- Emmanuel Kisiangani is a leading stand-up comedian, radio host, and podcaster in Kenya.
- The former Spice FM radio host is currently hitting the airwaves with the Kisiangani Podcast, a hilarious YouTube show featuring authentic conversations laced with endless jokes.
- While Kisiangani co-hosts the show with regular characters led by comedian Bashir Halaiki, he occasionally invites wild guests to spice things up.
- One such guest is fellow stand-up comedian Amandeep Jagde, whom he has hosted on the show a few times.
- In a recent conversation with Amandeep, Mr. Kisiangani went on a weird tangent, telling Amandeep about his entrepreneurial exploits from his heyday as a broke hawker.
Kisiangani Reflects on His Brief Stint as a City Hawker
Popular podcaster Kisiangani shared new details about his past life as an entrepreneur during a candid conversation on the Kisiangani Podcast.
The highly-rated stand-up comedian revealed he had once tried to become a big-time businessman, a dream that quickly fell flat due to fake promises by government bureaucrats.
Before attempting to deal with the bigshots, a young Emmanuel started his journey by hawking chewing gum during events at the Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi.
“There was a time I went to Nyayo Stadium and sold enough ‘Ices’, but my presentation was poor. I was hawking them from a bucket, I don’t think it was very hygienic,” says Kisiangani.
His business boomed quickly, enabling him to diversify into maandazi, a popular East African delicacy made from sweetened dough with a soft, fluffy inside and a golden-brown, crunchy exterior.
After just two days of coaching from his mother, Emmanuel allegedly mastered the recipe, quickly attracting a handful of loyal early-morning customers.
The success was short-lived, however. Due to low financial literacy, he immediately squandered his earnings on endless dates with local girls in the Madaraka estate.
The comedian also admits that the business’s low margins were not commensurate with the effort invested.
He was eventually forced to abandon his early-morning customers to transition into a graphic designer and chase the big bucks.
Inside Kisiangani’s Failed Media Buying Venture
Following his unceremonious abandonment of hawking, Mr. Kisiangani quickly slid into his elder brother’s oversized suit to become an advertising broker.
He made his first stop at the Sarit Center, securing a partnership with a restaurant for a concept he called table-top advertising, which was borrowed from American culture.
The resourceful Kisiangani pitched the idea to business executives across Nairobi who initially seemed enthused.
The proposal was simple: plaster their brands on the counter and tabletops of popular restaurants, allowing customers to see the advertisements while enjoying their meals.
A Scanad Kenya Limited executive at the time showed interest until he consulted a lady friend. In front of Kisiangani, the lady praised the concept but stated it would work best in bars.
Kisiangani was therefore overruled and instructed to include bars in his list of advertising assets.
Elusive City Hall Officials
Disappointed but undeterred, Kisiangani retreated to design a city parking lot advertising proposal meant to collaborate with the city council on a revenue-share model.
Donning his brother’s suit once more, Kisiangani was ushered into a city council office where he presented his plan to an otherwise uninterested pair of bureaucrats.
After the presentation, a copy of his plan was quickly shoved aside, and he was given the typical promise that they would “look into it.” His proposal is still gathering dust somewhere inside the imposing City Hall archives.
Attempts to reach City Hall, even through his father’s contacts, were futile, forcing him to pitch the idea to the Kisumu Municipality.
Unfortunately, before he could launch a successful pilot in present-day Kisumu City, his contact person there was transferred to another town.
Tired of the stinging disappointments, Kisiangani ditched his suit, joined stand-up comedy, and successfully worked his way up.