THEWILL DOWNTOWN September 25, 2022 EDITION

What happens when two people from different worlds meet? It either ends up a disaster, or they become, like the saying, opposites attract. The latter is the case between Eniola Mafe and Jude ‘M.I’ Abaga, who by the time you read this, would have completed their traditional rites and Eniola, according to Yoruba tradition, now becomes Mrs Abaga.

Their swoon-worthy love story is technologyenabled, as their meeting was on social media after a mutual friend introduced them. From spending hours talking, they grew a friendship that, according to Eniola’s side of the story, she built to become love.

What’s most captivating about their story is that they understood the importance of communication right from the start, so they talked about everything a couple, young or old intending to be together, ought to talk about —not many people do this. More often than not, young couples, especially, are blinded by the mirage of the excitement of a relationship and leave out the core of what a relationship is built upon; communication. So honest were their conversations that they immediately spotted their backgrounds and goals aligned, and within a few months, Jude knew he’d like her in his life for a long time. As he put it, “...I told her she’s the story I want to read more. I don’t know how the story is going to end, but I would like to read chapters 2, 3, or 4 and learn more about her.” I must confess that when I heard those words during the interview, I thought to myself, ‘those are such beautiful words’ then I remembered who was saying them, and it made perfect sense that he would know how to express himself to the woman he had fallen for. He is, after all, M.I.

As we wish them the best on their journey to forever, these lyrics from his hit song, One Naira, have certainly come alive: But what we have is so realistic, there’s no forming girl, no film tricks, I no go chop outside, no picnics… it don’t matter if I got ego, we got something we can build on, Lego…

Until next week, enjoy your read.

White White Aquazzura

M.I: Innocent Oriaku OGANNAH

Editor: Onah Nwachukwu Chalya Shagaya

Writers: Kehindé Fagbule

Graphic Design: Olaniyan John ‘Blake’

Digital Media: Oladimeji Balogun

Guest Art Director: Sunny Hughes ‘ SunZA’

Odun Ogunbiyi @oddbodandthecity Contributing Editor

Odunayo Ogunbiyi is an ex pharmacist with a passion for food and pampering. Writing about her exploits wherever in the world she may find herself is just her way of staying sane in this zany world.

Boluwatife Adesina @bolugramm - Contributing Writer

Boluwatife Adesina is a media writer and the helmer of the Downtown Review page. He’s probably in a cinema near you.

David Nwachukwu @ebube.nw - Contributing Writer

David Nwachukwu has always been immersed in fashion from the age of 10, watching a Dior by Galliano show on television. His work in fashion stretches across media, marketing, brand communications as well as design. As a fashion & lifestyle journalist, David has tracked key industry data for various publications including Industrie Africa, Culture Custodian, Haute Fashion Africa, and HELLO! Nigeria. A Geography graduate from The University of Lagos, David consciously aligns this background in environmental advocacy and sustainable development with the need to promote a more ethical fashion ecosystem. He currently oversees strategic communications at Clean Technology Hub.

Dr May Ikeora @mayikeora

Dr May Ikeora is an academic researcher, Author, and ex-beauty queen cum entrepreneur. She is a specialist in Human Rights, Gender and Peacebuilding, consulting for organisations like the United Nations, African Union, World Bank, Mission89, Governments and the Kofi Annan Peacekeeping Institute. She gained a PhD in Law from the University of Hull, UK, and has received numerous awards for her work, including that within African diaspora communities in the U.K. received at the House of Lords. As an entrepreneur, May founded a cosmetics company called L’Avyanna, based in the U.K. and Nigeria and possesses numerous beauty licenses from the U.K.

ODDBOD & THE CITY OGUNBIYI

Instagram Made Me Do It

Any regular reader of my column knows my love affair with food is pure and unrelenting. I don’t leave much room for mistakes when picking a new place to eat. I investigate, read reviews and only trust implicitly when it comes highly recommended by a trusted fellow foodie friend. I don’t trust many people with a recommendation; in fact, only five people on my list can send me somewhere, and I am confident that all will be well.

I say all this so you understand I don’t know how this happened. I was minding my business on Instagram (and I was on one of my pages where admittedly, I get a lot of suggestions for what to do and where to go in London) when up pops the recommendation for Mare Street Market. On further going down the rabbit hole, I am bombarded with fabulous pictures of a location my spirit is telling me I just gots to try out.

I check in with one of my partners in crime; she is game, and bless her, she books us a table. Plans are set.

Mare Street Market is an indoor marketplace in the east end of London. It’s an expansive project from Barworks (the people behind the Wenlock & Essex, Electricity Showrooms, and the 5cc bars). They took over a formally hideous council office block and gave it this massive architectural revamp.

We went at night, so I probably missed out on its full glory. You walk in and get the impression of loads of space and lofted ceilings, and you can positively smell the “trendiness” in the air. I spotted a tattoo parlour in the corner and a flower shop as we passed a gorgeous outdoor dining area with the look and feel of a massive greenhouse.

The Dining Room restaurant is a gorgeous space and the location’s crown jewel. The ceiling is packed full of eclectic vintage vibe chandeliers

of all shapes and sizes, hanging plants and statues in an artfully chaotic display that is frankly genius. Turns out all the design touches are available for sale at the Pure White Lines store.

The menu was all things “now”, and when I say intercontinental, I mean they pulled favourites from anywhere on the planet that they felt to. Items like Palestinian Hummus reside comfortably on the menu with the other KFC (Korean fried chicken), Turkish eggs and Vietnamese crispy duck salad. I loved the open-mindedness of it all.

