Popularly called White-Nigerian, Mohammed Jammal is a 24-year -old comedian, discovered on YouTube in 2010. His first performance was in the presence of a crowd of over 5,000 people at a show in London. Since then, he has performed at different shows including Nigeria @ 50 show in Trafalgar Square, London. In this encounter with NNAH DOUGLAS, he spoke on his family, career and the Nigerian entertainment circle. Excerpts:
You seem to be making waves in the entertainment industry, can you tell us a little about yourself?
I was born into a family of seven, in fact, we were all born in Jos. My dad was also born in Jos, even my grandpapa sef na Jos dem born am. I have a degree in Business Administration and Master’s degree in global management.
Are you insinuating that you are a Nigerian?
What about your dad’s nationality?
I am proud to say that we are all typical Nigerians, all of us in the family, no exception.
But you don’t look like a Nigerian, you look like an Arabian or rather, a Lebanese, are you sure you are not from Qatar or Dubai or even Lebanon?
Don’t mind the colour, President Obama of the United States is a Black American in the same vein, I am a white Nigerian, what Obama is to America is what I am to Nigeria.
Since you claim to be a citizen of this country, where are you from?
I am from Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State.
How do people react when you tell them you are a Nigerian?
A lot of people seem not to believe me; the fact that I am a comedian makes them think I am joking about it. People that know me while I was growing up will attest to the fact that Nigeria is my only country. I did not emanate from the moon or Jupiter but Nigeria.
As you are aware, most Nigerians have lost confidence in the Nigerian dream, you can imagine where people make inflammatory utterances thereby threatening the unity of this country, how would you respond to this?
If Nigerians keep saying nasty things about the country, how are we going to move forward, the only way we can move forward is by saying positive things about our country. Let us come together to brainstorm on the way forward, we must correct our past mistakes. Nigeria is not the only country facing both economic and political challenges; the same is applicable world over. We cannot keep complaining about everything, we should appreciate God for our achievement since 14 years of our nascent democracy. If you actually think the government has not done enough for the country, what have you personally done to improve the country? Abeg, abeg make we no bad mouth Naija. As youths of this great and blessed country, what difference have we made? If you have been to London you will realise that Nigeria is one of the best countries to live in. The country is beautiful. Life in London is not as easy as people think because over there, you pay an insurance of 4,000 pounds for a car that cost you 1,500 pounds. You pay virtually for everything. In Nigeria for instance, nature is given freely, we have family oriented places you can go for relaxation. You can as well stroll to your parents house to eat and relax but not so in London where every man is totally on his own.
What do you do for a living?
I am humorous in nature, I entertain people by way of comedy but more importantly, I am an artist. I launched my hit single video, ‘Takarawa’ last year, I featured JJC which is making waves on air, I have also launched some other hit songs including one Hausa hit track. Above all, I am also into business, we have a family business. I schooled in the UK and I’m back home to serve my fatherland through the compulsory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme.
Can you tell us what we need to know about Takarawa?
It was launched on the 23rd of October, 2011. In Nigeria for instance, not everybody launches their songs. ‘Takarawa’ is doing well both locally and internationally even on YouTube.
How is your popularity rating at the moment?
To be honest, I am still up and coming, I am not Naeto C., MI or even Basket Mouth, though I am working towards getting there. Again, I’m contented with my present fame particularly in Abuja, I have at the moment over 100,000 fans on YouTube, I had an opportunity to meet one on one with Nigeria’s world renowned producer of Jewelleries Chris Aire in London, he personally commended me for a job well done which made me happy.
What kind of support do you get from your parents?
My parents have been very supportive right from day one. They put me in one of the best schools in Jos; they have encouraged me in so many ways both financially and morally. They pleaded with me to take my education very seriously and today I am better for it.
It has been observed that people discover their talent when they must have been dealt with by hunger what informed your interest to comedy?
I never planned to be an entertainer in the first place but somehow, I wanted to be famous. I was close to playing for the Super Eagles until Osazie Odemwinge came in and as you know, he is the ‘oyibo’ in the team and after the unsuccessful attempt to play for my country (Nigeria), I decided to shift focus to my business, with special interest in entertainment. While in London for AY show, the comedian discovered me and asked me to perform in one of his popular comedy shows, AY Live in London. Interestingly, I performed in both Hausa and Pidgin English and everybody was like ‘wow’. The AY show actually brought me to limelight and I took it up from there.
Are you insinuating that Osazie’s discovery to play for the Super Eagles denied you a place in the team?
Not really, I learnt a lot from Osazie, he taught me football while at home (Jos), and I also train with Plateau United.
Which major shows have you been opportune to perform?
A lot, I featured in the inaugural edition of AY Live (Lagos, Abuja and London editions respectively), I also performed at the Nigeria at 50 comedy show in London as well as Basket Mouth’s Lord of the Ribs in Abuja. I was magnificent in P-Square’s album launch, Abuja Mega Blast, Rhythm Unplugged, the Most Beautiful Girl in Abuja 2011, and the Face of Peace in Jos, a programme organised to bring enlighten people on the essence to maintain peace.
Comedians of the Federal Republic have been heavily slammed for charging very high fees to perform at shows, what is your take on this?
People think because I am putting on a white skin, they cannot afford me. I enjoy what I do because it is driven by passion. I don’t give a damn about the money, for instance, the Face of Peace Show in Jos, where I performed was done for free because it preaches peace and harmonious reconciliation among various tribes in Jos. Money for me is secondary.
As an Abuja based artist, what is your impression about Abuja entertainment industry?
Entertainment in Abuja is different from what is obtainable in Lagos, but there abounds countless opportunities. When I first came to Abuja, I discovered that the city had enormous talents yet to be tapped. There are also people I would want to really assist in their career or talents though some of them are even more talented than I am. It all boils down to the fact that entertainment is gradually picking up, a lot of professional talents are migrating to the city because Abuja will soon blow hot in entertainment, security challenge still remains a disturbing factor impeding on the growth entertainment in Abuja. When you stage a big show, low turn-out is always the result but in the next 10 years, FCT will be rubbing shoulders with Lagos. I charge people to attend shows to also see and appreciate great talents they have.
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