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In Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy and home to over a sixth of the continent’s inhabitants, Afua Hirsch explores the energy and ambition of a country at the epicentre of African music, fashion and film.
In her search for what she calls Nigeria’s ‘secret sauce’ - the drive of Nigerians to be the best at everything they do - she explores the impact of adversity, competition and education with cutting-edge contemporary artists, including Afrobeats legend Made Kuti, rapper Falz the Bahd Guy, sculptor Yinka Shonibare and Nollywood star Jemima Osunde.
In her search for what she calls Nigeria’s ‘secret sauce’ - the drive of Nigerians to be the best at everything they do - she explores the impact of adversity, competition and education with cutting-edge contemporary artists, including Afrobeats legend Made Kuti, rapper Falz the Bahd Guy, sculptor Yinka Shonibare and Nollywood star Jemima Osunde.
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00:02Africa, one of the fastest-growing parts of the world, and with the youngest population.
00:10I'm Afwa Hirsch, a journalist, here to discover how young creatives are shaking things up
00:16and reinventing culture in some of the continent's biggest countries,
00:21Nigeria, South Africa, and Morocco.
00:26Overcoming challenges and reimagining the past with art, music, fashion, and dance that's wowing the world.
00:36This is an Africa we don't usually see.
00:39Africa on its own terms and in full voice.
00:58Nigeria, situated on Africa's west coast, home to 220 million people,
01:06a fifth of Africa's inhabitants, and the continent's largest economy.
01:10The incredible energy, diversity, and ambition strikes you immediately when you land here.
01:18I want to understand where Nigerians' extraordinary drive comes from.
01:22What is their secret sauce?
01:25And where better to start looking than the country's largest city?
01:29Lagos is the beating heart of Nigeria's cultural scene,
01:33where old traditions come to be reinvented by young people and exported out to the wider world.
01:50Now, it may seem like a cliché to start my journey in a market,
01:54but one of those reinventions is all about food.
01:59Nigerian cuisine is building a reputation around the world.
02:07I think a lot of times people see markets like this and find it chaotic.
02:12It's actually really nice because I am getting ready this morning to meet a really exciting chef.
02:19Obey.
02:19Hi, so nice to meet you.
02:22Oh, you're buying snails.
02:24Yes, we're doing snails today.
02:27So what are you looking for when you choose your snails?
02:29They have to be alive.
02:31They have to be alive.
02:32I like it when they actually have their eyes out looking at us.
02:35When we make our snails, we smoke them,
02:37and then we put them in a garlic cream sauce,
02:40which actually complements and brings the flavor and brings it to life.
02:43That does sound delicious.
02:45It is gorgeous. Madame, can I please get these?
02:47I like this.
02:48Just give me five, actually.
02:49Five.
02:50Yeah, thank you.
02:53Obehi Akumu El Herfi has created a top-class restaurant in Lagos
02:58that fuses uniquely Nigerian ingredients
03:00with cooking techniques she's picked up from her time living in America.
03:07Hey, how's it going?
03:08Oh, my God, is that the snail?
03:10Yes, that's the sea snail, actually.
03:12That is the biggest snail I have ever seen in my life.
03:19It's gorgeous, yes.
03:21I just need a minute.
03:22It's like a dinosaur egg.
03:23I need a minute.
03:24And is this the snail that we bought earlier?
03:26Yes, yes.
03:28So we smoke these already, and we chop it up into small pieces
03:30so that we can actually put it into the shells after.
03:33So it's a bit of labor of love.
03:36So if that's supposed to fire.
03:38Obehi, what's your journey to being a chef who runs the most high-end restaurant in Lagos?
03:44It must have been a journey.
03:46Yes, it's been a journey.
03:47I mean, it's been a lot of hard work, a lot of keeping your head down and focusing on the
03:52target.
03:53I love food.
03:54It's my passion.
03:54I love to create things that I've tasted, and I remember flavors very vividly.
03:58Wow.
03:58So it's like you remember something, and it's like, no, that one, I need to taste that again.
04:02So what was the moment where you realized this actually could be the thing that you do?
04:07In Chicago.
04:08I would eat my way through downtown Chicago.
04:10And also for the fact that when I had friends over, I cooked for them.
04:15So it's all passion.
04:16It's all love.
04:16It's all honest.
04:17And that's basically, I think, that's why people loved it so much.
04:20Were you cooking Nigerian food when you were cooking for your friends?
04:23A bit of both.
04:24That helped me see things as ingredients.
04:26See that saw our food and things that we work with as ingredients.
04:30I find that here, a lot of people are stocking, this must be done in a certain way.
04:33And I don't think that's true.
04:34I feel like everything can be manipulated.
04:37I can't wait to taste this food.
04:38I'm not going to lie.
04:43Obehi is an absolute force of nature, creating this phenomenal menu out of local ingredients
04:50and placing it at the absolute top end of the market.
04:54These are ingredients that grow locally, seasonally, are bought from local suppliers and farmers.
05:00It's really beautiful to see.
05:06Our snail friends.
05:07Our snails are here.
05:08Oh, that is...
05:09They have one land and one sea.
05:11Beautiful.
05:11This is our salt caught croquette, our stock fish that we spoke about earlier.
05:15This is a beautiful presentation.
05:17I'm glad.
05:18I'm ready to...
05:20Done.
05:20So you can actually use a small spoon so you can get all the way in there.
05:23I think that's the best way.
05:26You can lift the crisp from the top.
05:28I want to eat that as well, but...
05:29Yeah.
05:31You can grab the shell so it doesn't do that.
05:34Yes.
05:36The chili is actually fermented chilies.
05:38That is beautiful.
05:39The sweetness, which takes the edge off the earthiness.
05:43Mm-hmm.
05:43Yes.
05:44I can eat this, right?
05:45Yes, of course.
05:47Of course.
05:48Absolutely.
05:48Yes.
05:49It melts in your mouth.
05:51It's supposed to.
05:52It's supposed to.
05:54It was such a privilege to see you buy it, cook it, now eat it.
05:58Yes.
05:58It's a very special experience for me.
06:00Thank you so much, Ofala.
06:05To see a young woman creating this kind of vision, I just find remarkable.
