Entertainment
FirstBank Partners Africa Fashion Week Nigeria, Promotes Growth of Small Businesses
First Bank of Nigeria Limited sponsored the sixth edition of the Africa Fashion Week, Nigeria which held on Friday and Saturday, 20 – 21 December 2019 at the Lagos Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos. The Africa Fashion Week, Nigeria, is a convergence of fashion entrepreneurs and the general public to promote the creativity and innovation of Nigerian and African brands through worldwide visibility, distribution and manufacturing. The 2019 event was themed ‘Africa Unites’.
The Africa Fashion Week, Nigeria has consistently been recognised internationally due to the unique African styles displayed by entrepreneurs across the dynamic and versatile African fashion landscape. With the growing interest by the public and fashion enthusiasts using fashion as an instrument of sustainability and social change, the event, provided a platform to help raise awareness around the Sickle Cell disorder. The event featured runway shows (comprising designers and runway models with Sickle Cell disorder), Marketplace exhibition and Panel session of Fashion Talks.
Dignitaries at the event included First Ladies of Ekiti, Ogun and Kwara states, Mrs Bisi Adeleye – Fayemi, Mrs Bamidele Abiodun and Mrs Folake Abdulrazaq respectively. The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, former Director-General of Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation, Mrs Omotayo Omotosho; popular television presenter and model, Idia Aisen; model and beauty influencer, Whitney Madueke were also in attendance. FirstBank was represented by Helen Ogboh, Business Manager, Corporate Banking.
Leading fashion designers that showcased their wares at the 2-day event were Daviva, Zephyr’s Atelier, Caroline 1942, Ashor by Bumz with exhibitions from Bee Fab, Moon by me, Bolams Aso oke amongst others.
In the course of the event, the Bank showcased the FirstBank Ankara in “The FirstBank Collection” segment where FirstBank staff wore the Bank’s 125th-anniversary fabric and walked the runway.
Speaking on the event, the Group Head, Marketing & Corporate Communications, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Folake Ani-Mumuney, said “We are pleased to identify with Africa Fashion Week, Nigeria as it showcases creativity by African fashion designers to the teeming public, leading players and enthusiasts of African fashion whilst promoting their contribution to the growth of the fashion industry.”
“We will continue to drive advocacy for this as it can create jobs that will deepen opportunities for the revival of our textile industry resulting in SME growth along the value chains especially, with the growing demand in the fashion industry.” she concluded.
Only recently, the Bank promoted the use of local fabric with a ‘What If’ campaign to commemorate Nigerian’s Independence. The campaign was ran across the social media channels; Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, to promote the versatility and creativity of sewing local fabrics as a national symbol vis-a-vis our outfits, clothing accessories, household furniture and so forth which is line with the Bank’s celebratory 125th anniversary, themed, “Woven into the Fabric of Society”.
This week, African Voices, the Globacom-sponsored magazine programme on CNN International, turns its searchlight on Ejatu Shaw the London-based photographer and multidisciplinary artist whose work continues to refract heritage into striking visual poetry.
Born in 1996, Shaw is a graduate of University of Westminster, where she earned a Master’s degree in Photography Arts in 2020. Yet the true genesis of her craft predates the academy. It was during a 2013 family sojourn to Sierra Leone that her creative awakening first flickered—like light finding its way through a narrow aperture—setting her on a path of introspective exploration.
Her oeuvre is a delicate tapestry, interweaving strands of Islamic faith with the vibrant textures of African heritage. Echoes of the great studio photographers of the 1960s and 1970s—such as Malick Sidibé, Sory Sanlé, and Omar Yahia Barram—resonate subtly within her compositions, like ancestral voices carried on a visual wind.
From these influences, Shaw has cultivated a practice rooted in memory and self-inquiry. Through self-portraiture and conceptually layered projects, she transforms personal recollections into images that speak with both intimacy and universality—mirrors in which the past and present quietly converge.
