Culture

Eko Fiesta 2025: Lagos gears up for major entertainment, economic boost

Published

1 year ago

June 5, 2025

Preparations for Eko Fiesta 2025 are underway, aiming to transform Lagos’s December festive calendar into a major cultural and economic event

Preparations for Eko Fiesta 2025, set to transform Lagos’s December festive calendar, are rapidly gaining momentum. Mr. Idris Aregbe, the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Tourism, Arts and Culture, on Tuesday hosted Project Manager Akinpelumi Deborah and her team from Dosh and Wales Company for a strategic meeting aimed at making the Fiesta a truly immersive cultural and entertainment event.

Also read: Lagos Island explodes in colour for the 2025 Fanti Carnival

During the meeting, Mr. Aregbe underscored the critical importance of leveraging entertainment to stimulate economic growth, promote youth engagement, attract the diaspora community, and solidify Lagos’s position as Africa’s premier tourism hotspot.

“If we cannot use entertainment to improve commerce, then it shows we are not fully harnessing what we have,” Aregbe stated. “Entertainment remains a key tool to drive prosperity and inspire youth participation in sustainable development

. Through initiatives like Eko Fiesta, we can promote culture, boost tourism, and support local businesses.”

The Special Adviser acknowledged the bold vision behind Eko Fiesta and assured the team of the State Government’s willingness to support promising initiatives that align with its tourism development goals.

“We want to work with committed partners who can contribute meaningfully to the Lagos story. Let us ensure that the spirit of United Lagos, through commerce, culture, and celebration, remains at the heart of this initiative,” Aregbe urged.

In response, Akinpelumi Deborah described the Eko Fiesta proposal as a “game-changing platform” for the December festive season in Lagos. With the theme “From Festivity to Prosperity,” the event promises an energetic fusion of music, art, culture, and commerce.

Deborah revealed that Eko Fiesta 2025 is projected to host over 10,000 attendees over three days, with more than 120 vendors showcasing their goods and services.

“Our goal is to create what Afro Nation is to Ghana and what Coachella is to California, a truly African celebration rooted in Lagos,” Deborah said, highlighting the ambitious scale of the event.

According to Deborah, the Fiesta will prominently feature high-calibre entertainers, including elite MCs, comedians, and musicians. A special Post-Fiesta Gala Night is also slated for December—an exclusive black-tie event for sponsors, dignitaries, and government stakeholders to celebrate the success of the event.

Deborah listed the key objectives of the Fiesta, which include attracting foreign direct investment in youth empowerment and job creation, promoting Lagos as Africa’s festive capital, bridging local enterprises with global audiences, and enhancing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives and economic opportunities growth.

Related Topics:Culture Economy Entertainment Featured Lagos Tourism

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Culture

WAKE UP! Art Exhibition Returns for a Second Act

Published

2 weeks ago

August 27, 2026

Mariam Balogun

The contemporary art and photography exhibition “Wake Up!” is back again for a second edition.

Curated by Awele Onwordi, Wake Up! 2 exhibition pays homage to the Nigerian youth and burgeoning street culture which many of its contributing artists reference in their works.

Also read: Five rising stars battle for 2026 Headies Next Rated

Titled “Young, Wild, Free”, the exhibition celebrates the creativity, resilience, freedom and cultural influence found in Nigerian youth.

Taking aim at societal issues and economic concerns, the exhibit reflects the youth and their refusal to compromise or bow despite all the challenges stacked against them while charting youth culture through art, music, fashion, skateboarding, photography and community.

The exhibition will be held, once again, at the Angel and Muse Gallery at 25 Sumbo Jibowu street off Ribadu Road off Awolowo Road in Ikoyi.

It will open on Saturday 5 September 2026 and will run until 11 September 2026
This second edition which focuses on celebrating, nurturing and exploring artistic practices rooted in youth and street culture will feature works from DENCITY and SUPERGLIDER HOUSE.

Exhibiting artists include Ajilore Kehinde – their work is deeply influenced by Nigerian street culture and works of other artists like Slawn, Peters Ejiro, etc, Chuka Onwordi – graphic designer who embodies themes of death, melancholy and beauty in his works, ZIDYEP – Abuja based creative whose works move between digital and physical spaces through art, graphic design and air brushing , Franklyn Okoye – graphic designer and artist whose works explore themes of identity and hyper-reality, Awele Onwordi – founder & curator of WAKE UP and multidisciplinary artist whose practice spans character art, creative logo design, album covers and more , Oluchi Kogolo – digital illustrator whose work explores street culture, personality and storytelling through a raw and playful visual style and Kozetuo Apeji – multidisciplinary artists who work explores experimental approaches to problem solving through both digital and traditional art forms.

Commenting on the exhibition in her curatorial statement, Awele noted that “despite economic instability, limited opportunities and socio-political challenges, Nigerian youth continue to shape culture through music, fashion, art, skateboarding, raves, photography and community.”

Also read: Five rising stars battle for 2026 Headies Next Rated

Continuing and harping on the raison d’etre of the exhibition she said, “Young, Wild and Free exists to celebrate Nigerian youth while also creating a platform that supports and amplifies them.”