06:11It's hard as a woman to start a business anywhere, I know from personal experience.
06:17It's hard to really take the underdogs of Nigerian cooking and champion them in this kind of space.
06:25It's a really special thing to experience.
06:27It's a really special thing to experience.
06:30If Nigeria is on the way up in cuisine, it's long since arrived in the world of art.
06:36Work by Nigerian painters is in demand across the world.
06:40And at the center of that success story is another force of nature.
06:50Nike Davies Okundaye, known locally as Mama Nike, is one of Africa's most renowned artists.
06:58She's made it her life's work to keep traditional art and craft alive.
07:03In the process, she's brought together one of the biggest and quirkiest collections in West Africa.
07:21It's a little bit overwhelming.
07:28There is so much beautiful art and sculpture and textile and fabric.
07:36So we have three other floors.
07:41And all the work here is all done by Nigeria.
07:45You see the Bini staff of office.
07:47All that bronze that was taken away from Nigeria comes from Bini kingdom.
07:53Yes, taken to London and Berlin.
07:54So they used this as a staff of office in Nido state, which is where the culture starts.
08:02So this is.
08:04Then the king, we wear the, we take this while the chiefs, we carry this one.
08:09This is the one with the king that I picked up.
08:12You are the queen.
08:13I am the queen.
08:14I am the queen.
08:14I can work with that.
08:16Yeah.
08:17It's the work of myself and my brother.
08:19What we are talking about is the family, traditional symbols.
08:26How the symbols talk to people.
08:29So this is the symbol that represents talking drums, sending the message through the drum.
08:34And this one is a cycle of life.
08:36When a child is born, a child grows, a child becomes an adult.
08:41The same child you born is the one coming back to look after you.
08:50Mamanike made her name above all as a pioneering textile artist.
08:55And she's a champion of adire, a traditional method of dyeing fabric revered by Nigerians of Yoruba heritage.
09:02Adire means tie and dye.
09:04And the dye used is the vibrant indigo from fermented elu leaf.
09:11Adire is the textile that the whole Nigeria is doing.
09:17It's called adi, are.
09:20So adire is passion from one generation to another generation.
09:26You're still using the traditional process to do it.
09:29Yes.
09:29Why is that important to you?
09:31Well, it's always good to take something from the earth and put it back into the earth without any chemicals.
09:37No.
09:37Without any chemicals.
09:39So the traditional one is dying off.
09:42And the only way to keep it alive for this young generation who are the face of Nigeria
09:48is to be teaching them the traditional way.
09:50So they don't do it because of the big money.
09:53But they do it to keep the culture.
09:56Because it's our culture, it's our heritage.
09:59We must not allow it to die.
10:00Yes.
10:01It's beautiful.
10:06Mamanike has preserved traditions, but it's potential for change and reinvention that drives Nigeria's growth.
10:14Adire is being repurposed as a must-have fashion accessory.
10:18With materials like this in abundance, it's little wonder Lagos Fashion Week is the largest fashion event in Africa.
10:29Every October, the fashion world flocks to see enterprising Nigerian designers' new collections.
10:37And daring designs that style superstars like Beyonce.
10:46With his label Lagos Space Program, Adeju Thompson is blazing a trail.
10:54With designs that hark back to more traditional, gender-fluid forms of clothing.
11:04Adeju!
11:05Hey!
11:06So good to meet you!
11:06So good to meet you!
11:07Oh my god, you look amazing!
11:09Thank you!
11:10Thank you so much!
11:12Oh, thank you for inviting us here!
11:13My pleasure, my pleasure.
11:14Tell me what you're wearing!
11:16Impossible!
11:17Thank you so much for wearing some of my work.
11:19This is some of my adire trousers.
11:22I love the colour-blocking as well.
11:23Thank you!
11:24The jersey is from the new official Nigerian jersey and I designed the adire for it.
11:28The new Nigerian national football jersey?
11:30Yeah, exactly, yeah.
11:31Thank you so much!
11:32That's big!
11:33That is gorgeous!
11:35So you are dressing the national team!
11:37Yes, thank you so much.
11:39That must make you feel proud.
11:40Even I feel proud and I'm not even Nigerian.
11:46Wow!
11:47I told you this is the Lego Space Program HQ.
11:49This is the Lego Space Program.
11:50Yeah, this is where we make our work, do all of our research and design development and
11:55everything, yeah.
11:55I really feel like a strong sense of your aesthetic in here.
11:58Thank you so much!
11:58Yes, I try to...
11:59The plants and the light and the textile.
12:01I try to make it very personal, like a space where I can really thrive, really create
12:04and flourish.
12:06I feel that.
12:07Thank you so much.
12:07You did say you might let me try on one of your pieces.
12:11I want you to try on...
12:13This is a dress I want you to try on.
12:17This is lace, you know.
12:20Oh, that's so pretty.
12:20It's like a French lace.
12:21I found this 100 year old lace company in New York and they sourced out lace from there.
12:25It's like really, really beautiful.
12:27I love the cutout.
12:28You could also try some of the adoré pieces if you're interested, like the alocasia skirt.
12:32I love that.
12:33It looks teeny, but...
12:35No, it's like a rough skirt, so it's kind of expandable.
12:38Yeah, yeah, exactly.
12:39Okay.
12:40Be right back!
12:46Oh, wow.
12:47What do you think?
12:48It looks really great on you.
12:49I love this triangle.
12:50It feels so light and comfortable.
12:52So it's went from like 100% silk.
12:54Oh, it's beautiful.
12:55Thank you so much.
12:56It's even more gorgeous to wear than it is to look at.
12:59Yeah.
12:59It's so delicate, but also feels very contemporary and edgy.
13:04So where did you get the idea?
13:05It's such an unusual shape.
13:07It's quite interesting because I actually started from when I was in fashion school in
13:10the UK and I got like a jacket and I deconstructed it.
13:14That's where the shape came from.
13:15And it's something I've been like, you know, exploring ever since.
13:18I call it the venture vest.
13:19It's like something you can wear and just go out and, you know.
13:23I love the like different layers and lengths as well.
13:30Definitely getting into this.
13:33These have been very popular in Japan and it's really nice to like get that support.
