The lanky and free-spirited comedian got vulnerable and revealed how his father rejected him when his mother was pregnant. His grandfather, Mr Manyenyeka, took it upon himself to raise Jonasi:
“When my mother was pregnant with me, my father did not want anything to do with me in Mutare. My grandmother and my grandfather actually went to them, and they said no. They were actually laughing to my grandparents’ faces.
“Then, my grandfather was like, I will take care of this child. Muzukuru wangu uyu, mwana wangu, I will bring him in. He will eat what I eat and sleep where I sleep. And I respect him for that. I am grateful.”
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Learnmore Jonasi Opens Up On How His Father Rejected Him [Image: YouTube]
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Jonasi added that he dissociated himself from his father’s family and uses his grandfather’s surname, Mwanyenyeka. He added that Jonasi is his grandfather’s name.
The comedian has since forgiven his father for rejecting him when he was still unborn. He recalled that he only saw his father once while growing up.
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Praise For His Grandfather
The AGT finalist said he owes his grandfather his comedy career:
“I will tell you this. If I weren’t raised by my grandfather, I wouldn’t be a comedian today. Everything happens for a reason. So he raised me in Chimanimani. I discovered comedy because of my grandfather.
“He would watch comedy shows and laugh. And I said I want that. I want to give people an opportunity to laugh the same way they are doing for my grandfather. So, I started mimicking that.”-iharare
