For Tunde Adewale, who most people know as TEE-A, comedy is a passion. Right from secondary school, he had been a comedian. When he graduated into cracking jokes every last Friday of the month at Ali Baba and Lagbaja’s shows, it was still for the fun of it. Today, the rookie of yesterday has grown into a full-fledged professional who lives on comedy. In a chat with The Entertainer, TEE-A opens up on his journey to fame and fortune. Enjoy:
Going into comedy
Basically, it was not as if I thought of it as a career, no, that never happened. What we did was just working, it never occurred to me that I will have an office, I will have assistants, people that are booking me for shows, all that was never on my mind, all that was on my mind was ‘let’s just get an opportunity to perform’, and I can also speak the same for Ali Baba. It was not for the money, it was just about ‘let’s entertain’. A lot of people knew me when I was performing for Lagabja and Ali Baba. We were not doing it for money. It was just a ritual that before the last Friday of the month, I must have a joke, I must have a material and that was the fun of it. And then, once you go there, you do it, business comes and people will say ‘Ali, we can’t afford you, can we use Tee-A?’ and Ali will say ‘Tee A go and do it’, it was just about business and when it was getting big like you need someone to help you draw invoice, do letters, it was not like a gamble, it was being focus on work.
Tales by Moonlight
The funny thing about me is that it has really never crossed my mind to work elsewhere. All I have done revolved around entertainment. Right from the time I finished secondary school, before I gained admission into the university, I was already doing Tales By Moonlight. I remember when Wale Adenuga came to recruit some of us from the Theatre Arts department for his production. We were the first set of cast for Papa Ajasco & Company, so we had already known that that was the direction we were heading.
Discovering my passion
Did I even discover my passion? I just got used to those feelings. I used to mimic lecturers in school. When we were in secondary school, there was no teacher I could not mimic, and everybody will just laugh. The same thing followed me to the university. It is just natural for me to want to entertain, to look at things and look at the funny side of it.
Parental opposition
My mother will just say as long as it does not affect your education you can go ahead. I started quite early, when it was time for riddles and jokes, I was the person they used to push forward. I remember my English teacher, Mrs Oto will say ‘this boy is just a clown’, she will ask me to do something and I will just do something else, everybody will just be laughing. When everything is dry they will just say ‘Tee-A, go and pick the microphone’. I remember from JSS 3, comedy has been a part and parcel of me. Even if by tomorrow I say I don’t want to entertain any more, that I want to be a pastor, I can’t still kill the humour side of me.
Why I studied Theatre Arts
I was admitted to University of Lagos to study African and Asian Studies, and I also gained admission into University of Ibadan to study Theatre Arts, it was Diploma in Theatre Arts, and it was my experience in UI that really inspired me. I wasn’t there for long; it was just for the period of the auditioning and the training. The school had a registration process then, the student would go to the department to register and then apply, if you were selected, you would then go for the audition. So, when I was going for my audition, they had some senior students, who were helping some new students with their audition tests. One of the most brilliant students in the school then was a young and pretty lady called Bimbo Akintola.
I met her and started calling her mummy and aunty. I would ask her that ‘aunty, come and help me with this and that’. Thankfully, she liked me and told me she would help me. That was how Bimbo took charge of preparing me for the exams, she taught me a lot of things, helped me in many ways especially with my auditions. Of course, she was a brilliant actress and singer and also very popular on campus. My experience after I passed was that I would help someone from the way I was helped. I had to come back to UNILAG, that was how Bimbo and I became very good friends, till tomorrow. If I see her now she would say ‘’ah my son, come here’’, that’s the sort of close relationship we have and share.
Theatre 15
I was in the Theatre 15 at the time in UNILAG. It was when my set was leaving that the school created the Department of Creative Arts. Theatre 15 had a lot of students at the time; there were students from Architecture, Engineering and all sorts. Uncle Tunji Bamishigbin was a member, also Senator Tokunbo Afikuyomi; so many prominent people were members of that group. When I started in school, Princess was there, Koffi too, these people are much known today and that gives me joy.
One day, we went for a show in Benin, Ali Baba and Trybesmen and I, the show was in UNIBEN, that’s was where we met Basket Mouth for the first time, he was just a student there and today look at him. AY too was there, I remember he would come to Lagos to book Ali Baba for shows. My joy now is that what we started then is now paying off and has produced so many young and great people. That on its own is an inspiration.
My TV show
It is not as if we are making so much more money from the show, it’s just another platform, not everybody gets to see you at events, nobody gets to see you do stand-up and you have to reach out to everyone so it’s like broadening your horizon. We have quite a number of fans, just expanding the horizon to reach out to more fans, that is what the TV show is all about. It has its own fan base and they follow us even when we do events.
We stopped the show to rebrand and repackage, you have to keep re-inventing yourself, I don’t believe in being stuck to one thing that I have done. I have done TV, I have done radio; there is always something to do at every point in time. A talented person should find various ways to express his talent other than sticking to one format.
But thank God for his mercies, the new show has gone far above my expectations, the show is a year and a couple of months old and landmark achievement has been made within that limited time. The feedback we get from fans and viewers has been very encouraging. The show has also been very constructive, though, we get some criticisms and encouragement here and there, we try to take everything and come out with a better production, which is what we have done with the season three.