13:36Do men wear these as well?
13:37Yes, yes.
13:38It's genderless, so both men and women.
13:40Yeah, I can see that.
13:41I can see it being really cool.
13:42It has a double sided zip.
13:44I think it looks way more interesting when you sort of like, you know.
13:46You open it up.
13:47Yeah, exactly.
13:47So you could even like go like that too.
13:49Yeah.
13:49You want to try some more?
13:50You can try on the bomber jacket.
13:52Oh, I would love that.
13:53Yeah.
13:57You really like to work with silk as well.
13:59I do.
13:59I like to like, I really like, I like nice things.
14:03What would you say is your most popular piece?
14:05I would say like what you're wearing, the slab coats are very, very popular.
14:10This?
14:10Yeah, everyone wants one.
14:11Because something you can just like, like a duster, you can just like show it on whatever
14:14you're wearing.
14:16Yeah.
14:16Such a cool look.
14:17Yeah.
14:18And you can like dress it up.
14:19Yeah, dress it up.
14:20Yeah, exactly.
14:21Exactly, exactly.
14:23Would you like to try to make some adoré?
14:24Me?
14:25Yeah, sure.
14:26Let's try an adoré.
14:28I don't want to mess up.
14:29This is incredible.
14:29No problem.
14:30No problem.
14:30Have a seat.
14:32Aviv looks a bit skeptical.
14:35Understandably.
14:36A duree is created by delicately applying cassava paste to cloth using a chicken feather.
14:44The indigo dyes will be absorbed by the rest of the cloth, leaving behind swirling patterns
14:49and Adeju's intricate designs.
14:52This is the chicken feather.
14:53Yeah, chicken feather.
14:54You hold it like this.
14:55Okay.
14:56Like this?
14:56Yeah.
14:58Yeah.
14:59Okay.
14:59Do it like this.
15:03This middle.
15:04So you're kind of dabbing it.
15:06Okay.
15:07Okay.
15:08Do this one.
15:10Like this.
15:12You're going to become an adoré artist.
15:15It's actually really soothing.
15:19You know like how people use coloring in to like calm anxiety?
15:23Yeah.
15:25Yeah.
15:26This thing is quite hard to use.
15:27I know.
15:28I know.
15:28It looks a lot easier than it is.
15:30Yeah.
15:30It's a lot of...
15:31Habib has been...
15:32Habib makes it look...
15:33I've been making adoré since he was a child, a toddler.
15:35So he has like...
15:36From what age?
15:37Since he was five.
15:43Five years.
15:44Yes.
15:45Like if you were to sell this, does the value reflect the amount of labor and...
15:51Yes, yes, yes.
15:51Because like this is the fabric we're working on is like 100% silk.
15:55You know, the craftsmanship and the time.
15:58A lot of work and everything.
15:59So the adoré things, they start to sell like a quite premium price.
16:03It's the quality and craftsmanship that you're buying.
16:04Yeah, yeah.
16:05And the story as well.
16:05Yeah, exactly.
16:06So like this skirt that I'm wearing, how much does it sell for?
16:08That skirt would be about $400, $450, yeah.
16:12I mean, I can think of less well-produced pieces that go for more.
16:18What about in Nigeria?
16:20Do you find more appreciation for this outside the country?
16:23No, I think actually with adoré, there's something about Nigerians in adoré where we just...
16:27I think maybe it's the indigo.
16:29There's something very magnetic about adoré, and people just love it in Nigeria.
16:32So there's a...
16:34Actually when you're doing things in adoré, people...
16:36Nigerians are very appreciative of it.
16:38And really appreciative of the fact that Lagos Space Program is moving the commission with adoré forward.
16:43You know, and I think what also abroad too, I think people find it very interesting.
16:47Yeah.
16:47You know, they find my research around like adoré as a queer archive very fascinating.
16:51And it's really...
16:52I'm really happy to get that attention for it, you know.
16:58I have a huge amount of respect for Adeju.
17:01It takes a lot of courage to do what he does.
17:04To really pour your authentic self into your work.
17:07To be obsessive about preserving tradition and honouring the culture it comes from.
17:12And you feel it when you wear his pieces.
17:14They feel so soothing on your skin.
17:18There's a richness that you almost embody in your stature when you're wearing them.
17:22So I think it's just inspiring to see how an artist like him is taking his heritage and turning it
17:29into something very tangible.
17:30And actually very accessible to cultures across the world.
17:33But so rooted in his Yoruba traditions here in Nigeria.
17:40The point about fashion is you have to flaunt it.
17:44And with over 250 ethnic groups across Nigeria.
17:48All with their own styles and customs.
17:50There is fierce competition to be seen.
17:58Of course there's nowhere better to promote yourself and celebrate your story than at a wedding.
18:06Weddings are a huge tradition in Nigeria.
18:08And now exploding on social media.
18:11It's not unusual for a Nigerian wedding to last several days with thousands of guests.
18:17For new brides like Chioma.
18:20Marrying into families of different heritage.
18:22The outfit choices are all important.
18:25Good and you. I'm fine thank you.
18:28Congratulations.
18:29Thanks on your engagement.
18:31So most people in most cultures I think find planning a wedding expensive, stressful.
18:36But here in Nigeria you're doing it twice.
18:39So I mean this is for the white wedding.
18:41How do you approach them both?
18:45Is it quite a different process for the white wedding than for the traditional?
18:49Yes.
18:50So for the traditional it's more culturally focused than the white wedding.
18:54And so you have to like think about the traditions, what you need to do on that day to honour
19:00both cultures.
19:01Because I am Igbo, but my fiancé's mum is Yoruba.
19:05And my mum also is not even Igbo as well.
19:08So she's from the north.
19:09So we have like three major cultures that we're implementing into the traditional wedding.
19:14Are you going to get changed?
19:15Yes.
19:18I know, I know.
19:20So two outfits for the traditional wedding.
19:23So you haven't found your bridal gown yet.
19:26You're still looking for the one.
19:27Yes, I am.
19:28What are you looking for in your wedding dress?
19:31Simple but elegant.
19:33I don't like something too crazy.
19:35Okay.
19:36I just want to look like a very simple classy bride.
