Splendour, Passion As Iconic Arise Fashion Week and Jazz Festival Ends Today in Lagos

Our Correspondents

The three-day iconic Arise Fashion Week and Jazz Festival ends today in Lagos with more exceptional designers from Africa and Africans in the Diaspora expected to showcase their skills amid jazz-themed performances.
The 2023 edition of the momentous show, marking its 20th anniversary with the theme, “Arise Fashion Week and Jazz Festival: Future Forward,” kicked off on Tuesday at Eko Hotel, Lagos with splendour.

On the opening day, a diverse set of world-class designers were on parade, including Pepper Row, Bloke, Mariya Sanusi, Ninie, Uni Form, Tolu Coker, Ti Nathan, Vicnate, Bianca Sunders and Nkwo.    

Also, runway goddess Naomi Campbell set the stage on fire on the opening day in the outfit of Mariya Sanusi, while multi-instrumentalist French Kiwi Juice (FKJ) further shut it down.
FKJ performed, providing an eclectic mix of jazz and electronic sounds that perfectly supplemented the array of runway shows from top local and international designers.

Yesterday, the second day of the show, Joy Meribe, Ameer by Ameer, Eki Kere, Mokodu Fall, Fruche, Ziza Lagos, Awa Meite, I.N Official, Kenneth Ize, and Ituen Basi, all top designers, thrilled the audience.
Campbell is expected back on stage today, with another set of world-class designers.
Designers expected to round off the show today are Lanre Da Silva Ajayi, Xuly Bet, Kadiju, Syari Bespoke, Selam Fessahaye, Hudayya, Ajabeng, Lisa Folawiyo, Olooh, and Tifanny Amber.

Wizkid, an ARISE Fashion Week favourite, will likewise take the stage today, the last day, for an unmissable performance following the release of his fifth studio album, More Love, Less Ego just months ago.
The afrobeats icon has performed at ARISE Fashion Week multiple times in his career, including ARISE Fashion Week 2019 and 2020’s “ARISE 30 Under 30” showcase.

Wizkid will be joined by jazz legend Herbie Hancock who will be performing in Lagos for the first time in his decades-long career.
The 82-year-old pianist and composer has been the mastermind of numerous prominent ‘jazz standards’ and hit singles such as “Cantaloupe Island”, “Maiden Voyage” and “Rockit”.

With 14 Grammys and an Oscar to his credit, Hancock Lagos debut at ARISE Fashion Week and Jazz Festival will certainly be one for the history books.
The 2023 Arise Fashion Week, the most explosive edition in the event’s long history, will be remembered as a celebration of African design and its progression over the years, as well as ARISE’s role in championing musical and design talents.
Since its inception, the pioneering fashion event has been held under various names. They included ARISE Magazine Fashion Week, ARISE Africa Fashion Week, and ultimately ARISE Fashion Week, which returned to Lagos in 2018 following a six-year break. Previous editions were held in Lagos, Abuja, New York, London, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Washington, D.C., and Dubai.

With its Future Forward theme, this year’s edition took its audience through an exciting journey filled with enlightening experiences, in celebration of African design and its progression over the years, as well as ARISE’s role in championing musical and design talents from the continent and beyond.
In all, 20 editions have been organised in top fashion and culture destinations across the world, from New York, Paris and Washington, D.C., to London, Cape Town and Abuja.

With a diverse range of jazz-infused talent and a plethora of design legends on display at the 2023 edition in Lagos, ARISE Fashion Week and Jazz Festival has proved once again that no one can provide both spectacle and substance the way ARISE does.
The ARISE Fashion Week runway has been graced by some of the most iconic models across the globe, including  Campbell, Alec Wek, Grace Jones, Oluchi Onweagba, Bethann Hardison, Tyson Beckford, Alton Mason, Imaan Hammam, Davidson Obennebo, and Nyagua Ruea; as well as music superstars such as Rihanna, Jay-Z, Wizkid, Asa, Tinie Tempah, Akon, Solange, and Mary J. Blige, who have performed for its eminent audience.