In many Nigerian homes, “become a lawyer” ranks right up there with medicine and engineering as the career a proud parent dreams of for their child. So it’s no surprise that a striking number of the country’s biggest musicians and comedians once sat in a law faculty lecture hall — some even made it all the way to wig and gown — before the stage, the studio, or the camera pulled them away. A few never left the profession behind at all, weaving courtroom wit straight into their comedy.
Here’s a comprehensive round-up of Nigerian artistes and comedians who studied law, organised by craft.
Musicians & artistes who read law
1. Falz (Folarin Falana)
Nigeria’s favourite “Bahd Guy” almost didn’t need to leave the legal profession at all — he was practically born into it. Falz is the son of Femi Falana SAN, one of Nigeria’s most prominent human rights lawyers, and Funmi Falana, also a lawyer. He studied Law at the University of Reading in England, graduating with an LLB Honours degree, and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 2012 after completing the Nigerian Law School in Abuja. He even worked briefly in his father’s chambers before fully committing to music, acting, and social activism.
2. Omawumi (Omawumi Megbele)
Before she became the powerhouse voice behind hits like “In the Music” and “Today Na Today,” Omawumi earned a law degree from Ambrose Alli University in Ekpoma, Edo State, graduating in 2005. She practised briefly at her family’s law firm, O.S. Megbele & Associates, in Port Harcourt before her run as first runner-up on the maiden edition of Idols West Africa in 2007 launched her music career.
3. Sasha P (Sasha Peace Opeyemi Odemuyiwa)
One of Nigeria’s pioneering female rappers, Sasha P studied Law at the University of Lagos. After graduating, she pivoted fully into music and later fashion rather than pursuing legal practice.
4. Laolu Senbanjo
Best known internationally as the visual artist behind the striking Yoruba-inspired body art in Beyoncé’s Lemonade, Laolu Senbanjo is also a singer-songwriter who fronts the band Laolu and the Afromysterics. Raised in Ilorin by a lawyer father, he studied law and qualified as an attorney in 2005, spending five years as a human rights lawyer — including a stint at Nigeria’s National Human Rights Commission — before devoting himself full-time to art and music.
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Comedians who read law
5. Lepacious Bose (Bose Olufunke Ogunboye)
One of Nigeria’s foremost female comedians, Lepacious Bose originally enrolled to study Theatre Arts at the University of Ibadan against her father’s wishes. Her family later registered her for Law instead, and she ended up earning both a Theatre Arts background and a full law degree from UI by 1999, going on to the Nigerian Law School and eventual call to the Nigerian Bar. She was already a fixture of the campus comedy scene through the Lafomania troupe before choosing comedy as her full-time career.
6. MC Lively (Michael Sani Amanesi)
The Edo State-born comedian and actor, famous for his “Agidi” comedy skits, studied Law at Obafemi Awolowo University before pursuing a career first as an MC and then as a full-time stand-up and skit comedian.
7. Timi Agbaje
Known for his viral “O Wrong Nau!” catchphrase, Timi Agbaje is a genuinely practising lawyer as well as a comedian, actor, and event host. He graduated from Obafemi Awolowo University with a First Class LLB in 2017 and followed it with a First Class at the Nigerian Law School in 2018 — winning the Director-General’s Prize for top law graduates in the process. He has worked as an associate at the law firm Ukiri & Lijadu while building his comedy and media brand.
8. Layi Wasabi (Isaac Ayomide Olayiwola)
One of the most-watched skit-makers in Nigeria right now, Layi Wasabi built his comedic persona directly out of his legal training. He earned a law degree from Bowen University and did his NYSC at the Ministry of Justice in Ibadan, where observing lawyers around the courts inspired his now-iconic deadpan “The Law” character. He has said the law degree hasn’t been put to much formal use since he chose to focus on content creation full-time.
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Bonus: Actors, filmmakers & TV hosts who also read law
Since Nigerian “celebrities” so often wear more than one hat, here are a few more familiar entertainment faces — actors, directors, and TV personalities — who also hold law degrees.
9. Kanayo O. Kanayo
The Nollywood veteran, known for playing commanding (and often villainous) roles, surprised the country by enrolling for a law degree at the University of Abuja later in life. He graduated in 2018 and was formally called to the Nigerian Bar in September 2020 at age 58, becoming “Anayo Modestus Onyekwere, Esq.”
10. Femi Adebayo
The Yoruba movie star and producer studied Law at the University of Ilorin, graduating in 2001, was called to the bar in 2003, and even practised real estate law for a few years — later adding a master’s degree in law from the University of Ibadan — before fully transitioning into acting and filmmaking.
11. Richard Mofe-Damijo (RMD)
RMD first studied Theatre Arts at the University of Benin, already an established Nollywood actor by the time he went back to school. He returned to the University of Lagos in 1997 to study Law, graduating in 2004, reportedly to fulfil a long-held wish of his mother’s.
12. Funke Akindele
The multi-award-winning actress and filmmaker started out with an OND in Mass Communication from Moshood Abiola Polytechnic before gaining admission to the University of Lagos, where she studied Law — though entertainment had already claimed her by the time she graduated.
13. Ebuka Obi-Uchendu
The Big Brother Naija host and media personality earned his law degree from the University of Abuja in 2005 and later added a master’s in law, specialising in Intellectual Property and Communications Law, from the Washington College of Law at American University. He has since returned to legal territory on-screen as anchor of the courtroom show Judging Matters.
14. Kemi Adetiba
The acclaimed filmmaker behind blockbusters like King of Boys started her career as a radio and TV presenter but studied Law at the University of Lagos and was called to the Nigerian Bar before going on to the New York Film Academy and building her directing career.
Honourable mentions
A few more entertainment-adjacent names worth a nod, even if they sit slightly outside the “artiste/comedian” lane:
Tara Fela-Durotoye — beauty mogul behind House of Tara, studied Law at Lagos State University.
Kelechi Amadi-Obi — celebrity photographer and Mania Magazine publisher, studied Law at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and was called to the bar in 1993.
Bukola Ogunsola — filmmaker, studied Law at Obafemi Awolowo University and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 2004 before moving into film in 2015.