19:38That's really the look I'm going for.
19:40Okay.
19:41I think of all things Nigerian wedding as very extravagant and extra.
19:46So I wasn't expecting so simple.
19:48So I get that say loss actually.
19:49Because my traditional wedding outfits are a bit over the top.
19:53Okay.
19:53Because it's traditional wedding.
19:55And so I thought for the white wedding I would have something very simple.
19:58Like me.
19:59More me.
19:59Have you chosen this traditional wedding cloth and designs?
20:03Yes I have.
20:04And it's like super colourful and just like super loud.
20:07So for the white wedding I just want something very simple and just classy.
20:12Yeah.
20:13So typically I would look at like a dress like this and say it's too covered for me.
20:19Yeah.
20:19I want something that would flatter my clavicle.
20:23Maybe like a beautiful deep V.
20:25Yeah.
20:25Something like that.
20:26Off shoulder dress.
20:27Off shoulder type dress.
20:28I love that.
20:29You have such a gorgeous shape.
20:31So you want to like show that off.
20:33Yes.
20:33Yes.
20:34Oh.
20:36This is like.
20:37Wow.
20:37That's cool.
20:39That's like an off the shoulder.
20:40Yes.
20:41Off the shoulder dress.
20:42That's pretty.
20:43Okay.
20:45Great.
20:46We'll let you go.
20:48Okay.
20:48See how it looks.
20:52I've been to weddings from a few different African nationalities.
20:56And I think it's safe to say that it's a really important ritual and cultural event everywhere on the continent.
21:02But there is something about Nigeria.
21:04Last year, this country hosted the biggest wedding convention on the entire African continent with thousands of guests.
21:12Nigerian weddings are becoming social.
21:15I think enjoy seeing something that's just so joyful, celebratory and excessive in the way that I guess all the
21:23best celebrations are.
21:27Wow.
21:29Wow.
21:30Wow.
21:32Chioma, you look stunning.
21:35Wow.
21:37I don't even know I'm speechless.
21:41Should I take this one?
21:45Oh, you're beaming.
21:47That's so lovely.
21:55With the white gown sorted, it's time to check on the traditional outfits, including one of Yoruba Indigo.
22:05She's ready.
22:09Oh, wow.
22:13Looks amazing.
22:15Stunning.
22:17A whole different look.
22:19Yes.
22:21Stunning.
22:22How do you feel?
22:24Can I feel it?
22:25Yes.
22:25Yes.
22:27Oh, wow.
22:28It's so structured.
22:29Yes.
22:30I love the details.
22:31So you made this?
22:32Mm-hmm.
22:33Wow.
22:34So much skill with the folds, the pleats.
22:38The pleats.
22:40You can really tell it was made for you.
22:42Yes.
22:42I know.
22:42How do you feel?
22:44I feel amazing.
22:46I didn't really expect Ashokate to be this soft, but it feels very soft and structured and made for me.
22:53Yeah, it looks amazing and it complements my skin, too.
22:56And it's such a traditional Yoruba.
22:58Yes.
22:58I feel like such a Yoruba bride.
23:00It makes me look beautiful.
23:02You're welcome.
23:05You're welcome.
23:06You're welcome, Chioma.
23:17Nigerians certainly know how to throw a party.
23:19Chioma's is captured on social media with the highest production values.
23:25You get a sense that this wedding is not just about celebrating the big day for the couple,
23:29but about showcasing tradition and heritage in a very 21st century way.
23:41Brash, fast changing, with big characters, the drama of life here is a rich subject for writers,
23:48and the Nigerian book scene is booming.
23:53Many authors write in English, which means there is a wild market open to their books.
24:00I was armed with millions of smiles, apologetic smiles, pity me smiles.
24:05I look unto God's smiles.
24:08Name all the fake smiles needed to get through an afternoon with a group of people who claim to want
24:14the best for you
24:15while poking at your open saw with a stick.
24:19And I had them ready.
24:24Ayobami Adebayo is an award-winning author and rising star of the Lagos literary scene.
24:30Her novel, Stay With Me, about Nigerian family life, love and loss, is a bestseller, translated into 18 languages.
24:40Ayobami's work wryly observes Nigeria's turbulent times.
24:44And I hope she can take me closer to understanding what's so special about her country.
24:50Writing that was, I guess, in some way an attempt to try to understand.
24:57Because I do think writing helps me to make sense of the world in some ways.
25:01I read somewhere you saying that you're obsessed with making sense of your country.
25:05Ah, yes.
25:06Which was really reassuring for me because I was like, oh, well, if you haven't made sense of it yet,
25:11I feel better about the fact that I haven't.
25:13Yeah.
25:14As an outsider.
25:15Yeah.
25:16But is it that curiosity or need to make sense of your world that's really driving your writing?
25:22Absolutely.
25:23So, for instance, with Stay With Me, part of it was Nigeria in the 1980s to the 1990s, into the
25:311990s.
25:32And trying to understand that time through the perspective of a young couple that was living through all the things
25:42that were happening in Nigeria at that time politically in particular.
25:45And the military regimes and changes of leadership, they really figure large as a backdrop in the novel.
25:51Absolutely.
25:52It's a very complex country.
25:54It's obviously very, very large and very, very diverse and with a very complicated history.
26:03From its formation until now, it's probably a nation of many nations.
26:08And that mix is very complex and it's constantly changing.
26:15Most of the most famous Nigerian authors from past eras have been men.
26:21We all know Chinua Achebe and Wole Shinka.
26:23But it feels that this is an era in which women are really becoming a dominant force in Nigeria and
26:30world because Nigeria is such a big power in world literature now and in world literature.
26:34Do you feel part of a phenomenon where women are really taking their rightful place on the literary scene?
26:41I guess I am. I think that when I'm writing, I have to sort of in some way, in the
26:50moment of creation, be isolated from that.
26:54In my own mind, it has to be me and the page.
26:57But definitely when the books come out and then you have to start talking about them, I definitely feel like
27:05I'm part of that tradition.
27:07Ayubami has such grace and poise. She really is a writer I look up to.
27:12And it's just so interesting to hear her talk about her process and her inspiration, which is so creative, but
27:19also very firmly grounded in the social and political reality here.
