Radio Jambo presenter and comedian Lawrence Macharia alias Terence Creative has divulged details of his smoking addiction which was so bad that he used to accept cigarettes as payment.
According to the presenter, he believed that he needed to smoke in order to be creative.
Speaking to Word Is, a local magazine, on January 10, the comedian who hosts a show alongside Massawe Japanni, disclosed how smoking addiction nearly ruined his life.
“Smoking cost me a lot, loss of dignity, loss of jobs. I remember some of my ‘friends’ who wanted me to offer my creative services used to say, "Huyu usimpee pesa, bora uende nafegi atakuskiza (Don't give this one money, just go with cigarettes and he will listen to you)."
The comedian explained that he started smoking at age nine when he became a street boy after his mother died.
Furthermore, he added that life on the streets was so hard that he was forced to participate in criminal activities in order to survive.
“Life was not easy in the street. I became a drug peddler, that is how I made my money. I even used to fake disability and pretend to be a disabled child just to get money. I mean, life there was not a joke. It was so tough,” he divulged.
He also revealed that he stole side mirrors from cars and snatched bags from people.
Nonetheless, he managed to go for rehabilitation after Muli’s Children’s Home rescued him and gave him an opportunity to attend school.
After managing to overcome his smoking addiction in 2018, Lawrence estimated that he had smoked at least 166,000 cigarettes in 22 years.
The presenter has previously worked as a creative director for a number of comedians in the Kenyan comic industry among them Eric Omondi, Chipukeezy, and the Churchill Show family.
