Although it wasn’t categorized to be standup comedy; it was called
wording in other words yabbing, which he did all through his secondary
years. In 1991 Bright discovered his skills in drumming, which he did
for over 5 years after wards. During his days of being an
instrumentalist for his church and a band at that point, he also
discovered his skills in rap music and later diverted into that path in
1994. In 1995, he, his friends and brother formed a group called da
psychopaths. It had 7 members but they split before they could even
release an album or single.
Bright
and his brother Godwin immediately formed a group called d oddz and
later added a third member (muyiwa osunrobi). Together, they did a
couple of shows but couldn’t break through the music industry as their
brand of rap wasn’t accepted then. In the year 1996/1997, they got
admitted into the University of Benin where basketmouth studied
sociology while his brother studied anthropology. They performed at a
concert and got booed off the stage, Bright decided to drop the mic as a
rap artist and grab the mic as a standup comedian.
His 1st standup comedy was a disaster because the crowd got
irritated and booed him off the stage. Later that year (1999), he came
back after a series of research on what brand of comedy could sell in
UNIBEN; that was the beginning of Basket mouth’s inception and
acceptation into the world of standup comedy. His professional stand up
act came into existence in the year 2001 and his big break came when he
met Ali Baba. In 1999, Basket mouth got involved in events management
alongside his comedy acts. He and his friend (Bayo Adekeye) promoted and
packaged shows that featured the likes of plantation boiz, remedies,
and a host of other artists. It was during that period that Laff n Jamz
was conceptualized.
On the 1st of November 2000, the concept came to reality
featuring Ali Baba, Paul Play, Teju babyface, mandy, Mr. Patrick and a
host of others. Immediately after Laff n Jamz in UNIBEN, Ali Baba told
Bright to come down to Lagos to expose his skills. It was hard to
combine studies and standup comedy but it was done.
After Basket mouth featured Plantation Boiz in 2000, they asked
him to anchor a monthly show that was held at the den in Ikeja. It was
during that period that Bright impacted the entertainment industry in
Lagos.Things got bigger and better when Bright was invited by Tequila
events to perform alongside Julius Agwu on a tour that hit over 30
higher institutions around Nigeria. Basket’s emergence in Lagos can be
traced back to the year in 2000 when he performed at a concert called
hanging with the home boys; his performance wowed the audience and he
won their acceptance. He extended his act to the monthly motherland
concert hosted by Lagbaja. Afterwards, Ali Baba introduced him to Opa
Williams who then featured him in the now most popular comedy show in
Nigeria and beyond (Nite of a 1000 laughs).
The name BASKET MOUTH hit the big screen when he featured in
international concerts that witnessed the likes of Joe, Boys 2 Men, Sean
Paul, Beyonce, Wyclef Jean, Dru Hill, Akon, Snoop Dogg, Ciara, Chris
Brown and many others. His international gig was in Europe (2003) after
which he stayed off the foreign scene until his debut performance in
Atlanta at the Nigerian Reunion in 2006. This performance led to series
of performances and bookings in the United States and other countries
including South Africa.
Back to back through the last 4 years, Bright has won the
National Comedy Award for Best Comedian of the year, Best Standup
Comedian on the year (2005/6). As a follow upto the growth, he formed a
company called humor unlimited (2004), (stage play) -Devils kiss (2004),
and in 2006 took it higher by forming a one man standup comedy show
which made history in Nigeria [Basket Mouth Uncensored 1,2,&3]. He
later established a consulting/event & Artist management company
(Barons World Entertainnment) in 2006.
Basket Mouth is currently one of the brand ambassadors of one of
the leading telecommunications companies in Africa (Globacom) till
date, Basket Mouth stands out as one of the names to reackon with in the
entertainment industry.
