Boasy Boy Floyd still proud of ‘Peynado’

For years, many have been circulating popular episodes of the Jamaican comedy series Mek Wi Laugh but little did they know that the voice behind the character 'Peynado' is radio presenter, host and comedian, Boasy Boy Floyd.

The entertainer, given name Ludlow Peynado, has been in the industry for more than 20 years and told THE STAR that what was set out to be a radio drama series, flourished into a wide scale fully animated social media and televised version.

"[Conceptualiser] Lady Rennae had this idea and she teamed up with Donald 'Iceman' Anderson and we both became partners in this comedy skit," said Floyd. "But while we were doing the skit, [which was inspired] by something that happened in Jamaica where a student actually turned up at school wid his tight pants, bleach out face and the principal reprimanded him and send him back home, Donald started [re-enacting the moment] and when him seh 'Peynado, is that you Penaydo?' I wanted to stop him because mi a seh 'Pupa Jesus den nuh mi government name dat man'. And when him go seh 'Ludlow', mi get browna," Floyd recollected in great amusement.

Floyd said the comedians chosen to help in making Lady Rennae's intended dream a reality was the perfect blend as both him and Anderson had a smooth, unscripted flow while recording the voiceovers.

"We were having fun; we didn't expect it to escalate to this but wi affi big up Lady Rennae because [she] was very magical in putting us together and seeing the chemistry between me and Iceman. Because every time we hit that studio, it's like it's a magic moment for both of us; we did like five scripts per day and then she chooses the best one," said Floyd, who was also the voice behind the vending machine in another popular skit.

"We don't [normally] know the stories that we'll be recording because these were stories that were taken from THE STAR. And wi never have no whole heap a 'takes'; it's like we were just made for this, it was just a natural flow with a magical trio from me, Rennae and Iceman," he added.

It's been over 10 years since the recording of the series, however, Floyd said the issues addressed are still relevant as they spread awareness about the schools' dress code policies. The interest usually arises during the back-to-school rush.

However, despite the attention, Jamaica Mek Wi Laugh has brought to the overall theatre and entertainment landscape, Peynado believes entertainment is the least catered to industry.

"COVID has taken away a lot from entertainment and we suffered tremendously for that two and a half years; even now, I don't' think the entertainment industry has recovered fully. And you know we as MCs, comedians needed that platform to strut our stuff and when it wasn't available. It really let me look at life different and my approach is different since COVID," the Excelsior High School graduate underscored.

"We had some great actors/playwrights who had left us during COVID, such as Paul Beale, Trevor Nairne, who were the masters of roots play in Jamaica. Bad Boy Trevor, Everton Dawkins and Shebada try to keep the industry going but I don't think Jamaica appreciate the creatives and the work that we put in to keep people laughing," Floyd said. He also highlighted comedians Christopher 'Johnny' Daley and Dufton 'Duffy' Shepherd for their commitment to their weekly comedy bar series to help keep the theatre culture alive. He, however, implores the Government to do more in terms of sponsoring theatre events.