in the comedy world as Khemikal is arguably one of the biggest names in the stand-up comedy business.
He has hosted a lot of comedy shows – something which earned him the “Best Comedy Event Host” tag by ace comedian Kwaku Sintim-Misah.
He has performed at shows such as ‘KSM @50’, ‘A Touch Of Class’, ‘Decemba to Remember’, ‘A Night Of 1021 Laughs And Music’, ‘The Easter Comedy Show’, among others.
He has also been featured on high-profile concerts in Ghana.
10. Comedian Waris
Waris, although new is gradually ensconcing himself in the game. He has performed at Easter Comedy Show, Crack Ribs, Comedy Express, among others.
Even though Ghanaian comedy has not gotten to the top, the recent signs of progress should not be glossed over.
These Ghanaian comedians need to be supported, as they continually urged to hone their craft so as to get better.
