Featured
Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

"Backstage is Where the Real Show Happens:’’ Behind the Scenes of Lagos Fashion Week 2022

The real magic of Lagos Fashion Week occurs backstage. Here is an inside look at how stylists, designers, models, photographers and makeup artists prep for a fashion show.

Sponsored content from Lagos Fashion Week.

The rumors are true: backstage at an internationally recognized fashion week is pure chaos. And fashion week in Lagos, a city perhaps most known for its own unique and distinct brand of chaos, is especially true. When I step in, I have to constantly move out of the way as a crowd of a few hundred people made up of some of most talented stylists, designers, models, photographers and makeup artists this side of the world are knee-deep in work and all scrambling around to produce one of the biggest fashion shows of the world. Multiple air-conditioners and fans are turned on and yet the heat is almost oppressive. In one corner, there are a few hundred pairs of shoes all around a table arranged neatly in a circle, on the other rows of clothes divided according to the brand showcasing that day and models seated in various stages of undress while makeup artists carefully apply makeup.

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

While many of the fashion travelers came for the show that will eventually go on the runway, backstage there is a whole other show. ‘‘It is always fun. I love the chaos and pressure,’’ makeup artist Obidike Uchechukwu, who is working backstage at Lagos Fashion Week 2022, tells me. ‘‘Don’t get me wrong but I love being able to do a full face on the line up or switch makeup looks instantaneously especially when a designer’s private model strolls in late or the designer decides to change his or her models last minute. It is all work, work, work till the last finale of the last designer.’’

On the chaos, everyone seemingly agrees. Model Oscar Eche, who I catch backstage, looks forward to the madness and meeting people in the midst of it. ‘‘ Backstage is usually utterly chaotic,’’ says Eche. ‘‘Backstage is where most of the magic happens. As a full time model back then, I always anticipate being backstage and meeting top 'fashion people'."

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

In real time, I watch as communication gets to a model—the next designer he is walking for is showcasing earlier than he had expected. The result? He has to quickly start changing even as other models start walking. He eye-marks when he has to go on and, luckily, gets his outfit on in time to join the lineup and walk down the runway. There’s just one mistake: he doesn’t have shoes on.The audience barely seems to realize this while the stylist and designers backstage are panicking. This is typical: people backstage obsessing over a mistake the audience barely notices, as well as a runway mistake happening through no fault of anyone but rather a fast-moving chain reaction.

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

‘‘They don’t see the chaos. They don’t understand the time and effort it takes," says Uchechukwe. ‘‘ I mean once the pressure starts from the producer at the front house it gets backstage through the comms. And so you are doing makeup on a model while they are changing outfits and moving...The pressure gets worse as the show starts. You see the beautiful makeup on all the beautiful models. The makeup looks are well curated for each designer after going back and forth. I mean we still have designers who come last minute to change their looks and you just have to bring their vision to life through makeup. Oh we run, shout, some people argue but all in all it is to deliver a great show to the audience in the front house. Backstage is where the real show happens.’’

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

When the final product walks down the runway, of course it is near impossible to associate it with chaos, panic, and other things that went into making it come alive. For Frank Aghuno, creative director of Fruche, that was something he was grateful for. He tells me that the collection he showcased this year was technically finished while he was backstage at the Balmoral Hall tents waiting to showcase. ‘‘A lot of the pieces were ironed for the first time backstage as we were still at the studio sewing one hour to show time," says Aghuno. "My pieces are a bit complex and a lot of the models were wearing them wrong. We ended up redressing most of them on the line up. Everything was rushed and so when people started to tell me how great the show was I was baffled. I’m glad everything turned out fine in hindsight.’’

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

For Aghuno, his backstage experience typically starts off slow with him steaming clothes and finishing them.’’As our show time approaches anxiety kicks in and things begin to get a bit crazy. It always goes from silence to a sudden rush,’ says Aghuno. ‘‘The show starts and it seems like just seconds, then it’s over. They’re calling for the designer. I change from crocs to the shiniest silver Kiing David shoes, I walk to the end of the catwalk, take the final bow and head backstage. We start to retrieve pieces from the model racks to our bags. We are ready to leave. Then I remember I haven’t eaten all day. We go to one of those places that’s open overnight. We order food and head home. Work commences as usual the following day. ‘’

See more pictures from Backstage at Lagos Fashion Week 2022

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

Photo By Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

Sponsored
Photo Credit: Tia Adeola's Press

Tia Adeola on Her Lagos Fashion Week Debut and the Five Essentials She Can't Live Without

We caught up with Nigerian-born New York-based designer Tia Adeola on the inspiration behind her spring/summer 2023 collection, what it is like making her Lagos Fashion Week debut and the five essentials she can’t do fashion week without.

Sponsored content from Lagos Fashion Week.

