Gbenga Adeboye, late comedian and broadcaster popularly known as ‘Mr Funwontan’, hit stardom before comedy became a big industry.

The ace broadcaster and master of ceremony, died on April 30, 2003, after losing the battle to a kidney-related ailment.

Here are five things we remember about the multi-talented comedian.

HIS NUMEROUS NAMES

At birth, he was known as Elijah Oluwagbemiga Adeboye, but as at the time of his death, it became difficult to keep track of his names.
The names were as a result of his exploits in humour and music.
Some of the names are Funwontan, Alhaji Pastor Oluwo, Abefe, Jengbetiele, Itu baba Ita, Alaye mi Gbengulo.

MAN OF MANY TALENTS
Before his death, he was a versatile entertainer. An orator, comedian, master of ceremony, broadcaster and songwriter.

His programmme on Lagos State Broadcasting Corporation gave him the pseudo-name Funwontan.
Some of his songs did not go the usual ‘words and melody’ way, as he carved his own style of singing.

Gbenga Adeboye: 6 facts about late legendary comedian

MENTOR TO MANY TALENTS
During his lifetime and at his death, he was described as a generous and carefree person.

Alaye mi Gbengulo, as he was called by fans, was a mentor to many. Some of those who hold him in high esteem are: Abbey Fagboro, Ereke ni Soobu, Bashiru Adisa better known as Baba Gboin.

Fathia Balogun, Nollywood actress hit limelight when she featured as a dancer in one of his music videos.

WEDNESDAY MAN

In her album titled ‘Omo Majemu’ translated as ‘Convenant Child’, Seun Adeboye, his sister, narrated how he lived before he hit limelight and how Wednesday was special in his life.

According to her, Gbenga Adeboye was born on Wednesday, September 30, 1959; began his education on Wednesday, had his first trip to America on Wednesday, and his first radio programme on a Wednesday.
He died on Wednesday, April 30, 2003 and was buried on Wednesday, May 14, 2003.

EXPLOITS WITH DEATH

Tales of his exploits with death, which he narrated in one of his albums sparked controversies. According to him, he died and had an encounter with God.

Adeboye claimed to have been sent back to the earth by God to complete his unfinished business and was instructed to be buried with his Bible and hymn book.

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Gbenga Adeboye: 6 facts about late legendary comedian

Sometimes, when an all important person dies in the society, a part of that person remains here never to be forgotten. For some people, it is their wealth that lingers on. For others, it is their works and achievement. For someone like Gbenga ‘Funwotan’ Adeboye, it was his laughter, his happiness, the very core of his profession, that he left behind.

Needless to say, when Gbenga Adeboye was alive, his happiness was everyone’s happiness. He made big problems into teeny-weeny jokes so that when these little jokes are laughed over, these challenges and mountain-like distresses disappear all together.

Gbenga Adeboye died in 2003, at the age of 44, and since then, the entertainment industry in Nigeria has been echoing with the sound of his laughter and the rhythm of his care free, happy attitude.

Enough poetry. There is no doubt that many Nigerians are well acquainted with Gbenga Adeboye, the famous master of oduology and humour merchant that was at the forefront of comedy and entertainment in his days.

1. His birth and career

Gbenga Adeboye was born on September 30, 1959, at Ode Omu, Gbongan, Osun state. Nigeria. Although very little is known about his childhood, it is known that the late Gbenga started working as a freelance radio presenter for Radio Lagos where he started a very popular programme which was solely meant for Yoruba audience.

The name of the programme which started in 1981 was Funwontan. Later on, clips from the improvised and mostly impromptu shows were cut out and put in nine albums. Some of them include Orisunkunnu 1 and 2, Ph. D Beetle, Funwontan 1 & 2, Oro lati ori ite mimo 1 & 2, Versatility, Aiyetoro, Controversy, Supremacy and Ijinle.

2. Jack of all trades, master of all

Gbenga Adeboye was, during his lifetime, a man of many talents. His craft covered nearly every aspect of the entertainment industry and he excelled in all of them. He was a comedian (he pioneered stand-up comedy) who could make people’s eyes water with his jokes. He was a musician whose songs of ‘unusual genres’ contained in depth lyrics and melody that caused several people to genuflect.

Even more, Gbenga was an activist, orator, prophet, mimic, humorist, entertainer and master of ceremony. It was quite impressive how he was able to use his talent so well within a short time. Better still, through his words, jokes and actions, Gbenga addressed societal and political ills within the society.

