Big Vibes and Hard Work: The Story of Sikisa
She always brings the party. That's why she made it onto Live at the Apollo, entertaining an audience of thousands, not to mention everybody watching at home. We chatted about her love of wrestling...
To appear on BBC2’s Live at the Apollo, you must command a huge stage and bring your A-game to entertain an audience of roughly 3,655 people. Not to mention the hundreds of thousands of viewers watching at home. You’d assume a big personality might help. Thankfully for her, she’s Sikisa — that’s what she does and who she is.
Her latest show is about the things we do to escape. Like most gals, she’s hugely into watching pro wrestling. That’s one of her outlets. But when you think about her energy on the mic, you’ll completely understand. The show is also about not being ready to have kids and her informed perspective on immigration as a part-time immigration lawyer. But it’s still a work-in-progress, so I’m giving you an exclusive peek behind the curtain.
The Interview
You’re a trusted compere at comedy nights. Stuart Laws once told me that you “bring the vibes”, and you’ve previously said that you want audiences to leave your shows feeling uplifted.1 Is that a big part of what you do?
Yes, I would say so.
“I’ve got way too much energy for my liking.”
All of my energy gets thrown out on stage. I like to feel energy in the room. So, hopefully, as a compere, I help set the tone, and the other comics receive a warmer response as a result. Everyone has a good time at the event, even if it’s not funny, ha-ha. That’s my thing.
I’m all about positive vibes, and like to speak to the crowd. Some people see it as picking on the audience, but it’s just banter.
“I never know what’s going to come out of my mouth when I’m MCing.”
Sometimes I might say something a bit problematic, but that’s the fun of compering, and it’s good to have some fun, as we’ve all had a difficult time in the last few years.
It's warmth that you give, isn’t it?
Yeah, I’d like everyone to leave the show going “I want a kebab”.
How close do you feel to your audience? What do they say to you after shows, and what does it mean to you?
“I’ve been told my comedy is more like a conversation with a friend.”
And I think that’s a nice way to be; people find it quite trusting. As you say, people find it warming. So, I do have people coming up to me after shows asking if they can buy me a drink or ask a few questions about my set. Or just to say which particular joke they really liked.
If, as I often do, I’ve mentioned that I’m an immigration lawyer, at least one person will come to me afterwards and ask for immigration advice. They’ll be like “Hey, my boyfriend’s trying to get a Visa” and I’ll be like “Hey, maybe continue sucking his d**k, I don’t know”.
Ha-ha, I think it’s one of those jobs where people want to chew your ear off about it, like if you’re good at IT. When really, it’s advice you should probably pay for.
I completely agree. If you want immigration advice, you can see me during my working hours on Monday.
You find humour in social experiences and share them on stage. Since you see humour in everyday interactions, I wonder: Do you laugh at inappropriate times?
Yes… Ha-ha. If anything, way too much.
“I like ‘awkward funny’, when things are awkward and haven’t gone right, it’s hilarious.”
I’ll give you an example: I went on a girls’ holiday to Amsterdam 10/15 years ago. Obviously, in Amsterdam it’s legal to have weed. So, we were all smoking and drinking. But Amsterdam means trams, cars, bicycles and buses everywhere, and my best friend’s sister tripped and fell in the middle of the street.
Instead of helping her up, we just looked at her and laughed. Then a tram started coming. We said, “Get up, there’s a tram coming! Stop being so slow,” but I couldn’t help, because I was laughing too much.
“So, that’s the type of thing I find funny. Children tripping over in the street, I find hilarious. If anything, they deserve it.”
Also, I do tend to say things that people might find inappropriate, but I get away with it because of my stage personality.
A prime example: My friend’s probably going to kill me for saying this out in public again. So, my disclaimer is that I believe everybody deserves love, but I’m on dating apps… And sometimes people try and match with me and I think “Look at your profile… And then look at my profile”. It’s disrespectful. It’s disrespectful to try and match with me!
No, but it’s true. You’re supposed to think about what’s in the backdrop, what activity are you doing in the photos? And have you got some photos taken by other people? And then there’s just Gary with a selfie. I haven’t been on the apps for a while, but my profiles probably weren’t good.
But at least you’ve learnt your lesson. Some people have not learnt.
Do you test people on their sense of humour when you’re getting to know them?
“Sikisa on stage is very different to Sikisa off stage.”
It depends on the environment I’m in. I like to keep quiet with people I don’t know. I don’t like to bring out funny too much, because then they’ll expect it from you all the time. You should come and pay for me to be funny!
I’m generally not very talkative offstage, I call myself an introvert/extrovert. I do like peace and quiet, and I like to sleep. Although I don’t get a lot of time to do either. I will listen to and embrace the people I’m with, but not talk so much. Because my jobs involve talking all day.
