By Hosea Parah
Stand-up comedian and actor Ayo Makun, popularly known as AY, has lamented the rising cost of booking Nigerian artistes for comedy shows, revealing that some top music stars now charge as much as N200 million to perform at a comedy concert.
AY, who made the disclosure on Instagram while reflecting on the show’s evolution, said even emerging artistes who have yet to attain mainstream success now demand up to N80 million for appearances.
According to the comedian, top acts including Wizkid, Davido, Burna Boy, Tiwa Savage and Olamide have all graced the AY Live stage in the past.
“For many years, since the beginning of AY Live, Wizkid, Davido, Burna Boy, Tiwa Savage, and Olamide have all performed at AY Live,” AY said.
He noted that in the early years, bookings were largely driven by friendship and mutual support, with artistes accepting modest fees to cover logistics.
“In those days, many appearances were made possible through friendship. An artiste would accept any reasonable amount to cover their logistics, but today, the Nigerian musicians charge N200 million, N120 million, N80 million to appear on my show,” he added.
AY attributed the sharp increase in performance fees to the global growth of the Nigerian music industry.
“The industry has changed so that today the Nigerian musicians are global stars; they earn from streaming, international endorsements, and several other opportunities that come in foreign currencies. So they no longer depend on comedy shows for visibility,” he explained.
He added that the high fees are no longer limited to A-list acts.
“Even the upcoming artists wey never blow dey ask for N80 million,” he said.
AY further noted that securing top artistes for comedy shows now largely depends on personal relationships, as the cost has become prohibitive without them.
“The reality is that if you don’t have a strong personal relationship with any of these artists, bringing them to a comedy show can really be expensive,” he added.