002: unbranded conversations with Lemi Ghariokwu

a trip down memory lane with Lemi into parts of Nigerian history, the civil war, embracing spirituality, colonialism, building his career, pricing his work, meeting Fela, and many things in between.

Dear You,

Many years ago, I moved to a new city to start life afresh, and one of the first people I met in my first months of moving was Lemi. I remember meeting Lemi in the Kalakuta Museum and speaking to him about so much. He loved my hair [which was a smaller afro in its growth stage]. We connected and shared stories, and somehow, almost a decade later, we built a solid friendship. We don’t always agree, but we respect each other’s views and trade thoughts.

For context, Lemi designed over 26 of Fela’s album covers. He holds the record for designing most of Fela Kuti’s album covers. Especially the very iconic ones [I know I am bias, but it’s true]. There’s a reason he is often referred to as the King of Covers. He is more popular with the new generation for his album cover design for Falz’s Moral Instruction. He is a global artist. But the title he is most proud of is his love for Africa. He prides himself in not being a revolutionary but an evolutionary. Lemi would probably never start a YouTube channel. I mean, he is on Instagram and Twitter, and in this conversation, he told me he is now on TikTok, but he won’t randomly put a camera in front of his face and start recording some of the things he said here. However, that shouldn’t stop us from knowing his history and thoughts. I mean, Lemi is a walking piece of history. So, I decided to put a camera in front of him to capture some of the conversations he would naturally have with me off-camera. Lemi and I can speak for hours non-stop. We’ve talked for 6 hours before. Interestingly, when I first thought of unbranded conversations, I tried doing an IG live version in 2022, and Lemi was one of my first guests. We spoke for 230 minutes, and it took a lot to get us to stop. He is a treasure trove of history.

In our usual fashion, every episode with a guest will be split into two parts. In this conversation specifically, he shares the secret of his youth, his civil war (Biafra) experience, changing his name the first time, his thoughts on religion and spirituality, his views on colonialism and race, the foundations of his career that led up to the moment he met Fela, and many things in between. My favourite thing about this conversation is that he transported me to times before my existence and gave me insight into when you could rent a house for 4 naira. I love the fact that he is an independent thinker. You may disagree with him, but this will at least get you to question your ideals, beliefs, and role in improving Africa. Somewhere in between, you might learn a new slang by Fela called “bend bend sleep”. Only people who watch this conversation in its entirety will ever really know the meaning.

This letter is way longer than it should be but you deserved to know. Grab a drink, click the video below, and be part of this conversation with Lemi. When you’re done, don’t forget to watch, share, and most importantly, start a conversation.

With Love,

Blessing Abeng

side bar: 3 updates

1. If you missed episode 1, catch up by clicking the link below:

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