27:22I can see how that's just fed her work, her literature, her mission to write these stories that make people
27:28think differently.
27:29I think that's one of the most valuable things a writer can do is really change the way we think
27:33about ourselves and the world around us.
27:38That world has been changing fast since oil was discovered here in 1956. Oil is Nigeria's biggest export.
27:47A source of economic power for the Nigerian government, it's brought huge wealth to multinational corporations, though rarely to ordinary
27:55Nigerians living close to the oil fields.
28:04I'm heading southeast to the oil region of the Niger Delta, where I'm meeting George Osodi.
28:09He's an award-winning photographer who's documented the recent history of the Delta.
28:26Looking through some of his photos, I'm really getting a sense of the wrenching change brought about by the extraction
28:32of oil here.
28:33George chronicles the stories of ordinary people living cheap by jowl with the industry, the conflicts, and the natural beauty.
28:52The Niger Delta region is the goose that lays the golden egg. This is where the bulk of the resources
29:00that sustain this country comes from.
29:02So it's extremely very important. However, that is just a finite resource that the region is blessed with.
29:13We've got massive water waves, massive swamps and forests that could attract tourism on a much more industrial scale.
29:27I mean, just looking around, even here, where it's quite polluted and you can really see it's so underdeveloped, it's
29:35beautiful.
29:36It's the water, the greenery, it's lush mangroves.
29:40Yes, it is lush.
29:41The way things grow. Stunning landscape.
29:44Again, there are still a lot of dirt around in the midst of the beauty. There's the oil mess in
29:49between the space as well.
29:50You can't forget the oil. You're in this incredible natural environment and then suddenly you see these really industrial ships,
29:58when you see the oil rigs as well. What's it been like taking photographs here over the years?
30:04It's been a kind of honor for me and I feel so delighted that I was opportune to be a
30:11part of the generation that's made photographs of this region.
30:20Today, George is capturing a different aspect of Delta life.
30:23Because for centuries before oil was found here, the Delta was home to ancient lines of kings.
30:30And George has been commissioned to take official portraits of someone who straddles both worlds.
30:50The new king of Wari, Ogiyame Atuwadze III, used to work in the oil industry.
30:57Now he's inherited the throne following the death of his uncle.
31:01Today, royal ritual mixes with digital photography and PR.
31:19So right now, George is taking a portrait of the king.
31:23We had to formally introduce ourselves, prostrate, ask his permission, which he very generously granted.
31:35George prepares his equipment and captures how citizens of Wari come to see the king,
31:41to request his blessing on business matters.
31:52That feels like the kind of request that weren't for the king he would probably make by email.
31:56Would you support this new institute and attend this launch event?
32:00Because it's the king, they have to come in person, wait around, present their gift, listen to his response.
32:09The posts were posed over his majesty.
32:11And now await what they would have awaited in the first place, which is an email and response.
32:16Kind of fascinating.
32:26It's a striking mix of ancient and modern.
32:29A young king who's lived part of his adult life in America,
32:32but who still cares deeply about the symbolism of kingship in Nigeria.
32:39So you have recently been crowned king of Wari.
32:44Can I ask what this role and the traditions it embodies mean to you personally?
32:53The king is sort of like the bridge.
32:55You know, you're supposed to be able to navigate.
32:58You see all.
33:00They refer to the king as ekun.
33:02It's kind of like the door.
33:04You see outside, you see inside at the same time.
33:06In that sense, you are a source of inspiration, leadership.
33:12It's a natural rallying point for all things societal, economical, political, cultural, traditional.
33:26It covers a lot.
33:35Coming away from the Delta, I found it a place of almost bewildering extremes.
33:41Tradition, but also upheaval.
33:44Oil fueling Nigeria's economy, but generating a wealth that hasn't trickled down.
33:50Nigeria is a country of extremes.
33:53Over 40% of the people live below the poverty line.
33:58Sometimes unrest has erupted.
34:00But the political establishment has violently put down direct challenges to its power.
34:06So Nigerians have turned to music to get their message out.
34:11Music is the weapon. Music is the thing of the future. Music is the weapon of the future.
34:22In the 1960s, during Nigeria's civil war, music became a popular form of protest.
34:28A new genre emerged that blended Africa's musical traditions with American jazz and funk.
34:36Afrobeats.
34:37Its greatest exponent was Fela Kuti.
34:44The new Africa Shrine is a music venue dedicated to his legacy.
35:00I was expecting a club, but this is more than a club. This is like a festival venue.
35:09You feel like you could fit 2,000 or 3,000 people in here.
35:13And from what I hear, they do come.
35:19You can see the whole spirit of this family all over the walls.
35:22Pictures of different generations, performances, other musicians who've inspired them.
35:28It's really a Kuti headquarters, and you feel that.
35:33Fela Kuti was all about the underprivileged.
35:37He was really trying to be the voice of people who'd be left behind by the political leadership, by the
35:44economic growth.
35:46You see it in Lagos everywhere.
35:47And he was about telling the truth about their experience.
35:51So, this place feels really in keeping with that.
35:54They haven't created some elite, removed, luxury venue that only the rich can come to.
35:59They've created a place that's for everyone.
36:01And it actually feels like everyone comes in.
36:18Two generations later, Fela's grandson, Made Kuti, is performing on this legendary music stage.
36:31I was so mad at this.
36:33Oh, please.
36:37That was so beautiful.
36:41Even though your grandfather and father were such superstars, the Afrobeat scene has transformed in reason.
36:49It's become maybe the dominant mainstream music genre in the world.
36:54Very much so, yeah.
36:55It's been incredible to see.
36:56It's what I think is the perfect commercialization of the kind of music that represents Nigeria.
37:05It's not necessarily political.
37:06It's not necessarily about instrumentation and live performances, but it caters to the commercial scene.
37:14And I think that's what I've always wanted Afrobeat to do.
37:18It should be able to spread into every single avenue, like in classical music or in jazz.
37:22Everybody should have a version of Afrobeat that caters to them.
37:27And that's what's happening, I think.
37:30There's incredible musicianship across the African continent.
37:33Very much so.
37:34Why is Nigeria, though, the superpower?