My crime partner and I ended up ordering the same thing: a buttermilk fried chicken burger which came with gherkin, slaw, cheese, hot sauce, aioli and fries, followed by an item it turns out I can’t ignore when I see it on any menu—the sticky toffee pudding.

I had been drinking earlier in the day, so we both settled for a house wine. This girl should have powered through some cocktails in the name of content.

The joy stops here.

To say we were disappointed in the food is an understatement. My darling food compatriot is still apologising for the booking even though I made the recommendation. The chicken burger was all batter and bread, I still could have forgiven that, but when the sticky toffee pudding came COLD to the table, well, all bets were off.

Atmosphere (5 stars) Service (3 stars) Food (NIL POINTS)

YOURS TRADITIONALLY, MEN

BY TILEWA KAZEEM

Nigeria

The Agbada

The ceremonial robe known as agbada is revered as a family heritage passed down from generation to generation. Usually worn to significant events such as weddings and funerals, Nigerian men have today included it in their wardrobes as it is considered an affluent fashion staple.

Mawuli Gavor & Noble Igwe

Deyemi Okanlawon

Richard Ayodeji Makun

FASHION

The Native Attire

Kaftan

As you will see, there are different style approaches to follow, but the base material is kaftan. This traditional style is the most common among the lot and the go-to ensemble for most men. You can pair yours with pants alone or take your style up a notch with a sleeveless kaftan jacket for that extra touch.

Traditional Meets Modern

This look doesn’t fall into the category of being able to wear casually on a regular day. Because it is very ceremonial, it is best to dorn it to a royal wedding or a major celebration such as a chieftaincy title.

In this category, we have styles that add the breath of fresh air of modern apparel styles to conventional traditional styles. More and more men are opting for this, and we have come to love it too.

Neo Akpofure

Richard Mofe-Damijo

Mike Edwards

Akah Nnani

Ebuka Obi-Uchendu

Model in Traxedo by ATAFO

DOWNTOWN HOTSPOT

Villa Valhalla

BY KEHINDÉ FAGBULE

Comfort,

one of the biggest selling points of real estate, is any realtor’s most common marketability watchword. If you find comfort in a serene environment that exists as discreetly as electronically possible, you can admit to just how important it is to have these structures.

Upscale all-inclusive private luxury home away from home, Villa Valhalla, is that structure. Designed to create a differentiated getaway and resort-style experience in the centre of a commercial hub of Ikoyi, Villa Valhalla aligns a homely aesthetic with extravagant offerings infrastructure-wise.

A product of ‘Balmoral Homes,’ Villa Valhalla is an established villa for the rich and luxury clients that yearn for a paradise experience in Lagos. Its value position, an end-to-end magnificence housing solution providing furnished accommodation with luxury service to clients within its community, is quite clear to see. From the executive suites to the pool, the different offerings are mapped out to cater to a wide array of people—corporate, vacationers and locals.

A fully furnished private residence with a blend of modern architecture, state-of-the-art features and world-class amenities featuring three fully furnished ensuite bedrooms in the heart of Ikoyi. The discrete nature that this boutique residence offers meant that during the early days when the DOWNTOWN team visited, it wasn’t on the map—although now it is. According to the facility manager, it was a part of the design to ensure utmost exclusivity. Imagine being in town for a couple of weeks, needing a serviced apartment to call home and keeping a remarkably low profile for as long as you’re in town.

Villa Valhalla capitalizes on personalized service, comfort and premium lifestyle. An indication of this is the private cinema, jacuzzi and swimming pool available to guests. A significant highlight that this estate offers is its smartness. It is common knowledge that the best houses are the smart ones in today’s world. With features such as smart doors and closets, integrated speakers, a safebox, access entry, and unlimited high-speed Wi-Fi across all devices at a click, Villa Valhalla is a technologyforward establishment. Aside from the residential benefits that ensure that guests are as comfortable as possible, the space is also suitable for exclusive birthday celebrations, proposals and choice events.

You can schedule a visit to Villa Valhalla at 1, Grillo Streer, Ikoyi, Lagos.

DOWNTOWN CONFIDENTIAL

LA PETITE MORT

BY NWAEZE OGWU

IMAGE FROM TUMBLR

Years later— five years, to be precise— we bumped into each other at a restaurant where I was having lunch with the girls; it was a ritual we girls had formed— meeting up every Sunday for late lunch and champagne. And there he was, looking all mature and sexy, and even better, no Lilia. Our eyes meet, and we smile, walk up to each other get locked in a long embrace. We then arrange to meet. We did and carried on from where we left off. It was as if we hadn’t lost touch, but this time, there was a certain spark between us, and we both felt it.

We continued to hang out after work, almost every day, like old times and one night, after cocktails, we walked hand in hand to my car. What was supposed to be a hug turned into a passionate kiss. What was going on? This is Oli— as we called him back then. But he was such a great kisser. We start to grope each other outside by my car; he then asks me for my key, unlocks the car, opens the back seat, and looks me dead in the eyes without saying a word. I enter and sit in the car. He joins me, starts kissing me again, traces his hand underneath my dress, and touches me between my legs. “People might see us”, I said. “It’s 11.30pm on a Tuesday; you are parked in the darkest part of this parking lot. There are no lights here. No one can see us,” he responded.

I still don’t know how, but he somehow managed to take off my underwear and get my legs in spreadeagle position while he crouched between them, doing what he always boasted of when we were younger.

I started to talk, but I wasn’t making sense. My goodness, I was speaking in tongues. The pleasure intensified— nerves, muscles, my entire body was going through a strange feeling of pleasure that I had never experienced before; it felt so good, I imagined a volcanic eruption would be like that. Suddenly, I could feel my soul as though it was leaving my body, and then I started to lose consciousness. ‘My God,’ I thought, ‘I’m dying in the middle of cunnilingus. And in my car.’

