“You have to wake up real early in the morning to beat me, you know what I’m saying? So when I saw that, I’m the type of person that likes to prove people wrong. “I’m a very competitive person,” Majah says. “All of the comments were, like, he ran out of gas, he has no more jokes, you see I told you - and I was like, really? He briefly contemplated a return to life as a transit authority electrician, but then Majah read a few posts from his fans. Shortly after being laid off, the comedian was offered his old job back. Everyone can unify and we all laugh and joke as one.” “My platforms are a melting pot for the Caribbean,” he says. His seamless accents, comedic timing, and true-to-life material quickly made Majah Hype a a Caribbean and Caribbean diaspora social media sensation. “I hear something and I just say it back you.” Majah credits his musical background and observant nature for the ease with which he pulls off his repertoire of accents and personalities. These daily sketches, released online, were simple yet hilarious depictions of Caribbean as well as African and American parents, grandparents, and friends, plus regular segments and recurring characters. Nothing is written or anything,” he says. With an iPhone in hand, topics in mind, and the ability to effortlessly capture the accents and mannerisms typical of various Caribbean nationalities, Majah Hype started recording a series of short sketches inspired by the people and situations he came across daily in Brooklyn, no practice needed. I took my comedy seriously.”Ī small home studio in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, is where it all started. “I took a leap of faith, and I knew it was time to take what I really wanted to do seriously. So in 2013, when he was laid off from his full-time job as a certified electrician for New York City’s transit authority, Majah Hype took it as a sign: this was his opportunity to go after his goal of becoming a professional comedian. But what he always wanted to do is comedy. This man of many talents also writes, sings, and produces music, and has worked with reggae and soca artists like Gyptian, Tarrus Riley, and Lyrikal. Over the years, he played with multiple New York City sound systems, including the iconic Massive B. “He is responsible for making me the man I am today,” he says.Īt the of age fifteen, his love for music brought him to deejaying. Seeing his grandfather’s passion for entertaining is what created Majah’s strong ambitions for the industry and will to succeed. Majah Hype - all he’s revealed of his real identity is his first name, Nigel - started performing at the age of eight, when his grandfather taught him how to play at least seven instruments, including alto saxophone, trombone, and drums. “I mean, all my family recognised I had this gift, and that I should take it seriously - because I didn’t just try to be funny, it was a natural thing.” “Growing up, my mother always told me that I belonged on someone’s stage,” Majah says. But it was only a preview of what this multi-talented funnyman brings to the world of Caribbean entertainment. “It was an experience that taught me to always be ready for the unexpected.”Īfter that show, the Brooklyn-based comedian got invitations to headline live standups shows in Canada, Britain, Guyana, Trinidad, and the US Virgin Islands, just to name a few. That night, he would perform twenty-minute freestyle comedy segments over four hours between the musical acts. “Are we going to hear a ‘Dat does piss me off’ segment?” “Yeah, wey Grandpa James dey,” shouted another, referring to one of Majah’s most notable characters. I kind of had the butterflies and all that, wondering how they would take to what I had to say.”īefore his mind could wander much further, someone at the front of the crowd yelled a question. The rumble of cheers from the massive crowd grew, and Majah Hype was excited, but also recalls that “it was nerve-racking, you know. Majah Hype laughed to himself, because although he had never done standup comedy before, when his manager got the call and asked him, “Do you do standup?” his response was, “Well, I do now.” The college’s Caribbean Students Association asked him to host their annual cultural show. And for the first time ever, that audience would experience Majah Hype’s comedy live.īehind the curtain, before his name was announced, the comedian thought back to the phone call that brought him to this moment. Backstage at Baruch College, all comedian Majah Hype could think was “this is only the beginning.” It was a Friday night in New York City, and close to a thousand people had come out to see some of the biggest names in soca music, including Bunji Garlin, Fay Ann Lyons, and Lyrikal.
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