37:39With music, from Fela and Femi and you to Davido and Burner Boy, is it impossible to ignore the power
37:48of Nigerian musicians globally at the moment?
37:51Yes.
37:51I think it often starts from a crucial point.
37:58And I think maybe that crucial point for us was Fela.
38:00I don't think there were many musicians that were as daring as he was while he was alive.
38:08And as brutally honest in terms of the kind of individual he wanted to be.
38:13Being anti-establishment, being pan-Africanist.
38:16And then spending his life consistently building on that narrative for himself.
38:22And then going around the world and spreading that message.
38:25If it continues like this, there will be so many sub-genres of Afrobeat that it will be as explored
38:33as other genres of music.
38:34And I wonder what it will sound like, you know, 50 years from now.
38:37So that's what Fela started.
38:42Do not be afraid to question government, religion, the status quo.
38:50Fela Kuti pioneered more than just a new music genre.
38:54He gave an example to generations of young Nigerians to make music with a message.
39:00And challenge convention and authority with their words.
39:15In the 21st century, hip-hop and rap have allowed artists to follow Fela's example.
39:21Putting a spotlight on the challenges they see young Nigerians face.
39:25And the medical facilities are both.
39:27We operate a predatory neo-colonial capitalist system.
39:32Which is finally…
39:33Carrying on the tradition is Fels the bad guy.
39:36An award-winning rapper and qualified lawyer.
39:40Institutionalist.
39:41Many criminal cases are settled in police stations.
39:44I'm dating again.
40:12In the presence of greatness.
40:14Yes.
40:16Your video, This is Nigeria, went absolutely viral.
40:19Yeah.
40:20And it was such a powerful depiction of the problems facing Nigeria.
40:25Why did you decide to make that?
40:27I thought it was necessary.
40:29It still is necessary.
40:31It's always going to be necessary.
40:32As long as all these things are happening.
40:35I had to shed light on everything that's happening.
40:39And, you know, I wanted to do it in a way that was vivid.
40:42The way that it was in your face.
40:45Very clear.
40:45Very unapologetic.
40:48You know.
40:49As a viewer, you can't shy away from it.
40:51You can't shy away from it.
40:52It's right there.
40:52It's in your face.
40:53And I'm very literal.
40:55With every single lyric on that record.
40:57I'm very literal.
40:59This is Nigeria.
41:01Praise and worship is singing out.
41:03Pastor put his hand on the breast of his member.
41:05He's pulling the demon out.
41:07This is Nigeria.
41:09No electricity daily.
41:11Young people are still working multiple jobs and they talk to say we lazy.
41:16This is Nigeria.
41:16In 2020, amid the backlash against George Floyd's murder at the hands of American police, protests also erupted in Nigeria.
41:25Aimed at the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, or SARS, for its brutal tactics.
41:30The End SARS movement was born.
41:33Tens of thousands of young Nigerians took to the streets in protest.
41:38Resulting in violent clashes with police in which dozens of protesters were killed.
41:46Now more than ever, Nigerians are alert.
41:50Nigerians are alive.
41:52You know, Nigerians want to do more to change the state of affairs.
41:56Now it's like, we have been frustrated.
42:00People want to determine their future.
42:03You know, everyone wants a better life.
42:05This is not life.
42:08You know, what's there to be afraid of anymore?
42:10So no one should be invested in the status quo.
42:12It's failing everyone.
42:13No one should be afraid for their life.
42:17Yeah.
42:17Because what kind of life are you living anyway?
42:21But it also does make me wonder whether the extreme adversity of life here is also what has helped so
42:27many Nigerian creatives to be so influential.
42:30Because as you said, if you can make it here, you can make it here.
42:33It's super competitive.
42:35Yeah.
42:35So that naturally gives you that sort of air about you that, you know, that feeling like you always want
42:40to compete.
42:40So wherever you find yourself, you want to be the best.
42:42And even the style of education, yeah, they're already breeding that competition.
42:49They rank you in all of your performance and class.
42:51They rank you.
42:51Yes, they rank you.
42:52I've heard about this.
42:53Ah, my dear.
42:54Your parents will go.
42:55I remember so vividly, so vividly.
42:58I don't know if it was like nursery or very early primary.
43:01I was super young.
43:02So I remember there was a time when I came 52nd position out of 54 people in class.
43:10There were 54 people in your class?
43:1154 people in my class.
43:12Wow.
43:12And I was 52nd.
43:14My mom was broken.
43:16I remember she cried.
43:18She wept.
43:19Real tears.
43:20Real tears.
43:21And I felt so bad.
43:22Wow.
43:23So I'm just remembering that as a kid.
43:25And you know that going back to school, I can't afford to be 50 something again.
43:31What number were you after that?
43:32I came back.
43:32I think next, next time I was like fourth.
43:35Wow.
43:35That's quite a transformation.
43:36There was a significant improvement.
43:38That competitive spirit is being bred super early here.
43:42It's very noticeable because Nigerians are overrepresented at excellence everywhere.
43:48Whether you look at Ivy League, they are the most successful immigrant group in America
43:53now.
43:53Yeah.
43:53In the UK, so many of the most thriving creatives.
43:58Overrepresented everywhere.
44:00And it's, you know, it's always going to be, be, be like this and like that because
44:03on the flip side, you know, there's also a huge amount of Nigerians known for committing
44:10fraud, for example.
44:12Yeah.
44:12You know, yeah, you know, obviously it's not a thing that we're proud of, but I'm just
44:16saying if this is the state of affairs, they will go all out.
44:20They will find a way.
44:21And it's also like, you know, I'm in this situation where I don't have anything.
44:26So it's by any means necessary.
44:29You know, if more was actually done, you know, especially by the government, there wouldn't
44:33be as many people in crime.
44:35Of course not.
44:35You know, this, this genius.
44:37Yeah.
44:38That you're investing into this thing.
44:40So criminal.
44:40Yeah.
44:41You could invest it into anything else and be so successful at it.
44:44Yeah.
44:44Because it's genius that they're using to do this thing.
44:46Yeah.
44:47It's very clever.
44:48It's very clever.
44:52I think FALS has given me an insight into the Nigerian dream, the key to the energy
44:58that's made this country Africa's number one economy.
