It’s the third Thursday of the month; Ouida is opening its doors, ready to receive groups with creative spirits. Soon, a performer will mount the stage; they will render impeccable poetry or captivate us with nightingale voices. Within the four corners of the Ouida Open Mic, every creative expression has a seat.
When Lola Shoneyin, founder of Ouida Lagos, conceived the idea for the Open Mic, she thought of it as a safe space for creatives to be themselves and thrive. Ouida’s stage bears no preference for critically acclaimed performers. On every third Thursday of the month, both amateur and expert creatives pick up the mic. “We wanted it to be a place where people grow. What better place than being on a stage reciting your poem to a bunch of people?” TK Solarin, an instrumental member of the open mic team, explains.
True to its vision, the open mic has aided the rise of talents. For Jesimiel Williams, a writer and familiar face at the open mic, the space blessed him with a platform. “Ouida was the first place that I got to perform on stage, and that framed how I would go on to perform my work on other stages,” he tells me. The confidence of these creatives is further bolstered by a supportive crowd. There are no judges, just an expectant audience who carry an admiration for the arts. “Ouida has the best and most supportive crowd in Lagos,” TK Solarin affirms.
TK Solarin, who helped revive the open mic after the COVID-19 lockdown, was awed by the numbers it pulled. “We knew that people would attend, but we didn’t expect the crowd we have now. The community grew so much that the old space couldn’t hold us. Now that Ouida has moved to a bigger space, it looks like Ouida would have to rent out the National Theatre,” she quips.
Alongside breeding creatives who have taken global stages and graced Ake Festival’s podiums, Ouida’s open mic has succeeded in creating a community of and for creatives. “There is a community of creators at Ouida. I’ve gotten to collaborate with so many of the people I met there and build my craft,” Williams tells me.
There is a kind of spark the crowd carries and a pang to connect that is amiss in a lot of gatherings. The concept of “cringe” does not exist in their midst and people are allowed to kick back and relax.
The community is always excited to welcome a new face. “Even though I was attending for the first time, I felt a sense of community with strangers. It’s like people attended there to be free and friendly. It was refreshing to just lose myself temporarily as an audience member, support the performers, and eat the puff-puff they served,” Banke, a first-timer, recounts her first time attending the event.
The open mic is scheduled on a workday, and for a lot of 9-to-5ers, it can feel like an unburdening. “My experience at Ouida is always warm and comforting, therapeutic even. You could say you are going through a heartbreak, and the people would go around giving you hugs.” Happiness Ogwamhenlu, writer and content creator, highlights her experience at the open mic. “You know how you can somehow feel lost and out of place visiting a place for the first time? Not at Ouida Open Mic. It feels like home right from the start and strangers become family,” she adds.
In a city as busy and expensive as Lagos, we plan dates with friends that mostly never materialise; the open mic reconnects friends once a month. “I look forward to Ouida’s Open Mics because I know I will see my people and get lots of hugs.” Ethel Jezreel, a journalist, states. “For me, the open mic goes beyond the performances, which I also really love, but it gives me the opportunity to hang out with my friends for two hours and just laugh. And that can be difficult sometimes because all of us are adulting,” she concludes.
Beyond building a sanctuary, L.S. – as she is popularly called – wanted to build something for the creative community on the mainland. There is a shared notion amongst Lagosians that all the cool things happen on the Island. A stroll down Tix’s website will present you with convincing evidence that supports this motion. “Ouida Open Mic Night serves the mainland community. Ouida is at the heart of Lagos, which makes the creative space accessible to those of us on the mainland. Ouida is a testament that cool stuff happens here too,” TK Solarin muses.
The open mic attracts different people across the creative arts. From poets to singers, filmmakers and even comedians. “It’s the one place you can meet superb creatives in Lagos,” TK Solarin summarises. In a world ruled by online relationships, Ouida’s Open Mic stands as a testament to the power of physical connections and the dazzling outcome of giving creatives a space to exhale.
