“People were laughing, but I was dying inside” – Bovi recalls hosting event weeks after mother’s death
Nigerian comedian and actor Bovi has opened up about how he continued working while dealing with the kidnapping and eventual death of his mother.
In a recent interview, Bovi recalled that his mother was kidnapped in 2012 while he was attending an event in Ilashe, Lagos. Despite receiving the distressing news, he had to return to the event and continue working.
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“So in 2012 my mom was kidnapped, and I was called, but I was in Ilashe doing an event. I had to suck it up. Made a few calls. Ran back, continued working, doing the event. I was just going through the motions, and people were laughing. My soul wasn’t there. And then she got rescued hours later,” he said:
Bovi also recalled the difficult period following his mother’s death in January 2016. He revealed that just a month later, he was booked to host Senator Ben Bruce’s 60th birthday celebration.
The comedian said he struggled with whether accepting the job was insensitive, considering that he was still grieving his mother, but eventually decided to honour the commitment.
“When she passed in 2016, she passed in January, and in February Ben Bruce was having his 60th birthday, and they wanted me to host. So I was conflicted that, do I do this?
Am I insensitive for working when the person who gave birth to me is no more? But I went ahead and did the event. People were laughing and they didn’t even know I was dying inside. I was really, really a hot mess at the time,” he added.
Bovi’s account has highlighted the reality of entertainers having to fulfil professional commitments even while dealing with difficult personal circumstances.
Watch the video below…
“I was cracking jokes on stage few mins after I was told my mom had been kidnapped. 💔 After she had died. I was called to do a show, so I went anyway and made people laugh. After leaving the stage, I burst into tears cause I felt guilty.”
— Bovi pic.twitter.com/7twW6Mp4pc
— carter🌚 (@carter8f) August 25, 2026