It’s also partly to do with dyslexia, I don’t like words. Obviously, with any neurodivergence, it’s a spectrum, but I didn’t grasp that I was dyslexic until about 4 years ago. The idea never entered my head. It’s good to know yourself. People assume that if you’re successful in certain areas, you can’t be neurodivergent.
You might have assumed that everyone struggled with language in the same way, and not realised that it wasn’t a struggle for them.
Exactly. I express myself via movement instead, because I used to be a dancer.
“I can get away with being ‘extra’ because anything goes with Sikisa, my stage persona.”
You can embrace any approach or persona with comedy, and it’s accepted. That’s how I’d be if I were a professional wrestler, too, because anything goes.
People wouldn’t realise that I struggle with words and don’t like talking, because of how I am on stage. Or even that I’m educated, because of how I am on stage. But it’s still an exaggerated version of me.
“If you’re giving a little bit of yourself to the world and trust that it will be well received, it makes the world a better place.”
I’m talking about what I want to talk about, and I’m giving out the energy I want to give out. I’m being authentically me; there’s no fakeness around it.
Has stand-up comedy given you a better outlook on life?
“Stand-up comedy allowed me to be better at public speaking and more confident in who I am.”
If I hadn’t worked at the pub where I was encouraged to perform at their comedy night, I wouldn’t be the person I am today.
Growing up, I was quite sheltered and an only child. I had a typical university life and was focused on getting an education, because that’s what society told us to do, and discovering something that allowed me to be freer and happier, with no boundaries and no filter, changed me for the better.
Growing up, it was always “Sikisa, you’re too much, you’re too loud or ‘You shouldn’t be saying that’, whereas comedy was the opposite. Comedy was like, ‘Give us more!’
“I don’t know what my life would be without comedy, I’d probably get more sleep, I will say that.”
How did you become a wrestling fan?
The moment that convinced me to start watching it all the time… happened when I was about 11 years old at my cousin’s house.
Our other cousin brought over a wrestling VHS from WrestleMania 1999, and we were enjoying it, without really understanding what was going on. Then the Undertaker’s match started. He’s my favourite wrestler, even though he’s a Trump supporter.
Oh, I didn’t know that.
Yeah, sorry, mate.
“He was fighting the Big Boss Man in the ‘Hell in a Cell’. It’s this massive cage with padlocked doors.”
The Undertaker won, but he put a noose around the Big Boss Man with the help of Gangrel, Edge and Christian and hung him from the top of the cell. That was the exact moment that made me say, “I’m in”, ha-ha! Since that time, I’ve been hooked.
I think WWE wrestling was better back then, do you think?
Oo! You’re starting a debate, I love this. Whenever I say I like wrestling, people go, ‘I used to watch it when I was younger.’ That’s the most common response, meaning the Attitude Era from 1997 to 2002. They’ll say it was the peak of wrestling.
“I will argue that unless you’ve been keeping up with it, you might not realise how brilliant the WWE became from 2021 onwards. It’s become so great, so big, so large that everyone’s trying to top what happened before them.”
For example, we must acknowledge that Roman Reigns is so amazing at this moment in time. He went from people hating him because the WWE was trying to force him into being the hero, the next champion, etc., and fans weren’t feeling it. We pick who the next champion is…
He then had a ‘heel turn’ during the pandemic (becoming a villain), and did it perfectly. So perfectly that they’ve now made him a hero again.
“Wrestling is great, wrestling is just great. You’ve got your good guys, your bad guys, your soap opera moments and crazy plot twists, and of course, unbelievably athletic moves. Think about the sequence of movements and the training involved.”
You’ve also got the smack talk to enjoy. Dwayne The Rock Johnson is the best smack talker out there. I don’t think it’s better now, it’s just that it has evolved.
I feel like it was naughtier when I was a kid. There was more swearing and blood.
After that, there was a so-called PG era with John Cena front and centre, trying to cater to the kids. But now they’re trying to do both. It’s got very bloody now. Sometimes there are very bloody scenes and swear-y scenes. But there are heartfelt moments too.
“So, I would recommend WWE, but not just WWE.”
I do a podcast, and there’s AEW, which my co-hosts don’t like, but I love it. I also go to live shows of British wrestling, i.e. Progress Wrestling and EVE wrestling, which is all female. REV Pro is another good British wrestling promotion. Watching it live is a completely different energy from watching it on TV.
Which wrestler would make a great stand-up comedian? And, would you make a great wrestler?
A few wrestlers have done stand-up, including Dolph Ziggler, Mick Foley and Jimmy Uso. Wrestlers have so many humorous stories from being on the road. Plus, some wrestlers are naturally quite funny, like The Rock. Not all of his smack talk was scripted. And Stone Cold Steve Austin would be a great stand-up, especially if he had a can of beer after every joke.