45:02Young Nigerians creating something from nothing.
45:05Entrepreneurs raised in adversity, pushing themselves forward with a relentless work ethic,
45:10a literal do-it-yourself culture.
45:14I used to live my life a quarter mile at a time.
45:19But things changed.
45:22My father now, I will always be in your heart.
45:29Why let a little thing like no money, background, or contacts get in your way?
45:34An hour outside central Lagos, a family of young filmmakers is taking on Hollywood with
45:40nothing to rely on but ingenuity and talent.
45:44Hey, look out the window.
45:45The Okorudu boys have become viral sensations for their joyful and funny recreations of the
45:52biggest blockbuster trailers lovingly produced in their backyard.
45:57I'm done, Mike.
45:57I'm a bit tired.
45:58Uh-oh.
45:59Here we go again.
45:59You want your legacy to be muscle shirts and body counts?
46:10Hi.
46:11How are you?
46:16Hi.
46:17Hi.
46:18Nice to meet you.
46:19Nice to see you.
46:21Wow, you guys.
46:22Thank you for having me here at your home.
46:24This is where a lot of my favorite action scenes have been born.
46:28Those are car collections over there.
46:31You've made all of these.
46:33Yeah.
46:34I've seen this one flip over.
46:35Yeah.
46:38Oh, the Rolls Royce.
46:41You do a lot of filming in here.
46:43Some scene, yeah.
46:45So sometimes we go outside on the streets, you know, in our neighborhood.
46:48What do the neighbors think about all your movies you've been shooting here?
46:53Trust me, they're so proud of us.
46:55Everyone here knows what you're doing.
46:57Yeah.
46:57Yeah.
46:57Tell me how the idea started.
47:00Yeah, you know, big family, like, like 10, 12, you know, in the compound.
47:06So, you know, kids love make the things they see in the, in TV, you know, in movie and also.
47:13So, yeah, that just popped up in my head that instead of my siblings just doing this thing for fun
47:18at home, let me just take advantage of social media.
47:21You understand?
47:22You understand.
47:22So I thought of something.
47:24So I thought of something, recreating a scene.
47:25And our first video then was, you know, a video of, I think it was when Kanye West came to,
47:31um, Africa.
47:32So he was dancing to a Nigerian song.
47:35So, and the video trend all over.
47:37So actually it was just for fun.
47:39Did you ever imagine it would go viral?
47:42Trust me, no.
47:43A lot of work goes in because you can see the way you make vehicles, the way you plan the
47:48action scenes.
47:50We are recreating a movie scene, you know, and maybe there is like CGI in the film, green screen.
47:59But the thing is, we don't use those.
48:01You don't have access to that.
48:03So we create our own on the street.
48:05We create our own, in our own way.
48:13Tunde and his family are making their latest video, and I am honored to have been cast as an extra.
48:24So this is actually an actual shot.
48:27Now you have agents in America.
48:29You have so many people following you.
48:32Your videos get millions of views.
48:34Has it changed your lives?
48:36The way we are looking, our physical appearance, you can tell.
48:39Yeah.
48:40You know, unlike 2018 when we started, you know.
48:44So you can eat better food, buy nicer clothes.
48:47Exactly.
48:49And the video they've asked me to be an extra in couldn't be more apt.
48:53An African vision of Hollywood's vision of Africa.
48:57A trailer for the second Black Panther movie.
49:01Go.
49:06You guys should start walking.
49:08Forward.
49:10Thank you. Keep walking.
49:12Forward.
49:13Make that face.
49:14Like you're so angry.
49:17Then make the Wakanda sign. Thank you.
49:20That's right, dawg.
49:22You're right.
49:22We're gonna be all right.
49:23Do you hit me?
49:24Do you feel it?
49:25Do you hit me?
49:26Do you feel it?
49:27Do you feel it?
49:27Do you feel it?
49:28All right.
49:28And when I wake up...
49:33Welcome to the family.
49:38I'm so impressed with the Okorujo boys.
49:41They just have so much self-belie.
49:45They come from this underprivileged, semi-rural suburb of Lagos.
49:52They don't have much, and what they have done with what they have
49:55has just reached millions of people.
49:58From Hollywood directors to kids in totally different cultures
50:03who are reimagining what they can do with their spare time
50:06and a few bits of junk they can turn into props.
50:09There's something I've seen over and over again in Nigeria,
50:12which is people articulating that the hardship and adversity
50:16of living in this country has spawned a hunger,
50:21a relentless work ethic, and an unimaginable creativity here.
50:27I really think that is the magic ingredient
50:29that is creating so many genius ideas in this country.
50:37Always bursting with ideas and creativity,
50:40from homegrown movies to major dramas,
50:43the Nigerian film industry is now the second largest in the world.
50:47They call it Nollywood.
50:49It started in the 1960s and now has an annual turnover
50:53of millions of dollars.
50:55It's ahead of Hollywood in the sheer number of its movies,
50:58over 2,500 being produced every year.
51:03I've been invited to take a peek behind the scenes of a new production
51:06where change is afoot because women are in charge.
51:12It's nighttime here in Lagos and I am about to come on the set
51:17of my very first Nollywood movie.
51:21I can't run a company.
51:23I'm a shop girl.
51:25With her role in the hit TV show Sugar
51:27and an African Academy Best Actress nomination,
51:31actress Jemima Osunde is a household name in Nigeria.
51:36I've come to see her on the set of her latest movie,
51:39The Reunion.
51:42Good evening, everyone.
51:44Oh, you must be Jemima.
51:46Hi.
51:47Oh my gosh, you're so beautiful.
51:49Oh, thank you.
51:49You too.
51:50Nice to meet you.
51:50So nice to meet you.
51:51Welcome to Lagos.
51:54So, where are we?
51:56We're filming a movie called The Reunion.
51:58Okay.
51:59And fortunately for us, we're filming the actual reunion tonight.
52:03So, we had to kindly borrow this location.
52:07It's a school, yeah.
52:09So, it's a school reunion.
52:10It's such a huge operation.
52:12Everyone's working hard.
52:13Everyone's working.
52:14They're still setting up.
