Joseph Benjamin, Nollywood actor, says he opted to drive taxi in the United States because he was stranded in the country.
The 46-year-old relocated to America in 2016.
While appearing on the latest episode of the Teju Babyface Deep Dive podcast hosted by the comedian, Monday, he disclosed that he drove cabs to pay his bills.
“I got to America on a promise that I had some gigs waiting for me. So I thought I was going to have a soft landing there. I packed up everything from Nigeria, bought a one-way ticket, and came to America.
“I was put in a well-furnished house and all of that. Then two days later, the person who I was supposed to book a deal with said to me, ‘Those our financiers have pulled out. They have an issue.’
“So, I said, what do I do? He was like, ‘From next month on, you will have to start paying rent in this house.’ The amount of the one-month rent was equivalent to a one-year rent in Nigeria.
“I’m like, ‘I’m not earning any money so what do I do?’ I don’t know what to do. So, shot into that life, I had to figure out what to do. I had nowhere to go. Nothing to turn to.
“My phone was buzzing, like, ‘When are you coming back to Nigeria? We have this gig for you.’ $1,500 was all I came to America with. How do I buy a ticket to go back to Nigeria?”
Benjamin continued saying he eventually began to drive Uber, Lyft as well as work as a delivery person for Amazon just so he could pay his bills in America.
He said, “And then someone gave me a car. I’m like, What do I do with the car? And they said Uber. I was driving for Uber and Lyft to pay my bills.
“I carried a lot of Nigerians, my name on the Uber App was Joseph. The moment they get in or three minutes into the journey, they know I’m the one.
“One woman even had to call her husband, and she ended up taking pictures with me. I even had some people say to me ‘Boss you will make it.”