”STOP, STOP!” I yelled. Surprised, he looked up at me, “Are you ok; was I hurting you?”

“STOP,

STOP!” I yelled. Surprised, he looked up at me, “Are you ok; was I hurting you?” “No,” I said, “you were amazing, but I started passing out.”

Oliver and I had been friends since our mid-twenties. He was affluent in society and well travelled. We enjoyed reading books and watching movies, but we especially loved to exchange naughty sex stories. Once, he told

me how good he was at cunnilingus and that his girlfriends often ended up literally speaking in tongues. Another time, he told me this story about death during sex, something the French call La Petite Mort, and I wondered how possible it was. As far as I was concerned, he was exaggerating. Our friendship was open and safe; we shared many things but stopped spending time together after he met and started dating this new girl— Lilia.

A little embarrassed, I responded, “No, you were amazing, but I started passing out. It felt like my spirit or my soul was leaving me. I think I was dying.” He looked at me with a cocky smile and said, “Yes, you were dying.” Seeing the shock on my face, he explained further. “Not literally; it’s a good thing. You got to experience that French phrase about sex and death. Remember the one?” My mind wanders off , remembering what he had told me five years ago. “Trust me, babe”, he says while he slowly guides me back in position, continuing from where he stopped. I felt the rush again as his tongue and lips parted my ‘lady lips’, and he skillfully searched for my clitoris. Finding the treasure, he latched on, gently sucking while making wave-like motions with his tongue. I betrayed myself by letting out a loud moan. A surge of pleasure flooded my body, travelling down my spine, every inch of me tingling at this point. My soul is leaving me again; I’m passing out, but this time, I lay back and allow myself the pleasure of experiencing ‘the little death’ or, as the French say, La petite mort.

The Transatlantic Love Story Starring

Eniola & Abaga

BY ONAH NWACHUKWU

Few things are more profound than when two people get on the same page to share the rest of their lives together. The constant rush of emotion that we feel around that one person, the optimism that comes with planning the future with them, the sensation we get from the inside jokes that absolutely no one else in the world understands; if you have ever felt these things, you would agree that it is a pretty good place to be in life.

The Onah Nwachukwu led DOWNTOWN team witnessed all of these emotions when we had a lengthy conversation with Social Entrepreneur, Eniola Mafe and leading Hip-hop Artist, Jude Abaga, widely known as M.I. Abaga.

Since news of their engagement broke on social media, Eniola and Jude have adorned their public appearances with so much charm. As the couple got ready for the enchanting photoshoot session, we spoke on their transatlantic love story that essentially themed Jude’s twelfth project, The Guy, and Eniola’s contributions to a new Nigeria upon her relocation influenced by

Let’s talk about how you met, we all know that it was through Audu Maikori, and you started dating sometime in 2020. What would you say it was like at the early stages? Considering you’re an entertainer and she’s more of a private citizen, how did you guys balance it out eventually?

Jude [I]: I think we have two different answers.

Eniola [E]: First, it was very technology-enabled because I was in Switzerland, and he was in Nigeria. I think that the barrier to entry would have been too high. We don’t come from the same industry, we hadn’t met at all, but I had obviously heard a lot about him as a person to some extent. Audu spoke very highly of him and honestly about him because they have been friends and brothers for a very long time, so he wasn’t giving him just glowing recommendations like ‘he’s the best thing that will ever happen to you.’ He was being really honest, and I thought that was good because that shows a person who lives authentically for people to be able to authentically

describe them. So technology really helped; we had Clubhouse, our first meetings were on Instagram, and we commented on multiple platforms at the time. Secondly, it was friendship. I was very happy being single, he was very happy being newly single [Jude muttered something as they both laughed], and to be honest, I always thought dating a rapper was not ‘my ministry.’ I’ve been okay with being on my own, so I saw it as ‘I’m just going to get to know this guy; I’ll have some really cool story to say of how Jude and I became friends.’ And it became this long friendship where we would check on each other and look out for each other and all of that stuff. I put the stamp on us not dating, not because he’s not datable; he is very datable. I just wasn’t trying to push it in that direction.

J: At its core, Eniola is a star, and I’m the quiet person in real life. Outside of what we do, if we were to start again and reverse to childhood to see us grow up, you’d predict Eniola would be the one in the public eye. She just has a glow about her. When they heard that we were dating, people who know us were like, ‘okay, that makes sense,’ because she has star quality. And I was perhaps in the most ‘unstar’ phase of my life. I was in solitude, in a good way, just cleansing and I met someone I thought was the coolest person I’d ever met. She’s really cool, very smart. I pride myself on knowing hip-hop, so I was deeply offended when she told me that she knows hip-hop better than I do. At first, I laughed it off, then I was offended[laughs], but she was correct [laughs]. She knows hip-hop way better than I do. There are two ways to live life; there are people that try to make as few mistakes as possible, and there are people that go out and make many mistakes. I think both she and I, for different reasons, have lived full lives. In the true definition of the word, it was really seductive to meet someone who wasn’t trying to fit into a man’s life. She’s about her journey in life. And what happens is that person has a lot of experience and knowledge. Especially for me because I’m such an introvert, forget MI. So to meet someone that could teach me things, I learnt a lot every day.

At what point did you know, hey, there’s something here, I think I’m falling in love?

