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For years, fans have known him simply as Joey B. What many did not know is that the rapper’s stage name came from a chance encounter with a stranger and a surprisingly kangaroo-related twist.
Appearing on 3Music TV on Wednesday, June 10, Joey B recounted the amusing story behind the nickname that would eventually become his brand.
According to the rapper, the story dates back to his school days when he was playing basketball on campus. Out of nowhere, an American visitor looking for the administration block pointed directly at him and called him “Joey.”
The strange part? They had never met before.
“This man was looking for the administration block in my school and, out of all the boys around, he pointed at me and said, ‘You, Joey,'” he recalled.
Puzzled but willing to help, Joey B approached the visitor, who asked him for directions. The interaction soon became even more memorable when the man insisted that the young student personally escort him to the administration block.
“He didn’t just ask for directions. He wanted me to walk with him,” Joey B said, laughing. “I remember he even held my hand and swung it while we were walking. I was young, so I just went along with it.”
Curiosity eventually got the better of him.
After showing the visitor where he needed to go, Joey B asked the obvious question: Why Joey?
The man’s answer was as random as the nickname itself.
“He said, ‘Because you look like a Joey.'”
The name quickly spread among his friends and before long, everyone was calling him Joey.
Wanting to understand what exactly he looked like, the future star later searched for the meaning of the name. The discovery only made the story funnier.
“I checked the dictionary and found out a Joey is a baby kangaroo,” he revealed.
And just like that, a nickname handed out by a random American visitor stuck, eventually becoming one of the most recognizable names in Ghanaian music.