Backstage at the Lagos Fashion Week tents is exactly the kind of chaos one would expect. Makeup artists working on the skin of models, runway directors making last-minute calls and decisions, multiple fashion emergencies, sizing issues, and designers walking the whole length of the room stressed are all you’ll see when you take a peek into the behind-the-scenes magic that helps make the biggest fashion week in Africa possible. In the middle of all this is Tia Adeola, a New York-based Nigerian designer who is making her Lagos Fashion Week debut mere hours after OkayAfrica catches up with her. Tia comes up to me smiling, her headphones tucked in her ears with two phones in her hands simultaneously attempting—successfully might I add—to send text messages while giving instructions about her rehearsals to someone on the other end of the phone. Despite the obvious stress, Adeola is excited about making her debut here in Lagos.

Tia Adeola is no stranger to fashion weeks. In 2020, she made her solo New York Fashion Week debut and earlier this year opened up the New York Fashion Week shows. However, the designer tells OkayAfrica that her Lagos Fashion Week show holds a special place in her heart. ‘‘I feel amazing. This is probably the most special show I've ever had," says Adeola. ‘‘Because it is in my country. You know, it's the first time my whole family is present at a show. I've never had that before.’’

For the collection to showcase in her home country, Adeola wanted something special that, while true to her brand, was also different and would mean something to her and her audience. ‘‘I typically don't like the color green. You will never see green in any of my other collections. But my color palette for this collection was black, white and green. With the green, white, green being because of the Nigerian flag," says Adeola. ‘‘I have been very vocal about police brutality at this point and reform in Lagos. I was very active during the SARS movement and to the point where people told me to chill out a bit because my posts on social media were going viral and international press were picking it up and they weren't happy about that yet. The Nigerian Police have harassed me, to put it in simple terms. I'm such a firm believer in the fact that this generation is going to make a difference and this collection is me playing my role in pushing the conversation and keeping it going.’’

Not being a stranger to fashion weeks means that Adeola knows all about the stress—but also the misconception that people have about what goes on backstage at fashion week, noting that people often fail to realize the scale of work that goes into all of it. ‘‘People often forget that we have a show to run. I have people texting random things like what should I wear? And it's like, I'm running a 200-person production right now," says Adeola. ‘‘I don't think people realize the amount of work and the amount of energy it takes from the designer emotionally, mentally, or physically. The biggest misconception is that you know, the designer is just like, chilling and available on the day of the show.’’

Despite this misconception, the actual work is extensive, Adeola explains to OkayAfrica. ‘‘So my process typically is I start with the collection,’’ Adeola starts. ‘‘I sort of map out pretty much the entire collection, before I even like, think of casting, or anything like that. So I typically map out my collection. And then I choose my creative team. Obviously, in New York I have a really strong community of people who I have worked with over the years. In Lagos, I don't. I don't live here even though I’m from here. So I sort of had to build a community here: like friends from the past as well as social media. And then we put up flyers to help us ensure we get to connect with Lagos creative talent for this.’’

Before we left Adeola, we asked her what the five essentials she couldn’t live without were. Check it out below.

Laptop

Laptop with green headphones and black Scissors

Photo by Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

"I work throughout fashion week and there’s always something and so much happening so my laptop is never far from me because there is always something to do."

Headphones

green headphones

Photo by Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

"Sometimes in the middle of all the craziness of fashion week, I need to just zone out and music helps with that. Music is such a big part of my life, I recently learned how to DJ, so my headphones are very essential to keeping me sane and active."

Lip Gloss

lipgloss the color orange

Photo by Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

"Just because I’m such a girly girl, I need my lip gloss with me at all times."

Double Sided Tape

body take with lipgloss

Photo by Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

"There’s always a fashion emergency, something that needs to be tucked away or something of the sort. And that’s where the double-sided tape comes in to save the day."

Scissors

Scissors black and red

Photo by Adedamola Odetara for OkayAfrica

"A pair of scissors because one of my biggest nightmares and pet peeves is a piece of thread hanging from a piece of clothing that could have been cut off before the runway."

get okayafrica in your inbox

news.

The Best Street Style of Lagos Fashion Week 2022

We spoke with some of the most stylish attendees at Lagos Fashion Week 2022 and asked them about their outfit inspirations and the best part of attending the event.

How Lagos’ Inclusive Rave Scene Is Popularizing EDM In Nigeria

The rave culture of acceptance and inclusiveness has turned many in Lagos into electro-heads. Today, EDM is one of the biggest rising genres in Nigeria.

An Inside Look Into the Underground Queer Party Scene in Nigeria

As a result of the laws and law enforcement bodies in the country, queer nightlife in Nigeria is shrouded in secrecy and has been forced to go underground.

​Asa Expands Her Horizons With New Album ‘V’

We interview the veteran Nigerian singer about her 'home cooked' new album and opening up to collaborations with Wizkid, Amaarae and more.

popular.

The 8 Best Moments From Lagos Fashion Week 2021

Lagos Fashion Week 2021 attracted fashion enthusiasts from around the world. Here are the best moments from the week.