Peller is the Nemesis We Deserve

The internet is an interesting invention. For some, it is the peak of humanity’s genius. That anyone, anywhere, can access information or communicate with millions of people within seconds on the internet is nothing short of phenomenal. You can’t think of the internet without, by default, thinking of social media. Thanks to social media, many jobs have been created for people we now call influencers. From streamers to YouTubers to TikTok stars, undoubtedly, we live in an influencer-driven economy and everyone, including this writer, wants to be a part of it.

The thing with social media, however, is how bizarre its algorithm works, especially in this part of the world. I’ve talked about the fact that we live in what can fittingly be called the algorithm of the absurd given how creators who make outlandish content seem to always have the largest following. While it is true that this is a global phenomenon, the problem is more acute in Nigeria and Africa. At the top of the food chain are skit comedians followed by lifestyle creators. In Africa, having nerdy interests almost always doesn’t guarantee you algorithmic success, unless you are ready to find a way to add comedic flavour to your content. From the top of my head, Aproko Doctor and Kegantech are great examples of this.

A bloke called Peller has gained notoriety on TikTok for about two years now. His claim to fame is his intentional distortion of the English language. He upends the rules of grammar and syntax. Without coming off as a hater or humourless nerd (not that it matters, but I’m a huge fan of standup comedy), I’ve never found him funny any time I chance upon his clips on X. But exactly because of his linguistic travesty is why he appeals to his more than 11 million followers on TikTok.

Many have tried to clown him for his lack of proficiency in English. They’ve advised him to go back to school. In fact, a pastor has blamed him for the recent mass failure recorded in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). He is not unaware of his critics and detractors. But the joke is on them anyway. He is young, famous, rich, and successful despite his lack of education and English proficiency. There is no incentive for him to go back to school. In fact, one could argue that the day he decides to switch to standard English is the day he loses his fan base. As a homo economicus, why would he want to risk that?

As a matter of fact, Peller has said that when he started creating content, he spoke standard English but that did not get him any significant engagement. It was when he started distorting English and making a clown of himself that people started joining his live streams. He learned an invaluable lesson about the algorithm of the absurd: you have to be a clown; be self-deprecating, and be willing to debase yourself before Nigerians will engage your content. And in fairness to the bloke, he is simply following a path others have charted. Funke Akindele’s character Jenifa was a success both in a two-part movie and in a TV spin-off (spanning multiple seasons). Jenifa is a girl from a village called Ayetoro who, like Peller, cannot speak standard English. She left Ayetoro for Lagos but experienced discrimination from city dwellers. How is you? is her rendition of ‘How are you?’. The two both of you is her way of saying ‘the both of you’. If she says Worefa, she means ‘whatever’. And Scruty is her rendition of ‘security’.

Around 2015/16, Falzthebahdguy rose to prominence for his funny videos. Like Jenifa, his syntax and mispronunciation of English words were intentional. Though a rapper, his claim to fame was not through his lyrical genius but through his weird syntax. Credit to him, he leveraged his comic fame to promote his music. You might argue that it is unfair to equate Peller to Funke Akindele and Falzthebahdguy because they both trained as lawyers while Peller hasn’t even written UTME. That Funke Akindele and Falz intentionally distort English syntax is not an indictment on their academic and professional accomplishments. Fair point. However, the issue is folks like Peller have been inadvertently inspired by a culture that has elevated clownery with the success of characters like Jenifa.

As a response to his critics who have told him to go back to school, Peller announced a few days ago that he wants to employ someone to film his live streams. The minimum qualification he gave is a master’s degree. He will pay the lucky person N500,000 monthly. Obviously, he wants to make a point. If as a master’s graduate you apply to be the one to film Peller while he acts like a clown, the logical question to ask is what is the use of that postgraduate degree given that the person you want to film doesn’t even have a bachelor’s degree?

To many, especially his fans, Peller just validated their oft-repeated claim that school na scam (education is a scam). And unsurprisingly, many sent their applications. A petty Peller then made sure he live-streamed the interview process to his 11 million followers. It was embarrassing, to say the least, watching Peller subject postgraduates to humiliation. But the point was duly made. Being a clown is a far more lucrative venture than stacking up degrees because a Peller might one day employ you to handle his camera.

But Peller is not to blame. If tomorrow, he raises the requirement to PhD, best believe he will still get tons of applicants. In 2020, the Buhari administration announced the Special Public Works Programme, an initiative to employ 1000 workers from all 774 local government areas for three months on a N20,000 stipend. The then chairman of Special Public Works in Ogun state, Gbenga Odadara claimed that four PhD and 200 master’s  holders were among the people who applied in the state. If four PhD holders applied for a N20,000 job, how many do you think would apply to be Peller’s cameraman?

In many ways, the claim of education being a scam has some merit to it. Our universities, we often say, produce half-baked graduates. We tell graduates these days to learn skills in addition to their education because there aren’t a lot of jobs out there. And even the few jobs that exist pay slave wages. In other words, education has not translated into meaningful growth or prosperity.

While it couldn’t be clearer that we need to fix education, if taken to its extreme conclusion,  the claim of education being a scam becomes counter-productive given that we are yet to benefit from the knowledge economy in the way developed nations have. Ironically, as a poor country, we are the ones most in need of education. Unfortunately, we are the most disillusioned about education.

We’ve got to realise that all over the world, entertainers (these days, content creators inclusive) are richer than academics. I’m sure Kai Cenat is richer than, say, Jonathan Haidt. But in terms of actual impact, Jonathan Haidt blows Kai Cenat out of the waters. I hope that we see Peller’s antics as a chance to have conversations about everything that is wrong with us. Instead of blaming the bloke, we should take a step back and realise that he is our nemesis. We deserve the likes of him because for far too long, we’ve prioritised the algorithm of the absurd while simultaneously peddling the gospel of education being a scam.