Nimah Alabi
Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo’s appearance on Isbae U’s Curiosity Made Me Ask podcast continues to generate attention among Nigerians days after the episode was released.
The episode, which dropped on Saturday, September 19, has attracted millions of views on YouTube, with Isbae U announcing on Sunday that the interview had recorded 1.6 million views within its first 24 hours.
By Monday morning, a report by Legit.ng said the episode had crossed 2 million views on YouTube.
The unexpected pairing of the 89-year-old former president with the young comedian and content creator became one of the major talking points surrounding the episode.
Obasanjo is the first former Nigerian president to appear on the podcast, adding to the attention already surrounding the programme.
Much of the online conversation has focused on the relaxed and humorous exchanges between Obasanjo and Isbae U. Viewers reacted to the former president participating in the show’s sarcastic style, with some expressing surprise that Isbae U was able to secure him as a guest.
Comments gathered from social media included viewers praising the content creator for landing the former president, while others joked about who could appear on the programme next.
Some commenters also suggested that other prominent Nigerian public figures should be invited. Another part of the conversation centred on the format of Curiosity Made Me Ask.
Some viewers questioned whether the programme’s conversations were scripted because of the unusually playful exchange between the host and Obasanjo.
Media personality, Frank Edoho, responded to the discussion, saying the show is not scripted and explaining that guests participate knowing they may be subjected to Isbae U’s jokes and roasting style.
The episode itself contained several memorable exchanges.
Obasanjo said he did not know entertainers including Don Jazzy, Poco Lee and Carter Efe, joking that perhaps they were not “big, important people.”
He then turned the question around by asking Isbae U about Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III, whom he said he had met.
The discussion about veteran entertainer Charly Boy also attracted attention.
Obasanjo spoke about his changing perception of Charly Boy after seeing how he cared for his parents.
A behind-the-scenes video from the recording later generated another wave of reactions after viewers spotted Charly Boy in the footage.
Isbae U has since thanked Obasanjo for agreeing to appear on the programme and also acknowledged Charly Boy for his support during the project.
The content creator’s post celebrating the video’s performance also attracted comments from viewers praising the interview and asking about possible future guests.
As of Monday, September 21, the Obasanjo episode remains a major talking point around Curiosity Made Me Ask, with its view count continuing to rise and clips from the conversation generating separate discussions across social media.
