How Bereket W/Gebreal Is Becoming a Must-Watch Comedian
By Faisale Shefawe
Published on 09/15/25
More than ten years ago, in Lideta, a district of Addis Ababa, a group of friends gathered almost every day to crack jokes and laugh about the events of the day. It felt as if everyone in the group was funny. Among them was a boy named Bereket W/Gebreal, who would go on to become part of Ethiopia’s new generation of social media comedians.
Growing up, Bereket loved watching comedians like Kevin Hart, as well as legends from The Original Kings of Comedy such as Steve Harvey and Cedric the Entertainer.
“I loved Kevin Hart’s jokes and how he made people feel,” Bereket said. “I learned about Kings of Comedy from my sister—she used to watch it all the time.”
As a child, people always laughed at Bereket’s jokes, but he never thought much of it—certainly not as a possible career path. His dream back then was to become an engineer.
But in 2021, just two years away from graduating high school, he began to reconsider his future. Like many of his peers, he was trying to decide what to do after graduation. Around that time, he became fascinated by the lives of social media influencers who entertained their followers while building careers online.
“I liked how influencers lived their life,” Bereket recalled during a phone interview. “They were having positive impacts while living their best life.”
During his senior year, Bereket enrolled in an acting class at a local agency.
“About that acting class, they didn’t teach us about social media,” Bereket explained. “They were mainly giving the work to people participating in those activities like TikTok or Instagram.”
He left the agency shortly after.
In 2022, after finishing high school, Bereket started posting short videos on TikTok. At first, his clips only averaged around 300 views, and his friends teased him about it.
“My friends were making fun of me—it even got to the point where I stopped playing soccer with them,” Bereket said. “But deep down, I knew I had real talent for it.”
Once he put himself out to the public, there was no turning back. He doubled down on his efforts, creating funny “quick tips” that were intentionally unrealistic but resonated with viewers. Within a short time, his videos began reaching hundreds of thousands of views.
One popular example was a skit where he said:
“Why spend money on fuel if we could just make all roads downhill?”
As he grew, Bereket connected with other aspiring social media influencers who focused on different niches. They became his greatest resource, pushing him to grow and stay consistent.
“You gotta have friends who share your mission in business or career,” Bereket explained.
In 2023, while still helping manage his family business, Bereket committed to posting at least one video per day—more if possible. He also studied YouTube tutorials on how to go viral and improve video quality.
When his family business closed in 2024, Bereket shifted his full focus to TikTok. The results were immediate. Within six months, he had gained more than 100,000 followers.
The time his audience truly exploded was when he began focusing on relationship content.
“And the time the audience exploded was mainly relationship content about love—‘Anchim kri’—that’s what I am known for,” Bereket said.
By September 2025, Bereket has become a must-watch comedian who is shaping the future of Ethiopian comedy on his own terms. With more than 400,000 followers on TikTok and nearly 100,000 on Instagram, his influence continues to grow.
When asked about his long-term goals, he was direct:
“I’ll continue to focus on making people laugh, but I also want to find ways to start my own business—whether by introducing my own products or collaborating with others.”