J: Number one was when Audu told me about her; this is the phase of my life when I knew I needed to meet someone new. I went to her Instagram page and [made a gesture to suggest that he was in awe]. I think

Photography: Gift Eghator @graphedbyblue Eniola's Outfit, The Star Struck Track Set: Turfah @turfahofficial Earrings: Andrea Iyamah M.I Styled by: Innocent Oriaku @innocentoriaku & Noble Igwe @noble_igwe Shoes: Balenciaga, Dior & Prada

because, in the back of my mind, I had always thought, even as a child, that I’d love to marry a woman with an afro; I don’t know why; it was just this silly thing. So as soon as I saw her page, I was like, ‘get out of here’ [in excitement because she had an afro on]. That was my first thought.

Then we followed each other and started talking. I think the first time we spoke, we spoke for like two hours on the phone. This was Christmas time, and I was at home with family—my cousins and everyone was around. They are the ones that started noticing that every day I was gisting with this person. Early on, because of the distance between us, she living in Geneva and I in Lagos, it allowed us to be very clear. If it wasn’t worth doing, there’s no point. To look at her from that perspective, I would say that our meeting was one of the most magical times of my life. Falling in love was magical because we spent hours talking about several things like stories, music, and so on.

E: We would talk for hours, and people would be like, ‘what are you guys doing?’ If there was a camera, people would be solely disappointed with us. Sometimes we’d have music playing, and I’ll often dance (on camera). He indulges me in just being me. With women, we can sometimes look like we have it all together; it’s very hard to decipher where they actually need someone. It requires an inquisitive person who knows themselves and feels pretty confident in themselves to ask questions that have nothing to do with satisfying their ego. Sometimes with these conversations when you first meet, you’re mining for information to tell you whether this person is worth your time or not. I knew I was in trouble; I don’t mean that in a bad way; I was like, ‘oh man, he got me.’

J: A lot of times, as men, you’re also not sure as you go through life. ‘Have I met the person?’ In my experience, you meet someone that you’re like, ‘this is the chance, this is the opportunity I need. I am now ready to put all my eggs in one basket. This is the basket.’ I told her she’s the story I want to read more. I don’t know how the story is going to end, but I would like to read chapters 2, 3, or 4 and learn more about her.

E: Jude already talked about the opportunity to meet someone amazing. It kinda scared me a little bit, it scares anyone because you don’t want to mess it up, and I loved being friends with him. He was a fast friend in the sense that I wanted to tell him about my day and show him everything, and this is someone I met a couple of weeks ago. I was just wowed like I really want this person in my life and I hoped they would stay, not in any kind of romantic way, it was that I want to be around this person a lot, and I think he’s really great. Not him as M.I but as Jude was just such a joy. I liked myself around him, and this was over the phone. He’s helped me become a better daughter to my parents, a better sister, friend, and woman. You don’t know how this story ends, but that intentional incubation of a raising of love... You talk about meeting and falling in love; I don’t think I fell in love. I built love with this person. He’s also helped me to

get to love myself. He mentioned ADHD, I also have ADHD, so we interact in ways that probably look a bit haphazard to other people, but it works for us.

With all of these happening virtually, when did you decide it was time to meet, and in what country?

E: We met in Lagos.

J: I think you had a trip planned.

E: It was during COVID, and my parents, who don’t live here, couldn’t get back to sort out their affairs in Nigeria like they usually do. So because I wanted them to be safe and not travel, it ended up becoming a reason for me to justify being in Lagos. So I was like, ‘I’ll meet this guy; if it doesn’t work out, I still have eight months to find somebody else. I’ll enjoy my life and move on; we’ll just be friends.’ But I remember being clear that I didn’t want our friendship to end.

Many men can’t handle that. Either you’re my girlfriend or a case of ‘it’s too painful for me to hang around you; I don’t want to be your friend.’ How did you manage that, Jude?

E: He started climbing the wall

[The room erupts in laughter]

J: This is why I said we have two different experiences. My own experience of it was that I really enjoyed it because it allowed me to not fall in love with the things that would typically be at the top of my list at first. She’s not around, and even though she’s passed the beauty test at first glance, it’s not about physical desire. It was about talking, friendship and listening to this person talk about goals, red flags, and all sorts. So I enjoyed it. I knew early on that I was super attracted to her and wanted to be with her, and she told me, almost as soon as we met, virtually, that she was coming to Lagos. I think she told me because she didn’t want it to seem like she was coming because of me, as she already had a trip planned.

This was in January, a month after we met.

E: We talked about mindfulness of how our brains work and how they work in relationship to each other. And I think people don’t think about the significance of that; they are like if you have the same background, intellect, and perception in life, marriages could work. But they don’t realise that how his brain absorbs obstacles, for instance, is very different to how my brain absorbs obstacles. And I think we don’t talk about relationships of our mental state; we talk about relationships in terms of physical, emotional, and maybe spiritual. We don’t talk about how we engage and interact

with each other to build a life together.

Meeting for the first time was so exciting. My niece and I stayed together, she came to visit me, she’s the coolest, her name is Jade. I was going through a metamorphosis at the time, so I had gone through many changes: I sold my cars, gave my furniture away, and packed up all my awards; I was just ready for a new path. And so when she was coming to town, Jade and I swung to action to remodel my place. Then we went to the airport, [you guys saw a little bit of the video]. I was standing, waiting for her hair to show, and I saw the afro. We just continued talking.

Naturally, in any relationship, we fight. And sometimes, it gets more aggressive with the people we love. How do you come to a place where you understand that ‘hey, we will not fight dirty?’

J: When I was asked to do this interview, I had hesitation. I hesitated because when you’re a celebrity and talk about love or whatever, people add a lot of expectations to it. I would say that the truth about doing it right is attempting to do it right. In terms of fighting dirty, there’s a childishness that you don’t go to at a certain point. I think one of the good things about this relationship is not having to worry about somebody doing something offside. No matter how upset we are with each other, there is an offside. No matter how bad it is, we ultimately are not looking for the other person’s downfall, which is very clear in our relationship.