Going to Ghana
The reception in Ghana has been very encouraging. Prior to this time, I could go anywhere in Accra and do anything I like but on this last trip, I couldn’t go anywhere without one or two people recognizing me. They were like ‘I think I know this face, you appear on television’ so it shows that people are watching.
On Tyme out Lounge
Nothing really went wrong; it was just some little issues here and there, which we thought we were going to sort out by moving to a bigger and more spacious venue. We changed our focus and decided to focus on the TV show instead. When we do get what we are looking for, we will get back to it; the whole template is still in existence. I don’t settle for less, if I don’t get what I am looking for, I don’t venture into it. Another major issue is that we are no longer looking at renting, if we are going to acquire it, it has to be the kind of property that we want and in the area we want.
Strengths and weaknesses
I am still making money because I know my strengths and weaknesses. I thank God that every week or every weekend there will be an event to handle. Maybe what you meant is that there is low patronage in comedy, the credit crunch and fuel subsidy will affect everybody but what will judge is the purchasing power. But, I have been surviving, there have been one or two things we have been able to do in terms of events, there are clients who have remained faithful to us, there are clients who have stuck with us, who we have been working with for years, so I can’t complain.
Between Tunde and Tee-A
Do I even strike a balance between Tunde and Tee A? Tee A is a workaholic, Tunde on the other hand is a quiet person, who will rather love to stay with his family, watch movies, and cook something at home. Tee A is the side that likes the red-carpet events; there are two different entities, when one is not available the other one takes charge.
On being comedian and MC
Funny enough, what I have heard is a different variation – MC/comedian, not a comedian or MC, that is what I have heard. If you need an MC who is also funny, if you need a comedian who can also MC so I have been called a MC/comedian. I think it is humbling to have been seen as someone who can match those two functions together. There are times when people will call you for events and tell you ‘please, anchor this event, it is a serious event so we don’t want jokes’ and some will say ‘just do comedy’, and sometimes when you anchor events some people will ask why is he not cracking jokes, is he not funny again? Without knowing that it’s the brief you got to make it a straightforward event. I think it is a thing of honour to be seen as someone who can combine both effectively.
Comedy challenge
The major challenge which no one takes time to understand is the fact that you might not be in the mood to crack jokes. That is one pressure that entertainers particularly comedians and MCs face. There are times that you are not just in the right frame of mind; there are days that your mood has gone from bad to worse. On the other hand, the client doesn’t care about that because you have been paid to do that job, so that’s one of the major pressures entertainers and comedians face because they are actually human beings.
There was a particular event that I had having lost a very close friend of mine in the morning; we rushed him to the hospital and he died before we got to the hospital. I was the one driving the car and he was the one behind me. We drove to the hospital where he was pronounced ‘dead-on-arrival’. From the hospital we took him to the mortuary, I had an event that evening, and I still went ahead to perform. We were taught in the theatre that no matter what happens, the show must go on. That is a real pressure because it could be personal or even more than personal, so much could be happening but the show must go on.
Jolly good fellow
I am just a jolly good fellow. I am very flexible, I blend into so many backgrounds, and it’s just the grace to be flexible. I am really very flexible and I think over the years that is one thing that has really worked for me.
Comfort
Some of the people I went to school with are bank managers; I just look at them and laugh. I would say ‘look at this Mufu that couldn’t talk when we were in school’, so if you have stayed 16 years in an industry, you are entitled to some level of comfort.
If I have dedicated 16 years of my life to one industry, I deserve some level of comfort, which includes roof over my head, shoes on my feet, and clothes on my body. It can be better but I am grateful for everything that I have.
Marriage and responsibility
Marriage has added a lot to my life. Before I got married, I could afford to be cheeky, I could afford to say anything but now there is a form of responsibility I shoulder. As a married man, I have learnt a lot and have grown so I show maturity in my entertainment, in my performances, and even in my personality.
One thing that marriage has taught me is accommodation. You should be able to accommodate all manner of people in different circumstances. My wife is a very accommodating person; I think I learnt that from her. There is nothing anyone can do to me that would do so much damage to my being because I understand that we are all humans and are bound to make mistakes. I don’t keep issues in my heart, my heart is free and clear, I am an easy going, lucky fellow and there is nobody I can’t talk to. I will tell you my mind right there and that is the end of it. My heart is very big because I don’t harbour certain thoughts.
On having kids
Initially, it was a choice not have a baby at a certain point because that time that we got married, my wife wanted to do her Master’s programme abroad which involved her traveling back and forth, so we decided that for that period, we should calm down and put child birth on a hold. After that phase ended, we decided to start trying and we are still trying. No, not having kids doesn’t bother me.
The Bible says: “in His time, He makes all things beautiful”. It is human to want to think about it but when you remember the promises of God, as human beings we will keep working on it day and night. Me impregnate a lady? No, there is no room for such a thing. I am very comfortable and happy with the person I am with and that is my wife, kids will come at God’s own time.
My future
For me, the future holds great promises. I follow the Bible especially as it concerns this issue. It says: “the glory of the latter days shall be greater than that of the former”. I believe its talking about me there, I believe it’s my portion, no matter what I did in the past, no matter what you think I am doing now, I believe the future will definitely be bigger than everything I have done in times past. I attend The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM) headquarters. I am Bishop Okonkwo’s boy.
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