Exclusive Interview: Stinblaze In The Business Of Talking And Comedy

Many years ago, his parents brought him up in Lagos State, Western Nigeria. A few years back, he raised himself nicely in Enugu State, South-East of Nigeria. His parents named him Austin and advised him to study hard and take a regular white-collar job. Refusing to be mediocre, the daring young man decided to rewrite his script. He straightened up, studied diligently, and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Mass Communications from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka where he started comedy and christened himself StinBlaze-da-Comedian; a name which has become a household artifact synonymous with tasty comedy in the city of Enugu. 

 

Unarguably one of the brightest standup comedy stars from the East, StinBlaze recently took the Coal City by storm earlier in 2021 and sold out a comedy show as it had never been done in the city. And to certify himself as an emerging young king, he bagged a covetous deal with one of the strongest brands in the hospitality and entertainment industry in Nigeria, the famous Cubana Group. For his new role as an ambassador, StinBlaze received a key to a brand new Mercedes SUV to proudly represent the company. What a feat!  

 

Ever perspective and always evolving, we sat down with the busy and rising comedy icon for a brief chat. Austin Madu is the man of the moment. He shared some insightful thoughts with us you should not miss for anything. 

 

Tell us about yourself 

 

I was born Madu, Austin Dele. I am now StinBlaze-da-Comedian. I am an MC, a Hype-man. In short, I talk for a living. I am also into motivating people into becoming better. You can say I am into anything that brings money from talking. 

 

How did your journey start?

 

Whenever I try to trace my journey, it seems I have been funny since I was born. But for the events, I can verify and recall, while in primary school, when other pupils recited poems and the multiplication table to show their skills, mine was to tell jokes. I would tell some of the jokes I had read in the papers. I shared these funny stories in school and parents would laugh and call me a clown. I think I can trace it all from there.  

In secondary school, I was like a class clown. I was the student who always has funny responses to questions in class. 

 

Moving higher, my first approach to an institution of higher learning was at Alvan Ikoku in 2012. That is where I started taking comedy a bit seriously. I made my first 2,000 naira there. It was MC Baron in Owerri who first introduced me to that stage.

 

In UNN, the popularity grew some inch. Sometimes, I woke up to my name being on posters for events I have no idea about. That was how it started and we are here. 

 

Practically speaking, I was always going to talent hunt shows to compare myself with others and not to win. I was always asking myself that personal question: are you sure you are not a local champion and friends are just cheering you? But I always travelled to prove to myself that there was more inside of me. I was a semi-finalist at an Ali Baba event in Lagos. 

 

What challenges did you constantly face as a student and as a business person? How were you able to tackle them and balance both worlds?

 

I am not being proud when I say I did not add an extra year while in UNN and it always came as a shock to friends. They felt I had paid someone money. Some people were rich in school then but they couldn’t pay their way out. UNN has its principles. You have to put in the work. I did and came out victorious. 

 

I had a formula. I shall share it. If I had eight courses for the semester, I would skip only one of those courses for my comedy business. That one may be the one I would have poor grades in. I struck that balance when I knew I needed to manage academics and business and it worked for me. 

 

A lot of students belong to so many associations on campus and it eats into their academic time. You should not join many associations in school. I don’t like being dormant in associations so I restricted myself. It was comedy and school. If people can be sincere and balance these things, they will come out better.  

Stinblaze 

 

How did you come up with the tag "Comedian With Too Much Vibes"?

 

Akpororo inspires me. He inspired me to do this. I have this extra energy when I am on stage. I am not cold on stage. I am ballistic. While other comedians have their aura, I have my vibes. It is the vibe I tried to pronounce in my name. That was it. While Akpororo had swag, I have vibes and people are getting used to addressing me as the comedian with too much vibe. 

 

How has Covid-19 affected your creative space as a stand-up comedian?

 

Covid-19 affected everyone but creative people need space to earn and that was where I would agree that it struck us more. 

Covid-19 started like a joke but I had some weddings that had been paid for. Some called for a refund and it affected me. But the time at home helped me greatly too. I did professional courses online and it would have been impossible without that break from active business.

 

I took a course in Risk Management and another one in Hospitality Management online. I am proud of these decisions.  

 

When people asked for their refund due to Covid-19, I asked how things like that can be avoided. A burst into a business page online helped me and I think I know better now. The courses were four months and Covid enabled me to finish them. 

 

 

You were able to pull off a sold-out comedy show, how does that feel? And what challenges did you encounter?

 

Entertainment is like occultism. I am sorry to paint that picture but it isn’t literal. There is a cabal around it. It is like that everywhere in the world. If you don’t balance things well, you will lose. You can be good but when your validation isn’t coming from these guys, you could lose some things. I guess I was able to manage these things and it paid off. 

 

You see, I stayed back in Enugu because everyone in Nsukka knew me. I was raised in Lagos but I needed to build a fan base around the area where I had my primary audience. And this thing about the show has been a dream. 