E: I would say that I’ve had the most fun of a relationship with Jude than I’ve had with anyone in my entire life. I think many times, most of the relationships that last have been able to weather the high and the low and manage them to a standard deviation of being whelmed. I’m not overwhelmed or underwhelmed. I’m just whelmed; I feel at peace. When we have a

“...I told her SHE’S THE STORY I want to read more. I don’t know how the story is going to end, but I would LIKE TO READ CHAPTERS 2, 3, or 4 and learn more about her.” ...M.I

turbulent time, I try as much to go to peace. It doesn’t always translate. You could get to peace in five, 10 minutes or an hour. You always have to manage what your expectations are.

When did you decide that it was time to propose? How did you know that you need her in your life forever?

J: In my experience, I think there are three steps. The first step is ‘I need to buy a ring.’ But even after that, it is ‘I’m paying for a ring.’ The final step is ‘I have a ring in my hand now; I’m proposing today.’

How did you get her ring size?

E: Fife came to my house trying to steal my ring (for Jude), and I caught her and collected it back because this is Cartier.

J: Every way we tried to get the ring didn’t work. I got our friends to do a clubhouse show where people were supposed to put on the ring they wanted on the thing. I’m pretending I don’t know what’s happening, and in the middle of it, she stops and is like, ‘wait a minute, are you trying to propose to me?’ I knew I needed to buy a ring pretty early; it was four months in. I’ve thought about marriage in the past, but deciding to buy a ring happened between June and August. By September, I was trying to find the right ring. The ring arrived in December, and I proposed on the 7th of January. But we went through a tough time where I messed up, I dropped the ball in our relationship, and through that period, I got the chance to see her in an intense crisis, which is a thing that you need to see. Coming out of it, I was like, ‘this is the time.’ It was also her parents’ anniversary, and we had just come back from Jos, where we had a really profound conversation about the future (this year). So I called her dad, and invited a few friends over; no one knew what was going to happen except for a few friends. I tell her that I’ve generally been disappointed in my life about big moments. But one of the days that I was truly like, ‘today is better than I imagined it’d be,’ was the day we got engaged. I was very

What was the proposal like?

J: We used to have Friday dinners with friends coming over, and she was about to go back to Geneva, and friends were coming over, so I ordered plenty of Jamaican food because she loves Jamaican food. We had a camera crew come, so we have full footage of the whole thing.

E: He was just running around more than he needed to. I was like, ‘why do you care about our Friday drinks?’ He was just busy. And usually, he would be in the corner somewhere or telling a story, catching up with someone, doing the drinks run, or getting some ice. He was intensively working constantly.

J: We have a friend that came that day. She had a job offer and was talking about it and wanted to talk about it that day. So I told my other friend, “at a certain time, I need you to go round the room and ask everyone, ‘what are you thankful for?’ And then tease me a little bit and give me the moment.” This guy was trying for like 30 minutes, and there was a real conversation going on; the room was engaged, and I was sitting there the whole time. The camera team that I had called to do the behind-the-scenes footage walked in, and it was a great scene because Eniola turned around and was like, “oh, what are you guys doing here?” And they were like, “it’s for Chocolate City.” A friend of hers was about to leave, it was getting late, so I approached her and told her in secret that I was about to propose. She turned around, came back in, and I just got up. I had no clue what I was going to say. But Eniola had to leave for Geneva the next day.

E: I had to go back, but I remember saying, ‘of course.’ Normally people say yes, but I said “of course” because we’ve had really important conversations about our relationship. We were very quiet about our relationship yet open. So we would open up around friends and others who would know. We weren’t living in secret or anything. We just knew that providing the right environment for us to date, and getting to know each other; if it was ever going to win, lose or draw, it was going to be on our terms, not because someone has an opinion — whether, online, in-laws, or all sorts of things that can distract and burden a relationship. Even now, we still keep that same level of privacy in our lives. He had a whole camera team, but no one has seen the video except for that little clip because no one needs to.

I have ADHD; I was diagnosed when I was 19. It affects relationships in ways that we are also discovering. It requires a deep amount of grace and an ability to accept flaws and inconsistencies, which is the opposite of what they tell you to find in a relationship, but it does breathe authenticity. It’s been really great to feel like you are seen because most people want to feel seen in their relationships, but they don’t always get seen. They usually need representatives, but because we both have ADHD, we don’t have the ability to filter. And I think that it’s a bit different trying to cultivate something like that in Nigeria, where you’re taught to hide your pain, don’t show your real self to someone else because you never know how it could be used against you. Be a wife, be a husband; here are the things you have to do when you’re a wife or husband, and you have to be a man, be a woman. There are all these things that tell you what to do and shouldn’t do, and people don’t have a lot of space to create their own.

How did your parents react when they first met him?

E: They love him. My parents are progressive in the sense that they understand that my happiness is number one. How I get that happiness, they want to understand. They do still see marriage as being a thing that they would like their daughters to have, which is having a partner. Some of this is stem from the fact that they won’t be here your entire life, so they want to feel like you are loved and safe. And marriage, in a sense, tells my mum someone is there to be there for her daughter. Jude did that by saying it and actively doing it from day one. And he and my mum have an amazing relationship that is separate from mine, I don’t know all the things they do and what they gist about, but I like that idea because fundamentally, when it comes to our wedding day, I look around and there are human beings who have helped us raise our relationship, who have talked to us, given us advice, let us be accountable, and just really being there. So my parents have been at the forefront, his parents have been phenomenal for me, his mum is hilarious, and I get to see sides of her. I think we both get to see sides of our parents through the relationship that has also helped us as a unit. My parents were really pleased to meet him, he met them on Zoom, and he was all dressed up. I remember looking confused [laughs]. He answered the questions and was ready to go. Then my dad turned to him with the last question, ‘will you be prepared to take me as a father?’

