Comedy: Do industry plants exist in Uganda’s backdrop?

“In 15 years in Hollywood, no one in Hollywood has a memory of going to a sold-out Kevin Hart show, there being a line for him, [him] ever getting a standing ovation at any comedy club,” Williams said. 

“He already had his deals when he got here. Have we heard of a comedian who came to LA [Los Angeles], and in his first year in LA, he had his own sitcom on network television? And had his own movie called Soul Plane that he was leading? No, we’ve never heard of that before …,” he added.

All this begs of the question: Do industry plants exist? An industry plant is a creature of boardroom machinations, not a product comedic ability. This is why Kevin Hart, who many find unfunny, is said to be a plant. Essentially, to his critics, he’s a corporate creation. Yet, all said, he is arguably the most successful stand-up comedian of all time. He fills stadia with raving fans. His last comedy tour grossed more than $122m (Shs450b) and, recently, he was awarded the coveted Mark Twain Prize for American Humour. 

Is Salvador a plant?

In Uganda, the closest thing to Hart is Patrick “Salvado” Idringi. To his detractors, he is not funny. Yet one would be hard-pressed to find a stand-up comedian as successful as him in Uganda. Still, many industry watchers are not comfortable with his presumed pro-government stances on issues that inflame anti-government sentiment. His political leanings have led many to label him a plant, too. 

To support their arguments, they remind us how he fell out with his one-time bosom buddy and fellow jokester, Alex Muhangi, in 2017. At the time, Salvado left Diners Lounge in Bukoto, previously the home of Muhangi’s comedy imprint Comedy Store, and founded his own comedy showcase in the 400 Bar & Restaurant, Bukoto, within spitting distance of Diners. 

According to Muhangi, this was done in bad faith. 

“Today’s rebels are within, watch out for the ones closest to you. They’re praying to take your job, to take whatever you’ve tirelessly worked to achieve. Much as you think you’re doing them good, they walk closer to you, waiting for that one chance for you to press one eye, look aside and they take you down,” Muhangi reportedly said. 

Cloning business 

Apart from sabotage, industry plants are believed to be involved in some dark practices. That is, mind control and cloning. At 32, Dave Chappelle debuted his sketch comedy show on Comedy Central in 2003. It was an unqualified hit. After two seasons on the air though, Chappelle’s Show came to an abrupt end in April 2005.

Chappelle had just signed a two-year $50m (Shs185b) contract to continue Chappelle’s Show. Sadly, Chappelle, like government funds, then vanished. He didn’t even tell his wife and children that he had decamped to South Africa. Fellow comedian Jim Breuer, who worked with Chappelle on his show, believes Chappelle was ‘visited’ and ‘corrected’. That is why he disappeared to Africa. 

“That’s not the same Dave,” he added, when observing Chappelle in the present day. His observation implies that Chappelle was possibly cloned. 

Yet, according to science, the genes of an individual, the genome, can be cloned, but the individual cannot be cloned. This has not stopped conspiracy theorists from thinking otherwise. 

It is true that when artists reach a certain status, earning plenty in fame and fortune, they tend to change. They tone down, play more by the rules. This may be due to branding rather than cloning. As big companies pour money into an artist’s pocket, a return on their investment presupposes a control of the artist’s narrative.  

The artist can no longer be left to their own devices when millions of dollars are at stake. They must be managed towards a positive capital investment. So when The Chappelle’s Show: Season 2 Uncensored DVD broke sales records, selling about 500,000 copies in one day and 1.2 million in a week, the network threw on the leash. 

“I’ve been in show business since I was 14, and I’ve heard the stories of what happens to performers when they achieve great wealth and fame,” Dave says. “They start saying things like, ‘It’s the people around me. Everyone’s changed.’ I’m the same, but everything around me is changing.”

In Uganda, we see artists change as they succeed. For instance, Salvado is not the government critic he once was. His independent thinking is a thing of the past, no less. He is now playing by the rules of the moneybags and hence validating the saying, “Success takes you where character cannot sustain you.”

Paid their dues 

Still, it would be unfair to label Salvado an industry plant. He has been a stand-up comedian for more than 14 years; he has surely paid his dues. There is certainly money (read talent) in his brand of funny. If there weren’t, he wouldn’t be an industry veteran.  

Kevin Hart, too, had low-level comedic gigs in bowling alleys, cabarets and strip clubs when he was coming up. Hart remembers hearing a woman say, “Oh, baby” during his set. 

“[She was] so disgusted and heartbroken that this is what I chose to do with my life,” Hart told CBS News last April. 

Oftentimes, we should also look at those accusing our outstanding performers of being guided by a hidden hand. Katt Williams is known for his wayward behaviour. Some of his claims, including that he read 3,000 books a year between the ages of eight and 12, are simply outrageous. 

Besides, he could be jealous of Hart. Since Hart has, according to Celebrity Net Worth, a net worth of $450m (Shs1.7 trillion). And a putatively funnier Williams has a net worth of roughly $2m (Shs7.3b) to $5m (Shs18.5b).