Grass to Grace Series (32): Mark Angel — from N10k salary to multi-millionaire

Referred to as the Ali Baba of online comedy, Chidiebere Mark Angel, popularly known as Mark Angel, has become a household name, blazing trails and amassing significant wealth from content creation at a time when many underestimated the potential of the digital space.

A decade ago, he could never have imagined how his determination and talent would elevate him to global fame, with foreigners idolising his work. But as the saying goes, “God writes the best stories.” Here’s Mark Angel’s inspiring grass-to-grace journey.

Born without a silver spoon 

Born May 27, 1991 in Port Harcourt, Mark Angel was on the path to becoming a medical doctor. He gained admission to Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, to study Medicine and Surgery. However, the death of his uncle, who was sponsoring his education, forced him to abandon this dream.

This tragedy prompted a shift in career paths. Mark travelled to India, where he studied cinematography for six months. Upon returning to Nigeria, he entered the Nollywood industry as a cinematographer. To support his meagre earnings, he took on freelance jobs in photography, videography, editing, and visual effects.

Initially, he considered transitioning to acting, hoping it would bring better pay. However, an executive producer dismissed him, which led him to discover the untapped potential in family-friendly content. This realisation was the turning point in his career.

Reflecting on his early struggles, Mark Angel said in an interview, “I worked and worked and worked and was getting peanuts. Then I decided I was going to do this on my own,” describing how he once earned just ₦10,000 after two weeks of work.

Climbing the ladder to the top

Rome wasn’t built in a day and so, Mark Angel’s fame and wealth didn’t manifest overnight. During his struggles in Nollywood, Mark Angel noticed a decline in the industry’s dominance and recognised an opportunity in creating family content—a niche previously filled by actors Chinedu Ikedieze (Aki) and Osita Iheme (Paw Paw).

He began organising acting lessons for children, inspired by the vision of producing content similar to Tales by Moonlight. While writing scripts for this content, he realised he naturally infused comedy into his stories, sparking the beginning of his comedy career. “I find strength in telling moral stories in a comic way,” he explained.

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Working with children proved challenging, particularly in helping them memorise lines and stay in character. That changed when five-year-old Emmanuella entered the picture. Emmanuella’s mother and Mark Angel’s mother met at church and became friends, leading to her spending a holiday with the Angels. This serendipitous meeting birthed the Mark Angel Comedy series.

Breaking Barriers and Going Global

Although Mark Angel started creating comedy content in 2011, it wasn’t until 2013 that he ventured into YouTube. The road was far from easy. He faced discouragement from friends and neighbours and sometimes doubted himself. Yet, his vision was stronger than the negativity around him, and he persevered.

Every kobo he earned from freelance jobs was reinvested into his content. Back then, the only way to gain visibility was by paying bloggers like NotJustOk.com and NaijaBeat, sometimes as much as ₦30,000 monthly. When TV stations demanded exorbitant fees to air his work, he turned to social media platforms.

In 2014, Mark Angel partnered with Metamusic, which helped his page grow exponentially. He became the first Nigerian content creator to hit one million views on YouTube, a milestone he achieved in 2017.

The skit “This Is Not My Real Face” marked a turning point in his career, going viral and allowing him to focus on content creation full-time in 2016. Soon after, he began receiving invitations for live performances. Between 2017 and 2019, his YouTube earnings reportedly ranged between $250,000 and $400,000 per month, making him the richest Nigerian content creator.

In 2019, he won the YouTube Streamy Award for Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, with 75% of his fan base located outside Nigeria.

The Denilson Igwe controversy 

On a recent episode of the Honest Bunch podcast, Mark Angel was accused by his former partner, Denilson Igwe, of cheating him out of the Mechanics Film Production venture, through which the Mark Angel Comedy brand was established. Mark has not publicly responded to these allegations. In an interview, he stated, “I don’t want to talk about anything that has to do with Denilson. It is not important.”

Upward Only

Today, Mark Angel focuses on talent discovery and management, which he describes as his passion. This is evident in his discovery of child star Success Madubuike, popularly known as Aunty Success and music artistes. Beyond content creation, he has diversified into real estate and agriculture, earning millions from these ventures.

Mark Angel’s story is a testament to resilience, creativity, and the power of vision.