My job is to make people laugh – David Kau
Fans of legendary comedian, David Kau, believe he is the funniest stand-up comedian to have come from the Free State
POLOKWANE – Kau (38) started his career as the first black stand-up comedian in the 1998 Smirnoff Comedy Festival in Cape Town.
He is the founder of the Blacks Only comedy show, and has headlined numerous comedy festivals, as well as presented his own shows since his comedic debut. He holds a diploma in speech and drama from the University of Cape Town.
“When I started in 1998, I was only 20 years old at the University of Cape Town. That means I have been telling jokes for 19 years. I didn’t know that I would be a stand-up comedian but since the day I was asked to perform at the stand-up comedy festival, I haven’t stopped. My job is to make people laugh. I just say whatever comes to mind,” says Kau.
He says his comedy at the moment centres around township life. At the beginning of his career, he did a lot of politics, he says: “I used to talk about Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu, Mangosuthu Buthelezi, white people and black people. The country was changing I was the first black stand-up comedian so it was essential that I bring up those issues. Now I talk about my wife and kids, about growing up and becoming a father because that is my life”.
Kau says he met many international comedians when he was younger and he does not have any desire to work with anyone at the moment.
“I’ve met Chris Rock and Russell Peters and it was good to share a stage with them. For me, they don’t have anything we don’t. Saying I want to work with an international star is like me saying I want to perform with Kagiso Lediga; I’ve worked with him for 20 years, we travel together to places like Finland and Paris to perform. We are international. What I like more than anything now is actually finding new comedians,” he says.
He says before any performance, he must take a moment to pray. Before he gets on stage, he checks the crowd to see who is out there to determine how much vernacular he should use because for him, it is important to perform to the audience that is there.
