Ghanaian comedian Lekzy DeComic has offered rare insight into a common but rarely discussed practice in the entertainment industry—giving out free tickets to fill venues, especially for events being filmed or promoted as sold-out successes.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Showbiz A-Z with Kwame Dadzie, Lekzy admitted that sometimes low ticket sales force organisers to distribute complimentary tickets to ensure a visually full auditorium.
“Yes, it has happened before. If you are shooting the event for television, or for other commercial reasons, you can’t shoot an event in a half-empty auditorium. You still have to fill up,” he revealed.
He cited a specific example involving fellow comedian OB Amponsah’s show at the Bukom Boxing Arena, where low advance ticket sales just days before the event prompted them to release free tickets in order to create a full house for visual impact.
“Two days to the event when we checked the ticket sales, it wasn’t encouraging, so we had to find a way to give some of the tickets out. People bought tickets but it wasn’t as much as we expected,” he said.
Lekzy further disclosed that media appearances come at a hidden cost. When promoting an event across multiple media platforms, comedians and organisers are often required to provide tickets to production teams as a form of goodwill or reciprocity.
“If I am doing about 10 television stations and 10 radio stations interviews, just the interviews alone will take about 50 tickets. These are seats I could have sold, but if the station were to quantify the airtime they are giving me, it would also cost more,” he explained.
He added that aside from media engagements, complimentary tickets are often extended to sponsors, friends, and family, which further eats into the pool of paid seats. This reality often leaves organisers struggling to break even or even incur financial losses, despite the perception of a packed and successful show.
Lekzy’s revelations shine a light on the challenging economics behind event promotion in Ghana. While a full venue may suggest commercial success, the truth behind the scenes often includes unrecouped expenses, inflated audience numbers, and promotional trade-offs.
His honesty has been commended by many within the creative arts space, with calls for better ticketing strategies, sponsorship engagement, and audience development.
As Ghana’s entertainment industry continues to grow, discussions like this are helping to pull back the curtain on the complex realities that define what it truly takes to fill seats—and stay in business.
