By Chinazam Ikechi-Uko.
“The Western world is just catching up and I really am glad about that but Lagos has always been Lagos.” – Ashley Okoli
There is a bus stop that leads to all roads; A bridge that is longer than your will to live; Traffic that traumatizes you in the way a 2-month situationship could never; You know a money launderer; Everyone is happy to assist you… for a small fee; You can grab a meal at the witching hour; these are the 6 impossible things a young adult living in Lagos has come to terms with. Lagos has single-handedly made itself the creative and economic capital of the city, it is also the go-to centre for the outsiders – the people we read about in the art books.
LAGOS AS A FASHION CAPITAL:
Lagos has cemented itself as a fashion capital; it is a mixed bag of entertainment and many non-Lagosians would gladly bring several arguments about Lagos’s position on the social globe, but isn’t every fashion capital like that? All opinions take flight about Paris, New York, Milan, Tokyo and London; commercial cities are rarely a fan favourite, nevertheless, they bring home the money bags and everyone is welcome… as long as you can hang. But what makes a city, a fashion one? For the straight answer, a fashion capital is a global hub that shapes and inspires the world of fashion through its rich history, renowned designers, groundbreaking trends, and innovative manufacturing and retail practices. These cities host major fashion events that generate significant economic impact.
In recent years, the Nigerian fashion scene has experienced a form of youthquake that is reminiscent of the UK in the 1960s. Styles that differ from the societal norm burst onto the scene and the international industry had no choice but to hop on it. In a poetic twist, this was where the disconnect began. Lagos has birthed several subcultures and thanks to social media, many have gotten its coins such as the Alté and Nollywood y2k. However, mainstream success despite being the dream of every subculture has a history of being a nightmare. Like cocaine, it gives creatives their pleasure yet cuts it with pain and over time, numbs their senses.
The Lagos street style is fun and playful.
IS LAGOS GETTING THE HARAJUKU TREATMENT?
With so many amazing styles that I witnessed at the Lagos Fashion Week and GTCO fashion weekend, it was less than exciting to see the photos titled “street style from Lagos Fashion Week” filled with popular people and not necessarily stylish ones. The same can be said about the modern knowledge of Lagos’s fashion scene. Like all great fashion capitals, Lagos’s fashion hub can be divided into 2: Islands (Ikoyi and VI) and Mainlands (Yaba and Ikeja), yes there are more areas in Lagos but these are the once that hold influences in our current fashion industry.
What is the style DNA of this Lagos? What magazines are capturing the quirky DIYs, subcultural individualism and straight-up signature style of the city? What are the baddies of Unilag wearing to paint the city blue? What do the young adults wear for fashion events and festivals? Do the Ravers wear yellow? What social scenes influence the dress styles? The rich kids are a tiny part of the city; no denying that they are part of the city yet they make up a large part of what is recorded.
Do not be confused, a lot of popular people have style, however, when a person gains a certain level of fame, their style choices are influenced by brands hoping to piggyback off the person’s newfound internet success. Which is why I support the pop kids, go get your money.
Lagos is not the patient zero for instances where the creative scene is polluted by money-seeking brands whom you can not fault for placing their bets on a stylish young adult who knows how to work their angles. We’ve seen this cycle with Harajuku, with the magazine which took Harajuku-style global [Fruits] shutting down in 2017 due to a decline in the number of “cool kids” to photograph. Founder Shoichi Aoki stated that he had “run dry” in terms of people he considered worth photographing.
This was simply a result of capitalism, after Harajuku got attention, everyone on the street became a paid walking ad or aspired to be one, why dress up for free when the other option is shiner? Will Lagos turn out like this? Will the bright-coloured and unique silhouettes that flooded the Lagos streets in late October-early November run dry and turn into a designer ad campaign? Time will tell but for now, let’s discuss the subcultures that Lagos has sneezed out, what activity created it and this includes the ones that have not been documented:
SPORTSWEARMANIA:
Fact: Football is a well-practiced religion in Africa.
Lately, tickets for inter-state football matches have been doing numbers, the growing interest in football culture might be a domino effect from the modern use of sports merch as a style statement or not. We have always worn sports merch and sports jackets had their moment in the mid-2010s, but it is different, they can be seen in churches, at festivals, artistes performing in them and many more. This shift began after Nike debuted the Nigerian World Cup jersey in 2018. The jersey saw as much success and acceptance as the Telfar bags. Everyone wanted it, and now, jerseys have become the new band tee.
WAF, PITH.Africa, and MotherLan could be credited as the trinity of the West African skate community. The dream was a lot easier said than created, but sometimes manifestation does work. What began as a few young men trying to bring a Supreme-like aesthetic home because skating is a part of them, has turned into a community with skate shops and annual events such as pop-ups and continental skate competitions. So seeing a skater boy or skater girl in Lagos is not a luminous firefly in Beacon Hills.
