In partnership with Moto Republik, a vibrant creative hub in Zimbabwe, and Magamba Network, Creatives Garage brought together comedians from both sides of the Zambezi for a night of socially distant laughter titled Everybody Can Gerrit.
The night featured some of Kenya’s finest comedic talents: the effortlessly funny Jason Runo, the ever-sharp Doug Mutai, the delightfully chaotic Brian Onjoro, the endearingly awkward Justine, and the brilliant Ciru Waithaka. Joining them were Zimbabwean heavy-hitters Munya and Tinaye, loaned to us (temporarily) by Magamba. We say loaned because we genuinely tried to keep them but after a high-speed chase down Mombasa Road, Magamba managed to smuggle them back to Harare. You probably saw it on the news. Or maybe not. Either way, that diplomatic incident will fuel stand-up routines for years. (Farai and Vera, hide!)
Why did we host Everybody Can Gerrit? Simple: one more night of watching stand-up reruns on YouTube was going to lead to a total collapse of society. We needed to laugh at the chaos and the chaos was plenty:
COVID-19 numbers were funnier than our punchlines (and made about as much sense).
Frontline workers couldn’t get PPE...turns out the real clowns were in charge.
Kenyans were worried about jobs, but BBI somehow remained top priority (and it’s still not a Pornhub category).
Huduma Numbers were suddenly urgent, because apparently national comedy comes with biometric data.
And yes, getting laid during a pandemic? Tricky. But that’s on you, fam. Stay off Tinder if you’re sniffling.
But back to the good news: we recorded every single set, so you can relive the hilarity and ask yourself, “Chesos, are they allowed to say that?”
And don’t forget:
Everybody Can Gerrit isn’t just a punchline pandemic reality.
Everybody Can Gerrit isn’t just a punchline pandemic reality.
Most importantly, this Kenya–Zimbabwe comedy crossover sparked new partnerships, new ideas, and a shared sense of creative rebellion. We laughed at the system, and each other, and proved once again that comedy might just be our best survival tool.