Renowned comedian Bright Okpocha, popularly known as Basketmouth, has expressed his concern over the diminishing state of stand-up comedy in Nigeria, describing it as a sector that is “actually dying.”

In a recent interview with Arise TV, Basketmouth highlighted the absence of a structured platform for comedians in Nigeria, a stark contrast to the support enjoyed by the music and movie industries.

Basketmouth voiced his observations, stating, “My colleagues will agree with me that stand-up comedy in Nigeria is actually dying. The culture of stand-up comedy is bleeding terribly.

“You know, with music, they have their streaming platforms; they have a platform that supports what they do across the world. With movies, they have the same thing: they have the streaming platform. And Afrobeats broke into that space and made room for the movies.”

He went on to emphasize the lack of dedicated platforms for comedy, stating, “Unfortunately, for comedy, we don’t have any platforms. We don’t have comedy clubs; we don’t have any structure.”

“In the United States, if comedians decide to go on tour, before they go on tour, they do comedy clubs across the states and try the materials repeatedly. But here in Nigeria, there’s no comedy club. There’s nowhere for you to practice your materials.”

Basketmouth also highlighted the absence of a supportive system for comedy in Nigeria, particularly for emerging comedians who lack the necessary platforms.