COQUETTE-ISM:
Now, West Africans have always obsessed over cinched waists, with everyone knowing someone who knows someone who once passed out in public due to restricted blood flow. So when the corset moonwalked its way into modernity, it just became another item to showcase “that” look. A few years have gone and the corseted silhouette is not only still in closets but has transformed into the foundation of a new subculture. This is for the girls who are unapologetic about being a stereotypical girl, in their lace socks, floral skirts, ribbons and soft makeup. They can equally be spotted at every single event even if it is a small theatre performance at Terra Kulture, they’ve got their books and sit like a lady out of a Bridgerton movie.
THE HIGHER THE HEEL, THE CLOSER TO VIVIENNE IN HEAVEN:
So the hyper-feminine coquettes are not the only worshippers at the corset temple in Lagos. There are many outliers; you see Lagos baddies have never respected the weather. It is May and is today the Homecoming Festival and is it raining cats and dogs? Yes, but there will be no raincoats or jackets in sight. It is November and today is GTCO fashion weekend and is the heat making you question if hell can be any worse than this? Yes, but there are a lot of people in really thick high boots. Suffering is but for a moment, style is eternal.
So it should come as no surprise that ladies of Lagos pair their corsets with high boots or heels. The economy might be bad but so is my shoe game. Boots, boots, boots; ever heard of the lady who lived in a boot? Yea, she was from Oniru.
HIPPIE ROMANTICS:
Historically, there has been a straight line from a struggling economy to the rise of long skirts. Is that the current situation in the city? Possibly because the long skirts are in and the obsession with pairing it with a colourful and fitted top is reminiscent of the 60s… without the drugs, of course. Also, there has been an acceptance of the waist bead accessory and these beaded ladies are one of the attractions in the Lagos scene. This look is gaining momentum in the university scene. To quote the incels of Nigerian Twitter whenever they see a pretty woman, “You will see like 5 girls who look like this when you enter Unilag.”
WELCOME TO CULT OF UPCYCLED DENIM:
Sustainability hit the West African young adults harder than LSD in a case of St Anthony’s Fire. The fascinating part is that sustainable practices are not new to us. Before it became fashion’s favourite buzzword, “thrifting” was a societal norm. Also, it is customary for clothes to run through all your siblings before it is given away. Nevertheless, the reduce, reuse and recycle mantra has been drilled into our heads, and now we have upcycling. Denim has been picked as the fan-favourite fabric of upcycled brands such as David Blackmoore and By.Wuzzy. Denim has gone from a Netflix and chill outfit to a staple street style garment.
DIY-ERS:
In the past two months, I’ve attended multiple Halloween parties, an anime rave, a ram festival, scores of fashion shows and a Tech event. This has exposed me to an array of young adults; the quirky, the nerdy; the druggy, the stylish and the horny. At every single one of them, I met a bunch of people who made their looks. One made use of shoelaces, another incorporated safety pins, and the rest got familiar with paint; these all had jaw-dropping results.
THE MOIRAI HAVE THE THREADS OF LIFE, LAGOSIANS PREFER THE CROCHET:
All that crochet and knitting classes taught in fancy primary schools finally came in handy; crochet is in. The crochet has proven its versatility with a unique crochet style going viral on Twitter every month. Crochet has proven to be a great financial opportunity for a lot of Nigerians and thanks to social media, it was clear that there was a demand for it. What was once seen as grandma clothing can be spotted on TV, at fashion week, at festivals and on beaches.
THE ALTE ALTE KIDS:
Like most subcultures that make it to Vogue, Alté was a sort of rebellion from the norm- an alternative. But what happens when a niche movement goes mainstream? It is denied its rights as a niche. With Alté not differing from the environment, there came another alternative, born from the Alté. They can be categorised by their gender fluid clothing which brings us to another problem the Alté Alté kids have with the Alté kids.
As seen on Twitter, there is a heavy discussion about how the Alté kids drew inspiration from the queer culture in Lagos, convinced the marginalized culture that Alté was a haven, and then included notable non-allies in the community. For centuries, fashion has been a place of safety for lots of people who differ from the conservative society. Constantly, they use their garments to express themselves and for a country such as Nigeria which penalizes them, it is important to point out this dissonance.
NOLLYWOOD Y2K:
Talk about a grand finale; Nollywood Y2K is the biggest subculture to come out of the 21st century in West Africa. With billions of views between TikTok, Instagram and Twitter; with pages dedicated to posting Nollywood looks growing so rapidly that they become a merchedise label; the creation of streetwear brands built on the aesthetic such as Meji Meji. The average online thrift store is heavily influenced by this era of entertainment. The resurgence of Nollywood Y2K proves that nothing tastes as good as nostalgia and the youths of Lagos are addicts.
Lagos has established itself as a fashion capital, with a vibrant fashion scene that is a mix of entertainment and creativity. While there is a growing interest in sports merch as a style statement, the future of Lagos’s fashion scene remains uncertain, with the possibility that it may become a designer ad campaign like Harajuku. However, Lagos’s fashion scene has a rich history and renowned designers, and it is hoped that the city will continue to be a hub of creativity and individualism.