HE STARTED OUT just posting comedy skits online at the beginning of this year, but local comedian Tito Kimenyi has developed a substantial following with over 25,000 followers across TikTok and Instagram. Before he started creating comedy skits, Kimenyi had been posting content on TikTok that he said didn’t stray far from what everyone else was posting. His previous classmate and colleague, Philippe Tugirumuremyi, remembers the day he shifted towards comedy. This switch would be a catalyst for the successful career he is now building. “I remember we were just sitting on the couch when he saw a video on WhatsApp, and he was like ohh! I can do this” Tugirumuremyi said. He recalls Kimenyi asking for his help to film the skit and quickly posting it on TikTok. It didn’t take long before he gained an audience. “Boom! He got many comments complimenting him, people saying they were amazed and more… that is when he started to put time in it” said Tugirumuremyi. While it is hard to believe, it wasn’t always clear to those around Kimenyi that he would become a comedian. “He was that kind of a person who was shy” said Tugirumuremyi “I never expected him to be the kind of a person he is at the moment.” Kimenyis sister, Esther Uwase, said, “Whenever we see him these days we laugh because we didnt take him as a comedian”. She remembers his contagious energy and how she couldn’t stay gloomy while he was in the house. “During our childhood we didnt see that he had that talent. But we used to see Nigerian movies and he would [imitate] the women in those films (...) It was fun” said Uwase. Nigerian comedians continue to be among those that he looks up to when he is creating new content. He describes his comedy skits as accurate recounts of scenarios that take place in everyday life. “Sometimes its somehow educational,” Kimenyi said. “There was this time when the mayor of a specific district started using my videos as a way of educating people from that district.” While one could assume that working with Kimenyi would be all laughs, Tugirumuremyi said that while he does enjoy working alongside him, Kimenyi is very dedicated and requires that his work maintains a certain caliber. “Even though he is demanding, it is just to make his work perfect” Tugirumuremyi said. “I see this as a good quality to succeed.” Since the first day that his now business partner, Fleury Nijimbere, saw his videos he has always believed that Kimenyi would achieve meaningful things. “He is a young boy, but with a big vision about social media” Nijimbere said. While the next step of his career is still unclear, he hopes that when the pandemic is over he can host a comedy event of his own. “I want to achieve my goals that I hope to achieve with time” Kimenyi said. He hopes to continue learning about the comedy industry and what it takes to be amongst the best.
