Comedienne Anne Kansiime is a big deal in comedy. And her popularity, unlike that of our local acts like Churchill Ndambuki, cuts across the region and spreads out in other continents. Her show in Rwanda will pull crowds; so is her show in Zambia; then she will have sold out shows in Zimbabwe, Britain and this will be replicated in South Africa, the United States of America. Simply put, Anne Kansiime is the African golden girl of comedy. How did the diminutive comedienne become such a household name within a span of six years?
YouTube videos
The graduate of Social Sciences from Makerere University burst into the limelight thanks to her short clips on YouTube. Kansiime learnt and perfected her trade when she was absorbed in Theatre Factory, which was keen on having more female characters for a play. Theatre Factory director and founder, Julius Lugaya, told the Daily Nation of his first meeting with the comedienne: ““The first day she came I was struck by her character and charisma.” The comedian started posting segments of her videos on YouTube that were part of a TV show known as Mini Buzz. The program tackled current affairs in Uganda. The videos attracted a sizeable following and gave her the impetus to go full throttle.
YouTube Silver Play Button
In 2015, the Queen of comedy in Africa received the YouTube commemorative Silver Button after clocking more than 100,000 subscribers. Her numbers have grown to 505,000 subscribers in less than three years and she is enroute to receiving the limited edition commemorative Golden Play Button when she hits 1 million subscribers mark. Her videos have amassed 133,361,149 views with a total of 603 videos and counting.
Income from YouTube
While some creatives are lamenting the low pay by Google, Anne Kansiime is laughing all the way to and from the bank. Her first cheque was US$8,000 (Kes800,000 at current rates). That was a big break for a comedian who would be paid US$5 (kes500) per performance when she was starting out. Having the highest number of subscribers in Uganda-more than national TV stations, the newly divorced comedienne was on a high. Her earnings, according to techjaja.com are tabulated in the chart below:’
2017
These earnings are as provided by youtubers.me in US dollars converted to Kenya shillings (rate kes100 to the US$).
January-kes384,000
February-kes237,000
March-kes255,000
April-kes270,000
May-kes234,000
August-kes141,000
October-kes240,000
November-kes322,000
December-kes311,000
2018
January-kes342,000
February-kes251,000
March-kes320,000
April-kes337,000
May-kes308,000
June-kes329,000
So how much will you pay Kansiime to grace your event?
She is rightly referred to as the queen of comedy and queens don’t come cheap. Having the funny lady perform in your event you must be ready to fork between US$5,000 and upto to more than US$10,000. In a recent gig in the US, where she was among the keynote speakers at Wellesley university in Boston, the comedienne was flown first class to the conference. Her pay cheque for the 72 minute show was about US$15,000 (Kes1.5million).
Emceeing
Kansiime is one of the most sought after emcee is in Uganda. Her estimated charges for emceeing in a gig are above US$5,000.
Endorsements
The multi-talented Kansiime makes good money from product endorsements. In 2016, the funny woman landed a lucrative deal as DSTV brand ambassador earning an estimated US$20,000 (Kes20 million). DSTV Tina Wamala, PR Manager MultiChoice Uganda, said of the decision to settle for the comedienne: “Kansiime is our agent of change. She is pan-African and resonates well with our audience; not just Uganda but Africa as whole,” …..“We are excited to have her as our ambassador.” She is also the brand ambassador of Old Mutual Kenya among other blue chip companies.
Don’t Mess With Kansiime
You can find her episode on Showmax. She makes top dollar whenever her fans watch her videos on Showmax.
Properties She Owns
Kansiime Backpackers
The budget hotel is located in Kabale. This is one place you will want to visit if you looking for tranquility at an affordable rate.
Kubby’s club
The business oriented comedian is the owner of Kubby’s club in Naalya. It is the same club that was broken into two years ago with the robbers stealing TV sets, fine whisky and music equipment. In a radio interview, Kansiime accused fellow comedians of planning the break in: “I am so sure my fellow comedians planned for me and are behind my bar robbery,”……. “In Uganda, people like to see you when you are grassing and struggling. But of course, we are used to such things. I will be Okay.”
House in Naalya
Kansiime has a house that betrays the amount of money she earns. It is a classy one storey house in Naalya.
Anne Kansiime Net worth
She ranks among the richest comedians in Africa. What is not in doubt, Kansiime is the richest comedienne in Africa. Anne Kansiime estimated net worth is US$1.5m (kes150,000,000)
