Popular Nigerian comedian, Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome, better known as Alibaba, has explained why his dad kept malice with him for ten years for choosing to become a comedian over lawyer.
Alibaba disclosed this while featuring as a guest in the Christmas edition of The Honest Bunch Podcast.
He cited that after leaving the university he informed his dad about his decision to become a comedian and his reaction compelled him to abscond from home for a decade.
The veteran comedian pointed out that he then became determined to be successful in his chosen career in order to prove his father wrong.
Alibaba said, “My dad is a bookworm. He got his PhD at 86. I told him, I said, ‘Daddy, I came from school to tell you something.’ He said, ‘Okay, have you been rusticated?’ I said, ‘No. I’ve decided that I don’t want to read law. I want to do comedy.’
“He asked, ‘Comedy like what?’ I said, ‘Like cracking jokes.’ He laughed and asked my younger brother to call my uncle who lived close by. When my uncle came, he asked what the matter was and I said I don’t want to read law again that I want to do comedy. He said that means I’ve found another father, stressing that I can’t be part of the family and won’t read law. He said all the money my dad spent on me was wasted. He told my dad to handle the situation and left.
“I knew I couldn’t sleep in that house because my dad would beat me. So as my uncle was going out, I followed him to lock the burglary and I didn’t go back in. And my dad and I didn’t talk from 1988 – 1998. Ten years. I tried to reach out to him. I went one time to talk to him but he didn’t want to see me.
“This was the thing. So people ask, ‘Where did you get the inspiration to become a great comedian?’ I was committed. I was like I want to prove him [my Dad] wrong.”