52:15I haven't even seen where we're filming yet.
52:17So, they're still setting that up.
52:18And then when we finish makeup and I get dressed,
52:20I'll go in there to have a look at what they're doing.
52:24Nollywood's success and drive is getting noticed around the world.
52:27And major Netflix producers and American directors
52:30are keen to work with Nigerian talent.
52:35She's having some fruity conversations with her friends.
52:39Yeah.
52:39There's always like a couple that you just want to talk to.
52:41A couple, just a handful.
52:42So, this is my director.
52:43Michelle.
52:44Oh, hi.
52:45How are you doing?
52:46Nice to meet you.
52:47Thank you for having us on set.
52:48Oh, you're welcome.
52:49I'm so excited to be here.
52:50You know, one thing I really picked up being here
52:52is just how many people it takes to make a movie happen.
52:55I mean, the crew, the cast, the production, it's huge.
52:58It's huge.
52:59Has the industry changed in the years you've been here?
53:01Yeah, I mean, it's definitely changed.
53:03There are more female directors, which I love.
53:06Now we have more female producers
53:08and more females behind the different departments
53:10that you don't expect.
53:11You know, like gaffer.
53:14You know, I have a female gaffer on this set.
53:16And I love that.
53:17There's female DPs that are coming up now,
53:20which is like, it was unheard of a few years ago.
53:23So there's, you know, certain positions
53:24that you think it's male-dominated and tends to be.
53:26But females are now starting to get into it.
53:29And a lot of the big movies now in Nollywood
53:32are directed or produced by females.
53:35There's so much opportunity here,
53:36but there are still challenges.
53:38I mean, we've had power outages
53:39even since we've been here.
53:41How do you navigate that?
53:42The noise of generators, the traffic.
53:45It's not the easiest conditions
53:47to produce high-quality movies.
53:49Here in Africa, we have to deal with these kind of things.
53:51So it's an added cost to the budget,
53:53but we have to account for that.
53:54And then things like traffic,
53:56we know that, okay, we're not going to be,
53:57you know, jumping multiple locations every day.
54:00It's not going to be realistic
54:00because you know you're going to be in traffic
54:02for like an hour or two, three.
54:03You know, you're going to lose production time.
54:05So you have to be smart with the schedule.
54:07You have to be smart with the budget
54:10and just kind of work through it.
54:12Yes, we have challenges also, you know, in financing,
54:15but that has changed as well.
54:17More investors are coming into the industry to invest
54:19because they see how Nollywood is making money,
54:22not just here, but globally.
54:31Nigeria's exchange of ideas with the world isn't new.
54:34Many of the population emigrate at some point in their lives
54:37to find success abroad,
54:38and return later to give something back.
54:46Artist and sculptor Yinka Shonibare
54:48is a celebrated leading light in that Nigerian diaspora.
54:52Splitting his time between London and Lagos,
54:54he's led the way in using art to critique colonial attitudes
54:58and rethink the West's relationship with Africa.
55:05In Lagos, he's set up the gas foundation,
55:08a residency for artists and thinkers,
55:11to play a role, he hopes,
55:13in shifting Western attitudes towards African art.
55:19Many people around the world are ignorant, really,
55:23of what goes on in Africa.
55:24Some people have never been.
55:26I wanted to create an infrastructure for people to be able to go to Africa,
55:30and also so that local artists can also have, you know,
55:34exchanges with international artists as well.
55:37Some people might be surprised that an artist is so involved in not just thinking about creating space for art,
55:46but also creating opportunities for the local community.
55:49Everything that goes into it,
55:50you're being intentional about doing it in a way that is helping to leave a legacy in Nigeria.
55:57As an artist, I'm very politically aware and politically engaged,
56:02but it's one thing to do that in a gallery,
56:04and it's another thing to actually engage the community.
56:08You know, I'm African,
56:10and so as an African,
56:12community is very important.
56:14And so it's a community engagement with culture,
56:17you know,
56:18which is much broader than putting something in a posh gallery,
56:22and only a few people can go in there.
56:24I want people to be able to participate in it.
56:27So just doing an elitist, middle-class artist residency
56:31is not really doing the job.
56:33You know, that doesn't really work for me.
56:37Yinka is a visionary,
56:39and what struck me here is that,
56:40like him,
56:41so many Nigerians have visions of a better future.
56:44A dream,
56:46and a way with words to sell it.
56:48I've met young people with a fearlessness to succeed
56:51that comes from hardship and adversity.
56:54Young creatives taking the best of old traditions
56:57and reinventing them for the 21st century.
57:00And young entrepreneurs in music and film
57:03using creativity to point out injustices
57:06and inspire change.
57:08It's a drive that has a flip side
57:11in the poverty on display in Lagos' streets.
57:13But what I've noticed is people have creative space.
57:17Here, fortune favours the brave.
57:21My time in Nigeria has come to an end.
57:24It's hard to really process
57:26how much creativity is bursting out of this country.
57:30And I don't want to sugarcoat it
57:32because there are a lot of problems here.
57:34Challenges because of poverty, security, infrastructure.
57:38And that's part of the story of our culture
57:40that so many people I've spoken to have said.
57:43That hustle, that hardship fuels them
57:47in wanting to change the experience,
57:50change their lives,
57:51change the conversation,
57:53change the perception.
57:54And that's what I have experienced
57:56as the joy and the uniqueness of Nigeria.
58:00It really is a place of exquisite ideas.
58:04And it's been such a privilege to be part of that.
58:08Next time, South Africa,
58:10the creativity of the townships,
58:13I'm a piano dance,
58:15the artistic potential of hair
58:16and black surf culture.
58:24It all began in a Michigan church.
58:26Now she's selling out stadiums.
58:28Love Lizzo.
58:29Press Red for her journey on BBC iPlayer.
58:32He lived through apartheid,
58:33a profile of South African artist William Kentridge.
58:36Imagine at 11 on BBC4.
58:38We're going to make享受 people.
58:40Let's get started.
58:42We're going to make a lot of 1963.
58:44We're going to make a lot of
58:44life reasons not to be reproduced.
58:47We're going to make a lot of
58:47physical 표ially not to be able
58:48and build a built up family building.
58:48You
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