Her ascent has been both swift and assured. In 2025, the British Fashion Council named her a New Wave Creative, affirming her place among a new generation of cultural vanguards. In the same year, her lens captured figures of global renown, including Angela Bassett for EBONY, Cynthia Erivo for The Guardian, Sunday Times and Vogue, and Usain Bolt for Puma.
She also conceived and shot the album cover for Craig David—each frame a testament to her evolving visual language.
African Voices airs on Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m., with further broadcasts on Sunday at 3:30 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., and repeat transmissions on Monday at 3:00 a.m. and 5:45 p.m.—an invitation to witness, through Shaw’s eyes, a world where identity is not fixed, but fluid, luminous, and ever unfolding.
Nigeria-born Afro-pop star, Joeboy, whose melodies now ripple across continents, takes centre stage this week on the Easter edition of African Voices, the Globacom-sponsored CNN magazine programme.
In a captivating session from Lagos, show anchor Larry Madowo drew out the rhythm of Joeboy’s journey, tracing the arc from a starry-eyed university dreamer to a maestro whose songs now traverse the globe like whispered secrets carried on the wind.
Born Joseph Akinwale Akinfenwa-Donus in 1997, Joeboy—affectionately dubbed Afrobeats’ “lover boy”—embarked on his musical odyssey in 2017 with a viral reinterpretation of Ed Sheeran’s Shape of You.
This pivot from rap to melodious crooning caught the discerning eye of Nigerian artiste and entrepreneur Mr Eazi, who, upon discovering him on Instagram, extended an invitation to join the emPawa Africa Talent Incubation initiative—a sanctuary for budding African talents where raw potential is nurtured into brilliance.
The partnership bore fruit in 2018 with the release of Fààjí, featuring Mr Eazi, and soon after, Joeboy was signed to Warner Music Africa. From there, his ascent became a symphony of milestones: the intoxicating single Baby in 2019, followed by Beginning, which amassed over 23 million views on YouTube, and Love & Light the same year.
Collaborations with Mayorkun yielded the spirited tracks Don’t Call Me and All for You, further cementing his place in the Afrobeats constellation.
Joeboy’s debut album, Somewhere Between Beauty & Magic, unfurled in February 2021, a melodic tapestry of youth, hope, and desire. By 19 May 2023, he unveiled his sophomore studio effort, Body & Soul, preceded by the evocative singles Sip (Alcohol), Contour, Body & Soul, and Duffel Bag. In 2023, he teased the world with Only God Save Me and the extended EP Body, Soul and Spirit, offering listeners a window into the essence of his artistic spirit.
February 2024 marked another milestone as he launched his own imprint, Young Legend, soon releasing Osadebe, a track that resonated nationwide with the familiar warmth of homegrown brilliance.
Joeboy’s dedication has been richly rewarded. He clinched Best Artiste in African Pop at the 2019 All Africa Music Awards and Best Pop at the 2020 Soundcity MVP Awards Festival. His music has earned numerous nominations, including at the City People Entertainment Awards and The Headies, affirming his status as a luminary of contemporary African sound.
The Easter edition of African Voices featuring Joeboy will air on DSTV Channel 401 at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday, with repeats at 11 a.m.; Sunday at 3:30 a.m. and 6 p.m.; Monday at 3 a.m. and 5:45 p.m.; and Tuesday at 5:45 p.m. The schedule will be mirrored the following week, culminating in Monday at 3 a.m., giving audiences multiple opportunities to bask in the artistry of a musician whose voice carries the pulse of a continent.
Chuck Norris, the US martial artist and Hollywood action star most famous for his role in “Walker, Texas Ranger,” has died, his family said Friday. He was 86 years old.
“It is with heavy hearts that our family shares the sudden passing of our beloved Chuck Norris yesterday morning,” the family said in a statement on Instagram.
“He lived his life with faith, purpose, and an unwavering commitment to the people he loved. Through his work, discipline, and kindness, he inspired millions around the world and left a lasting impact on so many lives,” the statement said.
Norris reportedly fell ill on Thursday on the Hawaiian island of Kauai.
Norris turned 86 last week, marking the event with a video of him boxing on social media and saying, “I don’t age. I level up.”