I wouldn’t be a great wrestler, because I’ve tried it and it’s painful. I tried the training and it’s not for the light-hearted. It is not. I woke up the next day covered in bruises. People say wrestling’s fake, I’d say, go and do a couple of days of training and tell me it’s fake.
By all accounts, you’re a very busy woman. Where do you get all your energy from?
I ask myself that question every day. I have no idea.
It’s not like I’m drinking anything specifically. I have one instant coffee a day.
“I’ve been working since I was 16, so my whole attitude is that you need to be a hustler.”
It’s the world that we live in. You have to hustle and grind to get where you want to be. I haven’t got where I want to be yet. Some days I’m like, what’s the point? And I know I just have to keep going. I tried to do less, but it hasn’t worked out.
I don’t get to see my friends and godchildren as much. People have to book 6 months in advance to see me sometimes. I work hard, but I party harder. I’ll get 2 hours’ sleep and still go to work in the morning.
Although my favourite thing to do is to stay in on my own, watch wrestling and go to bed. But that can finish at 4 am!
How do you feel about crowd work? Have there been any particularly amusing interactions?
I like to ask people questions, and you never know what will come out of their mouths, which is a fun surprise. I hardly get heckled; it’s only happened about 3 times.
“I think people realise I’m not one to mess with on stage.”
I’m generally quite warm, but I do have this air of authority where I’m like, “You will listen, or I’ll get South London on you.”
Sometimes I’ll ask a question to the whole audience, and I get very random answers. I have a very unique name, and sometimes people will say, “It’s Swahili and it means bla, bla, bla”, which is nice. But once someone shouted out, ‘It means ‘pussy’ in my language’. I was like, “What do you expect me to do with that comment?” I don’t know if they were serious.
You looked like you were in your element on Live at the Apollo. What was going through your mind before, during and afterwards?
Before, I was very nervous because it’s one of the biggest shows in our industry; I’d also had a slight accident backstage. Half of my head was dealing with that, and the other half was trying to get in the right headspace.
During the performance, it was the best thing ever. You can see I’m quite nervous in the first minute, but as soon as the first couple of jokes land, I’m in my element and having the best time. The audience was so warm and receptive. I couldn’t have asked for an easier crowd/a more lovely gig.
Afterwards, I was buzzing. At the end of your set, you can go back on and re-do a joke if you want to. I didn’t have to do that, and I was pleased about getting it out in one go. Everyone had a great time, and there were a couple of applause breaks. I went out to see my friends and family, who were in the audience, which was nice.
“I think it’s the first time my mum properly understood what I do. She was in tears, and you could tell she was quite proud."
That touched my heart. We celebrated, had great times, and it was the best thing I’ve ever done.
What’s your favourite word or phrase from your new show?
That’s a tough one.
“What do I enjoy saying at the moment?.. I currently enjoy saying ‘Sperm is expensive’. I do this bit about deciding on whether to have kids. I say “I don’t know if you lot know: dick is free but sperm is expensive.'"
I’m also enjoying saying the word “pegging” because there’s an audible intake of breath from the audience, and that’s quite good. You can feel it.
I also do a bit about spiders being able to afford half the wi-fi, because they’re a web developer. Which is probably the worst thing I’ve ever written.
Ha-ha, I like it. I think putting spiders and wi-fi in the same sentence is great.
What themes are audiences responding to the most at your work-in-progress shows?
My honesty, particularly about the world being messed up, and not sugarcoating aspects of my life, talking about the things I enjoy, like wrestling, and having an honest conversation about people’s perspectives on immigration.
Obviously, people like the random things that come out of my mouth, too. Like with the “sperm’s expensive” line, it makes people go, ‘Oh, yeah. We have to pay for that now!’ It’s quite funny.
Fantastic. Why should people come to the upcoming work-in-progress dates and the eventual tour?
Because I’ve got too much energy in my life and I need to give it out!
No, no, you should come and see it because I have quite a unique comedy voice, meaning the things I talk about on stage. I just want to spread some joy and warmth in this world, even though it’s quite messed up right now. I talk about my problems, and we all have problems, so hopefully, people will find it relatable. So come!
That’s all from Sikisa! I told her then and there that it was one of the best interviews I’ve done. Not that I have a leaderboard or anything… Like Charles Bukowski said of writing, your sentences must be full of juice. When she speaks, it’s practically a cordial. You can get tickets for her upcoming shows here and follow her on Instagram.
I encourage you to like, comment and share this post. I’d love to hear from you… By the way, the like button is the heart at the bottom of the page. Under the footnotes, you saucy minx.
Thank you Howard!