Nigerian comedian and gospel actor, Woli Agba, has defended his crew member, Dele Omowoli, over criticism of a video showing him crying uncontrollably following the death of gospel singer Toluwanisings.
Woli Agba said the video was recorded while members of the crew were mourning their colleague and friend, whose body they had gone to see after his death in Ibadan on Wednesday, October 14, 2026.
He faulted social media users who described Omowoli’s decision to record himself crying as foolish, arguing that the video helped others realise he needed emotional support.
In a video shared online on Friday, Woli Agba said he rarely responded to such comments but decided to speak out after seeing a remark criticising Omowoli for recording himself while expressing grief.
“Then I saw a comment yesterday saying that nobody is more foolish than anyone that records himself while crying, because Dele had to… and was talking about Dele’s video when he was crying,” he said.
He questioned why people would criticise someone for expressing grief over the death of a friend.
“Someone that we were there looking at our colleague, our friend, buried like this and there was nothing to do. He was wailing and crying, wailing and crying, and Dele was just crying uncontrollably, he was just crying,” he said.
The comedian explained that the video alerted other members of the crew to Omowoli’s emotional state and prompted them to reach out to him.
“What you people don’t know is this: number one, that video he did made people like us to know that, omo, and we have to reach out to him and say, ‘Baba, calm down.’
“I don’t know why you… do you want him to be crying and nobody should know, and the next thing we now hear that something has happened to him? That’s what you people want?” he asked.
Woli Agba also disclosed that he experienced health concerns after returning home from the mourning, saying his wife advised him to check his blood pressure.
“My wife said I should check my BP. I checked my BP, it was up there, I mean, believe it. It was up there, she started telling me to calm down, calm down, calm down,” he said.
He further argued that Omowoli was not merely crying in the video but was also speaking about the deceased and acknowledging her efforts.
“And number three, he was not even crying in that video, he was saying something. He was saying that, ‘Ah, she really try, no, she really try, no.’ How is that a problem?” he said.
Woli Agba urged people to be more considerate when commenting on how others grieve, warning against remarks that could worsen the emotional distress of someone mourning a loved one.
Toluwanisings’ death has attracted widespread reactions on social media, with Woli Agba noting that posts about his death had generated close to 50,000 comments.
He described the circumstances surrounding his death as deeply distressing, saying the experience had affected him and other members of the crew.