J: Her parents are the best; her family is just amazing. As I said, I’m very introverted, but I think that family can make it a lot easier when you know they are in your corner and they have your back. Also, the thing we spoke about with no offside. Any relationship will always have challenges, but you must know that it’s all on the field, even from a family sense. I know, from the bottom of my heart, that her parents are for both of us, it’s very clear, and I think it’s a gift.

“..You don’t know how this story ends, but that intentional incubation of a raising of love... You talk about meeting and falling in love; I DON’T THINK I FELL IN LOVE. I BUILT LOVE with this person…” ...Eniola

Let’s talk about your wedding plans. How hectic has it been? You both want different things regarding the wedding plans. How have you been able to come to some kind of agreement?

E: No, this actually is where it’s different because we actually want the same things. Jude will be more than happy to get married on a beach with no shoes with maybe 20 people and go to a nice restaurant afterwards and hang out. There’s a part of me that’s very like that. There’s this other part that wants a big party. Also, we are the firstborn of both our parents, that’s a lot as our parents have been particularly keen and interested in each of us individually getting married. When I hear the stories about people wanting him to get married and people wanting me to get married, it’s always like, ‘you’re such a great person; you should have someone great too.’

J: It ties back to seeing someone that has a lot of tools as Enny has. So very early on, we did a quiz together, which took about two hours. I thought I would hate it, but it was very helpful.

E: They said the first thing you need to do when you’re about to plan a wedding is you guys align on what the vision of the wedding is because if you don’t have that vision, you don’t know what you’re working towards. So if I was going to have an ‘argument’ with him about the location, for instance, we could always have something to refer back to like, ‘well, we said we wanted something different that spoke to XYZ…’ and you can keep coming back to it.

J: Lagos is a difficult city to do things in, especially for couples getting married. Even simple ideas like getting married in a garden, in a place with parking and good security. Now, that should be a simple thing in a city like Lagos, with 20 million people, it shouldn’t be that difficult, but it is very difficult. I want to learn as much about the wedding process as possible.

E: I’ve heard horror stories about grooms who literally turn up to the wedding, and that’s the first thing they’ve had to do as far as planning the wedding goes. But

Jude has been there for everything, he went to see the venue, and he’s just been an active groom. He’s involved in a lot. He’s in five or six different WhatsApp groups actively while also managing an entire business, being an entrepreneur, being M.I, going to do photoshoots, and creating a whole album literally in the midst of it. He’s been a real sport.

E: I always wanted to have a family, but I think family is created as I go through life. One of the things I love about Jude’s family is that it also encompasses family members who may not be ‘blood family’ in a way, and there’s no difference. We have the same thing with us but just watching his family. Some cousins or nephews are maybe not even related; still, they see people as father and mother figures, so I really like the idea of being raised by a community of people and not having the burden on the parental unit. I really enjoy my life with Jude, and it is very complete in that sense. I never thought I would be in a situation where I would be like, if it didn’t happen, I think I would actually be okay. We may talk about maybe adopting or whatever. But the pressure that women put on their bodies, or society puts on couples as the only reason you succeed in your marriage is to have a child? In my opinion, success is when we live a peaceful life, enjoy each other’s company, and feel understood by each other. I think success is the legacy you build; one of those legacies could be children. It could also be developing kidney dialysis centres across Nigeria, or we build a whole new community of creatives and tech, to socially impact people who want to build Nigeria. I think that is as valuable as our contribution in terms of real adoption.

J: Before I met Eniola, I had a very interesting stance on children, and I think it made many people uncomfortable. It wasn’t really about my own personal family. In Nigeria, we all celebrate kids as this amazing thing, but there are so many starving children in Nigeria. If you drive through Lekki, there are actually children on the side of the road that are starving. If you go up north, there are malnourished children. As a country, culturally, we need to deemphasise children because you are actually not taking care of all your children as a country. And culturally,

it’s just the thing, you get married and have kids. So this was my stance before I met Enny. My stance today, which she has already said, is that children are not a metric of success for our marriage. However, I hope that we have the most successful marriage we can have, and I will be honoured to be a father of children within that marriage. Not a metric of success, but if it happens, everyone who knows me closely knows that I am completely in love with children and would love to be a parent as well. The world is different for men around this topic than it is for women. Even before I met Eniola, I’ve always said that I didn’t like the idea that there’s so much prominence on women having kids. I grew up in a world where a woman’s place, even in marriage, was to provide kids. This is the way it’s been since I was a child. They will tell you, ‘you never born pikin; your husband go soon chase you?’ I think that’s a language we have to be careful with.

Jude and Eniola’s love story not only cuts across different facets of the lovebirds’ individual lives but also has the potential to impact lives. Eniola’s vision for a new neurofocused Nigeria couldn’t have gotten a much stronger support system as a foundation to build upon. As the interview came to a close, the entire premise was filled with so much optimism about what the future holds for them that everyone present couldn’t help but wish the swoon-worthy couple a beautiful journey to forever.

Intro and closing remarks by Kehinde Fagbule

About raising a family, have you guys thought about that? What are your thoughts on kids?

