Larry J to empower fine artists at comedy show

Comedian, Olanrewaju Gregory, aka MC Larry J, has called for fine art entries in the lead up to his forthcoming comedy show tagged, ‘The Comedy Party with MC Larry J and Friends’.

The eventual winner of the art competition will get a cash prize of N1m.

Speaking on why he decided to incorporate a fine art competition into his show, Larry J said, “Last year during my show, we had ‘Comedy Amazon’, which was a competition for female comedians. MC Royal, who won the competition, is now one of the fastest-growing female comedians in the country.

This year, we felt that fine art is another aspect that should be looked into. So, we are having a fine arts competition, thanks to Adumaadan Gallery. I could have decided to do just comedy, but we decided to infuse art into it, because comedy itself is an art.”

Promising his fans a good time at the forthcoming show, Larry J said, “The show will be one of the most comfortable shows. I pride myself in doing ethical comedy, which is family-friendly. There are some types of comedy that can make one’s body cringe. Such jokes might be funny, but they are not ethical. Nigerians now take entertainers seriously, and play with their politicians and governments. So, comedians have a lot to do in making people comfortable.”

When asked about how far the interplay between comedy and art can go in shining the light on neglected aspects of the entertainment industry, the comedian said, “The reason people love Nigerian music today is because of the comedy shows that were held back in the days. There was a time when Nigerians were all listening to American sons, and were not paying attention to our music. Back then, it was comedy shows that were engaging Nigerian artistes to perform live. Comedians were actually the ones who first gave musicians platforms to perform for their fans.”

Speaking on his collaboration with Adumaadan Gallery for the art competition, he said, “My collaboration with the gallery is not just about the fine art competition. They pride themselves not just in fine art, they also help people to recover through fine art, because art is therapeutic.”

On her part, the gallery’s brand manager, Solabunmi Akinpelu, stated that art helps the brain to function better. She added, “Through art, a person can relearn. At times, people don’t need to use medication to heal, they can use art.”