AY and Basketmouth have been at odds for 17 years, and AY recently disclosed that the rift was over a N30,000 gig.
During an interview with Chude Jideonwo, AY claimed that his issue with Basketmouth began in 2006 when Basketmouth failed to pay him the agreed-upon N30,000 for standing in for him at an event.
However, Basketmouth denied ever being friends with AY and stated that most of the claims made by AY during his interview with Chude Jideonwo were lies.
In what appeared to be an effort to make peace, AY publicly declared Basketmouth as his “guy” during his Easter Sunday show in London in April 2023. Unfortunately, this gesture did not result in a reconciliation between the two comedians. ICYMI, read here.
In a recent interview with Teju Babyface, AY disclosed that he had made efforts over the years to mend their relationship, but he has now reached a point where he no longer desires reconciliation and is willing to carry the grudge to his grave.
AY mentioned that senior colleagues in the comedy industry were aware of his attempts to reconcile with Basketmouth. However, they advised him to step back and stop forcing the reconciliation when Basketmouth remained unyielding.
“The bros [senior colleagues in the comedy industry] knew [about my beef with Basketmouth] and at some point in time, they had to ask me to slow down. They were like: ‘You’re doing too much. You are putting in too much to make this thing work. Friendship is not by force.
“I was believing that ‘No, this can work’. Even in my last stand-up comedy, I had to go on stage and I did another routine ‘My guy. How’s my guy? This is my guy. If you see this guy, tell him he’s my guy.’ And the following morning, every where exploded again. ‘We are not friends. We are not that. We are not this.
“So, for me now, I’m not pushing anything anymore. As I’m here now as AY, if I have to go to my grave without sitting with any of these guys to say ‘hello, ‘hi,’ I will be happy.” He said.
Watch him speak below,
