{"id":332,"date":"2025-04-01T20:37:53","date_gmt":"2025-04-01T19:37:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/?p=332"},"modified":"2026-05-07T19:02:02","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T18:02:02","slug":"mazzi-odu-in-lagos-everything-is-possible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/2025\/04\/01\/mazzi-odu-in-lagos-everything-is-possible\/","title":{"rendered":"MAZZI ODU: \u201cIN LAGOS EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Writer, cultural critic, and passionate advocate for African creativity, Mazzi Odu is one of the most compelling voices shaping the narrative around fashion, design, and identity on the African continent. Whether through her longform blog\u00a0Magnus Oculus, her contributions to\u00a0Vogue\u00a0and\u00a0Wallpaper, or her growing work in children\u2019s literature, she consistently shines a light on talent, before the world catches on. We met her in Lagos, where her life, like the city itself, is constantly in motion.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

How did your journey as a writer begin?<\/em><\/strong>
I\u2019ve always loved storytelling, even as a child. But my first published work was quite unexpected: it was called\u00a0Heaven in Your Handbag, A Devotional for The Modern Woman. It was like throwing Bernard of Clairvaux, Thomas Aquinas and Carrie Bradshaw into a blender! That came out in 2007, after my master\u2019s degree. Then I went into a more conventional path: I worked in marketing communications for a bank, first in the UK, then I moved to Nigeria in 2009 for a job.<\/p>\n\n

What was your first impression of Lagos?<\/em><\/strong>
Complete sensory overload. The volume! I remember stepping off the plane and thinking, \u201cIs this a riot?\u201d But it wasn\u2019t\u2026 People were loud, but friendly. Coming from East Africa, where people are more reserved, that contrast hit me. And then the heat, the colors, the texture of the city. From the bright yellow buses to traditional fabrics like\u00a0adire, Lagos forces all of your senses to engage.<\/p>\n\n

Is it where fashion became more central to your work?<\/strong><\/em>
Definitely. I\u2019ve always loved clothes and craftsmanship. My mum\u00a0had an incredible jewelry collection. But Lagos was a turning point. I started noticing designers like\u00a0Lisa Folawiyo<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Tiffany Amber<\/a>, and when I eventually returned to London, I pitched a piece to\u00a0Harper\u2019s Bazaar\u00a0in 2012 profiling five African designers. This was before all the current interest in African fashion. That article marked a real shift for me.<\/p>\n\n

YWas that also when you launched your blog,\u00a0Magnus Oculus?<\/strong><\/em>
Yes, around 2016. I was tired of the short, 200-word format in fashion magazines. I wanted space to really explore creators\u2019 philosophies, practices, and contradictions. The blog allowed me to go deep:3,000-word profiles, long interviews. And it worked! People started reading, and commissions came in. I\u2019ve since written for\u00a0US Vogue,\u00a0British Vogue,\u00a0Wallpaper,\u00a0Elle\u2026<\/p>\n\n

You\u2019ve become a kind of talent scout: many of the designers you profile go on to international success.<\/strong><\/em>
It\u2019s true!\u00a0Kenneth Ize<\/a>,\u00a0Tokyo James<\/a>,\u00a0Lagos Space Programme<\/a>\u2026 I featured them on\u00a0Magnus Oculus, and then they became LVMH or CFDA finalists! I joke that I write about them before they blow up. But really, I see my role as amplification, using my access and platform to highlight what’s great.<\/p>\n\n

How would you describe Lagos?<\/em><\/strong>
It\u2019s like New York in that people come from everywhere with wild backstories. But once you\u2019re here, you\u2019re fully invested. It\u2019s a city of velocity and transformation. If Lagos were an outfit, it would be something dramatic, unapologetic\u2026a riot of colour or a bold silhouette. It commands the room.<\/p>\n\n

You’re also closely connected to the culinary scene. What\u2019s happening here right now?<\/em><\/strong>
In the past few years, a wave of Nigerian chefs returned after training abroad.\u00a0Michael Elegbede<\/a>, for instance, worked at Eleven Madison Park and The French Laundry before launching\u00a0\u00cct\u00e0n Test Kitchen\u00a0<\/a>in Lagos, where even Naomi Campbell and Kehinde Wiley have dined. It\u2019s elevated Nigerian cuisine: reimagined, seasonal, rooted in heritage. The street food scene is evolving too. Like fashion or literature, food culture here is dynamic and alive.<\/p>\n\n

Do you think Nigerian fashion is finally getting global recognition?<\/em><\/strong>
We\u2019ve had breakout stars. Tokyo James showed in Milan, Kenneth Ize in Paris. Victor Anate of\u00a0Vicnate<\/a>\u00a0is in high demand: Iman DMed him, Sabrina Elba wore him, Yvonne Orji too! He doesn\u2019t even have a showroom in Paris or London; people just find him. That\u2019s the magic of Lagos.<\/p>\n\n

What advice would you give a young designer in Lagos today?<\/em><\/strong>
Have a clear point of view. Don\u2019t imitate others; draw from your own story. The strongest brands, like Jacquemus or JW Anderson, create entire universes. You should too. Don\u2019t chase virality; build something real, something that resonates.<\/p>\n\n

What your favourite places in Lagos?<\/em><\/strong>
Definitely\u00a016 by 16<\/a>. It\u2019s a not-so-secret members club with a beautiful veranda overlooking the creek, zero-waste cocktails, rooms designed by Nigerian creatives. It\u2019s calm, immersive. And then\u00a0Ilashe Beach, for when you need to reconnect with the ocean and just breathe.<\/p>\n\n

What are you working on now?<\/em><\/strong>
I just published a children\u2019s book called\u00a0Get Rid of Your Phone, Mummy, inspired by life in Lagos. And I\u2019m still writing about Nigerian jewellery: designers using everything from recycled brass to fine gemstones, often with cultural symbolism. I love how luxury here is being reframed through our own gaze.<\/p>\n\n

Mazzi Odu\u2019s latest children\u2019s book,\u00a0Get Rid of Your Phone, Mummy, is available now. Her longform blog exploring African fashion, design and jewellery is online at:
magnusoculus.com<\/a>
@mazziodu<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Photos by\u00a0<\/em>Morgan Otagburuagu<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Writer, cultural critic, and passionate advocate for African creativity, Mazzi Odu is one of the most compelling voices shaping the narrative around fashion, design, and identity on the African continent. Whether through her longform blog\u00a0Magnus Oculus, her contributions to\u00a0Vogue\u00a0and\u00a0Wallpaper, or her growing…<\/p>\n

Read more\u2026MAZZI ODU: \u201cIN LAGOS EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":333,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"pgc_sgb_lightbox_settings":"","iawp_total_views":10,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,8,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-332","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fashion","category-lagos","category-uncategorized","ratio-3-2","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=332"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1196,"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332\/revisions\/1196"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/333"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citymagazine.city\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}