“…But the PRESSURE that women put on their bodies, or SOCIETY puts on couples as the only reason you SUCCEED in your MARRIAGE is to have a CHILD? In my opinion, success is when we live a peaceful life, enjoy each other’s company, and feel understood by each other. I think SUCCESS IS THE LEGACY you build; one of those legacies COULD BE CHILDREN. It could also be developing kidney dialysis centres across Nigeria…” ...Eniola

“…MY STANCE TODAY, which she has already said, is that CHILDREN are not a metric of success for our marriage. However, I hope that we have the most SUCCESSFUL MARRIAGE we can have, and I will be HONOURED TO BE A FATHER of children within that marriage…” ...M.I

8 Ways To Really Enjoy Your Avocado

Avocados are a good source of numerous vitamins and minerals. Including them in a balanced diet can have a lot of advantages; it is a fruit that can be filled, sliced, or mashed. Any meal is improved by the creamy, buttery mouthfeel. Below examine a few methods to enjoy avocados that may be good for our health.

Savoury Corn Waffles With Tomato Herb Salad

Bacon and Eggs

Avocado Toast sinfully

BY

SALMON

Fajita Chicken Salad

Chicken, avocado, baby tomatoes, and lettuce are some of what goes into making this delicious savoury salad.

Avocado Margaritas

This tasty cocktail is not only delicious but has good fats and nearly 20 vitamins and minerals.

Vegan Avocado Smoothie

Avocado Grilled Cheese Sandwich

The buttery deliciousness avocados cheese clapped in a sandwich indeed a yummy

DOWNTOWN

Benefits of Avocado

They Are High in Fibre

Research shows that avocados have about 7 grams of fibre per 100 grams of avocado, making them very high in fibre. It is well known that foods high in fibre tend to keep you satiated longer than other meals, so it’s perfect for weight watchers.

Packed With Potassium

Avocados have even higher potassium than a banana. Sometimes your blood pressure increases due to high levels of sodium in the system, and potassium allows us to eliminate sodium from our body. And what happens when you get rid of sodium? Yes, your blood level drops.

Rich in Folate

Folate, a member of the vitamin B family, is excellent for proper brain function, and is fantastic for aiding healthy pregnancies. It is advised that women of childbearing age take about 500 micrograms daily while pregnant women take about 600 micrograms daily as it helps prevent birth defects in the baby’s spine and brain.

Monosaturated Fats

Monosaturated fats help to reduce the level of bad fat in the body while keeping the good fat. When you have too much bad cholesterol, it could block some arteries, which can cause clots. We’ll take monosaturated fats any day.

IMAGE FROM PINTEREST

This you all the you need to your get all the you a

IMAGE FROM AVOCADOSFROMMEXICO

IMAGE FROM AVOCADOSFROMMEXICO

IMAGE FROM POOSH

SALMON RICE BOWL BY EMILY MARIKO IMAGE FROM THRILLIST.COM

AVOCADO BAKED EGGS IMAGE FROM TODAY.COM

IMAGE FROM GOOGLE

BLACKEND SALMON WITH AVOCADO SALSO IMAGE FROM CLOSET COOKING

A NIGHT OF FAME AND BEAUTY

BY ONAH NWACHUKWU

Ina fun-themed gathering, Paco Rabanne unveiled its new FAME fragrance to a youthful, energized, stylish cheering crowd—the first market in Africa. There was an aisle of lights reminiscent of a proper celebrity red carpet to welcome guests. The decor also captured celebrity stance with The Heritage Room, which had a robust pink floral wall at the end of it, before the main event with a 360 video booth against a pink glittery FAME wall. On another side of the venue was also a fragrance bar where all in attendance could sample the latest fragrance. Host for the event, Bolanle Olukanni, welcomed guests to the Paco Rabanne-themed room and eventual inviter Linda Angelos – Co founder Ella Afrique to say a few words to the thrilled audience. Guests enjoyed delectable canapés, cocktails and champagne.

Bolanle Olukanni

Elohor Aisien

Diana Eneje

Saskay, Mocheddah & Hadiza Lawal

Tania Omotayo

Lily Afegbai

Anna Banner

Nimi Briggs

Chidera Precious Udeh

Ezinne Chinkata & Mai Atafo

Frances Theodore

Linda Angelos welcoming guests

Nonye Udeogu

Edith Mahachi- Portfolio Manager PUIG

Tomike Adeoye

THE SCENE DOWNTOWN

Tiwa Savage Celebrates Being Africa’s First MAC Maker

BY ONAH NWACHUKWU

Following

the unveiling of her limited edition lipstick to an audience filled with pro makeup artists, beauty enthusiasts and the media, queen of afrobeats —Tiwa Savage partied the night away last Saturday with celebrity friends, socialites, and a handful of gen z stars, to celebrate her historic feat as Africa’s First MAC Maker.

Kaylah Oniwo and Enioluwa Adeoluwa kept the vibrant guests captivated as the hosts of the night, leading fun games as they mingled with the guests who vibed in between meals to electrifying sounds from DJ Big N.

The venue, styled with flower mirrors carrying Tiwa Savage lyrics leading into the beautiful restaurant with a glamorous setting with MAC x Tiwa Savage branded gold throw pillows and a luxurious stage, was breathtaking. Attendees were treated to a posh three-course meal and nonstop bubbly cocktails.

When the queen of afro beats arrived, she thanked everyone for coming out to celebrate with her.

One highlight of the evening was Tiwa’s friends showing her love and buying multiple of the limited edition lipstick to gift to others.