3. Man with ‘a name of many colours’ 

Although Gbenga was christened Elijah Oluwagbemiga Adeboye, nobody exactly identified him by this one name. After his show hit limelight, the humour merchant began to be endued with so many names, too numerous to count. It was as if for every gig or show he did, he got a new name.

Some of the popular names he was identified by include Funwontan, Alhaji Pastor Oluwo, Abefe, Jengbetiele, Itu baba Ita, Alaye mi Gbengulo, One Man Battalion, Jengbentiele, Apagunpote 1, Abefe, Olayinka, Omo Baba Overseer, Awo itu, Baba Ita, Awo Baba Laisi Abesupinle.

About the last name – Laisi Abesupinle – Gbenga often used it a lot on air. He would dye his hair into white, mimic the voice of an old, age-stricken man, and then, attack the ills of the public (youths and adults) head on. That was quite something, right?

Gbenga Adeboye: 5 things to remember about late legendary comedian

4. Godfather in the Entertainment Industry 

Apart from his many achievements, Gbenga Adeboye also impacted the lives of many entertainers. He was not a lone ranger, rather, he embraced many people and made them as great as he was. For one, it is impossible to mention the person of Yinka Ayefele without talking about Adeboye.

Also, the likes of Abbey Fagboro, Ereke ni Soobu, Bashiru Adisa better known as Baba Gboin reverence Alaye Mi Gbengulo for the role he played in their career. Even more, Nollywood actress Fathia Balogun came to the spotlight only after she featured as a dancer in one of his music videos.

5. His Miraculous resurrection and death

Before Gbenga finally died on April 30, 2003, he made certain controversial statements in a recorded tape. He said that God had called him to glory at a point in his life. According to him, the purpose of his death at that time was to be shown several mysterious things by the Divine.

Gbenga claimed that he was later sent back to earth by God because he had to complete an unfinished assignment. As if he knew about his imminent death, the entertainer requested that he be buried with the Bible and a hymn book.

6. ‘Omo Majemu’ (Covenant Child)

Seun Adeboye, sister to the late singer, once dedicated a song to her brother. The song which was titled Omo Majemu set out to narrate the life journey of the master of oduology. To surmise the album, Seun asserted that Gbenga was a covenant child.

Her reason for this was that Gbenga, in a strange twist, practically was a Wednesday man alone. He was born on Wednesday, September 30, 1959; began his education on Wednesday, had his first trip to America on Wednesday, and his first radio programme on a Wednesday. He died on Wednesday, April 30, 2003 and was buried on Wednesday, May 14, 2003.

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Holu Michael, a man with the luxury of talents

Michael Olusegun Akinwande with the stage name “Holu Michael” is a multi talented entertainer and minister who derives his  inspiration from God.

The spontaneity and naturalness of his talents cannot be overemphasized, this is evident in the love, acceptance and accolades he gets from his fans and well-wishers.

Asides choosing singing and reading as hobbies, he is a lover of Sports and adventures. Of course, all work and no play, makes Jack a dull boy. He out of no time creates time for other hobbies and to unwind.

When being asked about the challenges he faced while trying to discover his talent and putting his talents into display, he responded that his challenges are personal, which has helped his judgement about life and serves as pruning dose.

The challenges of life are never beyond solving for God.

Additionally,in the nearest future, Holu Michael expects to be financially free, to be a positive influence to others, be a good leader and a top notch presenter / Master compairé

His prowess and versatility cuts across acting, singing, comedy and event anchoring. One would wonder how one single person could be this multitalented, if not divine.

According to him, the realization that he could act and sing could be traced back to 1995 when he was in secondary school with the help of Mr. kola Oladejo, his English teacher while event anchoring, comedy and being a presenter was discovered with the help of his friends in the University with encouragement and guidance from Mr. Fatai Dan Wahab (OSRC), Kay Babalola (TRECOM), Pst. Biyi Daniels (RCCG).His first major appearance was on 14th February, 2002, where he showcased himself at a church program (Kings Youth Valentine Program). Subsequently, he metamorphosed to Guild of Orators to seek for more training.

Holu Michael who has been into entertainment & Music Ministry for about three decades explained that he has the ambition of working with the likes of Dunsin Oyekan, OMG, Mike Abdul, Kenny Blaq, Thetimo and Lagbaja in the nearest future.

Born on the 15th of July, Mr Holu Micheal is happily married with children and has never had any glitch juxtaposing his career with family affairs. He concluded by emphasizing that his talents are from God cipf-es.org and he has left no stone unturned in getting developed personally.