Comics in Jamaica

by Brian McKim & Traci Skene on April 30th, 2007

There are comedians in Jamaica. Of course there are. Why wouldn’t there be? And their problems are the same as comedians elsewhere, we assume. Take, for example, this quote from an article (Comedians reject ‘joke’ money) in the Jamaica Gleaner News, from Ity of the comedy team Ity and Fancy Cat:

Yuh nah find a whole lot a comedians like pon stage shows outside of being a host; you only have like Apache Chief and Sarge as acts. That’s why we haffi put on our own show dem an tek care a everybody. If a man call an seh dem want Ity and Fancy Cat fi a show an mi seh yea, $600,000, dem a guh laugh so hard, but if dem call like Buju an him seh yea, dem a guh seh wah, wi get Buju fi dah price deh?” Ity said.

We aren’t totally clear on the problem, but we gather that, just like everywhere, folks always try to bone comics out of money. (Price quotes are in Jamaican dollars.)

You aren’t conversant in Jamaican patois? This website cyan ‘elp yuh wit dat problem.