Eniafe Momodu talks December in Lagos

“There’s just nowhere better to be, to be honest”. Eniafe Momodu says referring to Lagos , Nigeria , his home.

Its a city that is ever bubbly and full of life and every December is a time to remember ( or rather forget all the sorrows from the year’s hard work) . It is a tradition for tonnes of Nigerians in diaspora to travel back home to enjoy the festive season with family , but it is also that time to be turning up at the many lined up concerts, events, art exhibitions and events that lined up the entire month. This holiday was special for Eniafe Momodu, because it was his first holiday since launching his website in August. He has used his website platform to release writing, photography and films to the public, and has come into contact with so many new people – bloggers, actors, models, spoken word performers, and musicians, – a lot of whom being in Lagos would allow him to meet in person.

Eniafe doesn’t shy away from the life of the party when he is in Lagos so we caught up with him on some of his most memorable events from December and his thoughts on those events.

NONSO AMADI: HOMECOMING

I hadn’t thought about going to the Nonso Amadi concert until I got an invite on the day of the show (shoutout to Efe). I didn’t really have any expectations because I didn’t know Nonso’s music well at all, but I knew a few of my friends were big fans so I was excited to see what all the noise was about. I was actually sitting next to him at one point for about 30 minutes. It was funny because I didn’t know who he was, but he looked so distraught and I was concerned. I wanted to be like, “hey there, are you okay, you look really nervous…”. Then someone said his name and suddenly it made sense. I know how stressful it is putting on shows, especially when it’s your name and your brand on full display but honestly, it was such a good show and so many people came to support him. When he performed at the end I realised I knew his music a lot better than I’d thought. Tonight is one of my favourite songs out right now.

KAI COLLECTIVE BRUNCH

Fisayo Longe’s brunch was a  intimate event with a really diverse group of content creators, whether musicians, actors, presenters, influencers or fashion bloggers. Fisayo talked a bit about the importance of collaboration in the creative industry and I love events like this that really get to promote this.

30 BILLION CONCERT

The Davido concert was definitely a highlight. I was backstage for most of it so I didn’t see much of the actual show, but backstage is the best place to be anyway. The scenes were absolutely insane. According to David there were over 10,000 people in the venue, but the Eko Convention Centre is only supposed to fit about 6,000 people. I’m not sure how that worked but apparently it did. Not3s, Wizkid, Olamide, 9ice and so many other musicians were hanging around. At one point I was in a green room with 2baba and he forced me to drink cranberry juice and Hennessy (but don’t tell my dad).

JTO x ADE BRUNCH

The JTO x Ade brunch was probably my favourite event this Christmas, mainly because of all the cool people that were there. It was another intimate crowd and again, mostly content creators. I did two photoshoots that day, one with Denola Grey and another with Nqobilé Danseur. Temi is just the ultimate fashion blogger, and she hosted a great interview and Q&A session with Ade Samuel who styles celebrities like Kelly Rowland, Big Sean and even my future wife, Yara Shahidi. (I think the universe is slowly finding ways to bring us together. Hi, Yara!)

PALMWINE MUSIC FESTIVAL

The Palmwine Music Festival was such a vibe. The line-up was well-rounded and it was one of the few events I feel really tried to promote upcoming artists and not just the same, predictable established musicians. I think that’s important. A lot of the performers were young artists who are making great music so it’s important that they have platforms to share their talent. I’ll definitely be back next year.

CUPPY X CROSSROADS

This was another event I wasn’t initially intendng to go for. I was actually on my way to Cuppy’s rooftop party, Cactus on the Roof but my cousin Sophie asked me to stop by for dinner with her, and the DMW crew. I wasn’t planning to stay for long, but by the time Davido bombarded us with springrolls and cocktails, I was trapped. I felt bad for missing Cactus, especially because I’d already told Cuppy I was coming, so I told Sophie and David they had to follow me to Crossroads after church for making me miss Cactus. It happened to be my first clubbing experience in Lagos and it did not disappoint.

ALIBABA’S JANUARY 1st CONCERT

Another last-minute addition to the itinerary, Alibaba’s concert was very necessary. There are never enough comedy shows on over the Christmas holiday – it’s always about music – but Alibaba’s concert makes up for that. So many of the greats performed like AY and Basketmouth and audience members were literally gasping for breath from laughter. I ran into Tiwa Savage, my favourite person, backstage as well. I’d seen her the previous night at Crossroads but you can never see too much of her. It was a great start to 2018.

For now, Eniafe is back to studying Philosophy and Economics at the University of Leeds but he is ready to take on another adventure soon. Maybe in summer? Who knows

Watch Eniafe’s vlogumentary below

See more of Eniafe Momodu on his website here

Fifo Adebakin

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