Tiwa Savage

Daniel Obasi

Colette Otusheso

Ozinna Anumudu

Annie Idibia & Isabella

Enioluwa

Kaylah

Eniafe

Linda

Frances Theodore

Gbemi

Kanayo

Nnenna

Julie

Arrival is yet another in a long line of “first contact” sci-fi stories, yet regardless of its familiar premise, its achievements are unique. Striking a delicate balance between dread and hope, Denis Villeneuve’s majestic and magnificent genre work is fundamentally concerned with communication—specifically, humanity’s attempts to strike up a conversation with extraterrestrials who don’t even comprehend the basics behind our native tongues (and vice versa), much less speak them. It’s a quite personal saga that, at heart, is fascinated by the intricacies of verbal and written language and how it binds us to the past and the future in heartbreaking and inspiring ways. It’s a film about forging a link with great, unknowable others, all so that we might truly understand ourselves.

Don’t worry, though—despite such lofty intentions, Villeneuve’s film is anything but a slog. On the contrary, led by Amy Adams in a performance that, like the material itself, is perched on the precipice between despair and ecstasy, Arrival (based on Ted Chiang’s acclaimed short story, Story of Your Life) is a thrilling work of science fiction, one that conflates individual and universal concerns via a methodical examination of mankind’s response to the arrival of interstellar beings. Those visitors show up in twelve oblong, stonegrey ships that take up residence at random points around the globe, hovering just above the ground, and their appearance incites both awe and terror in Earth’s population. For famed linguist and professor Dr Louise Banks (Adams), however, their emergence is the beginning of a journey whose end will be yet another beginning—a circular pattern of life and death that’s foreshadowed by a preface depicting cherished moments from Brooks’ time with her daughter Hannah, who at an early age succumbed to a rare, fatal illness.

BY BOLUWATIFE ADESINA

MOVIE REVIEW:

ARRIVAL

comes from the way in which he contrasts light and dark, studied and unsteady camera movements, and eerie quiet and foreboding sonic blaring (courtesy of composer Jóhann Jóhannsson’s unsettling score).

Never is that more acute than in Banks and Donnelly’s maiden foray into the spacecraft, where they find themselves in a long, dark, down-is-up corridor illuminated only by the bright, foggy light emanating from a room at its far end. Villeneuve’s grand imagery and measured pacing infuse the action with equal parts curiosity, trepidation and excitement. And yet, he then repeatedly and skillfully juxtaposes that tantalising tone with a lyrical, emotionally shaky atmosphere in subsequent sequences which, aesthetically as well as thematically—be they flashbacks to Banks’ memorable times with her daughter or solitary shots of her walking in wide-open plains, the camera echoing her uncertainty and fear in its bobbing, trembling motions.

Recruited by Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker) and paired with mathematicianscientist Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner), Banks quickly finds herself in Montana, where an alien ship is located above a rolling green meadow surrounded by mountains over which in one of numerous, gorgeous compositions the fog cascades in menacing waves. Despite efforts to coordinate intel with other nations (many of which are contending with their own UFOs), little is known about these space travellers.

So Banks and Donnelly are raised up by a mechanical lift into the craft through a small portal (which opens for a period of time every few hours), where they learn that gravity isn’t quite what they expected inside—and that the extraterrestrials waiting for them are anything but human.

To spoil exactly what Banks and Donnelly discover in the ship’s mysterious chambers would be downright criminal, given how expertly Arrival withholds key information to stoke anticipation for its every successive (visual and narrative) reveal. Nonetheless, Villeneuve’s handling of this early going is masterful, and on the heels of Prisoners, Enemy, and Sicario—the director’s latest establishes him as mainstream cinema’s finest employer of the widescreen frame. Villeneuve is an artist so assured in his visual framing and staging that most of his material’s sense of menace

Throughout, Adams beautifully embodies Arrival’s push-pulls between wonder and alarm, longing and contentment, joy and anguish. Tasked with developing a means of interacting with the aliens before other nations resort to knee-jerk warmongering, Adams’ Banks exudes a staunch toughness underscored by fragility. Her eyes radiate steely resolve even as her hand, when putting on a Hazmat suit, momentarily trembles, and her quest to find a common interspecies dialect is carried out with an intellectual inquisitiveness— “What is your purpose on Earth?”—that reflects her belief in language as the primary building block of all human life. It’s a star turn of strength and vulnerability. Even during the material’s hair-raising centrepiece meeting between Banks and the visitors, Adams grounds the out-there action in piercingly relatable euphoria and grief.

Of course, whether between species or nations, creating a constructive way to engage with foreigners turns out to be a tricky undertaking. As its plot’s tensions begin to boil—thanks to possible misinterpretations of the creatures’ pronouncements—Arrival eschews onthe-nose preachiness for a more general study of the vital need for patience, and persistence, on the part of strangers who don’t initially understand each other. That’s especially true for Banks and Donnelly, given that the aliens’ notes come in the form of bio-sprayed patterns that convey moods more than explicit letters or sentences. Their ability to decipher those designs requires something of an audience leap-of-faith, but the underlying idea proffered by the story—that communion is only possible through communication— provides it with powerful poignancy.

The circular shape of the aliens’ messages eventually proves most crucial to Villeneuve’s drama, as it speaks to language’s role in tethering us to our past, present and still-to-come experiences. That notion is also expressed by the name of Banks’ deceased child, “Hannah,” a palindrome split evenly between an identical beginning and end. Arrival is a film that, for all its majestic otherworldly sights, is ultimately about how words and images shape, reveal and remind us of who we are, where we’ve been, and where—as people, as societies, and as a race—we’re headed.

Asa - Show Me Off

GoldLink_ Flo MilliRaindrops (feat. Flo Milli)

Wizkid - Bad To Me

Mach-Hommy - The Stellar Ray Theory

WMC - Both Ways

Blackmagic - Repete Duncan Daniels - The Rhythm

Ayra Starr - Rush

Asake - Peace Be Unto You (PBUY)

asake - organise