 

I came across a stage that was properly done some years ago and I knew that one day I would have that for my show too. It started with that prompt.  I think it was an event by MC Franchise. I always dreamt of it. In 2019, I started planning. Covid happened and it was postponed. 

 

God sent me a helper. It was a big relief. When I told him what my budget was, he started laughing. He said I should write out what I wanted. He paid for one of the biggest halls in the city of Enugu and PR. 

 

The cabals fought but we sold out our tables and it was so impressive that we gave out some regular seats as giveaways. That was how great it was. Before the show, we had advice that said if we were priced below the amount we intended for a seat, we should comply since it was a thing in Enugu but we took our chances. We sold tables at 1 million naira and 500k and people paid in full. We got about 10 sold tables and it took care of our bills. 

 

You were recently crowned as an Ambassador for Cubana Group. How does it feel to be recognized?

 

I don’t deceive people. The Cubana Group has been supporting me. It was partnership when I had my show. There have been discussions of them trying to make me an ambassador. I once got a call that the Chairman of the group had gone through my profile and coupled with the fact that I put up a good event, it helped. Baba Dee said I should come to sign some documents. When I came, I saw the car with ribbon and from discussions and other signs, I knew that it was for me. It was not a total shock. I wouldn’t want to lie to deceive anyone. 

 

What’s that one thing people don’t know about you?

 

People mistake the way I carry myself as pride. The characters of StinBlaze and Madu are different. One is cold and one is loud. 

I could be emotional. I hide a lot behind my emotions. I know how to manage my emotions. I once used my lost election in UNN to crack a joke. I mocked myself with it and took power from those who would have laughed at me. 

 

I sympathize with folks a lot. I could buy things from hawkers while on campus and share and they would mistake that for having so much money but within me I knew I had 3k. I just do not like to see people suffer. I purchased items from these hawkers. It was sad that they hawk items which the total is like eight hundred naira.  

 

Are there any comedians high up in the industry you look forward to working with and why?

 

I admire a lot of people. Alibaba is one of them. He is the leader of the new school comedy. He started wearing suits and tie when others were dressed as clowns. He dressed like a banker and oil worker to crack jokes so his business would be taken seriously. He knows the business aspect of comedy. 

 

I also look up to Akpororo in performance. I love his performance, the way he speaks and the vibes on stage.  

 

AY packages comedy very well. He gives a presidential setting to things. I look up to him in that aspect. 

 

Bovi, Buchi, Senator and others are great with presentations. When they come on stage, I sit back and observe.  I enjoy I-go-dye too. 

 

Where do you see yourself and your brand in the next 5 years?

 

PR and advertising. That is what I wish to do. I won’t be doing standup comedy for long. As a graduate, I have something to fall back on. 

 

In less than five years, I will be verified on IG. It is part of the branding and I am on that. I will be a household name around Nigeria too. 

 

What is the worst experience you've had in your career path? 

 

I mentioned how I started comedy at Alvan Ikoku. It was Baron Uwandu who introduced me on stage and while holding the microphone, a lady walked by the stage and told me to go and focus on my book. She explicitly spelt it there that I was a freshman in the university. That incident had me stunned. 

 

Also in UNN, during the faculty night, I made a move to perform and the MC for the night asked what level I was and when I told him I was in 100 level, he asked me to sit and watch, that the event was not for a fresher to perform but to enjoy. 

 

My family didn’t support the comedy dream. They wanted me to study and take up a job like every other person. In short, there was an incident back home when I started to identify fully as an MC. A lady walked into the compound and said she heard there was an MC in the place. When I walked out, she could not believe it and laughed. It was embarrassing. It did not stop there. When she introduced me to her mother, they all laughed. I guess I did not look like an MC and it was how it was until I fumbled and kept making mistakes. But I am better now. Those stories are my motivations. 

 

And when accepting jobs, since my Igbo is rusty, I try not to accept traditional marriage jobs. The Igbo culture is too profound to be handled by someone who can’t speak Igbo fluently. 

 

 

What's your advice for the up and coming comedians who want to have successful shows and build their brand names?

 

The whole point of art is consistency; once you are putting up the right content. I was born Madu Austin. I took up StinBlaze as a brand and built it. Stick to something. Don’t jump everywhere. Jumping everywhere reduces brand identity.  Remain consistent. You may not be on the big stage yet but one-inch growth is better. 

 

I will have more StinBlaze Experience shows. If you are consistent, the gig that paid you 10,000 naira would pay you 10 million naira someday if you stay consistent. Get familiar with brands and corporate bodies too. And don’t just put money in front of all you do. Look at the long term relationship of this business. Chase brands instead of people. Brands are more stable. I did a gig with Airtel years ago which enabled me to tour higher institutions in the east. That relationship paid off. People saw that big brands could trust me with their image and I delivered. When brands rate you, individuals will accept you. That’s how it is. One man may not wed more than once. But a corporate organization will always have something that would require your services. Chase the right brands.